AN INTRODUCTION TO

PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE
 AN INTRODUCTION TO
PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE
CANADIAN EDITION

Mark Krause Daniel Corts

Southern Oregon University Augustana College

Stephen Smith Dan Dolderman

University of Winnipeg University of Toronto

Toronto
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10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 [CKV]

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

Krause, Mark A. (Mark Andrew), 1971–, author

An introduction to psychological science : modeling scientific literacy/
Mark Krause, Southern Oregon University, Daniel Corts, Augustana
College, Stephen Smith, University of Winnipeg, Dan Dolderman, University
of Toronto.—Canadian edition.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-13-292450-4 (bound)

1. Psychology—Textbooks. I. Corts, Daniel Paul, 1970–, author

II. Smith, Stephen D. (Stephen Douglas), 1974–, author III. Dolderman,
Dan, 1972–, author IV. Title.

BF121.K73 2014 150 C2013-907851-7

ISBN 978-0-13-292450-4
 To my partner in life, Andrea Krause.
And many thanks to Gordon Burghardt and
Michael Domjan for instilling in me a
passion for science and discovery.
Mark Krause

To Kim, Sophie, and

Jonah . . . for everything.
Dan Corts

To my wonderful wife, Jenn, and

our amazing children, Oliver
and [Link] you for
putting up with me.
Stephen Smith

To my partner, Safa Ali, who is my unfailing

support and inspiration toward [Link]
my children, Alexandra, Kate, and Geoff,
who love this world so deeply. And
of course, to Steve, without whom
this textbook would never
have gotten finished!
Dan Dolderman
Brief Contents
From the Authors xix
Content and Features xx
What’s New in the Canadian Edition? xxviii
For Instructors xxix
Acknowledgments xxxv

1:: Introducing Psychological Science 1

2:: Reading and Evaluating Scientific Research 30
3:: Biological Psychology 74
4:: Sensation and Perception 130
5:: Consciousness 180
6:: Learning 225
7:: Memory 269
8:: Thought and Language 313
9:: Intelligence Testing 351
10:: Lifespan Development 391
11:: Motivation and Emotion 443
12:: Personality 491
13:: Social Psychology 537
14:: Health, Stress, and Coping 585
15:: Psychological Disorders 623
16:: Therapies 669
Answer Key ANS-1
Glossary G-1
References R-1
Credits C-1
Name Index NI-1
Subject Index SI-1

vii
 Contents

From the Authors xix

Content and Features xx 2 READING AND
What’s New in the Canadian Edition? xxviii EVALUATING SCIENTIFIC
For Instructors xxix
Acknowledgments xxxv
RESEARCH 30

Module 2.1 :: Principles

of Scientific Research 31
1 INTRODUCING Five Characteristics of Quality Scientific Research 32
PSYCHOLOGICAL Scientific Measurement: Objectivity, Reliability,
and Validity 32
SCIENCE 1
Generalizability of Results 34
Sources of Bias in Psychological Research 35
Module 1.1 :: The Science
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Demand
of Psychology 2
Characteristics and Participant Behaviour 36
The Scientific Method 3
Techniques That Reduce Bias 38
Hypotheses: Making Predictions 3
Psych @ The Hospital: The Placebo Effect 38
Theories: Explaining Phenomena 4
Sharing the Results 39
The Biopsychosocial Model 5
Replication 40
Quick Quiz 1.1a 5
Quick Quiz 2.1a 40
Building Scientific Literacy 6
Five Characteristics of Poor Research 40
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Quick Quiz 2.1b 42
How We Learn and Remember 7
Module Summary 43
Critical Thinking, Curiosity, and a Dose of Healthy Skepticism 9
Myths in Mind: Abducted by Aliens! 10 Module 2.2 :: Scientific Research Designs 44
Quick Quiz 1.1b 10
Descriptive Research 45
Module Summary 11 Case Studies 45
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Module 1.2 :: How Psychology Became a Science 12
Case Studies as a Form of Scientific Research 46
Psychology’s Philosophical and Scientific Origins 13
Naturalistic Observation 47
Influences from the Ancients: Philosophical Insights into Behaviour 13
Surveys and Questionnaires 48
Influences from Physics: Experimenting with the Mind 14
Quick Quiz 2.2a 49
Influences from Evolutionary Theory: The
Correlational Research 49
Adaptive Functions of Behaviour 16
Myths in Mind: Beware of Illusory Correlations 50
Influences from Medicine: Diagnoses and Treatments 16
Quick Quiz 2.2b 51
The Influence of Social Sciences: Measuring
and Comparing Humans 18 Experimental Research 51
Quick Quiz 1.2a 19 The Experimental Method 51
The Beginnings of Contemporary Psychology 19 The Quasi-Experimental Method 52
Structuralism and Functionalism: Converging Operations 53
The Beginnings of Psychology 20 Quick Quiz 2.2c 53
The Rise of Behaviourism 21 Module Summary 54
Humanistic Psychology Emerges 22
The Brain and Behaviour 23 Module 2.3 :: Ethics in Psychological Research 55
The Cognitive Revolution 24 Promoting the Welfare of Research Participants 56
Social and Cultural Influences 25 Weighing the Risks and Benefits of Research 56
Quick Quiz 1.2b 27 Obtaining Informed Consent 57
Module Summary 28 The Right to Anonymity and Confidentiality 58
Work the Scientific Literacy Model 29 The Welfare of Animals in Research 58

ix
 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: The Chemical Messengers: Neurotransmitters and Hormones 97
Animal Models of Disease 59 Types of Neurotransmitters 98
REBS for Animal-Based Research 61 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Pain and Substance P 100
Quick Quiz 2.3a 61 Drug Effects on Neurotransmission 101
Ethical Collection, Storage, and Reporting of Data 61 Hormones and the Endocrine System 102
Quick Quiz 2.3b 62 Neurons in Context 103
Module Summary 63 Quick Quiz 3.2b 103
Module Summary 104
Module 2.4 :: A Statistical Primer 64
Descriptive Statistics 65 Module 3.3 :: Structure and Organization
Frequency 65 of the Nervous System 105
Central Tendency 65 Divisions of the Nervous System 106
Variability 67 The Central Nervous System 106
Quick Quiz 2.4a 68 The Peripheral Nervous System 106
Hypothesis Testing: Evaluating the Outcome of the Study 69 Quick Quiz 3.3a 108
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Statistical Significance 70 The Brain and Its Structures 108
Quick Quiz 2.4b 71 The Hindbrain: Sustaining the Body 108
Module Summary 72 The Midbrain: Sensation and Action 109
Work the Scientific Literacy Model 73 The Forebrain: Emotion, Memory, and Thought 110
The Cerebral Cortex 111
The Four Lobes 112
3 BIOLOGICAL Psych @ The Gym 114
PSYCHOLOGY 74 Left Brain, Right Brain: Hemispheric Specialization 115
The Changing Brain: Neuroplasticity 116
Module 3.1 :: Genetic and Evolutionary
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Neuroplasticity
Perspectives on Behaviour 75
and Recovery from Brain Injury 117
Heredity and Behaviour 76
Quick Quiz 3.3b 118
The Genetic Code 76
Module Summary 119
Behavioural Genomics: The Molecular Approach 78
Myths in Mind: Single Genes and Behaviour 78 Module 3.4 :: Windows to the Brain: Measuring
Behavioural Genetics: Twin and Adoption Studies 79 and Observing Brain Activity 120
Gene Expression and Behaviour 80 Insights from Brain Damage 121
Quick Quiz 3.1a 82 Lesioning and Brain Stimulation 121

Evolutionary Insights into Human Behaviour 82 Quick Quiz 3.4a 122

Evolutionary Psychology 83 Structural and Functional Neuroimaging 122

Intra- and Intersexual Selection 83 Structural Neuroimaging 123

Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Ruby Red Functional Neuroimaging 124
Lipstick and That Sexy Red Dress 85 Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Evolution, the Brain, and Behaviour 87 Functional MRI and Behaviour 125

Evolution and Cognition 88 Quick Quiz 3.4b 127

Biopsychosocial Perspectives: Hunters and Gatherers: Module Summary 128

Men,Women, and Spatial Memory 89 Work the Scientific Literacy Model 129
Quick Quiz 3.1b 90
Module Summary 91
4 SENSATION AND
Module 3.2 :: How the Nervous System Works: PERCEPTION 130
Cells and Neurotransmitters 92
Neural Communication 93 Module 4.1 :: Sensation and
The Neuron 93 Perception at a Glance 131
Glial Cells 94 Sensing the World Around Us 132
Myths in Mind: We Are Born with All the Brain Stimulus Thresholds 134
Cells We Will Ever Have 95 Signal Detection 135
The Neuron’s Electrical System: Resting and Action Potentials 95 Myths in Mind: Setting the Record Straight on Subliminal Messaging 136
Quick Quiz 3.2a 97 Quick Quiz 4.1a 137

x : : Contents
 Perceiving the World Around Us 137
5 CONSCIOUSNESS 180
Gestalt Principles of Perception 137
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Module 5.1 :: Biological
Backward Messages in Music 139 Rhythms of Consciousness:
Attention and Perception 140 Wakefulness and Sleep 181
Quick Quiz 4.1b 141 What Is Sleep? 182
Module Summary 142 Biological Rhythms 182
The Stages of Sleep 183
Module 4.2 :: The Visual System 143 Quick Quiz 5.1a 185
The Human Eye 144 Why We Need Sleep 185
How the Eye Gathers Light 144 Theories of Sleep 185
The Structure of the Eye 145 Sleep Deprivation and Sleep Displacement 186
Common Visual Disorders 148 Quick Quiz 5.1b 189
Quick Quiz 4.2a 149 Theories of Dreaming 189
Visual Perception and the Brain 149 The Psychoanalytic Approach 189
The Ventral Stream 150 The Activation–Synthesis Hypothesis 189
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Dreams,
Are Faces Special? 151 REM Sleep, and Learning 190
The Dorsal Stream 153 Quick Quiz 5.1c 192
Depth Perception 154 Disorders and Problems with Sleep 192
Psych @ The Artist’s Studio 156 Insomnia 192
Quick Quiz 4.2b 157 Nightmares and Night Terrors 193
Module Summary 158 Movement Disturbances 193
Sleep Apnea 194
Module 4.3 :: The Auditory System 159
Narcolepsy 195
Sound and the Structures of the Ear 160
Overcoming Sleep Problems 195
Sound 160
Quick Quiz 5.1d 196
The Human Ear 160
Module Summary 197
Quick Quiz 4.3a 162
The Perception of Sound 162 Module 5.2 :: Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis,
Sound Localization: Finding the Source 162 Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness 198
Theories of Pitch Perception 162 Hypnosis 199
Auditory Perception and the Brain 164 Theories of Hypnosis 199
The Perception of Music 164 Applications of Hypnosis 200
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Myths in Mind: Recovering Lost Memories through Hypnosis 201
Music, Emotion, and Advertising 165 Quick Quiz 5.2a 201
Quick Quiz 4.3b 166 Meditation 201
Module Summary 167 Types of Meditation 201
Meditation, Cognition, and Emotion 202
Module 4.4 :: Touch and the Chemical Senses 168
Quick Quiz 5.2b 203
The Sense of Touch 169
Disorders of Consciousness 203
Feeling Pain 170
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Assessing Consciousness
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: in the Vegetative State 205
Empathy and Pain 171
Quick Quiz 5.2c 208
Phantom Limb Pain 172
Module Summary 208
Quick Quiz 4.4a 173
The Chemical Senses: Taste and Smell 173 Module 5.3 :: Drugs and Conscious Experience 209
The Gustatory System: Taste 173 Physical and Psychological Effects of Drugs 210
The Olfactory System: Smell 175 Short-Term Effects 210
Multimodal Integration 175 Long-Term Effects 211
Quick Quiz 4.4b 177 Quick Quiz 5.3a 212
Module Summary 178 Commonly Abused Illegal Drugs 213
Work the Scientific Literacy Model 179 Stimulants 213

Contents :: xi
 Hallucinogens 214 Applications of Operant Conditioning 251
Biopsychosocial Perspectives: Recreational and Shaping 251
Spiritual Uses of Salvia divinorum 215 Psych @ The Special Needs Classroom 251
Marijuana 216 Schedules of Reinforcement 251
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Marijuana, Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Memory, and Cognition 217 Reinforcement and Superstition 253
Quick Quiz 5.3b 219 Applying Punishment 255
Legal Drugs and Their Effects on Consciousness 219 Are Classical and Operant Learning Distinct Events? 256
Sedatives 219 Quick Quiz 6.2b 256
Prescription Drug Abuse 219 Module Summary 257
Alcohol 221
Psych @ University Parties 221 Module 6.3 :: Cognitive and Observational
Why Are Some Drugs Legal and Others Illegal? 222 Learning 258

Quick Quiz 5.3c 222 Cognitive Perspectives on Learning 259

Module Summary 223 Latent Learning 259

Work the Scientific Literacy Model 224 S-O-R Theory of Learning 260
Quick Quiz 6.3a 260
Observational Learning 260
6 LEARNING 225 Processes Supporting Observational Learning 261
Myths in Mind:Teaching Is Uniquely Human 262
Module 6.1 :: Classical Conditioning:
Imitation and Observational Learning 263
Learning by Association 226
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Linking
Pavlov’s Dogs: Classical Conditioning
Media Exposure to Behaviour 263
of Salivation 227
Mirror Neurons 266
Classical Conditioning and the Brain 229
Biopsychosocial Perspectives:Violence,
Quick Quiz 6.1a 230
Video Games, and Culture 266
Processes of Classical Conditioning 230
Quick Quiz 6.3b 267
Acquisition, Extinction, and Spontaneous Recovery 230
Module Summary 267
Stimulus Generalization and Discrimination 231
Work the Scientific Literacy Model 268
Quick Quiz 6.1b 232
Applications of Classical Conditioning 232
Conditioned Emotional Responses 232
7 MEMORY 269
Evolutionary Role for Fear Conditioning 234
Conditioned Taste Aversions 235 Module 7.1 :: Memory Systems 270
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Conditioning The Atkinson-Shiffrin Model 271
and Negative Political Advertising 236 Sensory Memory 272
Quick Quiz 6.1c 239 Short-Term Memory and the
Learning without Awareness 239 Magical Number 7 273
Drug Use and Tolerance 239 Long-Term Memory 274
Sexual Arousal 240 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Distinguishing
The Paradox of “Diet” Beverages 240 Short-Term from Long-Term Memory Stores 275

Quick Quiz 6.1d 241 Quick Quiz 7.1a 277

Module Summary 242 The Working Memory Model:

An Active STM System 278
Module 6.2 :: Operant Conditioning: Learning The Phonological Loop 278
through Consequences 243 The Visuospatial Sketchpad 278
Processes of Operant Conditioning 244 The Episodic Buffer 279
Reinforcement and Punishment 244 The Central Executive 279
Positive and Negative Reinforcement and Punishment 246 Quick Quiz 7.1b 280
Primary and Secondary Reinforcers 247 Long-Term Memory Systems: Declarative and
Discrimination and Generalization 249 Nondeclarative Memories 280
Delayed Reinforcement and Extinction 249 Declarative Memory 280
Reward Devaluation 249 Nondeclarative Memory 281
Quick Quiz 6.2a 250 Quick Quiz 7.1c 282

xii : : Contents
 The Cognitive Neuroscience of Memory 282 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Categories and the Brain 317
Memory at the Neural Level 282 Categorization and Experience 319
Memory, the Brain, and Amnesia 283 Quick Quiz 8.1a 320
Quick Quiz 7.1d 285 Culture and Categories 320
Module Summary 286 Biopsychosocial Perspectives: Culture and Categorical Thinking 320
Myths in Mind: How Many Words for Snow? 322
Module 7.2 :: Encoding and Retrieving Memories 287
Quick Quiz 8.1b 322
Encoding and Retrieval 288
Module Summary 323
Rehearsal: The Basics of Encoding 288
Levels of Processing 289 Module 8.2 :: Problem Solving, Judgment,
and Decision Making 324
Retrieval 290
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Defining and Solving Problems 325
Context-Dependent Memory 290 Problem-Solving Strategies and Techniques 325
State-Dependent Learning 292 Cognitive Obstacles 326
Mood-Dependent Learning 293 Quick Quiz 8.2a 326
Quick Quiz 7.2a 293 Judgment and Decision Making 327
Emotional Memories 293 Representativeness and Availability 327
Flashbulb Memories 295 Anchoring Effects 329
Myths in Mind: The Accuracy of Flashbulb Memories 296 Framing Effects 330
Quick Quiz 7.2b 296 Belief Perseverance and Confirmation Bias 330
Forgetting and Remembering 296 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Maximizing
The Forgetting Curve: How Soon We Forget . . . 296 and Satisficing in Complex Decisions 332

Mnemonics: Improving Your Memory Skills 297 Psych @ Decision Making and Neuromarketing 333

Quick Quiz 7.2c 299 Quick Quiz 8.2b 334

Module Summary 300 Module Summary 335

Module 8.3 :: Language and Communication 336

Module 7.3 :: Constructing and Reconstructing Memories 301
What Is Language? 337
How Memories Are Organized and Constructed 302
Early Studies of Language 337
The Schema: An Active Organization Process 302
Properties of Language 338
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: How
Schemas Influence Memory 302 Phonemes and Morphemes: The Basic Ingredients of Language 339
Biopsychosocial Perspectives:Your Earliest Memories 304 Syntax: The Language Recipe 340
Quick Quiz 7.3a 305 Pragmatics: The Finishing Touches 340
Memory Reconstruction 305 Quick Quiz 8.3a 341
The Perils of Eyewitness Testimony 305 The Development of Language 341
Psych @ Court: Is Eyewitness Testimony Reliable? 307 Infants, Sound Perception, and Language Acquisition 341
Imagination and False Memories 307 Producing Spoken Language 342
Creating False Memories in the Laboratory 308 Sensitive Periods for Language 342
The Danger of False Remembering 309 The Bilingual Brain 344
Quick Quiz 7.3b 310 Quick Quiz 8.3b 344
Module Summary 311 Genes, Evolution, and Language 344
Work the Scientific Literacy Model 312 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Genes and Language 345
Can Animals Use Language? 346
Quick Quiz 8.3c 348
THOUGHT AND Module Summary 349
8 LANGUAGE 313 Work the Scientific Literacy Model 350

Module 8.1 :: The Organization

of Knowledge 314 9 INTELLIGENCE
Concepts and Categories 315 TESTING 351
Classical Categories: Definitions
and Rules 315 Module 9.1 :: Measuring Intelligence 352
Prototypes: Categorization by Comparison 316 Different Approaches to
Networks and Hierarchies 316 Intelligence Testing 353

Contents :: xiii
 Intelligence and Perception: Galton’s Anthropometric Approach 353 Module Summary 389
Intelligence and Thinking: The Stanford-Binet Test 354 Work the Scientific Literacy Model 390
The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale 355
Raven’s Progressive Matrices 355
10 LIFESPAN
Quick Quiz 9.1a 356
DEVELOPMENT 391
The Chequered Past of Intelligence Testing 357
IQ Testing and the Eugenics Movement 357 Module 10.1 :: Physical Development
The Race and IQ Controversy 358 from Conception through Infancy 392
Problems with the Racial Superiority Interpretation 359 Methods for Measuring
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Beliefs about Intelligence 360 Developmental Trends 393

Quick Quiz 9.1b 362 Patterns of Development: Stages and Continuity 393

Module Summary 363 The Importance of Sensitive Periods 393

Quick Quiz 10.1a 394
Module 9.2 :: Understanding Intelligence 364
Zygotes to Infants: From One Cell to Billions 394
Intelligence as a Single, General Ability 365
Fertilization and Gestation 394
Spearman’s General Intelligence 365
Fetal Brain Development 395
Does g Tell Us the Whole Story? 366
Nutrition, Teratogens, and Fetal Development 396
Quick Quiz 9.2a 367
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: The Long-Term Effects
Intelligence as Multiple, Specific Abilities 367 of Premature Birth 397
The Hierarchical Model of Intelligence 368 Quick Quiz 10.1b 399
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Testing for Myths in Mind: Vaccinations and Autism 399
Fluid and Crystallized Intelligence 369
Sensory and Motor Development in Infancy 399
Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory of Intelligence 371
Motor Development in the First Year 400
Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences 371
Quick Quiz 10.1c 403
Myths in Mind: Learning Styles 372
Module Summary 404
Psych @ The NFL Draft 373
Quick Quiz 9.2b 374 Module 10.2 :: Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive
and Emotional Development 405
The Battle of the Sexes 374
Cognitive Changes: Piaget’s Cognitive Development Theory 406
Do Males and Females Have Unique Cognitive Skills? 375
The Sensorimotor Stage: Living in the Material World 407
Quick Quiz 9.2c 376
The Preoperational Stage: Quantity and Numbers 407
Module Summary 376
The Concrete Operational Stage: Using Logical Thought 408
Module 9.3 :: Biological, Environmental, and
The Formal Operational Stage: Abstract
Behavioural Influences on Intelligence 377
and Hypothetical Thought 408
Biological Influences on Intelligence 378
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Evaluating Piaget 409
The Genetics of Intelligence: Twin and Adoption Studies 378
Complementary Approaches to Piaget 410
The Heritability of Intelligence 378
Quick Quiz 10.2a 411
Behavioural Genomics 380
Social Development: Attachment, Personality,
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Brain Size and Intelligence 381 and Reading Others 411
Quick Quiz 9.3a 382 Types of Attachment 411
Environmental Influences on Intelligence 383 Self Awareness 414
Birth Order 383 Prosocial Behaviour 415
Socioeconomic Status 383 Quick Quiz 10.2b 417
Nutrition 384 Parenting 417
Stress 384 Module Summary 419
Education 384
Module 10.3 :: Adolescence 420
The Flynn Effect: Is Everyone Getting Smarter? 385
Physical Changes in Adolescence 421
Myths in Mind: Can the Media Make Babies Smarter? 386
Emotional Challenges in Adolescence 422
Quick Quiz 9.3b 386
Quick Quiz 10.3a 423
Behavioural Influences on Intelligence 387
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Adolescent
Brain Training Programs 387 Risk and Decision Making 424
Nootropic Drugs 387 Cognitive Development: Moral Reasoning vs. Emotions 425
Meditation 388 Kohlberg’s Moral Development: Learning Right from Wrong 425
Quick Quiz 9.3c 388 Biopsychosocial Perspectives: Emotion and Disgust 427

xiv : : Contents
 Social Development: Identity and Relationships 427 Sex and Technology 462
Who Am I? Identity Formation During Adolescence 428 Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Peer Groups 428 Does Sex Sell? 463

Romantic Relationships 429 Quick Quiz 11.2c 464

Quick Quiz 10.3b 429 Module Summary 465

Module Summary 430
Module 11.3 :: Social and Achievement Motivation 466
Belongingness and Love Needs 467
Module 10.4 :: Adulthood and Aging 431
Hierarchy of Needs 467
Emerging Adults: Moving from Adolescence to Adulthood 432
Belonging Is a Need, Not a Want 467
Physical Changes in Adulthood 432
Love 468
Quick Quiz 10.4a 433
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Aging Love and Commitment 469
and Cognitive Change 434 Quick Quiz 11.3a 470
Psych @ The Driver’s Seat 435 Achievement Motivation 470
Psychosocial Development across the Lifespan 435 Self-Determination Theory 471
Social Development: Intimacy and Generativity 437 Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation 471
Love and Marriage 437 A Continuum of Motivation 472
Parenting 439 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Framing,
Values, and Pro-Environmental Messages 473
Career 439
Quick Quiz 11.3b 475
Emotional Changes 439
Module Summary 476
Quick Quiz 10.4b 440
Module Summary 441 Module 11.4 :: Emotion 477
Work the Scientific Literacy Model 442 Physiology of Emotion 478
The Initial Response 478
The Autonomic Response: Fight or Flight? 478
11 MOTIVATION AND
The Emotional Response: Movement 479
EMOTION 443 Emotional Regulation 480
Quick Quiz 11.4a 480
Module 11.1 :: Hunger and Eating 444
Experiencing Emotions 480
Physiological Aspects of Hunger 445
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: The Two-
Quick Quiz 11.1a 447 Factor Theory of Emotion 483
Psychological Aspects of Hunger 447 Quick Quiz 11.4b 485
Attention and Eating 448 Expressing Emotions 485
Eating and the Social Context 448 Emotional Faces and Bodies 485
Quick Quiz 11.1b 449 Culture, Emotion, and Display Rules 487
Disorders of Eating 450 Quick Quiz 11.4c 488
Obesity 450 Module Summary 489
Anorexia and Bulimia 450 Work the Scientific Literacy Model 490
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: The Effect
of Media Depictions of Beauty on Body Image 452
Quick Quiz 11.1c 453
12 PERSONALITY 491
Module Summary 454
Module 12.1 :: Contemporary
Module 11.2 :: Sex 455 Approaches to Personality 492
Human Sexual Behaviour: Psychological Influences 456 The Trait Perspective 493
Psychological Measures of Sexual Motivation 456 The Five Factor Model 494
Myths in Mind: Sex after Sixty? 457 Beyond the Big Five: The Personality of Evil? 496
Quick Quiz 11.2a 458 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Right-Wing Authoritarianism
Human Sexual Behaviour: Physiological Influences 458 at the Group Level 498
Physiological Measures of Sex 458 Psych @ Test Yourself! 499
Sexual Orientation: Biology and Environment 459 Personality Traits over the Lifespan 499
Quick Quiz 11.2b 461 Personality Traits and States 501
Human Sexual Behaviour: Cultural Influences 461 Quick Quiz 12.1a 502

Contents :: xv
 Behaviourist and Social-Cognitive Perspectives 502 Mimicry 540
Quick Quiz 12.1b 504 Group Dynamics: Social Loafing and Social Facilitation 542
Module Summary 505 Groupthink 544
The Asch Experiments: Conformity 545
Module 12.2 :: Cultural and Biological
Approaches to Personality 506 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Examining
Why People Conform: Seeing Is Believing 546
Culture and Personality 507
Quick Quiz 13.1a 548
Universals and Differences across Cultures: The Big Five 507
The Bystander Effect: Situational Influences
Personality Structures in Different Cultures 507 on Helping Behaviour 548
Comparing Personality Traits between Nations 508 Social Roles: The Stanford Prison Study 551
Challenges in Cross-Cultural Research 508
Obedience to Authority: The Milgram Experiment 553
Biopsychosocial Perspectives: How Culture Shapes Our
Quick Quiz 13.1b 556
Development: Cultural Differences in the Self 509
Module Summary 557
Quick Quiz 12.2a 510
How Genes Affect Personality 511 Module 13.2 :: Social Cognition 558
Twin Studies 511 Person Perception 560
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: From Molecules to Personality 512 Thin Slices of Behaviour 560
Quick Quiz 12.2b 514 Self-Fulfilling Prophecies and Other Consequences
The Role of Evolution in Personality 514 of First Impressions 561

Animal Behaviour: The Evolutionary Roots of Personality 514 The Self in the Social World 561
Why There Are So Many Different Personalities: Projecting the Self onto Others: False
The Evolutionary Explanation 515 Consensus and Naive Realism 562

Myths in Mind: Men Are from Mars,Women Are from Venus 516 Self-Serving Biases and Attributions 562

Quick Quiz 12.2c 516 Ingroups and Outgroups 563

The Brain and Personality 517 Quick Quiz 13.2a 564

Extraversion and Arousal 517 Stereotypes, Prejudice, and Discrimination 565

Contemporary Research: Images of Personality in the Brain 518 Myths in Mind: Are Only Negative Aspects of
Stereotypes Problematic? 565
Quick Quiz 12.2d 519
Prejudice in a Politically Correct World? 565
Module Summary 520
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Explicit
Module 12.3 :: Psychodynamic and Humanistic versus Implicit Measures of Prejudice 566
Approaches to Personality 521 Psych @ The Law Enforcement Academy 568
The Psychodynamic Perspective 523 Quick Quiz 13.2b 569
Unconscious Processes and Psychodynamics 523 Improving Intergroup Relations 569
The Structure of Personality 524 Module Summary 570
Defence Mechanisms 525
Module 13.3 :: Attitudes, Behaviour, and
Personality Development: The Psychosexual Stages 526 Effective Communication 571
Exploring the Unconscious with Projective Tests 529 Changing People’s Behaviour 572
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Perceiving Persuasion: Changing Attitudes through Communication 572
Others as a Projective Test 530
Using the Central Route Effectively 573
Quick Quiz 12.3a 531
Make It Personal 573
Alternatives to the Psychodynamic Approach 532
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: The
Quick Quiz 12.3b 533 Identifiable Victim Effect 574
Humanistic Perspectives 533 Value Appeals 577
Quick Quiz 12.3c 534 Preaching or Flip-Flopping? One-Sided vs. Two-Sided Messages 577
Module Summary 535 Emotions in the Central Route 577
Work the Scientific Literacy Model 536 Using the Peripheral Route Effectively 578
Authority 578

13 SOCIAL Social Validation 579

PSYCHOLOGY 537 Reciprocity 579

Consistency 579

Module 13.1 :: The Power of the Situation: The Attitude-Behaviour Feedback Loop 580
Social Influences on Behaviour 538 Module Summary 583
The Person and the Situation 539 Work the Scientific Literacy Model 584

xvi : : Contents
 14 HEALTH, STRESS, AND Perceived Control 618
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
COPING 585 Compensatory Control and Health 619
Quick Quiz 14.3b 620
Module 14.1 :: Behaviour and Health 586
Module Summary 621
Smoking 587
Work the Scientific Literacy Model 622
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Media Exposure and Smoking 588
Efforts to Prevent Smoking 589
15 PSYCHOLOGICAL
Quick Quiz 14.1a 590
DISORDERS 623
Obesity 590
Defining Healthy Weights and Obesity 591
Module 15.1 :: Defining and Classifying
Genetics and Body Weight 591 Psychological Disorders 624
The Sedentary Lifestyle 592 Defining Abnormal Behaviour 626
Social Factors 593 Psychology’s Puzzle: How to Diagnose Psychological Disorders 627
Psychology and Weight Loss 593 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Labelling
Biopsychosocial Perspectives: Obesity 593 and Mental Disorders 629
Quick Quiz 14.1b 594 Quick Quiz 15.1a 631
Psychosocial Influences on Health 594 Applications of Psychological Diagnoses 631
Poverty and Discrimination 595 The Mental Disorder Defence (aka the Insanity Defence) 631
Family and Social Environment 595 Biopsychosocial Perspectives: Symptoms,Treatments, and Culture 632
Social Contagion 596 Quick Quiz 15.1b 633
Quick Quiz 14.1c 596 Module Summary 634
Module Summary 597
Module 15.2 :: Personality and Dissociative Disorders 635
Module 14.2 :: Stress and Illness 598 Defining and Classifying Personality Disorders 636
What Causes Stress? 599 Borderline Personality 636

Physiology of Stress 601 Narcissistic Personality 637

The Stress Pathways 602 Histrionic Personality 637

Oxytocin: To Tend and Befriend 603 Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Antisocial Personality Disorder 637
Quick Quiz 14.2a 603
The Biopsychosocial Approach to Personality Disorders 640
Stress, Immunity, and Illness 604
Comorbidity and Personality Disorders 640
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Hormones,
Relationships, and Health 604 Quick Quiz 15.2a 641

Stress, Food, and Heart Disease 606 Dissociative Identity Disorder 641
Myths in Mind: Stress and Ulcers 606 Quick Quiz 15.2b 643

AIDS 607 Module Summary 644

Cancer 607 Module 15.3 :: Anxiety, Depressive, and
Quick Quiz 14.2b 607 Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders 645
Stress, Personality, and Illness 608 Anxiety Disorders 646
Quick Quiz 14.2c 609 Varieties of Anxiety Disorders 646
Module Summary 609 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Specific Phobias 647
The Vicious Cycle of Anxiety Disorders 650
Module 14.3 :: Coping and Well-Being 610
Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder (OCD) 650
Coping 611
Quick Quiz 15.3a 652
Positive Coping Strategies 611
Mood Disorders 652
Optimism and Pessimism 612
Major Depression and Bipolar Disorder 653
Personality and Coping 613
Cognitive and Neurological Aspects of Depression 653
Resilience 613
Sociocultural Influences on Mood Disorders 655
Meditation, Relaxation, and Biofeedback 614
Suicide 655
Psych @ Church 616
Psych @ The Suicide Helpline 656
Exercise 617
Quick Quiz 15.3b 656
Quick Quiz 14.3a 617
Module Summary 657

Contents :: xvii
Module 15.4 :: Schizophrenia 658 Modern Psychodynamic Therapies 683
Symptoms and Types of Schizophrenia 659 Humanistic-Existential Psychotherapy 683
Myths in Mind: Schizophrenia Is Not a Sign Evaluating Insight Therapies 684
of Violence or Genius 661 Quick Quiz 16.2a 685
Quick Quiz 15.4a 662 Behavioural, Cognitive, and Group Therapies 686
Explaining Schizophrenia 662 Systematic Desensitization 686
Genetics 662 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Virtual Reality Therapies 687
Schizophrenia and the Nervous System 663 Aversive Conditioning 688
Environmental and Cultural Influences on Schizophrenia 664 Cognitive-Behavioural Therapies 688
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: The Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy 689
Neurodevelopmental Hypothesis 665
Group and Family Therapies 691
Quick Quiz 15.4b 666
Evaluating Cognitive-Behavioural Therapies 691
Module Summary 667
Quick Quiz 16.2b 692
Work the Scientific Literacy Model 668
Module Summary 693

16 THERAPIES 669 Module 16.3 :: Biomedical Therapies 694

Drug Treatments 695
Antidepressants and Mood Stabilizers 696
Module 16.1 :: Treating
Psychological Disorders 670 Myths in Mind: Antidepressant Drugs Are Happiness Pills 697
Barriers to Psychological Treatment 671 Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Is St. John’s Wort Effective? 697
Stigma About Mental Illness 672 Antianxiety Drugs 698
Gender Roles 672 Antipsychotic Drugs 698
Logistical Barriers: Expense and Availability 672 Evaluating Drug Therapies 699
Involuntary Treatment 673 Quick Quiz 16.3a 700
Quick Quiz 16.1a 673 Biopsychosocial Perspectives: Exercise and Depression 700
Mental Health Providers and Settings 673 Technological and Surgical Methods 701
Mental Health Providers 674 Focal Lesions 702
Inpatient Treatment and Deinstitutionalization 674 Electroconvulsive Therapy 702
Outpatient Treatment and Prevention 675 Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation 703
Psych @ The University Mental Health Deep Brain Stimulation 703
Counselling Centre 676 When Are Technological and Surgical Methods Used? 703
Quick Quiz 16.1b 676 Quick Quiz 16.3b 704
Evaluating Treatments 676 Module Summary 705
Empirically Supported Treatments 676 Work the Scientific Literacy Model 706
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Can Self-Help Treatments Be Effective? 677
Answer Key ANS-1
Quick Quiz 16.1c 679
Glossary G-1
Module Summary 680
References R-1

Module 16.2 :: Psychological Therapies 681 Credits C-1

Insight Therapies 682 Name Index NI-1

Psychoanalysis: Exploring the Unconscious 682 Subject Index SI-1

xviii : : Contents
 From the Authors
A well-rounded university education requires a healthy dose of science. This means not just a memorized
list of scientific terms and famous names, but rather the abilities and disposition that allow students to
encounter, understand, and evaluate scientific as well as nonscientific claims. This is true regardless of an
individual’s personal and career goals. As this text and MyPsychLab program emphasize, the science of psy-
chology reaches across disciplinary boundaries and addresses numerous complex issues affecting individuals
and [Link] effectively use what they learn about psychology, students need to carry with them a scientific
perspective. An Introduction to Psychological Science is written from the perspective of scientific literacy—the
ability not only to define scientific terminology, but also to understand how it functions, to critically evaluate
it, and to apply it to personal and societal matters.
Psychological science is in a privileged position to help students hone their scientific literacy. It is both a
rigorous scientific discipline and a field that studies the most complex of all phenomena: the behavioural,
cognitive, and biological basis of behaviour. With this focus on behaviour, one can rightly argue that psychol-
ogy resides at the hub or core of numerous other scientific disciplines; it also shares connections with
neuroscience, education, and public health, to name a few linkages. From this perspective, the knowledge
acquired by studying psychological science should transfer and apply to many other [Link] is great news
when you consider that psychology is one of few science courses that many undergraduates will ever take.
To make scientific literacy the core of our text and MyPsychLab, we developed content and features with the
model shown in the graphic as a [Link] competencies that surround the scientific literacy core represent
different knowledge or skill sets we want to work toward during the course. The multidirectional nature of
the arrows connecting the four supporting themes for scientific literacy demonstrates the interrelatedness
of the competencies, which span both core-level skills, such as knowing general information (e.g., terms, con-
cepts), and more advanced skills, such as knowing how to explain phenomena from a scientific perspective,
critical thinking, and application of material.
We used this model in developing all aspects of this program, the topics included in the book, the execution
of the writing, the learning objectives we established, the quizzes, and other features. We believe a scien-
tific literacy perspective and model will prove useful in addressing two course needs we often hear from
instructors—to provide students with a systematic way to categorize the overwhelming amount of infor-
mation they are confronted with, and to cultivate their curiosity and help them understand the relevance,
practicality, and immense appeal of psychological science.
We thank the many instructors and students who have helped us craft
Knowledge Gathering this model and apply it to our discipline, and we look forward to
your feedback. Please feel free to contact us and share your
What do we
know about this? experiences with the Canadian edition of An Introduction to
Psychological Science.

Application Scientific
Explanation Mark Krause
Scientific krausema@[Link]
Why is How can
this Literacy science
relevant? explain it?
Dan Corts
danielcorts@[Link]
Stephen Smith
[Link]@[Link]
Critical Thinking
Dan Dolderman
Can we critically doldermanuoft@[Link]
evaluate the evidence?

xix
 Content and Features
Students in the general psychology course are inundated with many disparate
pieces of information at a time when they are still developing the
skills and strategies for organizing and making sense of that
information. How do the scientific literacy model
and supporting features in An Introduction
to Psychological Science address this
issue?
Knowledge Gathering

What do we
know about this?

Introductory psychology courses

cover a vast amount of content
drawn from diverse specialty areas.
The organization of the material is
central to helping students absorb
this content.
Roberto A Sanchez/iStockphoto

Module
M

3.1
3 Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives
on Behaviour
Learning
Learr KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . .
U APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Obje
Objectives
e The key terminology How twin and adoption
H Your knowledge of genes and Claims that scientists have located
After rreading related to genes, studies
st
t reveal relationships behaviour to hypothesize why a specific gene that controls a
this m
module inheritance, and between genes and behaviour
b a trait might be adaptive single trait or behaviour
you should
s evolutionary psychology
o y
ogy Explanations for cognitive gender
differences that are rooted in genetics

Psychologist
Psycho o Martie Haselton has given new wm meaning
eaninn to the phrase dress Of course, evolutionary psychologists are quick to point out that females
for success
succ . She is not talking about professional
nal advancement,
s on
sional ad
d however; are not alone in “signalling” their receptiveness for sexual activity. Males
rather,
rather r she is referring to success in attracting
a ing a mate. Dr. Haselton is
acting provide numerous—if not more obvious—examples. Evolutionary psy-
evolutionary
an evo o psychologist—she studiese how
es how human
h behaviour has chologists might point out that body building, flaunting material assets,
evolved
evolvee to solve problems that relate to survival
u viva and
urvival a reproductive suc- and other public displays of strength and status are common male strat-

Modules As part of her work, she has discovered

cess. A e ed tthat
ere
choosee are related to sexual motivation in some
choos

IIn one project, Dr. Haselton and her colleagues

haa the clothes people
s me subtle
su
u

invited
invi e female volunteers to
es invite
the laboratory to participate in a study about personal
ways.

ppersonality,
rson l sexuality, and health.
egies for attracting mates. Researchers must ask themselves this ques-
tion: Is this behaviour just a coincidence? Or is this how the evolutionary
forces that allowed our species to survive for hundreds of thousands of
years are influencing our behaviour in the modern world? Evolutionary
psychologists like Dr. Haselton are building evidence to argue that how

Chapters are divided into

The young women were not given any specific directions
rect o about what to wear
directio
ire
we dress and how we send many other signals can be explained by evolu-
and during their visit to the laboratory they agreed
g ed tto
greed o be photographed. Later,
tionary principles, a topic we explore in this module.
male and female volunteers viewed the photographs
o raph to judge whether they
ographs
thought the women in the photos had dressed d to o k attractive. It turns out
o look
lo
Focus Questions

modules to make it easier

that women were rated as having dressed more o e attractively
ore att
ttracc when they were
in their peak level of fertility of the menstrual cyc e (Durante et al., 2008;
u cycle
ual 1 How is human behaviour influenced by genetic factors?
Haselton et al., 2007). The researchers suggested
s ed
sted th t wearing such clothing
d that
2 How has evolution played a role in modern-day human behaviour?
during the fertile phase of the menstrual cyclee was
was anan attempt to be noticed

for students to organize by a potential mate (although the women in the h study
he study might disagree).

content as well as to self-

test and review their learning at regu-
M03_KRAU4504_10_SE_C03.indd 75 1/2/14 6:06 PM
Knowledge
lar intervals. It also transforms lengthy
chapters into nice “bite-sized” chunks Module Summary

of information that students can read

What d
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
3.1
in a single sitting (e.g., between classes). ●
KNOW . . .

The key terminology related to genes, inheritance,

and evolutionary psychology:

For instructors, the modular content behavioural genetics (p. 79)

behavioural genomics (p. 78)
chromosomes (p. 76)
genes (p. 76)
genotype (p. 76)
heritability (p. 79)
Roberto A Sanchez/iStockphoto

makes it easy to customize delivery

know abo
dizygotic twins (p. 79) intersexual selection (p. 84) ANALYZE . . .
DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) intrasexual selection (p. 83)
(p. 76) monozygotic twins (p. 79) ● Claims that scientists have located a specific gene n
ne
epigenetics (p. 81) natural selection (p. 82) that controls a single trait or behaviour. As you o
ou

based on their preferred syllabus. evolution (p. 82) phenotype (p. 76)
learned in this module, most psychological traits, as well
e
ell
as disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, involve multiple
le
genes, some of which may not even yet be discovered. d

Module Summaries
UNDERSTAND . . . (See the Myths in Mind feature on page 78.)

● How twin and adoption studies reveal relationships ● Explanations for cognitive sex differences that are
between genes and behaviour. Both methods measure rooted in genetics. The Biopsychosocial Perspectives
genetic, environmental, and interactive contributions to feature on page 89 summarized research showing that
behaviour. Twin studies typically compare monozygotic males have an advantage when it comes to a specific

Learning Objectives The major terms, concepts, and appli-

twins (genetically identical) and dizygotic twins (full mental rotation task. Given that this is a relatively
siblings sharing the prenatal environment) to estimate consistent sex difference, high testosterone levels are
heritability. Adoption studies compare adopted children to associated with better performance on the task, and the
their adoptive and biological parents. These designs allow male advantage has been found cross-culturally, it seems

cations of the modules are reviewed in

researchers to determine heritability, a number between plausible that this difference has a genetic basis. In future
chapters we will return to issues and discussion of sex-

Learning Objectives organized around an

0 and 1 that estimates the degree to which individual
differences in a trait (in a given population) are due to based differences in cognitive abilities (see Module 9.3).
genetic factors. A heritability of 1.0 would mean that genes

updated Bloom’s taxonomy aim to guide

contribute to 100% of individual differences. Many human
characteristics, including intelligence and personality,
have heritability estimates typically ranging between
60
Forced
Mutual
Choice Combo the Module Summaries. The summaries
% most distressed by infidelity

50 Choice
.40 and .70.

students to higher-level understanding.

APPLY . . . 40 also return to and address the original
Learning Objectives from the beginning
● Your knowledge of genes and behaviour to develop 30
hypotheses about why a trait may be adaptive. Try

Summaries of the key points related to

putting yourself in an evolutionary psychologist’s position
20
and answer the following two questions (check your

of the module and include application

answers on page ANS-1):
10
1. Many evolutionary psychologists claim that men are

these objectives are provided at the end more interested in a mate’s physical attractiveness
and youth, whereas women are more interested in 0

questions (with answers in the back of

Sexual or Emotional Aspects of
qualities that contribute to childrearing success, such
emotional without sexual unfaithfulness:
as intelligence and wealth. If this is the case, then who

of each module. Objectives are listed at

infidelity infidelity or sexual or
do you think would express more jealousy over sexual sexual without emotional?
infidelity—men or women? emotional

the book).
infidelity
2. Researchers (Cramer et al., 2008) asked volunteers to

four levels of increasing complexity: know,

Format of infidelity
rate how upset they would be by sexual infidelity in
a mate and then they plotted the results in the graph {fig. 3.11} Men’s and Women’s Reactions to Infidelity
shown in Figure 3.11. Do their results confirm your Men find sexual infidelity more distressing than do women,
hypothesis? regardless of how a question is framed.

understand, apply, and analyze.

xx
M03_KRAU4504_10_SE_C03.indd 91 1/2/14 6:07 PM

Application
 Another major set of forebrain structures
comprises the limbic system, an integrated net-
work involved in emotion and memory (Maclean,
1952; see Figure 3.25). One key structure in the
limbic system
y is the amygdalayg , which facilitates
memory formation
fo for emotional
emotio
tion
tio
i n events, mediates fear
io
responses, and appears too plapplay
a a role in recognizing
and interpreting
p
preting emotion
emotional
ion
onal stimuli,
on s including facial
expressions.
n In addition,
ns. addittion
io , the
the amygdala connects
with structures
u
uctures in
n tthe
he nervous
nerr system that are

Key Terms
Key Terms are defined within the narra-
tive, helping students place them in con-
text, and are then listed again within the
Module Summaries. A complete glossary Quick Quiz 3.1a
Heredity and Behaviour
is also included at the end of the text. 1 The chemical units that provide instructions on how

KNOW . . .
specific proteins are to be produced are called ________.
A chromosomes C genomic
B genes D autosomes

2 A person who is homozygous for a trait

UNDERSTAND . . .

A always has two dominant copies of a gene.

B always has two recessive copies of a gene.
C has identical copies of the gene.

Quick Quizzes D has different copies of the gene.

3 If a researcher wanted to identify how someone’s life

APPLY . . .

Quizzes appear at the conclusion of major

experiences could affect the expression of different
genes and thus put that person at risk for developing
depression, she would most likely use which of the

sections of the module (typically two to

following methods?
A Behavioural genomics
B A comparison of monozygotic and dizygotic twins

four quizzes per module). These quizzes C

in different parts of the world
An adoption study
D Epigenetics

contain multiple-choice questions that

4 Imagine you hear a report about a heritability study

enable students to assess their compre-

ANALYZE . . .

that claims trait X is “50% genetic.” Which of the

following is a more accurate way of stating this?
A Fifty percent of individual differences of trait X

hension and better prepare for exams. B

within a population are due to genetic factors.
Only half of a population has the trait.

Like the Learning Objectives, the Quick C The trait is homozygous.

D More than 50% of similarities of trait X within a
population are due to genetic factors.

Quizzes assess understanding at the Answers can be found on page ANS-1.

four levels of Bloom’s taxonomy and are

marked accordingly.

Before Drug Agonist Drug Antagonist Drug

Agonist

Active Illustration
drug
Antagonist
drug
Neurotransmitter

For key figures and illustrations,

lustrations, anima-
lustrations Normal Receptor site Enhanced Receptor site Blocked Receptor site

tions are provided within the eText to cellular

M03_KRAU4504_10_SE_C03.indd 82
activity
cellular
activity
cellular
activity

{fig. 3.18} Drug Effects at the Synapses Drugs can act as agonists by facilitating the effects of a neurotransmitter, or as
1/2/14 6:07 PM

deliver greater clarity and understand- antagonists by blocking these effects. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.

ing. For example, readers are much more

HORMONES AND THE ENDOCRINE SYSTEM Module 11.1). In other words, the brain triggers activity
Neurotransmitters are not the body’s only chemical mes- in the endocrine system which then influences the brain’s
senger system. Hormones are chemicals secreted by the glands activity via hormones. This cycle continues as our brain

apt to understand the structures of the of the endocrine system. Generally, neurotransmitters work
almost immediately within the microscopic space of the
synapse, whereas hormones are secreted into the blood-
and body attempt to maintain the appropriate energy levels
for dealing with the environment.
The brain area that is cr itical for this brain-

brain when they can click on a diagram stream and travel throughout the body. Thus, the effects of
hormones are much slower than those of neurotransmit-
endocrine relationship is the hypothalamus , a brain
structure that regulates basic biological needs and motivational

e Gathering
ters. With help from the nervous system, the endocrine systems. The hypothalamus releases specialized chemi-

of it and see a fully rotating illustration. system contributes to homeostasis—the balance of energy,
metabolism, body temperature, and other basic functions
that keeps the body working properly (see Figure 3.19; see
cals called releasing factors that stimulate the pituitary
gland—the master gland of the endocrine system that produces
hormones and sends commands about hormone production to

The Pearson eText for the Canadian edi- Hypothalamus

Pineal
the other glands of the endocrine system. These hormones
can be released by glands throughout the body before
finding their way to the brain via the bloodstream.

tion of An Introduction to Psychological Sci-

Pituitary gland gland
How we respond to stress illustrates nicely how the
nervous and endocrine systems influence each other. In
Thyroid psychological terms, stress is loosely defined as an imbal-

ence is designed 111

M03_KRAU4504_10_SE_C03.indd with alternative delivery ance between perceived demands and the perceived
resources available to meet those demands. Such an imbal-
11/5/13 6:55 PM

models in mind. Highly visual, clearly laid

Adrenal ance might occur if you suddenly realize your midterm
glands exam is tomorrow at 8:00 [Link] resources—time and

do we
energy—may not be enough to meet the demand of suc-

out, and with integrated video and media, Pancreas ceeding on the exam. The hypothalamus, however, sets
Ovaries chemical events in motion that physically prepare the
(female) body for stress. It signals the pituitary gland to release a

it is optimal for online reading and interac-

hormone into the bloodstream that in turn stimulates the
adrenal glands, a pair of endocrine glands located adjacent
to the kidneys that release stress hormones, such as cortisol and

tion. Students can access their textbook

Testes
epinephrine. Cortisol and epinephrine help mobilize the

out this?
(male)
body during stress, thus providing enough energy for you
to deal with the sudden increase in activity necessary to

anytime, anywhere, and any way they want,

{fig. 3.19} The Endocrine System Glands throughout the respond to the stress-inducing situation (see Module 14.2).
body release and exchange hormones. The hypothalamus
interacts with the endocrine system to regulate hormonal Another important chemical is endorphin, a hor-
processes. mone produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus

including listening online or downloading

it to their iPads.
M03_KRAU4504_10_SE_C03.indd 102
Watch the Video 11/5/13 6:55 PM

MyPsychLab Listen to the Chapter Audio

MyPsychLab icons n in the margin call

ns Explore the Concept
f
out important information d
students can
access online—for example, videos, simu- Simulate the Experiment
lations, and hands-on experiments.
Study and Review

Content and Features :: xxi

Scientific Explanation
 This element of scientific literacy encompasses a
Scientific Explanation basic understanding of research methodology and Knowledge Gathering
thinking about problems within a scientific frame-
How can science work. An Introduction to Psychological Science inte-
explain it? grates and reinforces key research methodology What do we
concepts throughout the book. This interweaving
of methodology encourages students to continue know about this?
practising their scientific thinking skills. Learning
science is more than accumulating facts; students
learn to ask questions, construct explanations, test
those explanations, and communicate their ideas
to others.

Application
Scientific
Literacy
Module Opening Vignettes
Why is this rele
e
evant
t?
Each module opens with a short vignette
emphasizing the personal and societal rel- Roberto A Sanchez/iStockphoto

Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives

evance of certain topics to be covered.
Module
Mod
d

3.1
3.
.
on Behaviour
The vignette concludes with Focus Ques- Learning
Learnii
Objectii
Objectives
KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

tions preparing the reader to think about

The key terminology How twin and adoption Your knowledge of genes and Claims that scientists have located
After rea
Afte
Aft reading
a related to genes, studies reveal relationships behaviour to hypothesize why a specific gene that controls a
this module
his m
mo
mod d inheritance, and between genes and behaviour a trait might be adaptive single trait or behaviour
you should
youu ssh
shoo evolutionary psychology Explanations for cognitive gender

the content found within the module.

differences that are rooted in genetics

Psychologist Martie Haselton has given new meaning to the phrase dress Of course, evolutionary psychologists are quick to point out that females
for success. She is not talking about professional advancement, however; are not alone in “signalling” their receptiveness for sexual activity. Males
rather, she is referring to success in attracting a mate. Dr. Haselton is provide numerous—if not more obvious—examples. Evolutionary psy-
an evolutionary psychologist—she studies how human behaviour has chologists might point out that body building, flaunting material assets,
evolved to solve problems that relate to survival and reproductive suc- and other public displays of strength and status are common male strat-
cess. As part of her work, she has discovered that the clothes people egies for attracting mates. Researchers must ask themselves this ques-
choose are related to sexual motivation in some subtle ways. tion: Is this behaviour just a coincidence? Or is this how the evolutionary
forces that allowed our species to survive for hundreds of thousands of
In one project, Dr. Haselton and her colleagues invited female volunteers to
years are influencing our behaviour in the modern world? Evolutionary
the laboratory to participate in a study about personality, sexuality, and health.
psychologists like Dr. Haselton are building evidence to argue that how
The young women were not given any specific directions about what to wear
we dress and how we send many other signals can be explained by evolu-
and during their visit to the laboratory they agreed to be photographed. Later,
tionary principles, a topic we explore in this module.
male and female volunteers viewed the photographs to judge whether they

BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
thought the women in the photos had dressed to look attractive. It turns out
that women were rated as having dressed more attractively when they were
Focus Questions
in their peak level of fertility of the menstrual cycle (Durante et al., 2008; 1 How is human behaviour influenced by genetic factors?
Haselton et al., 2007). The researchers suggested that wearing such clothing

PERSPECTIVES
2 How has evolution played a role in modern-day human behaviour?
during the fertile phase of the menstrual cycle was an attempt to be noticed
by a potential mate (although the women in the study might disagree).

Hunters and Gatherers: Men, Women,

and Spatial Memory
M03_KRAU4504_10_SE_C03.indd 75 1/2/14 6:06 PM
Evo
Evolutionary
o psychologists claim that the brain consists of a set
of ccognitive adaptations for solving problems related to survival
andd reproductive fitness. They also hypothesize that male and
female
m brains will differ in some ways because males and females
fem
havee had to solve a different set of problems in order to sur-
hav

Biopsychosocial Perspectives vivee and reproduce. Specifically, due to their size and strength,
males
mal l were traditionally responsible for tracking and killing
animals. These responsibilities would require males to travel
To emphasize the complexity of scien- over long distances without becoming lost. Females, due to the

tific explanations, students are reminded

Critical Thinking
fact that they cared for children, remained closer to home and
instead spent time foraging for berries and edible plants. Males’
throughout each chapter that behaviour responsibilities would favour individuals with good spatial skills;
females’ responsibilities would favour memory for the location
includes biology, individual thoughts and of objects (e.g., plants). The question, then, is whether the abili-
ties that were adaptive for males and females over the course of
experiences, and the influence of social our species’ evolution are still present today. Put another way,
and cultural factors. will modern males and females show performance differences

Can we critically
y
on different tests of spatial abilities that are consistent with their
historic roles as hunter (males) and gatherer (females)?
One sex difference that has been reported involves solv-
ing the mental rotation task seen in Figure 3.9.
Instructions

evaluate
e the evide
evidence?
c 1. Take a close look at standard object #1 in Figure 3.9. One
of the three objects to the right of it is the [Link] one
matches the standard? Repeat this with standard object #2
and the three comparison shapes to the right of it.
2. Many researchers find that, on average, males and females
differ in their ability to perform this task. Do you think that

xxii :::: Content and Features

M03_KRAU4504_10_SE_C03.indd 89
 Myths in Mind
Many commonly hheld eld beliefs people have MYTHS IN MIND
efore
f
about behaviour before t ki a psychol-
taking psychol
h l We Are Born with All the Brain Cells
ogy course are half-truths or outright We Will Ever Have
falsehoods. This feature sets the record For decades, neuroscience taught us that nerves do not
regenerate; in other words, scientists believed that we are
straight in a concise and informative way.
born with all of the brain cells we will ever have. This con-
The selected examples are likely to have clusion made perfect sense because no one had ever seen
personal relevance to many readers and new neurons form in adults, and severe neurological damage
deal with important scientific issues. is often permanent.

MyPsychLab Simulations
MyPsychLab Simulations allow w students
to participate in experiments online to
reinforce what they are learning in class
and in their book. More than 50 experi-
ments, surveys, and inventories are avail-
able through this online tool (available at

Scientific Explanatio
MyPsychLab).

How can science

explain
In recent it? number of instruc-
years, an increasing
tors have begun to focus on telling students
how psychological science fits within the scien-
tific community. Psychology serves, in essence, as
a hub science. Through this emphasis on scien-
tific literacy in psychology, students begin to see
the practicality and relevance of psychology and
become more literate in the fields that our hub
science supports.

M03_KRAU4504_10_SE_C03.indd 95 1/2/14 6:08 PM

Content and Features :: xxiii

 Many departments are focusing to an increasing extent
Critical Thinking on the development of critical thinking, as these skills
Application
Aare highly sought after in society and the workforce.
Can we critically Critical thinking is generally defined as the ability to
apply knowledge, use information in new ways, ana-
Scien
evaluate the evidence?
Why
W hy is this relevant? lyze situations and concepts, and evaluate decisions.
To develop critical thinking, the module objectives
Liter
and quizzes are built around an updated Bloom’s tax-
onomy. Objectives are listed at four levels of increas-
ing complexity: know, understand, apply, and analyze.
The following features also help students organize,
analyze, and synthesize information. Collectively, these
features encourage students to connect different lev-
Working
Worr the Scientific Literacy els of understanding with specific objectives and quiz
Model
Mod questions.
Workii the Scientific Literacy Model, intro-
Working
duced d in Chapter 1, and then featured in
each module in the remaining chapters,
fully integrates the model of scientific
literacc Core concepts are highlighted
literacy.
and students
s are walked through the Work the Scientific Literacy Model
Critical T
steps of knowledge gathering, approach-
ing the
thh problem from a scientific stand- At the end of every chapter, students have ann opportunity ni
e
emselves.
to “Work the Scientific Literacy Model” themselves. Th
The
Caan we c
a
point,, using critical thinking, and revealing
applicc
applications. Work the Model feature walks students througho
ough content e
from the chapter, providing study tips and reminders
r fo
for
i
ically
key content areas. Students are asked to critically evaluate a
ev
valua
ate the
a
the body. The fact that a neural area known to be associated
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC with pain perception also contains receptors for Substance P
LITERACY MODEL suggests that this neurotransmitter is likely involved with

Pain and Substance P

pain responses.
However, this is not the only part of the brain containing
Substance P receptors. They are also found in the amygdala
what they have learned by accessing a video e clip, either
eo h
through MyPsychLab, the Layar app, the QR R code on the th
Pain is not a simple process. Instead, there are a number of (which responds to fear and arousal) and the hypothalamus
different neural systems and neurotransmitters involved with (which is related to fight-or-flight responses and the release
our responses to painful stimuli (see Module 4.4). In fact, sero- of different hormones). Why would this be the case? One
tonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine have all been implicated possibility is that pain is not simply a physical sensation.
in some part of the pain response. One neurotransmitter that
hasn’t been discussed yet, however, is known as Substance P,
a neurotransmitter involved in the experience of pain.
A large body of research now suggests that when we feel
pain, it is a combination of both sensation and an emotional
response. Sometimes the tears that fall after we stub our
page, or YouTube. They are then provided with th a question on
prompting them to apply relevant content to o the scenario
toe are due not only to being hurt, but to being frustrated
What do we know (among many other emotions).
about Substance P?
Can we critically evaluate
Substance P was first discovered
in 1931 when a paste made from
the brain and intestine of a horse
was found to cause muscles to
this research?
Evidence in favour of the role of
depicted in the video. These questions
can be assigned as either a classroom
Substance P in pain perception
contract (Von Euler & Gaddum, comes from a group of patients
1931); that was one heck of a party. It was named Substance P with a rare condition called congeni-
because the paste became powdery (Gaddum & Schild, 1934). tal insensitivity to pain. These indi- Work the Scientific Literacyy Model :: Understandingg Brain Functions
discussion or a writing assignment.
Twenty years later, Austrian physiologist Fred Lembeck deter- viduals lack the ability to perceive pain, and even in early
mined that this substance was associated with the transmis- childhood acquire significant damage to the skin, joints,
sion of pain (Harrison & Geppetti, 2001; Lembeck, 1953). eyes, and other body regions. Because they lack a pain
Lembeck and others noted that Substance P was found in
the dorsal root of the spinal cord, an area that transmits pain
response, these individuals do not take action to prevent
physical damage to the body. Research in the U.K. (ironi-
1 2
What do we know about structures of the brain?
See Table 3.2 for a list of the major brain regions, structures, and their
How can science help explain brain
structure and function?
information back to the brain (Otsuka et al., 1972), as well as cally conducted by someone named Dr. Misery) found that functions. As you review this material, try to come up with strategies to dis- As discussed on page 121, in the very early days of brain
in several different brain areas related to the pain response some individuals with this disorder lack Substance P recep- tinguish these terms. For example, two brain structures commonly confused research, scientists had to rely almost exclusively on case stud-
(Mantyh, 2002). So, when tissue on the skin surface is dam- tors in the peripheral nerves (Misery et al., 1999). Studies with each other are the hypothalamus and the hippocampus. Although the ies to gather data. There was no way to image the brain of a
aged, sensory nerves carry messages to the spinal cord and such as this provide strong evidence for this neurotrans- hypothalamus and the hippocampus are both part of the limbic system, they living, breathing patient or research participant. Today, through
then up to the brain. In turn, these CNS structures release mitter’s role in pain perception. have very different functions. The hypothalamus serves as a sort of thermostat, neuroimaging technology, researchers are able to take detailed
Substance P, giving rise to the perception of pain. maintaining the appropriate body temperature, and it can affect drives such as pictures of the brain and can examine the actual activity of
More contentious is the issue of pain and emotion. There aggression and sex. The hippocampus is critical for learning and memory, par- major structures such as the hypothalamus and the hippocam-
is a great deal of evidence linking emotion and pain. For ticularly the formation of new memories. Can you think of a memory device pus while that activity is occurring. Researchers have developed
How can science instance, social “pain” resulting from being rejected acti- that might help you keep these two brain structures separate? One suggestion: a variety of methods for studying the brain, each of which
explain what vates similar brain areas as physical pain (Eisenberger, 2012; For the hippocampus, think of the last part of the word—“campus.” To suc- offers some advantage over the others. See pages 121–125
Substance P does? Eisenberger et al., 2003). There is also evidence that patients cessfully navigate your university’s campus, you need to keep in mind where for detailed descriptions of methods for measuring and
with chronic pain conditions are also more likely to suffer certain buildings are located. This area is exactly the type of task that involves a observing brain activity: electroencephalogram (EEG), positron
From an evolutionar y from depression (Dunne & Dunne, 2012). Interestingly, some functioning hippocampus. As you study, try to come up with your own memory emission tomography (PET) scans, magnetic resonance imaging
standpoint, it makes sense investigators have found that drugs that influence the levels devices to help recall the different brain structures (MRI), functional MRI (fMRI), magnetoencepha-
to have pathways specialized for the perception of pain. Pain of Substance P in the brain have antidepressant properties and their functions. lography (MEG), brain lesioning, and transcranial
is an important messenger telling you to stop doing some- (Adell, 2004). However, these researchers are quick to note magnetic stimulation (TMS).
thing that is harming your body. Compelling evidence for the that such drugs could also potentially influence other neu-
role of Substance P comes from an examination of the brain rotransmitter systems. Therefore, more research is needed
areas containing Substance P receptors. These receptors to clarify this issue.
are densely packed in a structure in the middle of the brain
called the periaqueductal grey (Yip & Chahl, 2001). This brain
region receives pain- and temperature-related input from
Why is this relevant?
the spinal cord and sends it to different areas of the cerebral
cortex, the wrinkled outer surface of the brain involved with Millions of people suffer from
many sophisticated processes. It also receives input from the chronic pain. In addition to
4 Why is this relevant?
Sebastian Kaulitzki/Shutterstock

3
cortex and transmits it through the spinal cord to the rest of compromising the well-being Watch the accompanying video excerpt Can we critically evaluate
on brain functions. You can access the video at MyPsychLab
claims about brain function?
or by clicking the play button in the centre of your eText. If your
instructor assigns this video as a homework activity, you will find Modern methods have helped us understand a great deal about brain
additional content to help you in MyPsychLab. You can also view structures and functions, but many misunderstandings persist. In
the video by using your smart phone and the QR code below, or Myths in Mind on page 95, we addressed the question of whether
you can go to the YouTube link provided. humans are born with all of the nerve cells we will ever have. In the past
15 years or so, advances in brain science have challenged this traditionally
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, imag-
held belief. Researchers have observed neurogenesis in a limited number
ine that your best friends invite you over for pizza and a friendly
of brain regions, particularly in the hippocampus. Some areas within the
game of cards. Describe how the following parts of the brain are
hippocampus have the capacity to generate new cells long after birth.
involved during your evening of eating pizza, socializing, and playing
cards: Broca’s area, hippocampus, hypothalamus, and occipital lobe. Also, in our discussion of hemispheric specialization on page 115, we
M03_KRAU4504_10_SE_C03.indd 100 1/2/14 6:08 PM discussed how the degree to which people are “right-brained” or “left-
brained” is often exaggerated in the popular media. Creative artists are
often described as “right-brained,” whereas logical and analytical types
are supposedly “left-brained.” In reality, most cognitive functions are
spread throughout multiple brain regions.
It is easy to get caught up in thinking about these kinds of generalities
as absolutes. Whenever you encounter “scientific claims” in the popu-
lar media, it is important to properly evaluate the information before
embracing it as truth.

INTERACTIVE PRINT Download the free Scan pages featuring Discover MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar

Layar App the Layar logo interactive content app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
video clip to test your understanding.
[Link]/workthemodel
SCAN WITH LAYAR

M03_KRAU4504_10_SE_C03.indd 129 1/7/14 2:35 PM

xxiv : : Content and Features

 Scientific Explanation
ntific Study Plan
Through MyPsychLab ([Link]
How can sc
ci
racy
.com), students have access to a personalized study plan,
based on Bloom’s taxonomy, that arranges content
from basic level thinking (such as remembering and
explain
p n
understanding) to more complex critical thinking (such
as applying and analyzing). This layered approach sharp-
ens critical thinking skills, and helps students succeed in
the course and beyond.

Thinking

critically
e evidence e?

Content and Features :: xxv

 Application

Why is this relevant?

Psychology is a highly relevant, mod-

ern science. To be scientifically literate,
students should relate psychological
concepts to their own lives, making
decisions based on knowledge, sound
methodology, and skilled interpreta-
tion of information.

MyPsychLab Video Series

Links are provided throughout the eText to rel-
evant episodes of the MyPsychLab Video series—
a comprehensive, current, and cutting-edge series
featuring 17 original 30-minute videos covering
Application
the most recent research, science, and applica-
tions and utilizing the most up-to-date film and
animation technology.

Why is this relevant?

W

xxvi : : Content and Features

 Psych @
The “Psych @” feature reveals an everyday,
PSYCH @ personally relevant application of psychologi-
The Artist’s Studio cal science. The content of these features is
geared toward issues and concerns that many
Although we often think of painters as being eccentric people university students care about.
prone to cutting off their ears, they are actually very clever
amateur vision scientists. Rembrandt (1606–1669) varied the
texture and colour details of different parts of portraits in
order to guide the viewer’s gaze toward the clearest object.
The result is that more detailed regions of a painting attract
attention and receive more eye fixations than less detailed
regions (DiPaoloa, Riebe, & Enns, 2011).
In addition to manipulating a viewer’s eye movements,
painters also use a variety of depth cues to transform their
two-dimensional painting into a three-dimensional percep-
tion. This use of pictorial depth cues is quite challenging, which

thering
is why some paintings seem vibrant and multilayered (like
nature) while others seem flat and artificial. So what are some
strategies that artists use to influence our visual perception?
To understand how artists work, view the painting by
Gustave Caillebottein shown in Figure 4.26. In this painting,
you will notice that the artist used numerous cues to depict
depth:

What
W hat do
do we
w
know about this?

YouTube Scientific Literacy Site

YouTube has become one of the most popular social media
resources for both instructors and students. The challenge, of
course, is to find clips that are relevant to key content areas.
To help instructors access valuable open-source content and
further bring to light the relevance of the discipline of psychol-
ogy, a YouTube channel, found at
[Link]/workthemodel
has been developed to accompany An Introduction to Psychologi-
cal Science. The book provides relevant video links for instruc-
Scientific Explanation
tor and student access, in addition to the videos that frame the
end-of-chapter “Work the Scientific Literacy Model” activity.

Literacy How can science

explain it?
M04_KRAU4504_10_SE_C04.indd 156 11/7/13 6:25 PM

Critical Thinking Content and Features :: xxvii

 What’s New in the Canadian Edition?
When we started writing the Canadian edition of this textbook, we assumed we’d just add the letter “u” a few hun-
dred times and insert some pictures of Sidney [Link] did add several thousand u’s and one photo of Crosby—
but, as we began to write the different chapters, we became amazed at how important Canadian researchers have
been to the study of psychological science. In boxing, there is the phrase “punching above your weight.” It is used
when a smaller fighter’s punches feel like they are coming from a larger, stronger fighter. Canadian psychology is
like that. Despite the fact that we are a relatively small country (in terms of population and the number of research
institutions), we have made incredibly important contributions to a number of areas of psychology. The work of
Canadian researchers served as the foundation for many areas of neuroscience, perception, memory, social, and
health research. So, although we rewrote large chunks of the book, the Canadian content isn’t just added as a bonus.
The Canadian content is actually an essential part of psychological science in general. As a result, we ended up adding
over 1400 new references to the U.S. edition of this book. These include the following additions:
• highlighting the importance that Canadian research has had on the development of modern psychology;
• adding research conducted by Canadian researchers from all 10 provinces;
• incorporating research related to cultural psychology and the experiences of first- and second-generation immi-
grants to Canada;
• discussing bilingualism and its effects on culture, cognition, and the brain;
• providing a thorough discussion of Canadian legal decisions (including references to specific Supreme Court rul-
ings) related to issues such as sexting, hypnosis, and recovered memories;
• discussing Canadian statistics and laws related to drug use and possession;
• providing Statistics Canada and Health Canada materials for a number of topics including smoking, obesity, work
stress, gambling, and clinical conditions;
• clarifying the ethical requirements for conducting research at Canadian universities and hospitals;
• incorporating discussions of social issues that are central to many Canadians’ lives such as environmental issues,
the increased role of technology in our lives, and the influence that marketers and corporations try to have over
us all.
We have also made an effort to make psychology less “abstract” than it is often portrayed in [Link]-
out this book, we use examples from the real world in order to demonstrate that the concepts the students are
learning about affect their own behaviour. Although we include some traditional examples such as how to improve
study habits, we go beyond that. For example, we use the concepts learned in different chapters to highlight
tricks used by advertisers (including those used in negative political advertising). We also point out interesting
things to look for in social interactions, such as the tendency of heterosexual males to stand up straighter in the
presence of women in order to appear more powerful (discussed in Evolutionary Insights into Human Behaviour
in Module 3.1). Our hope is that these engaging examples will allow the students to see the world in a slightly
different way.
In addition to these examples, we also try to show the students how they can use psychology to change the world that they
live in. An example found in many chapters is that of changing people’s environmental behaviours and their attitudes
toward issues such as climate change. Our hope is that by seeing how psychological science can be used to change
behaviours for the better, students will be motivated to take the information from this book outside of the class-
room to create the types of changes that our world desperately needs.
When you begin any course, it is like starting a journey. We hope you enjoy your journey through the Canadian
edition of An Introduction to Psychological Science as much as we enjoyed writing it.

xxviii
For Instructors
SCIENTIFIC LITERACY is a key
course goal for many introductory
psychology instructors.
Learning science is an active process.
How do we help instructors model
scientific literacy in the classroom ORGANIZATION
and online in a way that meets the
needs of today’s students? Instructors consistently tell us one of the
main challenges they face when teaching the
introductory psychology course is organiz-
ing engaging, current, and relevant materi-
als to span the breadth of content covered.
How do we help organize and access valu-
able course materials?

YouTube Scientific Literacy Site

As mentioned earlier, a YouTube channel, found at [Link]
.com/workthemodel, provides a wealth of videos to help engage
students and enhance their learning. The ready access provided to
these videos, with content spanning the breadth of psychological
science, means that instructors no longer have to search for just
the right video links to material that meshes with the text’s content.

Instructor’s Resource Manual

The Instructor’s Resource Manual includes suggestions for pre-
paring for the course, sample syllabi, and current trends and
strategies for successful teaching. Each chapter offers integrated
teaching outlines, lists the key terms for each chapter for quick
reference, and provides an extensive bank of lecture launch-
ers, handouts, and activities, as well as suggestions for integrat-
ing third-party videos and web resources. This resource saves
prep work and helps professors use their classroom time more
efficiently.

xxix
 ORGANIZATION

Pearson eText
The Canadian edition of An Introduction to Psychological Science
is designed with alternative delivery models in mind. Highly
visual, clearly laid out, and with integrated video and media, it
is optimal for online reading and interaction. Instructors and
students can access their textbook anytime, anywhere, and any
way they want, including listening online or downloading it to
an iPad.

Create a Custom Text

P R O FE S S O R S Y D N E Y M A A S
L A N G L E Y C O L L E G E , PS YC HO LO G Y 1 0 1

9 : : INTELLIGENCE, APTITUDE, AND COGNITIVE ABILITIES PROFESSOR MAAS LECTURE NOTES

Professor Sydney Maas :: Langley College, Psychology 101
In addition to your textbook readings, be sure to take good Describe the structure and function of the peripheral

For courses with enrollments of at least 25 students, instruc-

notes in class. See Psychology in Action Introduction for nervous system. Describe the structure and function of
tips on taking notes and good study habits (p. I-4 to I-17). the autonomic nervous system with special emphasis on
the distinction between the sympathetic and parasympa-
In addition to the text book content (page numbers listed
thetic nervous system. (Text learning objective 2.4)
Professor Maas’ Ciccarelli/White Learning Objectives MyPsychLab Resources above), we will focus on the following content in class Janu-
Learning Objectives

tors can create their own textbook by combining chapters

ary 30th, February 1st, February 3rd. Note—we will do an • The somatic nervous system contains the sensory path-
American Psychological Association American Psychological
in-class experiment on February 3rd. You can find my Pow- way, or neurons carrying messages to the central nervous
Learning Goals** Association Learning Goals
erPoint slides in the Course Content section of MyPsychLab. system, and the motor pathway, or neurons carrying mes-
sages from the central nervous system to the voluntary
Describe the structure of the 2.1 What are the nervous system, neurons, and nerves, Study Plan—pre and post test due
muscles.
neuron. Describe the three types and how do they relate to one another? p. 46–51 January 27th (reminder the study plan Describe the structure of the neuron. Describe the three
post tests are 20% of your grade)

from best-selling Pearson textbooks or reading selections in

of neurons and their function. types of neurons and their function (Text learning objec- • The autonomic nervous system consists of the parasym-
APA Goal 1.2 Knowledge Base of Psychology:
tive 2.1) pathetic division and the sympathetic division.
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of APA Goal 3 Critical Thinking/
biological basis of behavior and mental processes Association Skills: State connections
• The nervous system is a complex network of cells that
between diverse facts and theories
carry information to and from all parts of the body. Describe the function of the basic structures of the brain
in the hindbrain and midbrain including the medulla,
Describe neural transmission within Nerve impulse on afferent and efferent • Structure of the Neuron: the Nervous System’s Building
L A N G L E Y C O L L E G E , P S Y C H O L O G Y 101

2.2 How do neurons use neurotransmitters

a customized sequence. To begin building a custom text, visit

to communicate with each other neurons media assignment
pons, cerebellum, and reticular activating system. (Text
the neuron with special emphasis Network
and with the body? p. 51–56 learning objective 2.7)
on the concepts of resting potential,
action potential, and absolute APA Goal 5: Values in Psychology/ • The brain is made up of two types of cells, neurons and
APA Goal 1.3: Describe behavior and mental processes Curiosity: Describe how curiosity • Structures Under the Cortex
and relative refractory period. assists the scientific process
glial cells.
empirically, including operational definitions
• The cortex is about one tenth of an inch in thickness. Its
• Neurons have dendrites, which receive input, a soma or
wrinkles, or corticalization, allow for greater surface area
Describe the basic structure of 2.3 How do the brain and spinal cord interact? p. 56–59 Listen to the Psychology in the cell body, and axons, which carry the neural message to
News Stem Cell segment
and are associated with human’s greater intelligence as
the human nervous system. other cells.
compared with other animals.
P R OFES S O R SY D N E Y M A A S

APA Goal 1.3: Interpret behavior and mental

Describe the role of the spinal processes at an appropriate level of complexity APA Goal 3 Critical Thinking/Use of

[Link]
cord in the control of reflexes. Evidence in Psychology: Discern difference Describe neural transmission within the neuron with spe-
between personal views and scientific Describe the structure and function of the cerebral cortex
cial emphasis on the concepts of resting potential, action
evidence in understanding behavior with special emphasis on its four lobes, white vs. grey
potential, and absolute and relative refractory period.
matter, motor cortex, sensory cortex, and association ar-
(Text learning objective 2.2)
Describe the structure and function 2.4 How do the somatic and autonomic nervous Autonomic nervous system media assignment eas. (Text learning objectives 2.8, 2.9 and 2.10)
of the peripheral nervous system. systems allow people and animals to interact • Synaptic vesicles in the end of the axon terminal release
with their surroundings and control the APA Goal 5: Values in Psychology/ • The cortex is divided into two cerebral hemispheres
Describe the structure and neurotransmitter chemicals in to the synapse, or gap, be-
body’s automatic functions? p. 59–63 Skepticism: Define skepticism and connected by a thick band of neurons called the corpus
function of the autonomic its role in psychological thinking tween one cell and the next.
callosum.
nervous system with special APA Goal 1.3: Identify antecedents and

Instructors can also work with a dedicated Pearson Custom

consequences of behavior and mental processes • The neurotransmitter molecules fit into receptor sites on
emphasis on the distinction • The occipital lobes at the back and base of each hemi-
between the sympathetic and the next cell, stimulating or inhibiting that cell’s firing.
sphere process vision and contain the primary visual
parasympathetic nervous system. cortex.
• The first known neurotransmitter was acetylcholine. It
stimulates muscles and helps in memory formation. Cu-
Describe the function of the basic 2.7 What are the different structures of the bottom Cerebrum simulation media assignment • The parietal lobes at the top and back of the cortex con-
rare is a poison that blocks its affect.
tain the somatasensory area, which processes our sense

editor to create the ideal text—publishing original content

structures of the brain in the part of the brain and what do they do? p. 69–71
hindbrain and midbrain including APA Goal 2: Describe various research methods, • Most neurotransmitters are taken back into the synaptic of touch, temperature, and body position. Taste is also
APA Goal 1.3: Describe behavior and mental processes including advantages and disadvantages of use processed in this lobe.
the medulla, pons, cerebellum,
empirically, including operational definitions
vesicles in a process called reuptake.
and reticular activating system.
• The temporal lobes contain the primary auditory area and
Describe the basic structure of the human nervous sys- are also involved in understanding language.
Describe the structure and function 2.9 What parts of the cortex control the different Limbic system simulation media assignment
tem. Describe the role of the spinal cord in the control of

or mixing and matching Pearson content. Contact a Pearson

of the cerebral cortex with special senses and the movement of the body?
APA Goal 3: Critical Thinking/ reflexes. (Text learning objective 2.3)
emphasis on its four lobes, white vs. 2.10 What parts of the cortex are responsible for higher Describe the differences of function between the two
Association Skills: State connections
grey matter, motor cortex, sensory forms of thought, such as language? p. 71–78 • The spinal cord serves two functions. The outer part of hemispheres of the brain and research on the split brain.
between diverse facts and theories
cortex, and association areas. the cord transmits messages to and from the brain, while (Text learning objective 2.11)
APA Goal 1.3:
Use theories to explain and predict the inner part controls life-saving reflexes such as the pain
• Studies with split-brain patients, in which the corpus callo-

publisher’s representative to get started.

behavior and mental processes response.
sum has been severed to correct epilepsy, reveal that the
• Spinal cord reflexes involve sensory neurons, interneu- left side of the brain seems to control language, writing,
Describe the differences of 2.11 How does the left side of the brain differ Split-brain experiment (in class activity)
rons, and motor neurons, forming a simple reflex arc. logical thought, analysis, and mathematical abilities. The
function between the two from the right side? p. 78–80
APA Goal 2: Research Methods/Body of
left side also processes information sequentially.
hemispheres of the brain and • The central nervous system consists of the brain and the
APA Goal 1.3: Integrate theoretical perspectives to Evidence: Articulate how an individual research
research on the split brain. spinal cord.
produce comprehensive and multifaceted explanations study addresses a behavioral question

** for more information on the American Psychological Association Learning Goals and Outcomes see
[Link]

xxx : : For Instructors

 ClassPrep
Finding, sorting, organizing, and presenting instructor resources is faster and easier
than ever before with ClassPrep, which is available in [Link] fully searchable
database contains hundreds of our best teacher resources, such as lecture launchers
and discussion topics, in-class and out-of-class activities and assignments, handouts, and
PRESENTATION video clips, photos, illustrations, charts, graphs, and animations. Instructors can search
or browse by topic, and readily sort their results by type, such as photo, document,
or animation. Instructors can cre-
ate personalized folders to organize
Instructors consistently tell us and store the content that they like,
or can download resources if they
making their classroom lectures prefer. In addition, instructors can
and online instruction exciting upload their own content and pres-
ent directly from ClassPrep, or make
and dynamic is a top priority so it available online directly to their
they can engage students and students. Also available—a ClassPrep
app that allows access to all favourite
bring psychology to life. We resources via any mobile device.
have been listening and have
responded by creating state-
of-the-art presentation resources,
putting the most powerful pre-
sentation resources at your PowerPoint Presentations
fingertips. Engaging PowerPoint slides bring the
powerful Krause/Corts/Smith/Dolderman
design right into the classroom, drawing
students into the lecture with interest-
ing information and rich visuals. The slides
are built around the learning objectives in
each module and offer key material that is
provided in the text. In addition, interac- AN INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE
Mark Krause, Daniel Corts, Stephen Smith, and Dan Dolderman
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Copyright © 2015 Pearson Canada Inc.

tive presentations with “clicker” questions

are provided for instructors using class-
For maximum flexibility, each half-hour room response systems.
episode features several brief clips that bring
psychology to life:
• The Big Picture introduces the topic of the
episode and provides the hook to draw
students fully into the topic.
• The Basics uses the power of video to MyPsychLab Video Series
present foundational topics, especially those
that students find difficult to understand. The MyPsychLab Video series is a comprehensive, current, and cutting-edge series
featuring 17 original 30-minute videos covering the most recent research, science,
• Special Topics dives deeper into high-
and applications and utilizing the most up-to-date film and animation technology.
interest and cutting-edge topics, showing
research in action. Questions are provided within MyPsychLab so that instructors can assign relevant
clips from the series as homework; they may also use the series in the classroom to
• In the Real World focuses on applications illustrate the many fascinating topics
of psychological research. in the field of psychology as part of MyPsychLab V I D E O TO O L K I T

their lectures. Guided by the Design,

THINKING IN THE

• What’s in It for Me? clips show students

PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE THE THE SPECIAL LIKE A REAL WORLD WHAT’S IN IT
Krause/Corts BIG PICTURE BASICS TOPICS PSYCHOLOGIST APPLICATIONS FOR ME?

Episode 1

the relevance of psychological research to Development, and Review team—a Introduction to Psychology
VIEW EPISODE TITLES

their own lives. diverse group of introductory psy- Episode 2

Research Methods
VIEW EPISODE TITLES

chology instructors—each episode Episode 3

Biological Psychology

is organized around the major topics

VIEW EPISODE TITLES

Episode 4
rehearsal

covered in the introductory psychol- Evolution and Genes Short- Encoding Long-
Sensory
term term
memory Selective memory memory
attention
Retrieval

VIEW EPISODE TITLES

All information Unrehearsed Information is
lost within a information is indefinitely a
second or so. lost in about some informati
15 to 30 seconds. be diffa
icult to

ogy course syllabus. Find out more Episode 5

Sensation and Perception
VIEW EPISODE TITLES

about the MyPsychLab Video Series: Episode 6

Consciousness

w w w. p e a r s o n h i g h e r e d . c o m /
VIEW EPISODE TITLES

< Page 1 of 3 >

showcase/mypsychlab_videos/

For Instructors :: xxxi

 Test Bank
The Test Bank (Test Item File) contains more than 3000 questions,
many of which were class-tested in multiple classes at both 2-year
and 4-year institutions prior to publication. All questions have been
thoroughly reviewed and analyzed line by line by a developmental
ASSESSMENT editor and a copy editor to ensure clarity, accuracy, and delivery
of the highest-quality assessment tool. All conceptual and applied
multiple-choice questions include rationales for each correct
answer and the key distracter, which serve both as an added guar-
Instructors consistently tell us antee of quality and as a time-saver when students challenge the
keyed answer for a specific item.
that assessing student prog-
In addition to this high-quality Test Bank, a second bank containing
ress is a critical component more than 2000 questions is available for instructors looking for
to their course and one of the more variation.

most time-consuming tasks. The Test Bank also comes with Pearson MyTest, a powerful assess-
ment generation program that helps instructors easily create and
Vetted, good-quality, easy- print quizzes and exams. Questions and tests can be authored
to-use assessment tools are online, providing instructors with the ultimate in flexibility and
the ability to efficiently manage assessments wherever and when-
[Link] have been listen- ever they want. Instructors can easily access existing questions
ing and we have responded by and then edit, create, and store them using simple drag-and-drop
and Word-like controls. The data for each question identifies
creating the absolutely best its difficulty level and the text page number where the relevant
assessment content available content appears. In addition, each question maps to the text’s
major section and learning objective. For more information, go to
on the market today. [Link].

xxxii : : For Instructors

MyPsychLab MyPsychLab
PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE
Krause/Corts
THE
BIG PICTURE
THE
BASICS
SPECIAL
TOPICS
THINKING
LIKE A
PSYCHOLOGIST
IN THE
REAL WORLD
APPLICATIONS
V I D E O TO O L K I T

WHAT’S IN IT
FOR ME?

Educators know it. Students know it. It’s that inspired moment when
Episode 1
Introduction to Psychology
VIEW EPISODE TITLES

something that was difficult to understand suddenly makes perfect Episode 2

Research Methods

sense. MyPsychLab was designed and refined with a single purpose

VIEW EPISODE TITLES

Episode 3

in mind—to help educators create that moment of understanding

Biological Psychology
VIEW EPISODE TITLES

with their students.

Episode 4
rehearsal

Evolution and Genes Sensory

memory Selective
Short-
term
memory
Encoding Long-
term
memory
attention
Retrieval

VIEW EPISODE TITLES

All information Unrehearsed Information is
lost within a information is indefinitely a
second or so. lost in about some informati
15 to 30 seconds. be diffa
icult to

Episode 5

MyPsychLab offers students useful and engaging self-assessment

Sensation and Perception
VIEW EPISODE TITLES

tools, and it provides instructors with flexibility in assessing and Episode 6

Consciousness
VIEW EPISODE TITLES

tracking student progress. For instructors, MyPsychLab is a powerful < Page 1 of 3 >

tool for assessing student performance and adapting course content

to students’ changing needs, without requiring instructors to invest
additional time or resources to do so. MyPsychLab includes the following features:
Instructors and students have been using MyPsychLab for more than MyPsychLab Video Series
10 [Link] date, more than 600 000 students have used MyPsychLab. The MyPsychLab Video Series is a comprehensive and cutting-
During that time, three white papers on the efficacy of MyPsychLab edge series featuring 17 original 30-minute videos covering
have been published. Both the white papers and user feedback the most recent research and utilizing the most up-to-date
show compelling results: MyPsychLab helps students succeed film and animation technology. Multiple choice and short
and improve their test scores. One of the key ways MyPsychLab answer essay questions are provided within MyPsychLab so
improves student outcomes is by providing continuous assessment episodes can be assigned as homework.
as part of the learning process. Over the years, both instructor
and student feedback have guided numerous improvements to this
system, making MyPsychLab even more flexible and effective.
Pearson is committed to helping instructors and students succeed
with [Link] that end, we offer a Psychology Faculty Advisor
Program designed to provide peer-to-peer support for new users
of MyPsychLab. Experienced Faculty Advisors help instructors
understand how MyPsychLab can improve student performance. To
learn more about the Faculty Advisor Program, please contact your
local Pearson representative.

MyPsychLab Study Plan

Students have access to a personalized study plan, based on
Bloom’s taxonomy, that arranges content from less complex
thinking (such as remembering and understanding) to more
complex critical thinking (such as applying and analyzing).This
layered approach promotes better critical thinking skills and
helps students succeed in the course and beyond.

For Instructors :: xxxiii

 ASSESSMENT

MyPsychLab Simulations
Online simulations help students understand scientific
principles and practise through active learning. Over thirty
experiments, inventories, and surveys are available through
MyPsychLab.

For access to all instructor supplements for An Introduction to Psycho-

logical Science, go to [Link] and follow the directions to reg-
ister (or log in if you already have a Pearson user name and password).
Once you have registered and your status as an instructor is veri-
fied, you will be emailed a log-in name and password. Use your log-in
name and password to access the catalogue. Click on the “Browse
by Discipline” link, click on “psychology” and then “introductory psy-
chology,” and finally select the Krause/Corts/Smith/Dolderman, An
Introduction to Psychological Science, text. Under the description of each
supplement is a link that allows you to download and save the supple-
ment to your desktop.
For technical support for any of your Pearson products, you and your
students can contact [Link]

xxxiv :: For Instructors

Acknowledgments
We cannot fathom completing a project like this without the help and support of many
individuals. Through every bit of this process have been our families and we thank you
for your love, patience, and support. Although our children will be disappointed that this
book is not about princesses, Spiderman, or sea creatures, we hope that they’ll read and
enjoy this book one day. Our extended families, particularly Peggy Salter, also provided
immense support and helped our children feel loved even when we had to work late to
finish this book. In addition, our departments have been wonderfully understanding and
helpful, offering advice with their various specializations, providing examples and tips,
reviewing drafts, and tolerating our occasional absences.
The Canadian edition of this textbook involved a small army of helpful people. Our
Developmental Editor, Johanna Schlaepfer, was incredibly supportive and patient
throughout this entire process. We cannot thank her enough. We are also indebted
to Matthew Christian, the Acquisitions Editor, who got this project started and helped
motivate and organize us throughout the writing of this textbook. Duncan Mackinnon,
the Pearson Sales Representative for Manitoba and Saskatchewan, also helped with the
initial stages of this book and provided useful information about the level of writing and
analysis that were missing from the Canadian introductory psychology textbook market.
Marissa Lok, Nidhi Chopra, and their production teams worked tirelessly in order to
turn our Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files into a beautiful textbook. Susan Bindernagel’s
copyediting and encouragement were also much appreciated. We would also like to
thank the entire Pearson sales team for promoting this book as well as the supplements
team for editing the MyPsychLab and other online materials.
The Canadian edition of this book benefitted from conversations with a number of
colleagues. Amy Desroches was immensely helpful in making suggestions for Canadian
content for the language module (Module 8.3). Beverley Fehr provided useful articles
and suggestions for the new section on love (Module 11.3). Doug Williams provided us
with a number of helpful ideas that ended up influencing parts of Chapters 6 (Learning)
and 14 (Health, Stress, and Coping); he gets bonus points for doing this while at a
Winnipeg Jets game (Washington won . . . stupid Ovechkin). Lars Gustav Fjordlund
provided insights that helped us add new content to the module on drugs (Module 5.3).
Danielle Gaucher made a number of useful content and editorial suggestions throughout
the writing of this book. Michelle Di Nella, Steve’s research assistant/teaching assistant/
lab coordinator/former graduate student/friend, typed up and organized over 1300
[Link] cannot thank her enough for her patience and work [Link] also thank
Jen Kornelsen, Steve’s research collaborator and friend, who provided a tremendous
amount of support throughout this project and who was always willing to listen to
different ideas (and jokes) that we had for this book. Finally, we extend a heartfelt
thanks to Safa Ali, for her tireless support, and tremendous amount of research and
editing work, particularly for Chapters 10 (Lifespan Development), 15 (Psychological
Disorders), and 16 (Therapies), for which her wisdom and insight were invaluable.
Finally, the many reviewers and students who carefully read over earlier versions of
each chapter have been immensely helpful. We are very grateful that you shared your
expertise in the field of psychology, and in teaching, to help bring this book to life.

xxxv
List of Reviewers
Jeffrey Adams, Laura MacKay, Jennifer Tomaszczyk,
Trent University Capilano University University of Waterloo
George Alder, Stacey L. MacKinnon, Randal Tonks,
Simon Fraser University of Prince Camosun College
University Edward Island Ashley Waggoner
Stephanie Denison, Jamal K. Mansour, Denton, University
University of Simon Fraser of Toronto
Waterloo University Susan G. Walling,
Stephane Gaskin, Geoffrey S. Navara, Memorial University
Concordia University Trent University of Newfoundland
and Dawson College Wayne Podrouzek, Stacey Wareham-Fowler,
Peter Graf, University of the Memorial University of
University of British Fraser Valley Newfoundland
Columbia David Reagan, Ross Woolley,
Rick Healey, Camosun College Langara College
Memorial University Biljana Stevanovski,
of Newfoundland University of New
Denise M. Iacobucci, Brunswick
Camosun College Cheryl Techentin,
Alison Luby, Mount Royal
University of Toronto University

We value feedback from both instructors and students, and we are sure that we will need it for our second Canadian edition. Please do not
hesitate to offer suggestions or comments by writing to Steve Smith ([Link]@[Link]) or Dan Dolderman (doldermanuoft@[Link]).

xxxvi :: Acknowledgments
 1
Introducing Psychological Science
1.1 The Science of Psychology
● The Scientific Method p. 3
● Building Scientific Literacy p. 6
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
How We Learn and Remember p. 7
● Module Summary p. 11

1.2 How Psychology Became a Science

● Psychology’s Philosophical and
Scientific Origins p. 13
● The Beginnings of Contemporary
Psychology p. 19
● Module Summary p. 28

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 29

Sarah2/Shutterstock
 FotosearchRF/Glow Images

Module

1.1 The Science of Psychology

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology of The steps of the The biopsychosocial model to behaviour The use of the term
After reading the scientific method scientific method scientific theory
The steps in critical thinking
this module The concept of
you should scientific literacy

Almost everyone has misinterpreted someone else’s meaning in a conver- develop a new line of research, cyber emotional intelligence, that examines
sation. You could misinterpret someone leaning closer to you as flirting the assumptions that we make about people based on their online per-
when really you were just talking too softly. You could mistake someone’s sonalities (Ben Youssef & Ben Youssef, 2011).
tone of voice as being annoyed when that person was actually talking
loudly to be heard over other people in the room. We also frequently The purpose of this opening section isn’t to depress you; instead, it is
misjudge other people’s attitudes and personalities. The unfriendly and to show how complex human behaviour is and how challenging it can
arrogant person at work might actually turn out to be a shy person who be to try to understand it. In this textbook, we will examine many dif-
dislikes crowded social events. In all of these situations, we make infer- ferent aspects of behaviour—from basic brain and perception functions
ences about another person based on the different cues they provide to memory to social behaviours. But all of these chapters have the same
us. But how do we decide which cues are important? Are they really the central theme: the quest to understand why and how we behave the way
right cues to be using when we want to explain other people’s behaviour? we do.

The situation is even more complicated in the wired world of the

Focus Questions
21st century, with everyone plugged in to email, online gaming, and social
networking sites like Facebook. But these new ways of interacting with 1 How can the human mind, with its quirks and
people from around the world also come with their own set of chal- imperfections, conduct studies on itself?
lenges. How do you interpret someone’s behaviour or intentions when 2 How can scientific and critical thinking steer us toward a
all you have to go by is words on a screen and cartoon-like happy faces? clearer understanding of human behaviour and experience?
How much information do you need to (safely) disclose in order for
other people to understand you? These puzzles have led researchers to

2 :: Module 1.1 : : The Science of Psychology

Left: AF archive/Alamy; centre: sextoacto/[Link]; right: Flirt/SuperStock
Television personalities such as Phil McGraw, experiments involving animals running mazes, and sessions between a therapist
and client are common notions about the work of psychologists. But how well do they represent the field?

Which words and images come to mind when you hear but on the use of the scientific method. The scientific
that someone is a psychologist? Many of us think of pro- method is a way of learning about the world through collect-
fessionals conducting therapy or people in white lab coats ing observations, developing theories to explain them, and using
watching rats run through mazes. The field of psychology the theories to make predictions. It involves a dynamic inter-
is also viewed through the lens of “pop” psychology—the action between hypothesis testing and the construction
scores of self-help gurus on TV, on the radio, and in the of theories, outlined in Figure 1.1.
Watch
books lining bookstore shelves. Although these images are
HYPOTHESES: MAKING PREDICTIONS Scientific Cold Reading: Talking
not necessarily false, they don’t fully capture the scope of
to Heaven
the field of psychology. One goal of this book is to chal- thinking and procedures revolve around the concepts of
lenge your expectations about psychology and to show a hypothesis and a theory. Both guide the process and Watch

progress of the sciences; however, it is important to dif- Magical Thinking

you that psychology—and psychological research—affect
Adults
almost every aspect of your life. ferentiate between these terms. A hypothesis (plural:
To begin, we should acknowledge that psychology is hypotheses) is a testable prediction about processes that can
a vast discipline; in fact, we might do better to consider it be observed and measured. A hypothesis can be supported
to be a collection of disciplines composed of many over- or rejected (you do not prove a hypothesis), and a scien-
lapping fields of study. Two unifying qualities allow us to tific hypothesis must be testable. These rules are regularly
group all these fields into the category of psychological broken by people claiming to be scientific. For example,
science. First, psychology involves the study of behaviour astrologers and psychics are in the business of making
that, broadly defined, can include perceptions, thoughts, predictions. An astrologer might tell you, “It ’s a good
and emotions. Second, psychologists employ the scientific time for you to keep quiet or defer important calls or
method in their work. On these grounds, we can define emails.” This sounds like a request to not even bother
psychology as the scientific study of behaviour, thought, and
experience, and how they can be affected by physical, mental,
social, and environmental factors. In the following sections, Confirm and Revise
we will discuss some basic principles of science. As you strengthen Theory original
original theory theory
will see, psychologists share with other sciences a com-
mon set of methods and perspectives for understanding
the world. Generate Discard or
another, new Hypothesis modify original
hypothesis hypothesis
The Scientific Method Watch
IT-Video: Psychology
What exactly does it mean to be a scientist? A person
who haphazardly combines chemicals in test tubes may Test hypothesis Watch
look like a chemist, but he is not conducting science; Either Or Thinking Like a

a person who dissects a specimen just to see how it Psychologist:

looks may appear to be a biologist, but this is not sci- Confirm Reject Debunking Myths
hypothesis hypothesis
ence either. In contrast, a person who carefully follows a Explore
system of observing, predicting, and testing is conducting Confirmation Bias
science, whether the subject matter is chemicals, physi- {fig. 1.1} The Scientific Method Scientists use theories to
generate hypotheses. Once tested, hypotheses are either con-
ology, human memory, or social interactions. In other
firmed or rejected. Confirmed hypotheses lead to new ones
words, whether a field of study is a science, or a specific and strengthen theories. Rejected hypotheses are revised and
type of research is scientific, is based not on the subject tested again, and can potentially alter an existing theory.

The Science of Psychology :: Module 1.1 :: 3

 THEORIES: EXPLAINING PHENOMENA In con-
trast to hypotheses, a theory is an explanation for a broad
range of observations that also generates new hypotheses and
integrates numerous findings into a coherent whole. In other
words, theories are general principles or explanations
of some aspect of the world (including human behav-
iours), whereas hypotheses are specific predictions that
can test the theory or, more realistically, specific parts
of that theory. Theories are built from hypotheses that
are repeatedly tested and confirmed. If a hypothesis is
supported, it provides more support for the theory. In
turn, good theories eventually become accepted expla-
nations of behaviour or other phenomena. However, if
the hypothesis is not supported by the results of a well-
designed experiment, then researchers may have to
rethink elements of the theory. Figure 1.1 shows how
Hand-out/BELL ALIANT INC./Newscom hypothesis testing eventually leads back to the theory
Supporters of psychics and astrologers often point out that scientific fields (such from which it was based.
as meteorology) do not always make correct predictions. A key difference between Similar to hypotheses, an essential quality of scien-
science and pseudoscience is that in science an incorrect hypothesis is rejected and
an alternative can be stated and tested.
tific theories is that they can be proved false with new
evidence. In fact, any scientific theory must be falsifiable:
Just as researchers can discover strong evidence in sup-
testing the prediction, because it might come true. The port of a theory, they can also discover evidence that
horoscope leaves two courses of action: (1) cave in, fully challenges a theory. As Figure 1.1 shows, theories can be
accept the prediction, and heed the advice or (2) take updated with new evidence. The process helps to ensure
your chances. If you take your chances, it is very likely that science is self-correcting—bad ideas typically do not
that by the end of the day you can find at least a grain last long in the sciences.
of truth in the prediction. Horoscopes make very general The term theory is often used very casually, which
predictions—typically so much so that you could easily has led to some persistent and erroneous beliefs that
find evidence for them if you looked hard enough, and many people have about scientific theories. So to clarify
perhaps stretched an interpretation of events a bit. In a few common issues:
contrast, a good scientific hypothesis is stated in more
precise terms, such as the following: • Theories are not the same thing as opinions
or beliefs. Yes, it is certainly true that everyone is
“People become less likely to help a stranger if there entitled to their own beliefs. But the phrase “That’s
are others around.” just your theory” is neither the correct use of the term
“Cigarette smoking causes cancer.” “theory,” nor an argument that a scientist would make.
• All theories are not equally plausible. Groups of
“Exercise improves memory ability.”
scientists might adopt different theories for explaining
Each of these hypotheses can be confirmed or the same phenomenon. For example, several theories
rejected through scientific testing. An obvious differ- have been proposed to explain why people become
ence between science and astrology is that scientists are depressed. This does not mean that anyone can throw
eager to test hypotheses such as these, whereas astrolo- their hat into the ring and claim equal status for his
gists would rather you just take their word for it. We or her theory (or belief). There are good theories, and
do acknowledge that astrology is a very easy target for there are not-so-good theories.
criticism. In fact, it is often referred to as pseudosci- • A measure of a good theory is not the number
ence, an idea that is presented as science but does not actu- of people who believe it to be true. According to
ally utilize basic principles of scientific thinking or procedure. a 2009 Gallup poll, only 61% of Canadians (and only
Incidentally, a 2005 Gallup poll found that 25% of 39% of Americans) believe in the theory of evolution
Canadians (17% of males and 33% of females) believe by natural selection (Angus Reid Opinion, 2012),
that the position of the stars in the sky can affect a per- despite the fact that it is the most plausible, rigorously
son’s behaviour. tested theory of biological change and diversity.

4 :: Module 1.1 : : The Science of Psychology

 Testing hypotheses and constructing theories are your university), which, in turn, can trigger the release of
both part of all sciences. In addition, each science, includ- chemicals and hormones in your brain.
ing psychology, has its own unique way of approaching The take-home message of this section is that almost
its complex subject matter as well as its own unique set every moment of your life is occurring at all three lev-
of challenges. In the case of psychology, we must remem- els; psychologists have taken up the exciting challenge
ber that behaviour can occur on a number of different of trying to understand them. Indeed, behaviour can be
levels including the activity of cells in different parts of fully explained only if multiple perspectives—and their
the brain, thought processes such as language and memory, interactions—are investigated. This “systems perspective”
and sociocultural processes that shape daily life for millions will become particularly apparent as you read about psy-
of people. Therefore, psychology examines the individual chological research that tackles complex topics.
as a product of multiple influences, including biological, Throughout this text, we will apply the biopsycho-
psychological, and social factors. social model to many of the topics we will cover. An
icon, like the one in the margin, will appear in these sec-
THE BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL MODEL Because our tions, prompting you to apply the biopsychosocial model
thoughts and behaviours have multiple influences, psy- to a specific problem or question about multiple influ-
chologists adopt multiple perspectives to understand ences on thinking and behaviour. Our hope is that by
them. The biopsychosocial model is a means of explain- the end of this textbook, you will use a similar strategy
ing behaviour as a product of biological, psychological, and socio- when examining the events of your own life.
cultural factors (Figure 1.2 on p. 6). Biological influences
on our behaviour involve brain structures and chemicals,
hormones, and external substances such as drugs. Psycho- Quick Quiz 1.1a
logical influences involve our memories, emotions, and The Scientific Method
personalities, and how these factors shape the way we
think about and respond to different people and situations. 1 A testable prediction about processes that can be
KNOW . . .

Finally, social factors such as our family, peers, ethnic- observed and measured is referred to as a(n)______.
A theory C opinion
ity, and culture can have a huge effect on our behaviour.
Importantly, none of these levels of analysis exists on its B hypothesis D hunch
own. In fact, these levels influence each other! The firing
of brain cells can influence how we think and remem- 2 A theory or prediction is falsifiable if
ber information; this, in turn, can affect how we interact A it has been proven false.
with family members or how we respond to social situ- B it is impossible to test.
ations like a concert. But, these influences can occur in C there can be evidence for it or against it.
the other direction as well. Social situations can affect how D if and only if it comes from pseudoscience.
we think (e.g., getting annoyed at the crowded hallway at
3 How would you apply the biopsychosocial model to a
APPLY . . .

news report claiming that anxiety is caused by being

around other people who are anxious?
A Recognize that the news report considers all
portions of the biopsychosocial model
B Recognize that psychologists do not regard
biological factors when it comes to anxiety
C Recognize that the only effective treatment of
anxiety must be drug based
D Recognize that the news report only considers one
portion of the biopsychosocial model

4 The hypothesis that “exercise improves memory

ANALYZE . . .

ability” is a scientific one because

A it cannot be C it makes a specific,
confirmed. testable prediction.
Ellie Rothnie/Alamy
B it cannot be rejected. D it can be proven.
“All swans are white” is a falsifiable statement. A swan that
is not coloured white will falsify it. Falsification is a critical Answers can be found on page ANS-1.
component of scientific hypotheses and theories.

The Science of Psychology :: Module 1.1 :: 5

 PERSPECTIVE FOCUS EXAMPLES

Genetics of
behaviour and
psychological
Genes, brain disorders
Biological anatomy and
function, and Brain-behaviour
evolution relationships

Drug effects

Language
Behaviour,
Memory
perception,
Psychological
thought, and
Decision making
experience
Personality

Attraction
Interpersonal
relationships, Attitudes and
Sociocultural families, groups, stereotypes
societies, and
ethnicities Conformity

{fig. 1.2} The Biopsychosocial Model Psychologists view behaviour from multiple perspectives. A full understanding
of human behaviour comes from analyzing biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors.

Building Scientific Literacy information. Certainly this text will provide you with
new terminology and concepts, but you will continue to
A major aim of this book is to teach you the theoretical encounter psychological and scientific terminology long
Simulate foundations, concepts, and applicable skills that are cen- after you have completed this course. Being scientifically
Survey: What Do tral to the field of psychology. This book is also designed literate means that you will be able to read and inter-
You Know about to help you develop scientific literacy, the ability to pret new terminology, or know where to go to find out
Psychology? understand, analyze, and apply scientific information. As more.
you can see in Figure 1.3, scientific literacy has several But, memorizing different terms is not enough
key components, starting with the ability to learn new to make someone scientifically literate. We also

6 :: Module 1.1 : : The Science of Psychology

 Knowledge Gathering
have to examine whether the ideas being presented
were scientifi cally tested, and whether those studies
What do we
know about this? were designed properly. It is absolutely essential that we
ask such questions. Doing so allows us to separate
the information that we should find convincing from
Scientific the information that we should view with caution.
Application
Explanation It will also allow you to better analyze the informa-
Scientific
Why is
Literacy
How can tion presented to you by politicians, corporations, and
this science
relevant? explain it? the media; this will make it more difficult for these
groups to influence your behaviour. Finally, we want
to be able to apply the results of scientific studies to
different situations; in other words, to generalize the
Critical Thinking
results. Generalization shows us that the studies con-
Can we critically ducted in universities and hospitals can provide insight
evaluate the evidence?
into behaviours that extend far beyond the confines of
{fig. 1.3} A Model for Scientific Literacy Scientific literacy
the lab.
involves four different skills: gathering knowledge about the
world, explaining it using scientific terms and concepts, using
critical thinking, and applying and using information.

shorter study sessions, but spreading them over several days.

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC Which technique do you prefer? If you use the massed learn-
LITERACY MODEL ing technique (most students prefer it . . . or end up using it
because they’ve left studying until the last minute), it is likely
How We Learn and Remember because it seems easier and it may even give you the sense
that it is more effective than distributed learning. Actually, the
two strategies are not equally effective; distributed learning is
To develop your scientific literacy skills, in every module
the better of the two.
(beginning with Chapter 2) we will revisit this model and its
four components as they apply to a specific psychological
topic—a process we call working the model. This will help you How can science
to move beyond simply learning the vocabulary of psycho- explain this
logical research toward understanding scientific explanations, difference?
thinking critically, and discovering applications of the mate-
rial. In order to demonstrate how these sections of the book In the second stage of the
will work, let’s use an example that will be familiar to many: Scientific Literacy Model, we
planning study times for your different classes. examine whether the information that is available about
a topic has been tested in scientific studies. In our exam-
ple, massed and distributed learning have been studied by
What do we know psychologists for almost a century (Cepeda et al., 2006;
about effective studying Edwards, 1917). In a typical study, experimental participants
techniques? read a list of words or a passage of text and then com-
plete a test assessing their memory for what they read. In
In the first stage of the Scientific
some cases, the participants read the same list of words
Literary Model, we attempt to gather
repeatedly (massed learning) whereas in other cases there
the available knowledge about the
are delays in between the participants’ reading of the lists.
topic that we’re investigating, in this
The results of such studies have consistently shown that
case massed vs. distributed study techniques. As you’ve likely
memory is better when you spread out your study sessions
noticed, many high school and university courses, including
(Terry, 1982).
your psychology course, require you to learn definitions and
factual information such as the names of famous psychologists. For example, in one study conducted by Nate Kornell (2009),
However, students differ on how they attempt to remember a group of 20 student volunteers learned pairs of synonyms
this information for exams (and, we hope, beyond that time). (e.g., effulgent – brilliant) by using flashcards, a common study
Many students use what is called massed learning—they per- tool. All participants completed one test in which they used
form all of their studying for an exam in one lengthy session. massed learning and one test in which they used distributed
Another approach is spaced or distributed learning—having or spaced learning. Each pair of synonyms was presented four

The Science of Psychology :: Module 1.1 :: 7

 You have a total of 20 terms to learn. You have a total of 20 terms to learn.

A B C D E A A B C D E F G … S T A

Massing: Studying a deck of five Spacing: Leaving all 20 cards in one stack and
cards four times in a row. This studying the whole deck four times in a row. This
masses study for an individual spaces the studying for each card, such as card A in
card, such as card A in the the drawing above. However, in both conditions,
drawing above. card A will be studied the same number of times (four).

{fig. 1.4} Massed Versus Spaced Practice In both conditions, volunteers studied each vocabulary word four times. In the
massed condition, shown at left, the individual cards were studied closer together whereas in the spaced condition, at right, they
were studied further apart. Spaced learning results in better memory for vocabulary terms.

times; however, the amount of time between each of these massed learning, they are likely experiencing a lot of stress
presentations was manipulated by the experimenter. In the dis- caused by the situation they find themselves in (see Module 14.2
tributed condition, participants went through a large stack of for a discussion of stress). In contrast, the experiments men-
20 synonyms. Thus, there were 20 trials separating one expo- tioned here involve primarily laboratory-based studies that are
sure to the synonym from the next. In contrast, in the massed not meaningful to the participants. Future research is needed
condition, participants were given small stacks of five synonyms. to determine whether stress and self-relevance alter the differ-
After going through a stack four times, they were then given ence between massed and distributed learning scores.
the next stack of five [Link], there were only five
trials separating one exposure to the synonym from the next. Why is this finding
At the end of the study period, the researcher administered a
relevant?
memory test and discovered that the volunteers could remem-
ber significantly more words from the spaced condition than In the final stage of the the
from the massed condition (see Figure 1.4). Interestingly, the Scientific Literacy Model, we
participants thought they had performed better in the massed attempt to apply the results
learning session. From these results, he concluded that it is to situations outside of the laboratory. For instance, you
better to study by using spaced or distributed practice. would ideally apply this knowledge about massed and dis-
tributed learning to your own experiences as a student. Each
Can we critically chapter you read in this text includes definitions, and there
is a set of flashcards available with the online tools accom-
evaluate alternative panying this text at MyPsychLab. Perhaps you will consider
explanations? the distributed-learning method when studying key terms
In the third stage of the Scientific for each module. This technique would probably also be use-
Literacy Model, we examine the ful in other courses, such as history, where you may need
limitations of the studies discussed to match dates and major historical events, or in a foreign
earlier; we also look for alterna- language course, where you are learning new vocabulary and
tive explanations for the results. The studies discussed above verb conjugations. Distributed learning has also proven use-
do not provide evidence that spacing works for all kinds ful in many clinical contexts, such as helping people improve
of learning. The terms the students studied were common their memory abilities after suffering a traumatic brain injury
words that would likely be found on a standardized, general (Hillary et al., 2003). Sometimes simple experiments can have
vocabulary test. Would distributed learning improve perfor- widespread implications; that’s something to remember.
mance in other situations? Data from a number of research
areas suggests that it would. Studies of motor (movement)
skills ranging from moving a computer mouse to following
an object on the screen to learning new basketball shots all
indicate that distributed practice leads to better performance
(Lee & Genovese, 1988; Singer, 1965). A recent brain-imaging
study has also shown that distributed learning leads to
increased activity in areas related to memory representations
(Takashima et al., 2007; memory and the brain is discussed
more in Module 7.1). Thus, there appears to be converging evi-
dence from other research areas in support of the claim that
distributed learning is superior to massed learning.

However, one thing that is missing from the existing research

studies is pressure. When students “cram” for exams using TayaCho/iStockphoto

8 :: Module 1.1 : : The Science of Psychology

 Now that you have read this feature, we hope you when it comes to making critical decisions. For
understand how scientific information fits into the example, you may have strong responses when hear-
four components of the model. But there is still much ing about differences in the cognitive abilities of
to learn about working the model: In the next section, males and females (see Module 3.1); however, it is
we will describe critical thinking skills and how to use important to put those aside to examine the studies
them. themselves.
5. Tolerate ambiguity. Most complex issues do not
CRITICAL THINKING, CURIOSITY, AND A DOSE have clear-cut answers. Psychologists have identified Simulate
OF HEALTHY SKEPTICISM People are confronted a number of factors leading to depression, but no
The Pseudoscience

with more information on a daily basis than at any other of Astrology

single factor guarantees that a person will suffer from
point in our history. Some of it is credible and can be this condition (see Module 15.3). Listen
used to help guide your decisions or behaviour. But, we 6. Consider alternative viewpoints and alternative Science and
also must deal with claims—often, but not always, made interpretations of the evidence. For example, it is clear Pseudoscience
by people trying to sell you things—that are not always that we require sleep in order to function properly;
true. Explore
however, there are several theories that can explain
Accelerated Learning
“This political party will not base its positions on the functions that sleep serves (see Module 5.1).
public opinion polls.” If you follow these steps, you will be well on your Watch
“These remedies were developed by ancient cul- way to developing critical thinking habits and skills. John Cacioppo:
tures and have been used for centuries.” However, determining what does not constitute critical What Is Important to

thinking is important as well. Critical thinking is not a Learn from an Intro to

“Join now and find your soul mate.”
philosophy, a belief, or a faith, nor is it meant to make Psychology Course?
Misinformation can sometimes seem far more abundant
everyone arrive at the same answer. Complex issues Watch
than accurate information, which is why it is important
often remain ambiguous, and at times a question may IT Video: How Much
to develop critical thinking skills.
have several plausible answers. Although critical think- Do You Know About
Refer back to Figure 1.3. As the model shows, criti-
ing cannot guarantee a correct answer—and sometimes Psychology?
cal thinking is an important element of scientific literacy.
it even delivers unpleasant ones—it will help find and
Critical thinking involves exercising curiosity and skepti- Explore
justify good answers.
cism when evaluating the claims of others, and with our own How to Be a Critical
Critical thinking means considering other view- Thinker
assumptions and beliefs. The ability to think critically can
points, but it also means that some ideas can be incor-
be learned and developed, but most of us need to make
rect. In many cases, one answer emerges as the best
a conscious effort to do so (Halpern, 1996). Research
one because a large body of evidence converges upon
points to a core set of habits and skills for developing
it. Critical thinking does not mean being negative or
critical thinking:
arbitrarily critical; it simply means that you intention-
1. Be curious. Simple answers are sometimes too ally examine knowledge, beliefs, and the means by which
simple, and common sense is not always correct (or conclusions were obtained.
even close to it). For example, giving your brain Put another way, critical thinking involves cautious
some time to rest after having a stroke (a form of skepticism. We are constantly being told about amaz-
brain damage) hinders rather than helps your recov- ing products that help us control body weight, improve
ery (see Module 3.3). thinking and memory, enhance sexual performance,
2. Examine the nature and source of the evidence; not and so on. As consumers, there are always going to be
all research is of equal quality. For example, you will claims we really hope to be true. But as critical think-
likely find a more accurate account of prejudiced ers, we meet these claims with a good dose of skepti-
attitudes if you use a subtle, experimental technique cism (e.g., Is there sound evidence that this diet helps people
than if you directly ask people whether they have to achieve and maintain a healthy weight?). Being skepti-
these attitudes (see Module 13.2). cal can be challenging, especially when it means ask-
3. Examine assumptions and biases. This includes your ing for evidence that we may not want to find. Often
own assumptions as well as the assumptions of those the great products or the miracle cures that we have
making claims. Research examining the impact of always hoped for really are “too good to be true.” Being
human behaviour on climate change may be biased curious and skeptical leads you to ask important ques-
if it is funded by oil companies (see Module 2.2). tions about the science underlying such claims. Doing
4. Avoid overly emotional thinking. Emotions can tell so leads us to search for and evaluate evidence, which is
us what we value, but they are not always helpful never a bad thing.

The Science of Psychology :: Module 1.1 :: 9

 them as a real possibility. What is even more interesting are
the extremely detailed accounts given by purported alien
abductees. However, physical evidence of an abduction is
always lacking. So what can we make of the validity of alien
abduction stories?
Scientific and critical thinking involve the use of the
principle of parsimony, which means that the simplest of all
competing explanations (the most “parsimonious”) of a phe-
nomenon should be the one we accept. Is there a simpler
explanation for alien abductions? Probably so. Psycholo-
gists who study alien abduction cases have discovered some
interesting patterns. First, historical reports of abductions
typically spike just after the release of science fiction mov-
ies featuring space aliens. Details of the reports often fol-
Shiva/[Link] low specific details seen in these movies (Clancy, 2005).
Independent reports of alien abductions often resemble events Second, it probably would not be too surprising to learn
and characters depicted in science fiction movies. that people who report being abducted are prone to fan-
tasizing and having false memories (vivid recollection and
belief in something that did not happen; Lynn & Kirsch, 1996;
Spanos et al., 1994). Finally, people who claim to have been
MYTHS IN MIND abducted are likely to experience sleep paralysis (waking up
and becoming aware of being unable to move—a tempo-
Abducted by Aliens! rary state that is not unusual) and hallucinations while in the
paralyzed state (McNally et al., 2004). You can likely see how
Occasionally we hear claims of alien abductions, ghost sight- these three factors could explain reports of alien abduc-
ings, and other paranormal activity. Countless television tions. Following the principle of parsimony typically leads to
shows and movies, both fictional and documentary based, real, though sometimes less spectacular, answers—although
reinforce the idea that these types of events can and do these answers might leave the so-called “abductees” feeling
occur. Alien abductions are probably the most far-fetched alienated.
stories, yet many people believe they occur or at least regard

Quick Quiz 1.1b Building Scientific Literacy

1 Someone who exercises curiosity and skepticism 3 Paul is considering whether to take a cholesterol-
APPLY . . .
KNOW . . .

about assumptions and beliefs is using _______. reducing medicine that has been recommended by his
A critical thinking C pseudoscience physician. He goes to the library and learns that the
B a hypothesis D the biopsychosocial government agency that oversees medications—Health
model Canada—has approved the medication after dozens of
studies had been conducted on its usefulness. Which
2 Scientific literacy does not include _______. aspect of critical thinking does this best represent?
UNDERSTAND . . .

A gathering knowledge C critical thinking A Paul has examined the nature and source of the
evidence.
B accepting common D applying scientific
sense explanations information to every- B Paul was simply curious.
day problems C Paul did not consider alternative viewpoints.
D Paul was avoiding overly emotional thinking.

Answers can be found on page ANS-1.

10 :: Module 1.1 : : The Science of Psychology

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
1.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology of the scientific method:

biopsychosocial model (p. 5) psychology (p. 3)
critical thinking (p. 9) scientific literacy (p. 6)
hypothesis (p. 3) scientific method (p. 3)
pseudoscience (p. 4) theory (p. 4) FotosearchRF/Glow Images

APPLY . . .

UNDERSTAND . . . ● The biopsychosocial model to behaviour. This is a

model we will use throughout the text. As you consider
● The steps of the scientific method. The basic model each topic, think about how biological factors (e.g., the
in Figure 1.1 (p. 3) guides us through the steps of the brain and genetics) are influential. Also consider how
scientific method. Scientific theories generate hypotheses, psychological factors such as thinking, learning, emotion,
which are specific and testable predictions. If a hypothesis and memory are relevant. Social and cultural factors
is confirmed, new hypotheses may stem from it, and the complete the model. These three interacting factors
original theory receives added support. If a hypothesis influence our behaviour.
is rejected, the original hypothesis may be modified and ● The steps in critical thinking. To be useful, critical
retested, or the original theory may be modified or thinking is something not just to memorize, but rather
rejected. to use and apply. Remember, critical thinking involves
● The concept of scientific literacy. Scientific literacy refers (1) being curious, (2) examining evidence, (3) examining
to the process of how we think about and understand assumptions and biases, (4) avoiding emotional thinking,
scientific information. The model for scientific literacy (5) tolerating ambiguity, and (6) considering alternative
was summarized in Figure 1.3 (p. 7). Working the model viewpoints. Try applying these steps below in Table 1.1
involves answering a set of questions: and check your answers on page ANS-1.
What do we know about a phenomenon?
How can science explain it? ANALYZE . . .
Can we critically evaluate the evidence?
● The use of the term scientific theory. As you read in
Why is this relevant? this module, the term theory is often used very casually in the
You will see this model applied to concepts in each chapter English language, sometimes synonymously with [Link]
of this text. This includes gathering knowledge, explaining it is important to analyze the scientific meaning of the term
phenomena in scientific terms, engaging in critical thinking, and contrast it with the alternatives. A scientific theory is an
and knowing how to apply and use your knowledge. explanation for a broad range of observations, integrating
numerous findings into a coherent whole. Remember, theories
are not the same thing as opinions or beliefs, all theories are
not equally plausible, and, strange as it may sound, a measure
of a good scientific theory is not determined by the number
of people who believe it to be true.

Table 1.1 :: Critical Thinking

Practise applying critical thinking skills to the scenario below:

Magic Mileage is a high-tech fuel additive that actually increases the distance you can drive for every litre by 20%, while costing
only a fraction of the gasoline itself!! Wouldn’t you like to cut your fuel expenses by one-fifth? Magic Mileage is a blend of complex
engine-cleaning agents and patented “octane-booster” that not only packs in extra kilometres per litre but also leaves your engine
cleaner and running smooth while reducing emissions!

1. How might this appeal lead to overly emotional thinking?

2. Can you identify assumptions or biases the manufacturer might have?
3. Do you have enough evidence to make a judgment about this product?

The Science of Psychology :: Module 1.1 :: 11

 nagib/Shutterstock

Module

1.2 How Psychology Became a Science

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology of How various philosophical and Your knowledge to How the philosophical ideas of
After reading psychology’s history scientific fields became major distinguish among the empiricism and determinism are
this module influences on psychology different specializations applied to human behaviour
you should in psychology

When we try to imagine the earliest investigations of human behav- in different types of impairments ranging from problems with vision to
iour, we rarely think about axe wounds to the head. As it turns out, problems with higher-order cognitive abilities. Although primitive by
we should. The ancient Egyptians were a fierce military force for several modern standards, this initial attempt to link a brain-based injury to a
centuries. The wealth accumulated during these military campaigns filled change in behaviour marked the first step toward our modern study of
the palaces of the pharaohs with gold and jewels and allowed them to psychology.
construct massive monuments like the pyramids. But one side effect of
having many battles was that members of the Egyptian army also suf-
fered many injuries, including some to the head. Although the primitive
medical knowledge of the time condemned most brain-injured patients
to death, some did in fact survive and attempted to return to their nor-
Focus Questions
mal lives. However, as one might expect when someone has suffered
an axe (khopesh) wound to the head, such attempts were not always 1 Why did it take so long for scientists to start applying
successful. Similar problems had likely occurred in earlier times. What their methods to human thoughts and experience?
makes ancient Egypt stand out is that military doctors noticed—and 2 What has resulted from the application of
documented—patterns that emerged in their patients. As noted in the scientific methods to human behaviour?
Edwin Smith papyrus (obviously named after the American discoverer,
not the Egyptian authors), damage to different parts of the brain resulted

12 :: Module 1.2 : : How Psychology Became a Science

Psychology has long dealt with some major questions
and issues that span philosophical inquiry and scien-
tific study. For example, psychologists have questioned
how environmental, genetic, and physiological processes
influence behaviour. They have wrestled with the issue
of whether our behaviour is determined by external
events, or if we have free will to act. Psychology’s search
for answers to these and other questions continues, and
in this module we put this search into historical context
and see how these questions have influenced the field of
psychology as it exists today.

Psychology’s Philosophical
and Scientific Origins
Science is more than a body of facts to memorize or a Ljupco Smokovski/[Link]
set of subjects to study. Science is actually a philosophy Most people believe that the behaviour of billiard balls will be determined by the laws
of knowledge that stems from two fundamental beliefs: of physics. They roll where the energy directs them, not where they want to go. Could
empiricism and determinism. human behaviour be determined by natural laws as well?
Empiricism is a philosophical tenet that knowledge
comes through experience. In everyday language, you might understood by making observations and testing hypoth- Explore
hear the phrase “Seeing is believing,” but in the scien- eses. We also know that behaviour occurs at several dif- History of Psychology
tific sense, empiricism means that knowledge about the ferent levels ranging from cells to societies. However, this Timeline
world is based on careful observation, not on common modern knowledge did not appear overnight. Instead,
sense or speculation. Whatever we see or measure should our understanding of why we behave the way we do is
be observable by anyone else who follows the same built upon the hard work, creativity, and astute obser-
methods. In addition, scientific theories must be logical vational powers of scientists throughout history dating
explanations of how the observations fit together. Thus, (at least) as far back as the ancient Mediterranean societ-
although the empiricist might say, “Seeing is believing,” ies of Egypt, Greece, and Rome.
thinking and reasoning about observations are just as
important. INFLUENCES FROM THE ANCIENTS: PHILO-
Determinism is the belief that all events are governed SOPHICAL INSIGHTS INTO BEHAVIOUR As
by lawful, cause-and-effect relationships. This is easy enough you read in the opening section of this module, ancient
when we discuss natural laws such as gravity—we prob- Egyptian doctors noticed that damage to different brain
ably all agree that if you drop an object, it will fall (unless areas led to vastly different impairments. While such an
it is a helium balloon). But does the lawfulness of nature observation marked the first recorded linking of biology
apply to the way we think and act? Does it mean that we and behaviour, it was not the only important insight to
do not have control over our own actions? This interest- come out of ancient societies.
ing philosophical debate is often referred to as free will In ancient Greece, the physician Hippocrates (460–
versus determinism. While we certainly feel as if we are in 370 BCE) developed the world’s first personality classi-
control of our own behaviours—that is, we sense that we fication scheme. The ancient Greeks believed that four
have free will—there are compelling reasons (discussed humours or fluids flowed throughout the body and influ-
later in this book) to believe that some of our behaviours enced both health and personality. These four humours
are determined. The level of determinism or free will included blood, yellow bile, black bile, and phlegm
psychologists attribute to humans is certainly debated, (theories were a bit gross in ancient times). Different
and to be a psychologist, you do not have to believe that combinations of these four humours were thought to
every single thought, behaviour, or experience is deter- lead to specific moods and behaviours. Galen of Per-
mined by natural laws. But psychologists certainly do gamon (127–217), arguably the greatest of the ancient
recognize that behaviour is determined by both internal Roman physicians, refined Hippocrates’ more general
(e.g., genes, brain chemistry) and external influences. work and suggested that the four humours combined
Psychological science is both empirical and deter- to create temperaments, or emotional and personality
ministic. We now know that behaviour can only be characteristics that remained stable throughout the

How Psychology Became a Science :: Module 1.2 :: 13

 lifetime. Galen’s four temperaments (each related to a The power of zeitgeist can be very strong, and there
humour) included: are several ways it prevented psychological science from
emerging in the 1600s. Perhaps most important is that
Sanguine (blood), a tendency to be impulsive, people were not ready to accept a science that could be
pleasure-seeking, and charismatic; applied to human behaviour and thought. To the average
Choleric (yellow bile), a tendency to be ambitious, person of the 1600s, viewing human behaviour as the
energetic, and a bit aggressive; result of predictable physical laws was troubling. Doing
Melancholic (black bile), a tendency to be indepen- so would seem to imply the philosophy of materialism:
dent, perfectionistic, and a bit introverted; and the belief that humans, and other living beings, are composed
exclusively of physical matter. Accepting this idea would
Phlegmatic (phlegm), a tendency to be quiet, relaxed,
mean that we are nothing more than complex machines
and content with life.
that lack a self-conscious, self-controlling soul. The
Like Hippocrates, Galen recognized that the tem- opposing belief, that there are properties of humans that
peraments of most people would be a combination of are not material (a mind or soul separate from the body),
these extremes. He went on to provide detailed descrip- is called dualism.
tions of how different temperaments could be combined Although most early thinking about the mind and
in his book De Temperamentis. Although such a classifica- behaviour remained philosophical in nature, scien-
tion system is primitive by modern standards, the work tific methods were generating great discoveries for the
of Hippocrates and Galen moved the understanding of natural sciences of physics, biology, and physiology. This
human behaviour forward by attempting to categorize meant that the early influences on psychology came from
different types of personalities; we will see much more the natural and physical sciences. (Figure 1.5 provides a
scientifically rigorous attempts to do the same thing later timeline that summarizes some of the major events in
in this book (see Module 12.1). Roman, and later Persian, the history of psychology.)
physicians also attempted to link different foods with
different humours (e.g., cold foods led to an increase in INFLUENCES FROM PHYSICS: EXPERIMENTING
the phlegm humour); so, if a person’s humours were out WITH THE MIND The initial forays into scientific
of balance (leading to a physical or emotional problem), psychology were conducted by physicists and physiolo-
a dietary adjustment was sometimes advised to help him gists. One of the earliest explorations was made by Gustav
or her return to a balanced state. Fechner (1801–1887), who studied sensation and per-
However, the golden age of Greek and Roman ception (see Module 4.1). As a physicist, Fechner was
thought came to a crashing halt in the latter parts of the interested in the natural world of moving objects and
fourth century; this was the beginning of the Dark Ages, energy. He turned his knowledge to psychological ques-
a time in which few medical or scientific advances were tions about how the physical and mental worlds interact.
made. In fact, some of Galen’s medical teachings were Fechner coined the term psychophysics, which is the
suppressed, often being replaced by religious texts or study of the relationship between the physical world and the men-
philosophy that was consistent with the views of reli- tal representation of that world.
gious leaders (Gross, 1998). Indeed, although some dis- As an example of psychophysical research, imagine
coveries were made about human anatomy during this you are holding a one-pound (.45 kg) weight in your
period, few notable advances in the study of behaviour right hand and a five-pound (2.27 kg) weight in your
were made over the next one thousand years. left hand. Obviously, your left hand will feel the heavier
Psychology also did not immediately benefit from weight, but that is not what interested Fechner. What if a
the scientific revolution of the 1500s and 1600s. Once researcher places a quarter-pound weight (113 g) in each
the scientific method started to take hold around 1600, hand, resting on top of the weight that is already there?
physics, astronomy, physiology, biology, and chemistry Fechner wanted to know which of the quarter-pound
all experienced unprecedented growth in knowledge weights would be perceived as heavier. Oddly enough,
and technology. But it took psychology until the late although both weigh the same amount, the quarter-
1800s to become scientific. Why was this the case? One pound weight in your right hand will be more notice-
of the main reasons was zeitgeist, a German word mean- able than the quarter-pound weight added to your left
ing “spirit of the times.” Zeitgeist refers to a general set hand, almost as if it were heavier (see Figure 1.6 on p. 16).
of beliefs of a particular culture at a specific time in history. Through experiments like these, Fechner demonstrated
It can be used to understand why some ideas take off basic principles of how the physical and mental worlds
immediately, whereas other perfectly good ideas may go interact. In fact, he developed an equation to precisely cal-
unnoticed for years. culate the perceived change in weight, and then extended

14 :: Module 1.2 : : How Psychology Became a Science

 ca. 1500 BCE: Ancient Egyptian
doctors describe behavioural 1951: Carl Rogers writes
impairments caused by brain 1949: Donald Hebb publishes
Client-Centered Therapy,
damage. The Organization of Behavior,
which helps establish humanistic
focusing research into the
psychology.
mechanisms of memory.
ca. 430 BCE–216 AD: Greek and
Roman physicians develop the four
humours and four temperaments
theories of personality and behaviour. 1939: The Canadian
Psychological Association is 1952: The first
founded. Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual of
Late 1700s: Franz Mesmer develops Mental Disorders, now
techniques to treat mental illness, in its fifth edition, is
including the use of hypnosis. 1938: B. F. Skinner writes published by the
the Behavior of Organisms, American Psychiatric
which furthers the cause Association.
Around 1850: Gustav Fechner of behaviourism.
pioneers the study of psychophysics.

1936: Kurt Lewin authors Principles

of Topological Psychology, which 1967: Ulrich Neisser publishes
introduces the social psychological Cognitive Psychology, which
formulation that the behaviour of introduces a major new
individuals is influenced by their subfield of psychology.
1859:
Darwin social environment.
publishes
On the Origin
of Species 1971: B. F. Skinner publishes
1934: Wilder Penfield founds McGill Beyond Freedom and
introducing his
University’s Montreal Neurological Dignity, stirring controversy
theory of natural
Institute. While there, Penfield uses over radical
selection.
electrical stimulation to map out the behaviourism.
neural underpinnings of movement
and touch.
1861 Physician
1861: Ph i i PaulP lBBroca
discovers a brain area associated
with the production of speech, now
known as Broca’s area, establishing 1913: John B. Watson writes
that regions of the brain are “Psychology as the Behaviorist
specialized to serve different Views It,” establishing
functions. behaviourism as the primary
school of thought in American 1978: Herbert
psychology. Simon wins the Nobel Prize in
1879: Wilhelm Wundt establishes the
first psychological laboratory in economics for research in
Leipzig, Germany, and two years later cognitive psychology (there is
he establishes the first journal in no Nobel Prize dedicated to
psychology. 1912: Max psychology).
Wertheimer
establishes the
1880s: Francis Galton introduces and field of gestalt
develops the study of anthropometrics. psychology.
1980s–early 1990s:
Brain-imaging techniques such
as magnetic resonance imaging
1911: Edward Thorndike become mainstream methods
1885: Hermann for studying brain anatomy and
Ebbinghaus begins demonstrates the basic principles
of instrumental learning, forming function in human subjects.
his scientific study
of memory. the basis for the study of operant
conditioning.
1990: The Canadian Society for
Brain, Behaviour, and Cognitive
Science is established.
1890: William James, founder of 1905: Alfred Binet develops the
the functionalist approach, first intelligence test.
publishes Principles of Psychology.

1891: James Mark Baldwin founds Early 1900s: Ivan Pavlov

demonstrates the basic principles 1990s: U.S. President George
the first psychology laboratory in H. W. Bush proclaims the
the British Commonwealth at the of classical conditioning.
1990s to be “The Decade of
University of Toronto. the Brain,” and there is
unprecedented growth in
1900: Sigmund Freud writes The neuroscience and biological
1892: The American
Interpretation of Dreams, a key psychology.
Psychological Association
book in the development of
(APA) is established.
psychoanalysis.

2003: The Human Genome

Project is completed.

Left, centre: Bettmann/Corbis; left bottom: The APA logo is a trademark of the American Psychological Association. Reproduced with permis-
sion. No further reproduction or distribution is permitted without written permission from the American Psychological Association; centre:
pio3/[Link]; right, centre right: AP Images; right, centre left: Science and Society/SuperStock; right, bottom: The Canadian Society
for Brain, Behaviour, and Cognitive Science
{fig. 1.5} Major Events in the History of Psychology
 + 1/4 lb + 1/4 lb

5 lb
1 lb

{fig. 1.6} The Study of Psychophysics Gustav Fechner

studied relationships between the physical world and our men- Pictorial Press Ltd/Alamy
tal representations of that world. For example, Fechner tested Charles Darwin proposed the theory of natural selection to
how people detect changes in physical stimuli. explain how evolution works.

this formula to apply to changes in brightness, loudness, to defend themselves when threatened. However, indi-
and other perceptual [Link] work served as the viduals who were too aggressive would be more likely to
foundation for the modern study of perception. be killed in an unnecessary fight; likewise, an individual
who was not aggressive enough might not have killed
INFLUENCES FROM EVOLUTIONARY THEORY: animals to survive or might have hesitated when defend-
THE ADAPTIVE FUNCTIONS OF BEHAVIOUR ing him- or herself. Therefore, having a level of aggres-
Around the same time Fechner was doing his experi- siveness that fell within a particular range increased the
ments, Charles Darwin (1809–1882) was studying the likelihood that the individual would reproduce. The
many varieties of plants and animals found around the modern behaviours that we engage in every day—
world. Darwin noticed that animal groups that were memory, emotions, forming social bonds, and so on—
isolated from one another often differed by only minor were the same behaviours that allowed our ancestors to
variations in physical features. These variations seemed flourish over the course of our species’ history. The same
to fine-tune the species according to the particular principle applies to other species as well. Darwin’s recog-
environment in which they lived, making them better nition that behaviours, like physical traits, are subject to
equipped for survival and reproduction. Darwin’s theory hereditary influences and natural selection was a major
of evolution by natural selection was based on his observa- contribution to psychology.
tions that the genetically inherited traits that contribute
to survival and reproductive success are more likely to INFLUENCES FROM MEDICINE: DIAGNOSES
flourish within the breeding population (i.e., useful traits AND TREATMENTS Medicine contributed a great
will be passed on to future generations). These specific deal to the biological perspective in psychology. It also
traits differ across locations because different traits will had a considerable influence on the development of
prove beneficial in different environments. This theory clinical psychology, the field of psychology that concen-
explains why there is such a diversity of life on Earth. trates on the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disor-
Darwin’s theory also helps to explain human (and ders. A research topic that impacted both fields was the
animal) behaviour. As Darwin pointed out in The Expres- study of brain localization, the idea that certain parts of
sion of the Emotions in Man and Animals (1872), behaviour the brain control specific mental abilities and personal-
is shaped by natural selection, just as physical traits are ity characteristics.
(see Module 3.1). Over the course of millions of years of In the mid-1800s, localization was studied in two
evolution, a certain range of behaviours helped people different ways. The first was phrenology, which gained
survive and reproduce. For example, having some aggres- considerable popularity for more than 100 years thanks
sive impulses allowed our ancestors to hunt as well as to physicians Franz Gall (1758–1828) and Johann

16 :: Module 1.2 : : How Psychology Became a Science

Spurzheim (1776–1832). Gall, Spurzheim, and their fol- by physicians of the 1800s, including these two well-
lowers believed that the brain consisted of 27 “organs,” known examples that we will return to in Module 8.3:
corresponding to mental traits and dispositions that
• Physician Paul Broca studied a patient named Tan.
could be detected by examining the surface of the skull.
Tan received this name because it was the only word
Although it seems silly now, there was a logic behind
he could speak, despite the fact that he could hear
phrenology. Its supporters believed that different traits
and understand perfectly well. Broca identified an
and abilities were distributed across different regions of
area of the left side of Tan’s brain that was damaged,
the brain (e.g., “combativeness” was located at the back of
and claimed to have found where speech production
the brain behind the ears). If a person possessed a particu-
was localized; that area of the brain is now known
lar trait or ability, then the brain area related to that char-
as Broca’s area. (Oddly, a physician named Marc Dax
acteristic would be larger in the same way that your arms
presented a similar finding 25 years before Broca’s
would be larger if your job required you to lift things.
landmark paper; however, it received little attention
Larger brain areas would cause bumps on a person’s head
[Roe & Finger, 1996]. Perhaps the zeitgeist was not
in the same way that a muscular arm could cause the fab-
yet ready for this type of result.)
ric of a shirt to stretch. So, by measuring the bumps on
• Motivated by Broca’s work, Karl Wernicke identi-
a person’s head, proponents of phrenology believed that
fied Wernicke’s area in 1874. Patients with damage to
it would be possible to identify the different traits that
Wernicke’s area could speak in sentences that sounded
an individual possessed. Phrenology continued to gather
normal, but with unusual or made-up words. Patients
supporters for nearly a century before being abandoned
who regained some of their speech later reported
by serious [Link] might have encountered images
that, although they could hear just fine, no speech—
of the phrenological map of the skull (see Figure 1.7).
not even their own—made sense during the recovery
The other approach to localization entailed the study
period. Thus, Wernicke’s area appears to be critical for
of brain injuries and the ways in which they affect behav-
language comprehension.
iour. This work had a scientific grounding that phrenol-
ogy lacked. There were many intriguing cases described Of course, the influence of the medical perspec-
tive was not isolated to studies of brain localization.
Additional medical influences on psychology came
from outside of mainstream practices. Franz Mesmer, an
18th-century Austrian physician practising in Paris,
believed that prolonged exposure to magnets could redi-
rect the flow of metallic fluids in the body, thereby cur-
ing disease and insanity. Although his claim was rejected
outright by the medical and scientific communities in
France, some of his patients seemed to be cured after
being lulled into a trance. Modern physicians and scien-
tists attribute these “cures” to the patients’ belief in the
treatment—what we now call psychosomatic medicine.
The medical establishment eventually grew more
intrigued by the trances Mesmer produced in his patients,
naming the phenomenon hypnosis (see Module 5.1).
This practice also caught the attention of an Austrian
physician named Sigmund Freud (1856–1939), who
began to use hypnosis to treat his own patients. Freud
was particularly interested in how hypnosis seemed to
have cured several patients of hysterical paralysis—a con-
dition in which an individual loses feeling and control
in a specific body part, despite the lack of any known
neurological damage or disease. These experiences led
Freud to develop his famous theory and technique called
Classic Image/Alamy psychoanalysis.
{fig. 1.7} A Phrenology Map Early scholars of the brain Psychoanalysis is a psychological approach that
believed that mental capacities and personalities could be
measured by the contours, bumps, and ridges distributed attempts to explain how behaviour and personality are influ-
across the surface of the skull. enced by unconscious processes. Freud acknowledged that

How Psychology Became a Science :: Module 1.2 :: 17

 urges relating to survival and reproduction can influence
our behaviour. Finally, Freud placed great emphasis on
how early life experiences influence our behaviour as
adults—a perspective that comes up many times in this
text. So, although people often mock some of his theo-
ries, Freud’s impact on modern psychology is deserving
of respect.

THE INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES:

MEASURING AND COMPARING HUMANS A fifth
influential force came out of the social sciences of eco-
nomics, sociology, and anthropology. These disciplines
developed statistical methods for measuring human
traits, which soon became relevant to the emerging field
of psychology. An early pioneer in measuring perception
and in applying statistical analyses to the study of behav-
iour was Sir Francis Galton. Galton was probably most
inspired by his cousin, Charles Darwin, who had just
published his theory of evolution by natural selection.
Galton believed that heredity (genetics) explained psy-
Mary Evans/SIGMUND FREUD COPYRIGHTS/Alamy chological differences among people. The idea of heredi-
Sigmund Freud developed the concept of an unconscious mind tary psychology fit Galton’s beliefs about social class.
and its underlying processes in his theory of psychoanalysis. For example, he noticed that great achievement tended
to run in families. After all, Galton’s cousin was a great
naturalist, his uncle Erasmus was a celebrated physician
conscious experience includes perceptions, thoughts, a and writer, and Galton himself was no slouch (he began
sense of self, and the sense that we are in control of our- reading as a 2-year-old child, and was a fan of Shake-
selves. However, he also believed in an unconscious mind speare by age 6). To Galton, it seemed natural that people
that contained forgotten episodes from early childhood who did better in scholarship, business, and wealth were
and urges to fulfill self-serving sexual and aggressive able to do so because they were better people (genetically
impulses. Freud proposed that because these urges were speaking).
unconscious, they could exert influence in strange ways, To support his beliefs, Galton developed ways of
such as restricting the use of a body part (psychosomatic measuring what he called eminence—a combination of
or hysterical paralysis). Freud believed hypnosis played a ability, morality, and achievement. One observation sup-
valuable role in his work. When a person is hypnotized, porting his claim for a hereditary basis for eminence
dreaming, or perhaps medicated into a trancelike state, was that the closer a relative, the more similar the traits.
he thought, the psychoanalyst could have more direct Galton was one of the first investigators to scientifically
access into the individual’s unconscious mind. Once take on the question of nature and nurture relation-
Freud gained access, he could attempt to determine ships, the inquiry into how heredity (nature) and environment
and correct any desires or emotions he believed were (nurture) influence behaviour and mental processes. Galton
causing the unconscious to create the psychosomatic came down decidedly on the nature side, seemingly
conditions. ignoring the likelihood that nurturing influences such
Although Freud did not conduct scientific experi- as upbringing and family traditions, rather than bio-
ments, his legacy can be seen in some key elements of logical endowments, could explain similarities among
scientific psychology. First, many modern psychologists relatives. Galton also supported his beliefs by ignoring
make inferences about unconscious mental activity, just the fact that great people can and do come from very
as Freud had advocated (although not all of them agree humble beginnings.
with the specific theories proposed by Freud). Second, Galton’s beliefs and biases led him to pursue scien-
the use of medical ideas to treat disorders of emo- tific justification for eugenics, which literally translates as
tions, thought, and behaviour—an approach known as “good genes.” He promoted the belief that social pro-
the medical model—can be traced to Freud’s influence. grams should encourage intelligent, talented individuals
Third, Freud incorporated evolutionary thinking into to have children, whereas criminals, those with physi-
his work; he emphasized how physiological needs and cal or mental disability, and non-White races should be

18 :: Module 1.2 : : How Psychology Became a Science

 2 According to Sigmund Freud, which of the following

UNDERSTAND . . .
would be the most likely explanation for why
someone is behaving aggressively?
A They are acting according to psychophysics.
B There is something going on at the unconscious
level that is causing them to behave this way.
C Their cigars are missing and someone’s got to pay.
D The environment is determining their behavioural
response.

3 Jan believes that all knowledge is acquired through

APPLY . . .
experience with the world. Jan is probably _______.
A an empiricist
B a supporter of eugenics
Science and Society/SuperStock C a clinical psychologist
Francis Galton set up his anthropometric (literally “human
D a phrenologist
measurement”) laboratory at the International Health Exhibition
in London in 1885.

4 Francis Galton made a significant contribution to

ANALYZE . . .
psychology by introducing methods for studying how
heredity contributes to human behaviour. Which
kept out of the English gene pool. The eugenics move-
alternative explanation was Galton overlooking when
ment was based largely on what the researchers wanted he argued that heredity accounts for these similarities?
to believe was true, not on quality research methods. It A The primary importance of the nature side of the
ultimately led to the mistreatment of many individuals, nature-versus-nurture debate
particularly immigrants and the descendants of slaves B The fact that people who share genes live together
who were not of Galton’s own demographic group. It in families, so they tend to share environmental
also influenced the thinking of Adolf Hitler, with chill- privileges or disadvantages
ing consequences. C A materialistic account of behaviour
In modern times, biological and genetic approaches D The concept of dualism, which states that the mind
to explaining behaviour are thriving (and, thankfully, is separate from the body
eugenics has vanished). Indeed, U.S. President George
H. W. Bush declared the 1990s to be “The Decade Answers can be found on page ANS-1.
of the Brain.” With the advent of new brain-imaging
techniques (see Module 3.4), this area of psychology—
biological psychology —is poised to provide new and
important insights into the underlying causes of our The Beginnings of Contemporary
behaviour. Psychology
As you now know, before psychology became its own Watch
discipline, there were scientists working across differ- Basics: Diverse
ent fields who were converging on a study of human Perspectives

Quick Quiz 1.2a behaviour. By modern standards, Darwin, Fechner, and

Psychology’s Philosophical others had produced psychological research but it was
and Scientific Origins not referred to as such because the field had not yet fully
formed. Nevertheless, progress toward a distinct disci-
1 In philosophical terms, a materialist is someone who pline of psychology was beginning.
KNOW . . .

might believe that By the late 1800s, the zeitgeist had changed so that
A money buys happiness. the study of human behaviour was acceptable. Ideas
B species evolve through natural selection. flourished. Most importantly, researchers began to inves-
C personality can be measured by feeling for bumps tigate behaviour in a number of different ways. You
on the surface of the skull. will see this breadth as you read the rest of this module.
D everything that exists, including human beings, are We will include references to other modules (e.g., see
composed exclusively of physical matter. Module 6.1) to illustrate that the history that you are
reading in this module had a direct effect on the modern

How Psychology Became a Science :: Module 1.2 :: 19

 understanding of behaviour that you will read about in amount of time it takes to react. What made Wundt’s
the rest of this textbook. work distinctly psychological was his focus on measur-
ing mental events and examining how they were affected
STRUCTURALISM AND FUNCTIONALISM: THE by his experimental manipulations. Wundt’s ideas made
BEGINNINGS OF PSYCHOLOGY Most con- their way to the United States and Canada through stu-
temporary psychologists agree that Wilhelm Wundt dents who worked with him. However, whereas Wundt’s
(1832–1920) was largely responsible for establishing psy- research often attempted to link a person’s perceptions
chology as an independent scientific field. Wundt estab- with concepts such as free will (a philosophy known
lished the first laboratory dedicated to studying human as voluntarism), many of his students wanted to move
behaviour in 1879 at the University of Leipzig, where he psychological research in a different direction (Rieber
conducted numerous experiments on how people sense et al., 1980). One student, Edward Titchener, adopted the
and perceive. His primary research method was introspec- same method of introspection used by Wundt to devise
tion, meaning “to look within.” Introspection required an organized map of the structure of human conscious-
a trained volunteer to experience a stimulus and then ness. His line of research, structuralism, was an attempt
report each individual sensation he or she could identify. to analyze conscious experience by breaking it down into basic
For example, if the volunteer was given a steel ball to elements, and to understand how these elements work together.
hold in one hand, he would likely report the sensations Titchener chose the term elements deliberately as an
of cold, hard, smooth, and heavy. To Wundt, these basic analogy with the periodic table in the physical sciences.
sensations were the mental “atoms” that combined to He believed that mental experiences were made up of a
form the molecules of experience. Wundt also developed limited number of sensations, which were analogous to
reaction time methods as a way of measuring mental effort. elements in physics and chemistry. According to Titch-
In one such study, volunteers watched an apparatus in ener, different sensations can form and create complex
which two metal balls swung into each other to make compounds, just like hydrogen and water can combine
a clicking sound. The volunteers required about one- to form water—H2O—or the hydroxide ion—OH–.
eighth of a second to react to the sound, leading Wundt The same year Wundt set up his first laboratory, an
to conclude that mental activity is not instantaneous, but American scholar named William James (1842–1910) set
rather requires a small amount of effort measured by the out to write the first textbook in psychology, The Princi-
ples of Psychology, which was eventually published in 1890.
Trained as a physician, James combined his knowledge of

akg-images/Newscom Mary Evans Picture Library/Alamy

German scientist Wilhelm Wundt is widely credited as the William James was a highly influential American psychologist
“father” of experimental psychology. who took a functionalist approach to explaining behaviour.

20 :: Module 1.2 : : How Psychology Became a Science

physiology with his interest in the philosophy of mental
activity. Among his many interests, he sought to under-
stand how the mind functions. In contrast to structural-
ism, which looks for permanent, unchanging elements of
thought, James was influenced by Darwin’s evolutionary
principles; he preferred to examine behaviour in con-
text, and explain how our thoughts and actions help us
adapt to our environment. Functionalism is the study of
the purpose and function of behaviour and conscious experience.
According to functionalists, in order to fully understand
a behaviour, one must try to figure out what purpose it
may have served over the course of our evolution. These
principles are found today in the modern field of evolu-
tionary psychology, an approach that interprets and explains
modern human behaviour in terms of forces acting upon
our distant ancestors (see Module 3.1). According to this
approach, our brains and behaviours have been shaped Mansell/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images
by the physical and social environment that our ances- Ivan Pavlov (on the right) explained classical conditioning
tors encountered. Over the next century, this idea was through his studies of salivary reflexes in dogs.
extended to a number of subfields in psychology ranging
from the study of brain structures to the study of social the bell successfully predicted the hammer, the ring-
groups. Indeed, regardless of their research area, most ing soon had the effect of the hammer itself, a process
psychologists are still fascinated by the question, What now called classical conditioning (see Module 6.1). The
function does the behaviour we’re investigating serve? In other study of conditioning would soon become a focus of
words, why do we behave the way we do? behaviourism, an approach that dominated the first half
During the early years of psychology, the pioneers of the 20th century of North American psychology and had
of this field were trying to find a way to use the methods a singular focus on studying only observable behaviour, with
and instruments of the natural sciences to understand little to no reference to mental events or instincts as possible
behaviour. Although some of their techniques fell out of influences on behaviour.
favour, by the beginning of the 20th century it was clear Twitmyer’s research was coolly received when he
that the discipline of psychology was here to stay. With announced his findings at the American Psychological
that sense of permanence in place, the second generation Association meeting. Not a single colleague bothered
of psychologists could focus on refining the subject mat- to ask him a question. The credit for discovering clas-
ter and the methods, and on turning psychology into a sical conditioning typically goes to a Russian physiolo-
widely accepted scientific field. gist named Ivan Pavlov (1849–1936). Pavlov, who won
the 1904 Nobel Prize for his research on the digestive
THE RISE OF BEHAVIOURISM Early in the 20th system, noticed that the dogs in his laboratory learned
century, biologists became interested in how organisms to salivate to a tone if the tone had a history of sound-
learn to anticipate their bodily functions. One of the first ing just prior to the delivery of food. This observation
to do so was Professor Edwin Twitmyer (1873–1943), quickly led to more focused research on mechanisms of
an American psychologist interested in reflexes. His learning; the principles of learning that Pavlov and oth-
work involved a contraption with a rubber mallet that ers identified provided a foundation for the behaviourist
would regularly tap the patellar tendon just below the movement.
kneecap; this, of course, causes a kicking reflex in most In North America, behaviourism was champi-
individuals. To make sure his volunteers were not star- oned by John B. Watson, a researcher at Johns Hopkins
tled by the mallet, the contraption would ring a bell University in Baltimore (1878–1958). As research accu-
right before the mallet struck the tendon. As is often mulated on the breadth of behaviours that could be
the case in experiments, the technology failed after a conditioned, Watson began to believe that all behaviour
number of these bell-ringing and hammer-tapping could ultimately be explained through conditioning.
combinations: The machine rang the bell, but the ham- This emphasis on learning also came with stipulations
mer did not come down on the volunteer’s knee. But about what could and could not be studied in psychol-
the real surprise was this—the volunteer’s leg kicked ogy. Watson was adamant that only observable changes
anyway! How did that happen? Because the sound of in the environment and behaviour were appropriate for

How Psychology Became a Science :: Module 1.2 :: 21

 scientific study. Methods such as Wundt’s introspection, playing with toilet paper rolls to giant billboards of bun-
he said, were too subjective to even consider: nies and hippos pitching telecommunications products,
Psychology as the behaviorist views it is a purely objec- the influence of John B. Watson and his colleagues on
tive natural science. Its theoretical goal is the prediction and modern advertising is felt every day.
control of behavior. Introspection forms no essential part of Taking up the reins from Watson was B. F. Skinner
its methods. (Watson, 1913, p. 158) (1904–1990), another behaviourist who had considerable
influence over North American psychology for several
In the diplomatic world of science, this statement
decades (see Module 6.2). Much like Watson, Skinner
was akin to carving “Wundt sucks!” in a park bench.
believed that psychology was the study of behaviour and
Watson believed so much in the power of experience
not of the unobservable mind. In Skinner’s view, the foun-
(and so little in the power of genetics) that he was certain
dation of behaviour was how an organism responded to
he could engineer a personality however he wished, if
rewards and punishments. This theory is logical in many
given enough control over the environment. Perhaps his
ways—we tend to repeat actions that are rewarded (e.g.,
most famous statement sums it up:
studying for exams leads to better grades, so we study
Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my for other exams) and avoid actions that lead to punish-
own specified world to bring them up in and I’ll guaran- ment (e.g., if you vomit after eating a 2-L container of ice
tee to take any one at random and train him to become cream, you will be unlikely to do so again . . . for a while).
any type of specialist I might select—doctor, lawyer, artist, In order to identify the principles of reward and punish-
merchant-chief and, yes, even beggar-man and thief, regard- ment, Skinner opted to use a tightly controlled experi-
less of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations, mental setup involving animals such as rats and pigeons.
and race of his ancestors. (Watson, 1930, p. 82) Typically, these studies occurred with animals held in
After a rather public indiscretion involving a small chambers in which they could manipulate a lever to
female graduate student (due to his wife’s social status, receive rewards. The experimenter would control when
his extramarital aff air appeared on the front page of the rewards were available, and would observe the effects
Baltimore newspapers; Fancher, 1990), Watson was dis- that changing the reward schedule had on the animals’
missed from his university job. But, he quickly found [Link] might ask what this work had to do with
Watch his new career—as well as his fortune—in advertising. human behaviour. The behaviourists believed that the
The Complexity Most advertisers at the time just assumed they should principles of reward and punishment could apply to all
of Humans: Phil inform people about the merits of a product. Wat- organisms, both human and nonhuman. Indeed, Watson
Zimbardo son and his colleagues applied a scientific approach to explicitly stated that behaviourist psychology “recognizes
advertising and discovered a con- no line between man and brute” (Watson, 1913, p. 158).
sumer’s knowledge about the prod- Watson’s and Skinner’s concept of behaviourism met
uct really was not that important, with resistance from many psychologists. If our behav-
so long as he or she had positive iour is controlled by external rewards and the satisfaction
emotions associated with it. Thus, of motivational drives, then this leaves little room for free
Watson’s company developed ads that will—the notion that we are free to make choices and
employed behaviourist principles to guide our own behaviour without external influence.
form associations between a product’s Many of those who resisted believed that humans could
brand image and positive emotions. If rise above their reward-based motivations and could
Pavlov’s dogs could be conditioned choose between behaviours based on their own beliefs
to salivate when they heard a tone, and interpretations of a situation.
what possibilities might there be for
conditioning humans in a similar HUMANISTIC PSYCHOLOGY EMERGES Psy-
way? Modern advertisers want the chology, by the mid-20th century, was dominated by
logos for their brands of snacks or the two perspectives, behaviourism and Freudian psycho-
trademark signs for their restaurants analytic approaches, which had almost entirely removed
to bring on a specific craving, and free will from the understanding of human behaviour.
some salivation along the way. And so, To the behaviourists, human experience was the prod-
Nina Leen/Time Life Pictures/Getty from beer commercials with scant- uct of a lifetime of rewards, punishments, and learned
Images ily clad women dancing at parties, to associations. To the psychoanalysts, human experience
B. F. Skinner revealed how rewards affect car commercials with high intensity was the result of unconscious forces at work deep in the
behaviour by conducting laboratory
studies on animals. Click on this photo music and vistas of the Cabot Trail, human psyche. From both perspectives, the individual
in your eText to see more details. and from impossibly cute kittens person was merely a product of forces that operated

22 :: Module 1.2 : : How Psychology Became a Science

on her, and she had little if any control over her own behaviourism in proposing that humans had the freedom
destiny or indeed, even her own choices, beliefs, and to act and a rational mind to guide the process.
feelings.
In contrast to these radically disempowering per- THE BRAIN AND BEHAVIOUR The behaviourists
spectives, a new movement of psychologists arose, which and humanists were not the only researchers attempt-
emphasized personal responsibility, free will, the univer- ing to understand human abilities. Many neurologists,
sal longing for growth, meaning and connection, and surgeons, and brain scientists were also focused on
which highlighted the power that individuals possessed these questions. Notable among them was Karl Lashley
to shape their own consciousness and choose their own (1890–1958), a professor at Harvard University and the
path through life. This new perspective, humanistic director of the Yerkes Laboratories of Primate Biol-
psychology, focuses on the unique aspects of each individual ogy in Florida. Lashley was interested in locating the
human, each person’s freedom to act, his or her rational thought, engram, the place in the brain where a memory trace
and the belief that humans are fundamentally different from was stored. Using rats, Lashley systematically examined
other animals. Among the many major figures of human- how the size and location of brain damage affected per-
istic psychology were Carl Rogers (1902–1987) and formance on tasks such as maze navigation. His studies,
Abraham Maslow (1908–1970). Both psychologists which extended over several years, produced two main
focused on the positive aspects of humanity and the fac- findings. One was that the exact location of the dam-
tors that lead to a productive and fulfilling life. Human- age did not affect performance; long-term memories are
istic psychologists sought to understand the meaning of stored throughout many parts of the brain (i.e., they are
personal experience. They believed that people could not localized to specific regions like some aspects of lan-
attain mental well-being and satisfaction through gain- guage). The second, known as the principle of mass action,
ing a greater understanding of themselves, rather than by stated that the size of the damage did have an effect, with
being diagnosed with a disorder or having their problems larger lesions causing a greater impairment in perfor-
labelled. Both Rogers and Maslow believed that humans mance. The fact that Lashley was unable to identify the
strive to develop a sense of self and are motivated to per- precise location of learning was disheartening for him.
sonally grow and fulfill their potential (see Module 12.3). At the end of his career in 1950, he wrote, “It is difficult
This view stands in particular contrast to the psychoana- to conceive of a mechanism that can satisfy the condi-
lytic tradition, which originated from a medical model tions set for [the localization of the memory trace]. Nev-
and, therefore, focused on illnesses of the body and ertheless, in spite of such evidence against it, learning
brain. The humanistic perspective also contrasted with sometimes does occur.”
One such mechanism explaining how lear n-
ing occurs was discovered by Canadian neuroscientist
Donald Hebb (1904–1985) at the Montreal Neurologi-
cal Institute. Hebb, a former student of Lashley’s, con-
ducted numerous studies examining how cells in the
brain change over the course of learning. He observed
that when a brain cell consistently stimulates another
cell, metabolic and physical changes occur to strengthen
this relationship. In other words, cells that fire together
wire together (Hebb, 1949; see Module 7.1). This theory,
now known as Hebb’s Law, demonstrated that mem-
ory—a behaviour that we can measure and that affects
so many parts of our lives—is actually related to activity
occurring at the cellular level (Brown & Milner, 2003;
Cooper, 2005). It also reinforced the notion that behav-
iour can be studied at a number of different levels rang-
ing from neurons (brain cells) to the entire brain. (Later
research, discussed in Module 7.3, notes that memory is
related to social factors as well.)
Further evidence for the relationship between the
Michael Rougier/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images brain and everyday behaviours came from the stimulat-
Carl Rogers helped develop the humanistic psychology ing work of Wilder Penfield (1891–1976), founder and
movement, which emphasized human strengths and free will. original director of the Montreal Neurological Institute.

How Psychology Became a Science :: Module 1.2 :: 23

 The Canadian Press Images/Montreal Gazette
Montreal Gazette/The Canadian Press Images
Donald Hebb made significant contributions to our
Wilder Penfield, founder of the world-famous Montreal
understanding of memory and the brain.
Neurological Institute, used electrical stimulation of the brain
to discover how movement and touch were represented in the
Along with his colleague, Herbert Jasper, Penfield devel- brain. Like Hebb’s, many of his discoveries are still taught in
psychology and neuroscience classes throughout the world.
oped a surgical procedure to help patients with epilepsy.
This procedure involved removing cells from the brain
regions where the seizures began; doing so would pre- than thoughts and mental imagery was not universal. In
vent the seizures from spreading to other areas of the Europe, psychologists retained an emphasis on thinking,
brain. However, before operating, Penfield needed to find and ignored the North Americans’ cries to study only
a way to map out the functions of the surrounding brain what could be directly observed. The European focus on
regions so that he could try to avoid damaging areas that thought flourished through the early 1900s, long before
performed important functions such as language. To do psychologists in North America began to take seriously
this, Penfield electrically stimulated each patient’s brain the idea that they could study mental processes, even if
while the patient was under local anesthetic (i.e., was they could not directly see them. Thus, it was the work
awake, and therefore conscious). The patient was then of European psychologists that formed the basis of the
able to report the sensations he experienced after each cognitive perspective. Early evidence of an emerging
burst of electricity. Based on several patients’ reports, cognitive perspective concerned the study of mem-
Penfield was able to create precise maps of the sensory ory. The German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus
and motor (movement) cortices in the brain (Penfield & (1850–1909) collected reams of data on remembering
Jasper, 1951; Todman, 2008). Importantly, his work also and [Link] results of his studies produced numer-
showed that people’s subjective experiences can be rep- ous “forgetting curves.” These curves showed that most
resented in the brain (see Module 3.3). This insight sug- of what a person learns will be forgotten rapidly, but that
gested that the simple stimulus-response model put forth the rate of forgetting will then slow down, enabling us to
by the behaviourists was not a complete representation remember some of the information that we have learned.
of our complex mental world. Not only is the forgetting curve a staple of modern psy-
chology, but some of Ebbinghaus’s methods are also still
Simulate THE COGNITIVE REVOLUTION Although behav- applied to memory research today (see Module 7.2).
How Good Is Your iourism dominated psychology in the United States and British psychologist Frederick Bartlett (1886–1969)
Memory for Stories? Canada throughout the first half of the 20th century, the also used experiments to better understand human
view that observable behaviours were more important memory. Bartlett found that our memory was not like

24 :: Module 1.2 : : How Psychology Became a Science

a photograph, but was instead influenced by a number well, but it was not until 1968 that these areas of research
of outside factors including a person’s cultural knowl- were given the name “cognitive psychology” by Ulrich
edge and experiences. Think about the last film or tele- Neisser (1928–2012). Cognitive psychology is a modern
vision show you saw. Do you remember the exact words psychological perspective that focuses on processes such
in the script? Do you remember what the characters as memory, thinking, and language. Thus, much of what
were wearing? Bartlett’s work demonstrated that we are cognitive psychologists study consists of mental processes
more likely to remember the general storyline than any that are inferred through rigorous experimentation.
of these other details, and that our cultural knowledge In the 1970s and 1980s, the boundary between
shapes what elements of a storyline we find important cognitive psychology and biopsychology slowly began
enough to remember (Bartlett, 1932). to fade. As brain-imaging tools became more sophisti-
Another precursor to cognitive psychology can be cated, cognitive psychologists began working with brain
seen in the early to mid-1900s movement of gestalt psy- researchers to identify the neural areas involved with
chology, an approach emphasizing that psychologists need to complex abilities like memory, emotions, and decision
focus on the whole of perception and experience, rather than its making. This new field became known as cognitive neuro-
parts (see Module 4.1). (Gestalt is a German word that science, a specialized field that is growing faster than any
refers to the complete form of an object; see Figure 1.8.) other area of psychology. It is also expanding into new
This contrasts with the structuralist goal of breaking expe- topics of investigation, with researchers now using cog-
rience into its individual parts. For example, if Wundt or nitive and brain-imaging techniques to examine issues
Titchener were to hand you an apple, you would not think, related to social behaviour, laying the groundwork for
“Round, red, has a stem . . .”; you would simply think to the integrative field known as social-cognitive neuroscience.
yourself, “This is an apple.” Gestalt psychologists argued
that much of our thinking and experience occur at a SOCIAL AND CULTURAL INFLUENCES The
higher, more organized level than Wundt emphasized; they vast majority of behaviourist and cognitive psychology
believed that Wundt’s approach to understanding experi- research focuses on an individual’s responses to some
ence made about as much sense as understanding water sort of stimulus. Missing from this equation, however,
only by studying its hydrogen and oxygen atoms. is that fact that people often have to respond to stimuli
In the 1950s—around the time that there was or events in the presence of other people. The effects of
increasing interest in humanistic psychology—the scien- other people on one’s behaviour have not been lost on
tific study of cognition was becoming accepted practice in psychologists; indeed, the recognition of this influence
North American psychology. The invention of the com- can be found in the very early years of psychology. An
puter gave psychologists a useful analogy for understand- American psychologist, Norman Triplett (1861–1931),
ing and talking about the mind (the software of the brain). conducted one of the first formal experiments in this
Linguists argued that grammar and vocabulary were far area, observing that cyclists ride faster in the presence of
too complex to be explained in behaviourist terms; the other people than when riding alone. Triplett published
alternative was to propose abstract mental processes. There the first social psychology research in 1898, and a few
was a great deal of interest in memory and perception as social psychology textbooks appeared in 1908.
Despite the early interest in this field, studies of
how people influence the behaviour of others did not
take off until the 1940s. The events in Nazi-controlled
Germany that led up to World War II contributed to the
development of this new perspective in psychology in
at least two ways. First, Adolf Hitler’s political machine
was explicitly anti-Jewish and anti-intellectual. To escape
persecution by the German government, a significant
number of German professors and scientists from a range
of disciplines fled to North America (and some, includ-
ing Freud, to the United Kingdom). These psychologists
brought with them the influence of gestalt psychology.
The exchange of ideas between these researchers and
{fig. 1.8} The Whole Is Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts the mostly behaviourist North American psychologists
The Gestalt psychologists emphasized humans’ ability to see allowed psychology to grow in new directions. Second,
whole forms. For example, you probably perceive a sphere
in the centre of this figure, even though it does not exist on research on social influences began as a result of collabo-
the page. rations between sociologists (who study populations of

How Psychology Became a Science :: Module 1.2 :: 25

 humans) and psychologists (who were studying indi- the role of society in shaping behaviour, beliefs, and
viduals at that time). Together, they attempted to under- values. Many cross-cultural studies compare the
stand how normal individuals could be transformed into responses of North American research participants (gen-
Watch
Frank Manis: How Is
brutal prison camp guards, how political propaganda erally psychology students like you) to those of individ-
Research Applied in affected people, and how society might address issues uals in non-Western countries such as China or Japan.
the Classroom? of stereotyping and prejudice (see Module 13.1). This However, Western countries with high immigration rates
research evolved into what is now known as social psy- like Canada and the U.S. also provide researchers with
chology, the study of the influence of other people on our the opportunity to compare the responses and experi-
behaviour. ences of first- and second-generation Canadians (Abou-
However, psychologists also noted that not all guendia & Noels, 2001; Gaudet et al., 2005). This type
people responded to social groups or the presence of of research therefore allows us to examine how people
others in the same way. While some people were trans- respond when being pulled in different directions by
formed into prison camp guards in World War II, others family history and the culture of their current country
objected and joined resistance movements. These indi- of residence. Such comparisons are also being performed
vidual differences were observable in normal, everyday using brain-imaging, demonstrating that our social and
life as well: Some people are talkative and outgoing cultural experiences can also be embedded in our brain
while others are quiet. These observations led to the tissue (Losin et al., 2010).
development of personality psychology, the study of how In conclusion, the trends that emerged during the
different personality characteristics can influence how formative years of psychology laid the foundation for
we think and act. the modern perspectives and theories we see today. Psy-
Although it’s easy to think of social psychology and chology is now a clearly established discipline—there
personality psychology as being distinct, in reality, your are established venues such as professional organizations
personality and the social situations you are in interact. and journals to disseminate the results of psychological
This relationship was most eloquently described by Kurt research. However, it is important to remember that what
Lewin (1890–1947), the founder of modern social psy- you encounter in the upcoming modules will still reflect
chology. Lewin suggested that behaviour is a function of psychology’s early influences. Although modern tech-
the individual and the environment, or, if you’re a fan of nology, such as brain scans and computing, would likely
formulas (and who isn’t?), B = f{I,E}.What Lewin meant baffle psychology’s founders, it is likely that they would
was that all behaviours could be predicted and explained find the results of modern research absolutely relevant to
through understanding how an individual with a specific their own interests. It is also likely that they would be
set of traits would respond in a context that involved enthusiastic about the increasing levels of collaboration
a specific set of conditions. Take two individuals as an between the different areas of psychology, and about the
example: One tends to be quiet and engages in solitary current zeitgeist of treating human behaviour as a com-
activities such as reading, whereas the other is talkative plex system with biological, psychological, and sociocul-
and enjoys being where the action is. Now put them in a tural components.
social situation, such as a large party at a university dorm
or a small get-together at a friend’s house. How will the
two behave? Given the disparity between the individuals
and between the two environments, we would suspect
very different behaviours would emerge for these two
individuals in the different settings. The outgoing person
may have a wonderful time at the big party, while the
quiet person desperately tries to find someone to talk to
or pretends to be fascinated by something on his phone.
But, at the smaller get-together, the quieter person will
likely be much more relaxed, while the outgoing person
might be bored. Neither behaviour is better, but they are
different. This outcome illustrates the essence of Lewin’s
formulation of social psychology.
Monkey Business Images/[Link]
On a broader but related scale, cross-cultural psychology
The study of first- and second-generation Canadians allows
is the field that draws comparisons about individual and psychologists to better understand the (sometimes conflicting)
group behaviour among cultures; it helps us understand influences of family traditions and modern society.

26 :: Module 1.2 : : How Psychology Became a Science

Quick Quiz 1.2b The Beginnings of Contemporary Psychology
1 ______ was the study of the basic components of the 3 Gwen is in search of the deeper meaning of her life, and

APPLY . . .
KNOW . . .
mind, while ______ was the study of how they work. would like to learn more about her potential as a human
A Structuralism; functionalism being. Which of the following types of psychologists
B Behaviourism; functionalism would likely be most useful to her?
A Humanistic C Behaviourist
C Functionalism; structuralism
B Gestalt D Social
D Humanism; structuralism

2 A distinct feature of behaviourism is its 4 The gestalt psychologists, with their focus on
UNDERSTAND . . .

perception and experience, are closely linked to

A search for the deeper meaning of human existence. modern-day ________ psychologists.
B search for patterns that create a whole that is A developmental C cognitive
greater than its parts.
B social D evolutionary
C use of introspection.
Answers can be found on page ANS-1.
D exclusive emphasis on observable behaviour.

How Psychology Became a Science :: Module 1.2 :: 27

 Module Summary

Module Now that you have read this module you should
1.2
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology of psychology’s history:

behaviourism (p. 21) materialism (p. 14)

clinical psychology (p. 16) nature and nurture relationships
determinism (p. 13) (p. 18) nagib/Shutterstock
empiricism (p. 13) psychoanalysis (p. 17)
functionalism (p. 21) psychophysics (p. 14)
gestalt psychology (p. 25) structuralism (p. 20) APPLY . . .
humanistic psychology (p. 23) zeitgeist (p. 14)
● Your knowledge to distinguish among the different
specializations in psychology. Try the activity in Table 1.2
and check your answers on page ANS-1.
UNDERSTAND . . .

● How various philosophical and scientific fields ANALYZE . . .

became major influences on psychology. The
philosophical schools of determinism, empiricism, and ● How the philosophical ideas of empiricism and
materialism provided a background for a scientific study determinism are applied to human behaviour.
of human behaviour. The first psychologists were trained Psychology is based on empiricism, the belief that
as physicists and physiologists. Fechner, for example, all knowledge—including knowledge about human
developed psychophysics, whereas Titchener looked behaviour—is acquired through the senses. All sciences,
for the elements of thought. Darwin’s theory of natural including psychology, require a deterministic viewpoint.
selection influenced psychologist William James’s idea of Determinism is the philosophical tenet that all events in
functionalism—the search for how behaviours may aid the the world, including human actions, have a physical cause.
survival and reproduction of the organism. The deterministic view is also essential to the sciences.
Applying determinism to human behaviour has been met
with resistance by many because it appears to deny a
place for free will.

Table 1.2 :: Areas of Specialization within Psychology

Apply your knowledge to distinguish among different specializations in psychology. You should be able to read a description Explore
of a psychologist on the left and match her or his work to a specialization on the right. Check your answers on page ANS-1. Psychologists at Work

1. I am an academic psychologist who studies various methods for improving study habits. I hope to help a. social psychologist
people increase memory performance and become better students. I am a(n) __________. b. cross-cultural psychologist
2. My work focuses on how the presence of other people influences an individual’s acceptance of and c. cognitive psychologist
willingness to express various stereotypes. I am a(n) __________.
d. humanistic psychologist
3. I have been studying how childrearing practices in Guatemala, Canada, and Cambodia all share some
common elements, as well as how they differ. I am a(n) __________. e. evolutionary psychologist

4. I am interested in behaviours that are genetically influenced to help animals adapt to their changing
environments. I am a(n) __________.
5. I help individuals identify problem areas of their lives and ways to correct them, and guide them to live
up to their full potential. I am a(n) __________.

28 :: Module 1.2 : : How Psychology Became a Science

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding the Scientific Origins
of Psychology

1 What do we know about psychological science?

Figure 1.5 on page 15 outlined the movement of psychology toward a
2 How can science explain behaviour?
Regardless of their theoretical approach, psychologists
scientific study of human behaviour, including influences from fields such as medi- rely on the scientific method to gather data. Testing hypoth-
cine and physics. Refresh your memory of contemporary psychology, including eses and constructing theories are key parts of all scientific
the rise of behaviourism, humanistic psychology, social psychology, biological psy- endeavours, and the scientific method involves a dynamic
chology, and cognitive psychology, by reviewing the discussion on pages 19–26. interaction between these two tasks. Recall from page 21
Psychologists today often use multiple, unique perspectives to study a topic, but that the proponents of behaviourism, for example, relied
they share with other scientists a common set of methods for understanding almost exclusively on studying observable behaviour. Classic
our world. Figure 1.1 on page 3 offers a reminder of how psychologists use studies by Watson and Skinner make up the foundation of our
the scientific method to study human behaviour. Of course, approaching any sub- knowledge in those areas today, and you can see the results
ject scientifically requires that we understand some key concepts. Review the of Watson’s research on behavioural conditioning in the evo-
discussion of determinism and empiricism on page 13. Psychologists assume lution of modern advertising. Moreover, the rise of cognitive
that a multitude of factors cause our behaviour (determinism), and that our un- psychology eventually allowed the application of the scientific
derstanding of behaviour comes from observing what we can see and measure method to phenomena that behaviourists of the time thought
(empiricism). Here is a tip: were unobservable, such as memory and thought processes.
Remember that an Empirical approach means knowledge is gained through
Experience, often by conducting Experiments.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video
excerpt on the different psychologi-
cal perspectives. You can access the video at
MyPsychLab or by clicking the play button in the Sarah2/Shutterstock
centre of your eText. If your instructor assigns
this video as a homework activity, you will find additional content 3 Can we critically evaluate scientific claims?
As outlined on page 6, scientific literacy consists of abilities to
to help you in MyPsychLab. You can also view the video by using
understand, analyze, and apply scientific information. A key component
your smart phone and the QR code below, or you can go to the
of scientific literacy—critical thinking—involves exercising curiosity and
YouTube link provided.
skepticism when evaluating the claims of others, and when assessing our
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, imagine own assumptions and beliefs. For instance, the alien abductions Myths
your friend Jake has become very anxious ever since he started in Mind on page 10 reminds us that seeking the simplest of all explana-
taking harder classes in his [Link] university’s counsellor diag- tions, also known as applying the principle of parsimony, will generally
nosed him with an anxiety disorder. Compare and contrast how put you on the path to thinking scientifically and critically. Recall that a
the behavioural, humanistic, biological, and cognitive approaches key characteristic of a scientific hypothesis is its ability to be tested. We
would view the origins and treatment of Jake’s anxiety. Then, mention astrology as an example because its predictions are typically so
describe how each of the four approaches is viewed by psycholo- general that they cannot be falsified. It is a good idea to be skeptical of any
gists today. claims that are based on assumptions that cannot be proved or disproved;
many times they are couched in pseudoscientific terminology.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]/workthemodel
[Link]/worrkth
kthemo
hemod
dell
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR
See page xxiv for instructions
onss

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Chapter 1 :: 29

 2
Reading and Evaluating Scientific Research
2.1 Principles of Scientific Research
● Five Characteristics of Quality
Scientific Research p. 32
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Demand Characteristics
and Participant Behaviour p. 36
● Five Characteristics of
Poor Research p. 40
● Module Summary p. 43

2.2 Scientific Research Designs

● Descriptive Research p. 45
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Case Studies as a Form
of Scientific Research p. 46
● Correlational Research p. 49
● Experimental Research p. 51
● Module Summary p. 54

2.3 Ethics in Psychological Research

● Promoting the Welfare of
Research Participants p. 56
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Animal Models of Disease p. 59
● Ethical Collection, Storage,
and Reporting of Data p. 61
● Module Summary p. 63

2.4 A Statistical Primer

● Descriptive Statistics p. 65
● Hypothesis Testing: Evaluating
the Outcome of the Study p. 69
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Statistical Significance p. 70
Ryan Jorgensen-Jorgo/Shutterstock
● Module Summary p. 72

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 73

30 :: Module : :
 Photosindia/Getty Images

Module

2.1 Principles of Scientific Research

Learning KNOW … UNDERSTAND … APPLY … ANALYZE …

Objectives The key terminology The five characteristics of The concepts of reliability Whether anecdotes, authority
After reading related to the principles quality scientific research and validity to examples figures, and common
this module of scientific research sense are reliably truthful
How biases might influence
you should sources of information
the outcome of a study

Does listening to classical music make you smarter? In January 1998, Gover- participants who listened to Mozart performed better than other adults on
nor Zell Miller of Georgia placed a $105 000 line in his state budget dedicated a test of spatial ability. These (temporary) differences in spatial intelligence
to purchasing classical music (Sack, 1998). He even paid the conductor of the were then inflated by the popular press to mean intelligence in general (a big
Atlanta Symphony to select optimal pieces for this CD. Apparently, Georgia’s difference!). Based on a single study, companies created a multi-million dollar
well-meaning governor and state legislature believed that providing young industry, and the state of Georgia spent an extra $105 000.
children with classical music would make them smarter. There were many
This example is not meant to demonize the media or to mock Governor
reasons to believe this assumption might be true, starting with the observa-
Miller. Rather, it highlights the need for greater scientific literacy in our
tion that most people we know who listen to classical music seem intelli-
society. The researchers did not make any unethical claims, the media
gent and sophisticated. At around the same time that Georgia took this step,
were trying to present an interesting science-based story to their audi-
consumers were being bombarded with advertisements about “the Mozart
ence, and Governor Miller wanted to improve the well-being of the chil-
effect.” Suddenly the classical sections at music stores were dusted off and
dren in his state. But, because of a lack of scientific literacy and critical
moved to the front of the store, with signs drawing customers’ attention to
thinking, these events have now become a cautionary tale.
the intelligence-boosting effects of the CDs. Parents were told that it was
never too early to start their children on a Mozart program, even as fetuses
Focus Questions
residing in the womb. In fact, part of the Georgia budget, as well as the budget
in some other U.S. states, was dedicated to handing out classical CDs along 1 We hear claims from marketers and politicians
with hospital birth certificates. Eventually, the enthusiasm toward the Mozart every day, but how can we evaluate them?
effect died down—after other scientists were unable to replicate the results.
2 Can we evaluate evidence even if we are not scientists?
It turns out that the hype surrounding the Mozart effect was based on the
results of one study (Rauscher et al., 1993). In this study, the twelve adult

Principles of Scientific Research :: Module 2.1 :: 31

 Watch Research methods don’t initially inspire much passion Five Characteristics of Quality
Music as a Universal in students. However, this chapter might be the most
Language important one in the book in many ways. This chap- Scientific Research
ter will give you the training to become a critical con- During the past few centuries, scientists have developed
sumer of scientific claims that are made by the media, methods to help bring us to an objective understand-
corporations, politicians, and even scientists. Every time ing of the world. The drive for objectivity influences
you open a news website, you encounter scientific top- how scientific research is conducted in at least five ways.
ics such as how certain foods are linked with cancer Quality scientific research meets the following criteria:
risks or psychological issues, or you read about won-
1. It is based on measurements that are objective, valid,
der drugs that will improve your grades. Some of this
and reliable.
research is fantastic, but some is not. The goal of this
2. It can be generalized.
chapter is to help you separate the good from the ques-
3. It uses techniques that reduce bias.
tionable, and to show you that asking tough questions
4. It is made public.
about how research was designed and conducted is never
5. It can be replicated.
a bad thing. Doing so prevents you from being tricked
and manipulated . . . and from spending $105 000 on As you will soon read, these five characteristics of good
Mozart CDs. research overlap in many ways, and they will apply to
Watch What makes science such a powerful technique for any of the methods of conducting research that you will
What’s in It for Me? examining behaviour? Perhaps the single most important read about in this textbook.
How Am I Being
aspect of scientific research is that it strives for objectiv-
Influenced?
ity. Objectivity assumes that certain facts about the world SCIENTIFIC MEASUREMENT: OBJECTIVITY,
can be observed and tested independently from the indi- RELIABILITY, AND VALIDITY The foundation of
Watch
vidual who describes them (e.g., the scientist). Every- scientific methodology is the use of objective mea-
Thinking Like a one—not just the experts—should be able to agree on surements , the measure of an entity or behaviour that,
Psychologist: Thinking these facts given the same tools, the same methods, and within an allowed margin of error, is consistent across instru-
Critically the same context. Achieving objectivity is not a simple ments and observers. In other words, the way that a quality
task, however. or a behaviour is measured must be the same regardless
As soon as people observe an event, their interpreta- of who is doing the measuring and the exact tool they
tion of it becomes subjective, meaning that their knowl- are using. For example, weight is measured in pounds or
edge of the event is shaped by prior beliefs, expectations, kilograms. One kilogram in St. John’s is the same as one
experiences, and even their mood. A scientific, objective kilogram in Victoria—researchers don’t get to choose
approach to answering questions differs greatly from a how much mass a kilogram is worth. Similarly, your
subjective one. Most individuals tend to regard a scien- weight will be the same regardless of whether you’re
tific approach as one that is rigorous and demands proof. using the scale in your bathroom or the scale in the
Although these are not inaccurate characterizations of change room at the gym. However, your weight will vary
scientific thinking and research, there is more to explore. slightly from scale to scale—this is the margin of error

Left: age fotostock/SuperStock; right: Ewa Walicka/[Link]

Psychologists make observations using a variety of methods. They might observe and record behavioural responses such as
lever pressing for a reward by laboratory animals, or ask people to complete questionnaires that measure thoughts, preferences,
emotions, and other variables.

32 :: Module 2.1 : : Principles of Scientific Research

mentioned in the definition. Scientists in a given field Operational Definitions
have to agree upon how much variability is allowable.
Most people will be comfortable if their weight differs Physiological measure: blood
alcohol level
by one or two kilograms depending on the scale being Variable
used. But, if you weigh 70 kg on one scale and 95 kg
Behavioural measure: number
on the other, then you know one of your measurement Intoxication of missteps when trying to walk
tools is inaccurate. heel-to-toe on a straight line
In this example, weight would be considered a
variable, the object, concept, or event being measured. Vari- Self-reported measure: score
ables are a key part of the research described in all of on the self-report form called
the “Intoxication Index”
the chapters in this book ranging from perceptual
processes, to learning and memory, to how we inter-
act with each other, and so on. Each of these variables {fig. 2.1} Operational Definitions A variable, such as the
level of intoxication, can be operationally defined in multiple
can be described and measured. For most of psychol- ways. This figure shows operational definitions based on phys-
ogy’s history, measurements involved observations of iology, behaviour, and self-report measures. Click on this fig-
behaviour in different situations or examinations of how ure in your eText to see more details.
participants responded on a questionnaire or to stim-
uli presented on a computer. However, as technology
effect. They should have asked, “How do the researchers
advanced, so did the ability to ask psychological ques-
define the outcome of their study? Do they mean listen-
tions in new and interesting ways. High-tech equip-
ing to classical music makes you smarter, or just that you
ment, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging
remember better? Do they claim the effect is permanent,
(fMRI), allows researchers to view the brain and see
or does it occur only while listening to Mozart?” Here is
which areas are activated while you perform different
what the legislators would have found if they had looked
tasks such as remembering words or viewing emotional
up the answers in the scientific reports before spending
pictures. Other physiological measures might involve
over $100 000, which was a lot of money in 1998 (Steele
gathering samples of blood or saliva, which can then be
et al., 1999):
analyzed for enzymes, hormones, and other biological
variables that relate to behaviour and mental function- • Researchers have used several different objective
ing. With this greater number of measurement options, measures of thinking and reasoning in studies of lis-
it’s now possible to examine the same variable (e.g., tening to classical music, including objective behav-
anxiety) using a number of different techniques. Doing ioural measures.
so strengthens our ability to understand the different • Based on these measures, the only improvement
elements of behaviour. seems to be in one specific type of thinking called
Regardless of the specific experimental question spatial reasoning—that is, the ability to look at objects
being asked, any method used by a researcher to measure and mentally manipulate them.
a variable needs to include carefully defined terms. This • Researchers have also found that, averaged across a
isn’t always as easy as it sounds. How would you define number of studies including 714 individuals, the
personality, shyness, or cognitive ability? This is the type average increase in spatial reasoning from listening
of question a researcher would want to answer very care- to classical music is only 1½ points on an “IQ”-
fully, not only for planning and conducting a study, but style intelligence test. (That gain is very small, given
also when sharing the results of that research. In order to the fact that if you took the test twice in a week, it
do so, researchers must decide upon a precise definition would be perfectly normal for your score to change
that other researchers could understand. These opera- by as much as 9 points.) In addition, this improve-
tional definitions are statements that describe the procedures ment is short-lived—it disappears after approximately
(or operations) and specific measures that are used to record 10 minutes.
observations (Figure 2.1). For example, depression could • Initially researchers attributed the improvement to
be operationally defined as “a score of 21 or higher on classical music (especially piano concertos) because
the Beck Depression Inventory” (Beck & Steer, 1977), the same result was not found with other types
with the measure being a common and widely accepted of music or with silence. Subsequently, however,
clinical questionnaire. researchers found the same type and size of effect
The concept of operational definitions would have after participants listened to a recording of a Stephen
been helpful when the Georgia legislators considered King horror novel, a result that companies producing
implementing a state-wide program based on the Mozart Mozart-effect CDs did not take a shining to.

Principles of Scientific Research :: Module 2.1 :: 33

 These conclusions make a very strong argument example, psychologists might be interested in the effects
against investing the time, money, and effort in writing of nonverbal behaviour when people interact, so they
policy that relies so heavily on the Mozart effect. They might videotape participants solving a problem and then
also provide an important lesson to anyone making have trained raters count the number of touches or the
policy decisions that involve human behaviour: Search amount of eye contact that occurred during the experi-
through the existing research literature before you make ment. As another example, participants might write
any decisions. down lengthy, open-ended responses to an experiment-
Once researchers have defined their terms, they then er’s questions; these responses would then be rated on
turn their attention toward the tools they plan to use different variables by laboratory personnel. The catch is
to measure their variable(s) of interest. The behavioural that more than one person must do the rating; otherwise
measurements that psychologists make must be valid and it is impossible to determine if the responses were accu-
reliable. Validity refers to the degree to which an instru- rately measured or if the results were due to the single
ment or procedure actually measures what it claims to measure. rater. Having more than one rater allows you to have
This seems like a simple task, but creating valid measures inter-rater reliability, meaning that the raters agree on the
of complex behaviours is quite challenging. To go back measurements that were taken. If you design an experi-
to the depression example, researchers cannot simply ask ment with clear operational definitions and criteria for
people a few questions and then randomly decide that the raters, then it is likely that you will have high inter-
one score qualifies as depressed while another does not. rater reliability.
Instead, for the measure to be valid, a particular score Reliability and validity are essential components of
would have to differentiate depressed and non-depressed scientific research. In addition, it is usually very impor-
people in a way that accurately maps on to how these tant that your results are not limited to a small group of
people actually feel (i.e., a depressed person would score people in a single laboratory. Instead, it is ideal for these
differently than a non-depressed person). The creation results to relate to other groups and situations—in other
of valid measures is therefore quite time-consuming and words, to be generalizable.
requires a great deal of testing and revising before the
final product is ready for use. GENERALIZABILITY OF RESULTS Although
In addition to being valid, a measurement tool must personal testimony can be persuasive and (sometimes)
also be reliable. A measure demonstrates reliability when interesting, psychologists are primarily interested in
it provides consistent and stable answers across multiple obser- understanding behaviour in general. This involves exam-
vations and points in time. There are actually a number ining trends and patterns that will allow us to predict
of different types of reliability that affect psychological how most people will respond to diff erent stimuli and
research. Test-retest reliability examines whether scores on situations. Generalizability refers to the degree to which
a given measure of behaviour are consistent across test one set of results can be applied to other situations, individu-
sessions. If your scores on a test of depression vary widely als, or events. For example, imagine that one person you
each time you take the test, then it is unlikely that your know claimed that a memory-improvement course
test is reliable. Alternate-forms reliability is a bit more com- helped her raise her grades. How useful is the course?
plicated. This form of reliability examines whether dif- Based on this information, you would initially view the
ferent forms of the same test produce the same results. course favourably. However, upon further reflection,
Why would you need multiple forms of a test? In many you’d realize that a number of other factors could have
situations, a person will be tested on multiple occasions. influenced your friend’s improvement, not the least of
For instance, individuals with brain damage might have which is that she is suddenly paying more attention to
their memory tested soon after they arrive at the hospital her grades! At this point, you would wisely decide to
and then at one or more points during their rehabilita- wait until you’ve heard more about the course before
tion. If you give these individuals the exact same test, it is investing your hard-earned money. But, if you found
possible that any improvement is simply due to practice. out that several hundred people in your city had taken
By having multiple versions of a test that produce the the same course and had experienced similar benefits,
same results (e.g., two equally difficult lists of words as then these results will appear more likely to predict
stimuli for memory tests), researchers and hospital work- what would happen if you or other people took the
ers can test individuals on multiple occasions and know course. They are generalizable.
Explore that their measurement tools are equivalent. As you can see from this example, one way to
Diversity in A third type of reliability takes place when observ- increase the possibility that research results will gen-
Psychological Inquiry ers have to score or rate a behaviour or response. For eralize is to study a large group of participants. By

34 :: Module 2.1 : : Principles of Scientific Research

examining and reporting an average effect for that began this module, most of the studies involved adults,
group, psychologists can get a much better sense of yet companies and politicians assumed—with very little
how individuals are likely to behave. But how large of evidence—that the results would generalize to chil-
a group is it possible to study? Ideally, it would be best dren, including infants. Therefore, scientific literacy
to study an entire population, the group that research- also involves thinking critically about when it is appro-
ers want to generalize about. In reality, the task of finding priate to generalize results to other groups, times, and
all population members, persuading them to participate, locations.
and measuring their behaviour is impossible in most
cases. Instead, psychologists typically study a sample, a SOURCES OF BIAS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL
select group of population members. Once the sample has RESEARCH Of course, generalizability is only impor-
been studied, then the results may be generalized to the tant if the experiment itself were conducted without
population as a whole. bias. While creating objective, reliable, and valid measures
It is important to note that how a sample is selected is important in quality research, various types of bias can Watch
will determine whether your results are generalizable. If be unintentionally introduced by the researchers; this is Women, Health, and

your sample for the memory-improvement course was known as a researcher bias. For instance, the experimenter Stress: Florence

limited to middle-aged male doctors in Edmonton, it may treat participants in different experimental condi- Denmark

would be difficult to generalize those results to all Cana- tions differently, thus making it impossible to know if any
dians. Instead, researchers try to use a random sample, differences were due to the experimental manipulation
a sampling technique in which every individual of a popula- being tested or were instead due to the experimenter’s
tion has an equal chance of being included. If you wanted behaviour. It is also possible for the participants, includ-
to study the population of students at your school, for ing animals, to introduce their own bias; these effects are
example, the best way to obtain a true random sample known as subject biases or participant biases. Sometimes this
would be to have a computer generate a list of names bias will involve a participant trying to figure out what
from the entire student body. Your random sample— the experimenters are testing or trying to predict the
a subset of this population—would then be identified, responses that the researchers are hoping to find.
with each member of the population having an equal Bias can also be introduced by the act of observa-
chance of being selected regardless of class standing, gen- tion itself. A wonderful example of this tendency was
der, major, living situation, and other factors. Of course, provided by workers at the Western Electric Company’s
it isn’t always possible to use random sampling. This is Hawthorne Works, a Chicago-area factory in the 1920s.
particularly true if you are hoping that your results gen- Researchers went to the factory to study the relation-
eralize to a large population or to all of humanity. In ship between productivity and working conditions.
these cases, researchers often have to settle for conve- When the researchers introduced some minor change in
nience samples, samples of individuals who are the most working conditions, such as an adjustment to the light-
readily available—for example, Introductory Psychology ing, the workers were more productive for a period of
students. time. When they changed another variable in a differ-
In addition to generalizing across individuals, psy- ent study—such as having fewer but longer breaks—
chological research should generalize across time and productivity increased again. What was not obvious to
location. Research should ideally have high ecological the researchers was that any change in factory condi-
validity, meaning that the results of a laboratory study can be tions brought about increased productivity, presumably
applied to or repeated in the natural environment. Sometimes because the changes were always followed by close atten-
this connection doesn’t seem obvious, such as computer- tion from the factory supervisors (Adair, 1984; Parsons,
based studies testing your ability to pay attention to dif- 1974). The results were due to the participants noticing
ferent stimuli on a computer screen, but such seemingly that they were being observed rather than to the vari-
artificial situations are assessing human abilities that are ables being manipulated. In honour of these observations,
used in very common situations such as driving or find- a behaviour change that occurs as a result of being observed is
ing a friend in a crowded classroom. now known as the Hawthorne effect.
Although generalizability and ecological validity In most psychological research, the participants are
are important qualities of good research, we need to be aware that they are being observed. The challenge for
careful not to over-generalize. For example, results from the experimenters is to limit the effect that they have on
a convenience sample of university students might not the results of their own study so that the results are due
predict how a group of elderly people would do on the to the variables being studied rather than to the partici-
same task. Conversely, in the Mozart effect example that pants responding to cues from the researcher.

Principles of Scientific Research :: Module 2.1 :: 35

 Engineering and drafting school, ca. 1925. Western Electric Company photograph album. Baker Library Historical Collections.
Harvard Business School. (olvwork278414)
The Hawthorne Effect, named after the Western Electric Company’s Hawthorne Works in Chicago, states that individuals
sometimes change their behaviour when they think they are being observed.

off by the experimenter or the experimental context that pro-

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC vide information about how participants are expected to behave.
LITERACY MODEL Demand characteristics can range from very subtle to obvi-
ous influences on the behaviour of research participants
Demand Characteristics and Participant (Orne, 1962). They can take the form of responding based on
Behaviour social desirability (also known as socially desirable respond-
ing), which means that research participants respond in ways that
increase the chances that they will be viewed favourably. This
Results of psychological studies should provide uncontaminated
type of bias is particularly relevant when the study involves
views of behaviour. In reality, however, people who participate
an interview in which the researcher has face-to-face con-
in psychological studies typically enter the research environ-
tact with the volunteers.
ment with a curiosity about the subject of the study. Research-
ers need to withhold as much detail as possible (while still Demand characteristics may also be a problem in laboratory
being ethical) to get the best, least biased results possible. studies, where participants often try to figure out the pur-
pose of the experiment. Subtle and even obvious cues by the
What do we know researcher or the experimental context can give away the
about how bias affects purpose of the study. For example, imagine you walk into
a laboratory and a psychologist asks you to put on a heavy
research participants? backpack. She then shows you a ramp and asks you to esti-
When studying human behaviour, a mate how steep the ramp is. It certainly seems plausible that
major concern is demand char- the experimenter wants to know whether wearing the back-
acteristics, inadvertent cues given pack will affect your judgment about the steepness of the

36 :: Module 2.1 : : Principles of Scientific Research

ramp. Research has shown that even in this simple example are believed to be relatively stable. Why would this occur
there looms the possibility of demand characteristics that if the students were randomly selected? The best explana-
can affect performance. tion is that the observers (i.e., teachers) assumed those stu-
dents would do well, and were therefore more likely to pay
How can science attention to those students and to give them positive and
encouraging feedback. These positive experiences with the
test the effects teachers likely motivated these students to improve them-
of demand selves. In other words, the students changed their behaviour
characteristics on patterns in order to match up with the expectations of the
behaviour? teachers. It is easy to see how similar experimenter effects
could occur in psychological research studies.
One explanation for demand effects is that people are
generally searching for a reason for their behaviour. When Experimenter bias can even be found when people work with
there is no explanation for performing a given set of actions, animals. When research assistants were told they were han-
such as putting on a backpack and climbing a ramp, people dling “bright” rats, it appeared that the animals learned sig-
tend to draw their own conclusions (e.g., assuming that the nificantly faster than when the assistants were told they were
purpose of the study is to see if wearing a backpack affects handling “dull” rats. Because it is unlikely that the rats were
steepness judgments). Durgin and colleagues (2009) tested influenced by demand characteristics—they were not trying
this possibility by performing a study in which participants to give the researchers what they wanted—the most likely
wore no backpack, wore a 25-pound (11-kg) backpack with explanation for this difference is that researchers made subtle
no explanation given, or wore the same backpack and were changes in how they treated the animals, and in how they
told that it contained electrical equipment that would be observed and recorded behaviour (Rosenthal & Fode, 1963).
used to measure muscle activity in participants’ ankles. To
increase the believability of this procedure, actual electrodes How can we critically
with wires running to the backpack were attached to the evaluate the issue of bias
ankles of members of the third group. The participants were
taken separately to a room that contained a ramp and were
in research?
asked to judge how steep they thought it was before and This issue of bias in research is
after they stepped onto it. After completing the procedure, very difficult to overcome. Very few
the participants sat at a computer and took a survey that researchers intentionally manipu-
included questions in which they guessed the purpose of the late their participants; however, as
study. The researchers found that the participants who wore you have read, many times these influences are subtle and
the backpack but did not receive an explanation for doing accidental. In most cases, experimenters (often graduate
so judged the ramp to be steeper than did the other two students and undergraduate research assistants) complete
groups. This group difference occurred both before and after rigorous training and follow careful scripts when explaining
the participants actually used the ramp. Importantly, when experimental procedures to participants. These precautions
questioned at the end of the study, the no-explanation group help reduce experimenter effects.
stated that they believed that the purpose of the experiment
One way to evaluate whether participants’ expectations are
was to determine how wearing a backpack affects steepness
influencing the results is to create an additional manipulation
judgments. Students who did not wear a backpack or, most
in which the researchers give different groups of participants
importantly, who wore one with recording equipment they
different expectations of the results. If the groups then differ
assumed was critical to the study, did not report this belief.
when performing the same task, then some form of demand
The participants who did not have an explanation for the
characteristic, in this case from the participant, might be influ-
study attempted to guess what it was, leading to demand
encing performance. For instance, one study asked partici-
characteristics that affected perceptual judgments about the
pants to detect any changes that might occur between two
ramp’s slope (Durgin et al., 2009).
different, alternating driving scenes (e.g., part of the scene
Demand characteristics can also be explained by research- might disappear in one of the scenes). Some of the partici-
ers and observers introducing biases and unwittingly drawing pants were told that the ability to detect these changes was
out the responses they desire. Some classic examples of how important for driving; other participants were told that it
expectations can influence results come from the research wasn’t important for driving. The group told that detecting
of Rosenthal and colleagues. In one study, researchers told changes was not important for successful driving performed
teachers in 18 different classrooms that a group of chil- significantly worse than the other group (Pearson & Schaefer,
dren had an “unusual” potential for learning, when in reality 2005). Manipulating participants’ expectations is an effec-
they were just a random selection of students (Rosenthal tive way of testing whether demand characteristics could be
& Jacobson, 1966). After eight months of schooling, the chil- playing a role in the results of experiments. Of course, it is
dren singled out as especially promising showed significant not always practical to include an additional group in a study,
gains not just in grades, but in intelligence test scores, which and, when doing clinical research, manipulating expectations

Principles of Scientific Research :: Module 2.1 :: 37

 might not be ethical. But when researchers begin performing results of these studies affect what we know about differ-
research on new topics or with new research methods, test- ent patient populations and how we can help them recover
ing for demand characteristics would be a wise decision. from their different conditions. Biased results could therefore
affect the health care of vulnerable members of our society.
Why is this relevant?
Demand characteristics and
other sources of bias all have
the potential to compromise
research studies. Given the
time, energy, and monetary cost of conducting research, it is
critical that results are as free from contamination as possi-
ble. The science of psychology involves the study of a number
of very sensitive topics; the results are often used to allow
policymakers to make better-informed decisions. Produc-
ing biased results will therefore have negative effects upon
society as a whole. Demand effects are particularly problem-
atic when studying clinical populations or when performing
experiments with different types of clinical treatments. The kkgas/iStockphoto

The fact that demand characteristics can alter results of subject and researcher biases. One of the best tech-
is of particular importance for researchers investigating niques for reducing subject bias is to provide anonymity
new drug treatments for different conditions. Patients and confidentiality to the volunteers. Anonymity means
enter treatment programs (and experiments) with a that each individual’s responses are recorded without
number of expectations. It turns out these expectations any name or other personal information that could link
can produce their own unique effects. a particular individual to specific results. Confidentiality
means that the results will be seen only by the researcher.
TECHNIQUES THAT REDUCE BIAS Although Ensuring anonymity and confidentiality are important
biases can be a threat to the validity and reliability of steps toward gathering honest responses from research
psychological research, experimenters have established participants. Participants are much more likely to pro-
a number of techniques that can reduce the impact vide information about sensitive issues like their sexual

PSYCH @ better (i.e., it is “all in their head”). Other research noted

that many people who are given a placebo show physiologi-
The Hospital: The Placebo Effect cal evidence of relief from pain and nausea (Hrobjartsson
& Gotzsche, 2010). Research conducted at the Rotman
The demand effect that we know the most about is the Research Institute in Toronto suggests that both of these
placebo effect, a measurable and experienced improvement explanations have merit. Helen Mayberg and colleagues
in health or behaviour that cannot be attributable to a medi- (2002) found that people responding to placebos showed
cation or treatment. This term comes from drug studies, in increased activity in several regions of the frontal lobes.
which it is standard procedure for a group, unbeknownst This activity may relate to the participants creating a new
to them, to be given an inactive substance (the placebo) so “mental set” of their current state; in other words, creating
that this group can be compared to a group given the active the belief that their pain was going to decrease. Interest-
drug. What often happens is that people in the placebo ingly, these researchers also noted a decrease in activity in a
group report feeling better because they have the expec- number of other brain regions that might represent changes
tation that the drug will have an effect on their brain and in the sensitivity of pain pathways. These results suggest that
body. This effect has been reported time and again—not just there are multiple ways for placebos to affect our responses
with drugs, but with other medical and surgical treatments to pain. Placebos are an important part of experimental
as well. Why do people receiving a placebo claim to feel research in psychology and related fields, so it is important
better? The initial explanation was that the patients’ expec- to recognize their potential influence on how research par-
tations caused them to simply convince themselves they feel ticipants respond.

38 :: Module 2.1 : : Principles of Scientific Research

history, drug use, or emotional state if they can do so
confidentially and anonymously.
In a related issue, participant anxiety about the
experiment—which often leads to changes in how peo-
ple respond to questions—can be reduced if researchers
provide full information about how they will eventually
use the data. Many people assume that psychologists are
“analyzing them”; in fact, if you mention at your next
family gathering that you’re taking psychology, it is
almost certain that someone will make a joke about this.
If volunteers know that the data will not be used to diag-
nose psychiatric problems, affect their grades, or harm
them in some other way, then their concerns about the
study will be less likely to affect their performance.
Another source of bias in psychological research
involves participants’ expectations of the effects of a
treatment or manipulation. We saw this tendency in the CandyBox Images/Shutterstock
discussion of the placebo effect discussed earlier. The In a single-blind study, the nurse would know whether the patient was in the placebo
critical element of the placebo effect is that the partic- or treatment condition, but the patient would not. In a double-blind study, neither the
nurse nor the patient would know which condition the patient was in. A double-blind
ipants believe the pill or liquid they are consuming is study is less likely to be biased by the experimenter.
actually a drug. If they knew that they were receiving a
sugar pill instead of a pain medication, they would not
experience any pain relief. Therefore, it is important that objective. Therefore, researchers should use these tech-
experiments involving drugs (recreational or therapeutic) niques whenever possible.
utilize what are known as blind procedures. In a single-
blind study, the participants do not know the true purpose SHARING THE RESULTS Once a group of research-
of the study, or else do not know which type of treatment they ers has designed and conducted an objective experi-
are receiving (for example, a placebo or a drug). In this case, ment that is free of bias, it is important to communicate
the subjects are “blind” to the purpose of the study. Of their findings to other scientists. Psychology’s primary
course, a researcher can introduce bias as well. This bias mode of communication is through academic journals.
is not going to be overt. It is unlikely that a researcher Academic journals resemble magazines in that they are
will laugh and call the placebo group “suckers” and then usually softbound periodicals with a number of articles
play Pink Floyd albums and Spongebob cartoons for the by different authors (online formats are typically avail-
people in the drug condition. But the researcher might able as well). Unlike magazines, however, journal articles
unintentionally treat individuals in the two conditions represent primary research or reviews of multiple stud-
differently, thus biasing the results. In order to eliminate ies on a single topic. When scientists complete a piece
this possibility, researchers often use a technique known of research, they may write a detailed description of the
as a double-blind study, a study in which neither the par- theory, hypotheses, measures, and results and submit the
ticipant nor the experimenter knows the exact treatment for any article for possible [Link] will not find journals
individual. To carry out a double-blind procedure, the or research books in your average mall bookstore because
researcher must arrange for an assistant to conduct the they are too technical and specialized for the general
observations or, at the very least, the researcher must not market (and are not exactly page-turners), but you will
be told which type of treatment a person is receiving find thousands of them in your university library.
until after the study is completed. However, only a fraction of the journal articles that are
Double-blind procedures are also sometimes used written eventually get published. Rather, before research
when researchers are testing groups that differ on findings can be published, they must go through peer
variables such as personality characteristics or subtle review, a process in which papers submitted for publication in
demographic factors such as sexual orientation. If the scholarly journals are read and critiqued by experts in the specific
experimenter knows that a participant has scored high field of study. In the field of psychology, peer review involves
on a test of psychopathy, she might treat him differ- two main tasks. First, an editor receives the manuscript
ently than she treated a person who scored low on the from the researcher and determines whether it is appropri-
same test. Keeping the experimenter (and participants) ate subject matter for the journal (for example, an article
blind to these results allows the research to remain on 17th-century Italian sculpture would not be appropriate

Principles of Scientific Research :: Module 2.1 :: 39

 for publication in the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience,
which is focused on biological explanations for memory, Quick Quiz 2.1a
thinking, language, and decision making). Second, the edi- Five Characteristics of Quality Scientific
tor sends copies of the manuscript to a select group of peer Research
reviewers—“peer” in this case refers to another professional
1 The degree to which an instrument measures what it

KNOW …
working within the same field of study. These reviewers is intended to measure is known as ________.
critique the methods and results of the research and make A validity C verifiability
recommendations to the editor regarding the merits of the B generalizability D reliability
research. In this process, the editors and reviewers serve
as gatekeepers for the discipline, which helps increase the
likelihood that the best research is made public.
2 When psychologists question how well the results of a
study apply to other samples or perhaps other situations,
they are inquiring about the ________ of the study.
REPLICATION Once research findings have been A validity C verifiability
published, it is then possible for other researchers to B generalizability D reliability
build upon the knowledge that you have created; it is
also possible for researchers to double check whether or
3 In a single-blind study, the participants do not know

UNDERSTAND …
not your results simply occurred by chance (which does the purpose of the study or the condition to which
happen). Science is an ongoing and self-correcting pro- they are assigned. What is the difference in a double-
cess. The finest, most interesting published research study blind study?
can quickly become obsolete if it cannot be replicated. A The researcher tells the participants the purpose
and their assigned conditions in the study.
Replication is the process of repeating a study and finding
a similar outcome each time. As long as an experiment uses B The participants also do not know when the actual
study begins or ends.
sufficiently objective measurements and techniques, and
if the original hypothesis was correct, then similar results C The researcher also does not know which condi-
tion the participants are in.
should be achieved by later researchers who perform the
D The participants know the condition to which they
same types of studies. Results are not always replicated in
have been assigned, but the researcher does not.
subsequent investigations, however.
One familiar example is that of the purported Mozart
4 Dr. Rose gives a standardized personality test to a
APPLY …

effect that was featured in the story at the beginning of this

group of psychology majors in January and again in
module. Although the general idea that listening to classi- March. Each individual’s score remains nearly the same
cal music could make a person smarter had been around over the two-month period. From this, Dr. Rose can
for years, one of the first scientific studies of this hypoth- infer that the test is ________.
esis was conducted in 1993 (Rauscher et al., 1993). Other A reliable C objective
researchers were skeptical of the results and examined the B generalizable D verified
study through partial replications, meaning they employed Answers can be found on page ANS-1.
highly similar methods (e.g., Steele et al., 1997). The
original researchers responded by critiquing the replica-
tions and recommending a number of changes (Rauscher
& Shaw, 1998). Another partial replication was conducted
following this advice, but it still did not yield the same Five Characteristics of Poor
results as the original study (Steele et al., 1999). This fail-
ure to replicate the original findings does not mean that
Research
the authors of the original study were dishonest. It could In the preceding section, you read about what makes
mean they unintentionally introduced researcher bias, or for quality research; it is generally safe to assume that
perhaps the sampling was biased, or perhaps the results the opposite characteristics detract from the quality of
were just a fluke. But certainly this example emphasizes research. Good research uses valid, objective measures;
the value of replication: Correct hypotheses and sound poor research uses measures that are less valid, less reliable,
methods should produce repeatable results. and, therefore, less likely to be replicable. However, other
In the big picture, peer review and replication are issues must also be scrutinized if you hear someone make
self-corrective measures for all disciplines, because they a scientific-sounding claim. Most claims are accompa-
ensure that published results did not occur through care- nied by what might sound like evidence, but evidence
lessness, dishonesty, or coincidence. can come in many forms. How can we differentiate

40 :: Module 2.1 : : Principles of Scientific Research

between weak versus strong evidence? Poor evidence politicians and corporations—might present only the
comes most often in one of five varieties: untestable data that support their views. A beautiful example
hypotheses, anecdotes, a biased selection of available data, of this data selection bias is shown in the debate over
appeals to authority, and appeals to (so-called) common whether human behaviour is a major cause of cli-
sense. mate change. A climate-change denier could point out
Perhaps the most important characteristic of sci- that 24 peer-reviewed scientific studies cast doubt on
ence is that its hypotheses are testable. For a hypothesis whether human behaviour is a cause of global warm-
to be testable, it must be falsifiable, meaning that the ing. Twenty-four sounds like a large body of research.
hypothesis is precise enough that it could be proven false. If However, James Powell, a member of the U.S. National
a hypothesis is not falsifiable, that means that there is Science Board, carefully examined all of the climate-
no pattern of data that could possibly prove that this change data and found 13 926 papers supporting this
view is wrong; instead, there is always a way to rein- view (see Figure 2.2). Therefore, a very selective slice
terpret the results to make the hypothesis match the of the data would present one (biased) result, but a
data. If you cannot disconfirm a hypothesis, then there thorough and scientific representation of the data
is no point in testing it. There are very few examples would present an entirely different view of the same
of unfalsifiable hypotheses in modern psychology. issue.
However, early personality work by Freud did suff er The fourth kind of questionable evidence is the
from this problem (see Module 12.3). Briefl y, Freud appeal to authority—the belief in an “expert’s” claim
believed that the personality consisted of three com- even when no supporting data or scientific evidence is present.
ponents: the id (which was focused on pleasure), the Expertise is not actually evidence; “expert” describes
superego (which was based on following rules), and the person making the claim, not the claim itself. It is
the ego (which attempted to balance the two opposing entirely possible that the expert is mistaken, dishonest,
forces). Although this theory provided wonderful met- overpaid, or misquoted. True experts are good at devel-
aphors for behaviour, it is impossible to test. If a person oping evidence, so if a claim cites someone’s expertise
does not behave in the predicted fashion, the analyst as evidence, then you should see whether the expert
can simply say that the other personality compo- offers the corresponding data to support the claim.
nent (e.g., the id) was more involved at that moment. It is not unusual for people to find that an expert’s claim
There would be no way to prove him wrong. Luckily,
researchers have built upon Freud’s pioneering work
and have created much more scientific (and falsifiable)
theories of personality, a topic discussed later in this
book.
A second characteristic of poor research is the use
of anecdotal evidence, an individual’s story or testimony
about an observation or event that is used to make a claim as
evidence. For example, a personal testimonial on a prod-
uct’s webpage might claim that a man used subliminal
13 950 peer-reviewed climate articles
weight-loss CDs to lose 50 pounds in six months. But 1991–2012
there is no way of knowing whether the CDs were
responsible for the person’s weight loss; the outcome 24 reject global warming
could have been due to any number of things, such as
a separate physical problem or changes in food intake
and lifestyle that had nothing to do with the subliminal
messages. In fact, you do not even know if the anec-
dote itself is true: The “before” and “after” photos could
easily be doctored. Therefore, we must be wary of such {fig. 2.2} Data Selection Bias People with a particular
political or economic agenda can still make claims that appear
anecdotal claims; if they are not backed up by a peer- scientific if they perform a biased selection of the available
reviewed scientific study, then we should view the claims data. Groups opposed to the idea that human activity is play-
with caution. ing a role in global warming often point to published research
supporting their view. However, when one examines all of the
However, we still need to be careful even if
data on global warming, it appears that negative findings make
a scientific claim is backed up by published data. up less than 1% of the results, suggesting that these individu-
It is possible that some individuals—particularly als are full of hot air.

Principles of Scientific Research :: Module 2.1 :: 41

 actually has no evidence backing it, but rather that it is
simply an opinion. In other cases, it turns out that the Quick Quiz 2.1b
experts have a hidden agenda or a “conflict of interest.” Five Characteristics of Poor Research
It is important to look at what the expert stands to gain
1 Claiming that something is true because “it should be

KNOW …
by lending his or her name to a product or scientific obvious” is really just __________.
theory. A anecdotal evidence
Finally, the evidence may consist of an appeal to B an appeal to common sense
common sense, a claim that appears to be sound, but lacks C an appeal to authority
supporting scientific evidence. For example, many people D generalizability
throughout history assumed the world was the station-
ary centre of the universe. The idea that the Earth could
2 Appeals to authority do not qualify as good evidence

UNDERSTAND …
orbit the sun at blinding speeds was deemed nonsense— because
the force generated would seemingly cause all the peo- A they always lack common sense.
ple and objects to be flung into space! B authority figures are likely to distort the truth.
In addition to common sense, beliefs can originate C authority does not mean that there is sound,
from other potentially unreliable sources. For example, scientific evidence.
appeals to tradition (“We have always done it this way!”) D authority is typically based on anecdotal evidence.
as well as their opposite, appeals to novelty (“It is the latest
thing!”), can lead people to believe the wrong things.
3 Ann is convinced that corporal punishment (e.g.,

APPLY …
Claims based on common sense, tradition, or novelty spanking) is a good idea because she knows a child
may be worthy of consideration, but whether something whose behaviour improved because of it. Whether or
is true cannot be evaluated by these standards alone. not you agree with her, Ann is using a flawed argument.
Instead, what we need is careful and objective testing. Which type of evidence is she using?
What we need is science. A Anecdotal C Generalizable
B Objective D An appeal to authority

Answers can be found on page ANS-1.

42 :: Module 2.1 : : Principles of Scientific Research

 Module Summary
Module Now that you have read this module you should
2.1
KNOW …

● The key terminology related to the principles of

scientific research:

anecdotal evidence (p. 41) peer review (p. 39)

Photosindia/Getty Images
appeal to authority (p. 41) placebo effect (p. 38)
appeal to common sense (p. 42) population (p. 35) whether each scenario involves an issue with reliability or
convenience samples (p. 35) random sample (p. 35) validity. Check your answers on page ANS-1.
demand characteristics (p. 36) reliability (p. 34) 1. Dr. Tatum is doing very standard physiological
double-blind study (p. 39) replication (p. 40) recording techniques on human participants. Each
ecological validity (p. 35) sample (p. 35) morning she checks whether the instruments are
falsifiable (p. 41) single-blind study (p. 39) calibrated and ready for use. One day she discovered
generalizability (p. 34) social desirability (p. 36) that the instrumentation was way off the mark, and
Hawthorne effect (p. 35) validity (p. 34) would surely give very inconsistent readings compared
objective measurements (p. 32) variable (p. 33) to previous days. Would this affect the reliability or validity
operational definitions (p. 33) of her research? Explain.
2. Dr. Nielson uses a behavioural checklist to measure
happiness in the children he studies at an elementary
UNDERSTAND …
school. Every time he and his associates observe
● The five characteristics of quality scientific research. the children, they reach near-perfect agreement on
These characteristics include that (1) measurements what they observed. Another group of psychologists
are objective, valid, and reliable; (2) the research can observes the same children in an attempt to identify
be generalized; (3) it uses techniques that reduce bias; which children are energetic and which seem tired and
(4) the findings are made public; and (5) the results can lethargic. It turns out that the same children whom
be replicated. For example, objective, valid, and reliable Dr. Nielson identifies as happy, using his checklist,
measurements make it possible for other scientists to are also the children whom the second group of
test whether they could come up with the same results if psychologists identify as energetic. It appears there may
they followed the same procedures. Psychologists mostly be a problem with Dr. Nielson’s measure of happiness. Do
study samples of individuals, but usually they are more you think it is a problem of reliability or validity? Explain.
concerned about describing principles that generalize
to a broader population. Single- and double-blind
ANALYZE …
procedures are standard ways of reducing bias. Finally, the
process of publishing results is what allows scientists to ● Whether anecdotes, authority figures, and common
share information, evaluate hypotheses that have been sense are reliably truthful sources of information. To
confirmed or refuted, and, if needed, replicate other evaluate evidence, you should ask several questions.
researchers’ work. First, is someone supplying anecdotal evidence? As
● How biases might influence the outcome of a study. convincing as a personal testimony may be, anecdotal
Demand characteristics affect how participants respond in evidence is not sufficient for backing any claim that can be
research studies—understandably, they often attempt to scientifically tested. Second, is support for the claim based
portray themselves in a positive light, even if that means on the words or endorsement of an authority figure?
not answering questions or behaving in a fully truthful Endorsement by an authority figure is not necessarily a
manner. Researchers can also influence the outcomes of bad thing, as someone who is an authority at something
their own studies, even unintentionally. should be able to back up the claim. But the authority of
the individual alone is not satisfactory, especially if data
APPLY … gathered through good scientific methods do not support
the claim. Finally, common sense also has its place in daily
● The concepts of reliability and validity to examples. life, but by itself is insufficient as a final explanation for
Try this activity to see how well you can apply these anything. Explanations based on good scientific research
concepts. Read the following descriptions, and determine should override those based on common sense.

Principles of Scientific Research :: Module 2.1 :: 43

 Blend Images/Alamy

Module

2.2 Scientific Research Designs

Learning KNOW … UNDERSTAND … APPLY … ANALYZE …

Objectives The key terminology related What it means when variables are The terms and concepts The pros and cons of
After reading to research designs positively or negatively correlated of experimental methods descriptive, correlational, and
this module to research examples experimental research designs
How experiments help
you should demonstrate cause-and-
effect relationships

Can your attitude affect your health? This is the old question of “mind Focus Questions
over matter,” and psychologist Rod Martin thinks the answer is defi-
nitely yes. He says that if you can laugh in the face of stress, your psy- 1 What are some of the ways researchers make observations?
chological and physical health will benefit. Martin has found several 2 Do some research techniques provide stronger evidence than
interesting ways to build evidence for this argument (Martin, 2002, others?
2007). For example, he developed a self-report instrument that mea-
sures sense of humour. People who score high on this measure—those
who enjoy a good laugh on a regular basis—appear to be healthier in a
number of ways. As interesting as this evidence is, it simply illustrates Psychologists always begin their research with a research question,
that humour and health are related—there is no guarantee that one such as “What is the most effective way to study?”, “What causes
causes the other. To make such a claim, researchers would have to use us to feel hungry?”, or “How does attitude affect health?” In most
the experimental method, one of the many research designs discussed cases, they also make a prediction about the outcome they expect—
in this module. the hypothesis. Psychologists then create a research design, a set of

44 :: Module 2.2 : : Scientific Research Designs

methods that allows a hypothesis to be tested. Research CASE STUDIES A case study is an in-depth report Watch
designs influence how investigators (1) organize the stim- about the details of a specific case. Rather than developing Humour and Brains
uli used to test the hypothesis, (2) make observations, and a hypothesis and then objectively testing it on a num-
(3) evaluate the results. Because several types of designs ber of different individuals, scientists performing a case
are available, psychologists must choose the one that best study describe an individual’s history and behaviour in Watch
addresses the research question and that is most suitable great detail. Of course, case studies are not performed on The Big Picture: How to
to the subject of their research. Before we examine differ- just anyone. They are generally reserved for individuals Answer Psychological
ent research designs, we should quickly review the char- who have a very uncommon characteristic or have lived Questions
acteristics that all of them have in common. through a very unusual experience.
Perhaps the most famous case study in psychology
• Variables. A variable is a property of an object, organ-
(and neurology) is that of Phineas Gage (1823–1860).
ism, event, or something else that can take on differ-
Gage was a foreman working for the Rutland and
ent values. How frequently you laugh is a variable
Burlington Railroad Company in the northeastern U.S.
that could be measured and analyzed.
state of Vermont. On September 13, 1848, 25-year-old
• Operational definitions. Operational definitions are the
Gage was helping his crew blast through a rocky outcrop
details that define the variables for the purposes of
near the town of Cavendish. As part of this job, holes were
a specific study. For sense of humour, this definition
drilled into the rock; blasting powder, a fuse, and sand
might be “the score on the Coping Humour Scale.”
were added; and then this mixture was squished down
• Data. When scientists collect observations about the
with a large tamping iron, an iron rod that was 109 cm in
variables of interest, the information they record is
length and just over 3 cm in diameter. Late that afternoon,
called data. For example, data might consist of the
Gage got distracted and likely began tamping before the
collection of scores on the Coping Humour Scale
sand had been added to the mixture (Macmillan, 2008).
from each individual in the sample.
The result was that the tamping iron caused a spark which
These characteristics of research designs are impor- set off the blast powder. This caused the iron rod to be
tant regardless of the design that is used. However, a num-
ber of other factors will guide the researchers as they select
the appropriate research design for their topic of interest.

Descriptive Research
The beginning of any new line of research must involve
descriptive data. Descriptive research answers the ques-
tion of “what” a phenomenon is; it describes its charac-
teristics. Once these observations have been performed
and the data examined, they can be used to inform more
sophisticated future studies that ask “why” and “how”
that phenomenon occurs.
Here are a few examples of descriptive research
questions:
• How many words can the average two-year-old
speak?
• How many hours per week does the typical univer-
sity student spend on homework? Jack & Beverly Wilgus/The Past Tense of Picture/[Link]
• What proportion of the population will experience Phineas Gage proudly holding the tamping iron that nearly killed
depression or an anxiety disorder at some point in him, and that made him one of the most famous names in the history
of psychology and neuroscience. The information learned from case
their lives? studies of Gage led to hundreds of subsequent scientific studies
that have helped researchers learn a great deal about the frontal
As you can see, research questions address the lobes of the brain. Interestingly, over the course of a few years,
appearance of a behaviour, its duration or frequency, its Gage slowly recovered enough of his self-control to hold down
prevalence in a population, and so on. To answer those different jobs, including one as a long-distance stagecoach driver
in South America (Macmillan, 2008); however, he never did recover
questions, researchers usually gather data using one or
all of his self-control. Had doctors paid more attention to this partial
more of the following designs: case studies, naturalistic recovery, it would have been one of the first reported cases of the
observation, and surveys and questionnaires. brain’s ability to compensate and repair itself after injury.

Scientific Research Designs :: Module 2.2 :: 45

 propelled upwards underneath Gage’s eye and through Examination at the time of the accident—which involved
his head. According to the original medical report of the Dr. Harlow sticking his finger into the hole in Gage’s
incident (Harlow, 1848; available online for interested head—suggested that this damage was located in the fron-
readers), it was found 25 m away, suggesting that it was tal lobes of the brain, a region now known to be involved
travelling very quickly as it tore through Gage’s brain. in a number of complex behaviours including decision
Amazingly, Gage survived the accident, although making and emotional regulation (see Modules 8.2 and
his physical recovery took most of a year (Bigelow, 1850; 11.4). Because Gage’s case was documented in a series of
Harlow, 1849). However, it quickly became apparent detailed case-study reports, it was possible for future doc-
that Gage’s injuries were not limited to physical dam- tors and researchers to use this information to gain a better
age; his mental state had also been affected. Reports indi- understanding of the role of the frontal lobes and the prob-
cate that while he had been a reputable citizen prior to lems that emerge when this brain area is damaged.
the accident, afterward he became much more impulsive, The case of Phineas Gage is obviously quite striking.
inconsiderate, indecisive, and impatient. Harlow (1868) However, although case studies tell us a lot about an indi-
reported that Gage’s friends claimed that the changes were vidual’s condition, is it really science? Different research-
so pronounced that he “was no longer Gage.” The doc- ers have different opinions about the merit of such reports,
tors treating Gage rightfully concluded that these sudden with some viewing them as important scientific contribu-
changes were due to the brain damage that he had suffered. tions and others viewing them as simply interesting stories.

the anxiety over a 16-week period. They were able to docu-

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC ment how and when changes occurred and the effects of the
LITERACY MODEL treatment on other aspects of the individual’s life. This level of
detail would not be available if the authors had not focused on
Case Studies as a Form of Scientific a single case. However, as case studies only describe a single
Research individual, there is no guarantee that the findings can be gener-
alized to other individuals and situations.
Case studies allow the clinician or researcher to present
more details about an individual than would be possible in How can science
a research report involving a number of participants; how- test the usefulness
ever, this detail comes at a price. Is a thorough description of case studies?
of a single individual still a form of science or is it simply an
Although it is tempting to
example of anecdotal evidence?
view case studies as simply
being descriptions of an individual, they can also serve another
What do we know important scientific function: They can be used to test an exist-
about using case studies ing hypothesis. For example, until a couple of years ago, research-
as a form of scientific ers thought that the amygdala—a fear centre in the brain—was
essential for emotional information to grab our attention (e.g.,
research?
the way your attention is almost always drawn to a spider walk-
Case studies have been a form of ing across your ceiling). It made sense that a fear centre would
psychological research for over a be a necessary part of a fear response. Brain-imaging stud-
century. Freud used case studies ies showed that this structure was active when these types of
of unique patients when he initially described many of his images were displayed to healthy participants. But, what would
theories of personality and development. Case studies have happen if someone with no amygdala on either side of her brain
also been critical for our understanding of the brain. Phineas was put in this situation? A case study with one such patient
Gage was just one of many unique neurological patients (there are fewer than 300 worldwide) found that her attention
that have taught us how different areas of the brain influ- was still grabbed by emotional stimuli (Tsuchiya et al., 2009). This
ence particular behaviours. In each situation, the researchers told researchers that their models of how emotion and atten-
described their patient in great detail so the case study could tion work together were too simplistic, and forced them to look
improve the treatment of similar patients in the future. at other brain structures that could be influencing these pro-
cesses. In other words, the case study was used not to generate
Case studies can also be useful in describing symptoms of psy-
hypotheses, but to actually test an existing scientific theory.
chological disorders and detailed descriptions about specific
successes or failures in treatment. One recently published Case studies can also be used to find similarities between differ-
example of a case study did both (Elkins & Moore, 2011). The ent concepts. For example, a number of computer-based studies
authors of this study described the experience of a certain have shown that healthy individuals can be taught to associ-
type of anxiety disorder and the steps used in therapy to treat ate everyday objects with emotional responses such as fear

46 :: Module 2.2 : : Scientific Research Designs

(Van Damme et al., 2004). These previously neutral objects important point here is that all of these different research proj-
will then capture attention in the same way as a spider walking ects examined the role of the frontal lobes in a different way, thus
across a ceiling (Smith et al., 2006). Research has indicated that providing us with a more thorough understanding of this brain
this ability to link emotional responses to previously unemo- region. Therefore, the case study of a single patient who some-
tional objects may play a role in the development of posttrau- how survived a terrifying brain injury has stimulated hundreds of
matic stress disorder (PTSD), a condition in which specific scientific research papers leading to improvements in our under-
stimuli trigger intense emotional responses due to a previous standing of how the brain works. Fittingly, such information will
traumatic event (Shin et al., 2003). In fact, in one case study, a be essential in the treatment of any modern-day Phineas Gages.
PTSD patient with a fear of cars (after being hit by one) showed
the exact same results on an emotion-and-attention test as Why is this relevant?
healthy participants who had been taught to associate cars with
a loud noise earlier in the experiment (Smith et al., 2008). With- These studies demonstrate that
out this case study, it would be difficult to show the link between case studies are not simply anec-
this cognitive mechanism and this clinical condition. dotes that scientists tell each
other when they sit around the
campfire. Instead, single cases serve as an inspiration for many
How can we critically future studies that attempt to test whether the observed result
evaluate the role of case can be generalized to more individuals, perhaps even to humans
studies in research? in general. Indeed, as you continue reading this textbook, you’ll
be introduced to a number of unique individuals whose stories
Although at first glance it would appear
have informed and guided psychological science for over a cen-
that case studies would have limited
tury. Without them, our understanding of topics ranging from
generalizability, the above section dem-
vision to memory to language to emotions would not be as
onstrates that they can help guide our understanding of exist-
sophisticated as it has become. These topics would also lack the
ing scientific theories (Flyvbjerg, 2006). Case studies can also
story-like narratives that make psychology so compelling.
spawn a large amount of other research. Take Phineas Gage, for
example. Although there are very few, if any, other reports of Of course, case studies are often limited to individuals with
individuals experiencing a tamping rod shooting through their unique conditions or experiences. They cannot be used to
frontal lobes, other studies have examined whether the physi- answer all types of research questions. For instance, there are
ological effects of such an injury can be mimicked in other ways, times when a researcher might be interested in how groups
and whether this damage leads to similar impairments. A num- of people or animals behave in environments outside of the
ber of studies of patients who suffered damage to the frontal controlled laboratory setting or interview room. In these
lobes after car accidents and strokes have noted that these indi- situations, an entirely different form of descriptive research is
viduals become more impulsive and risk-prone than they had necessary to examine psychological behaviours.
been before their accident (Bechara et al., 1994; Damasio, 1994).
Researchers have also created lesions similar to Phineas Gage’s
in animal subjects (e.g., laboratory rats) and observed similar
tendencies (Quirk & Beer, 2006).

Finally, researchers can use computer simulations to model the

effects of this form of brain damage. In one study—cheekily
entitled Spiking Phineas Gage—Brandon Wagar and Paul Thagard
(2004) created a computerized neural network that used both
cognitive and emotional information to produce simple decisions.
After the network “learned” the task, the researchers altered
its parameters so that the frontal lobe node of the network did
not function properly. As predicted, this network’s responses
quickly became more dependent upon emotional impulses, just
like patients with frontal-lobe damage such as Phineas Gage. The i4lcocl2/Fotolia

NATURALISTIC OBSERVATION An alternative in other words, the individuals being observed shouldn’t
form of descriptive research is to observe people (or know that they are being observed. Otherwise, the mere
animals) in their natural settings. When psychologists act of observation could change the participants’ behav-
engage in such naturalistic observations, they unobtru- iours (imagine how your conversations with friends
sively observe and record behaviour as it occurs in the subject’s would change if you knew a psychologist were listen-
natural environment. The key word here is “unobtrusively”; ing and taking notes). Most students have seen television

Scientific Research Designs :: Module 2.2 :: 47

 programs about scientists in search of chimpanzees in as opposed to recreational, leagues; these comments
a rainforest or driving a Range Rover in pursuit of a were largely directed toward the referees. Based on these
herd of elephants. This certainly is a form of observation, observations, which involved five observers attending
but there is more to it than just watching animals in the 69 hockey games, the authors concluded that the behav-
wild. When a scientist conducts naturalistic observation iour of spectators is not as negative and unsettling as is
research, she is making systematic observations of specific often reported in the media (Bowker et al., 2009).
variables according to operational definitions. By having Thus, naturalistic observations can occur anywhere
a very precise definition of what a variable is and how it that behaviours occur, be it in “nature,” in a hockey rink,
will be measured, researchers using naturalistic observa- or even in a bar (Graham & Wells, 2004). The key point
tions can ensure that their results are objective and that is that the researchers must pay attention to specific vari-
different people observing the same environment would ables and use operational definitions. However, naturalis-
score the behaviours in the same way (e.g., two observers tic observations may not always provide researchers with
would both call the same movement by a chimpanzee a the specific types of information they are after. In these
grooming behaviour). cases, researchers may need to adopt a different research
Although it may appear that naturalistic observation strategy in order to describe a given behaviour.
is only useful for animal studies or nature programs on TV,
there have been a number of interesting human-focused SURVEYS AND QUESTIONNAIRES Another com-
naturalistic observation studies conducted as well. For mon method of descriptive research used by psychologists
example, a study conducted by psychologists at Carleton is self-reporting, a method in which responses are provided
University in Ottawa measured the behaviour of specta- directly by the people who are being studied, typically through
tors at youth hockey games (Bowker et al., 2009). These face-to-face interviews, phone surveys, paper and pencil tests, and
researchers were specifically interested in the types of com- web-based questionnaires. These methods allow researchers
ments made by spectators—the intensity of the remarks, to assess attitudes, opinions, beliefs, and abilities. Despite
who made them (male vs. female), and who they were the range in topics and techniques, their common ele-
directed toward (players, other spectators, or everyone’s ment is that the individuals speak for themselves. Surveys
favourite target, the referees), among other variables. They and questionnaires are still a method of observation, but
also examined whether the observed trends changed the observations are provided by the people who are
depending upon whether the game was in a highly com- being studied rather than by the psychologist.
petitive or a more recreational league. The researchers Although this method initially sounds simple, the
found that females made more comments than males; creation of objective survey and questionnaire items is
these comments were largely positive and directed toward extremely challenging. Care must be taken not to cre-
the players. Males tended to make more negative com- ate biased questions that could affect the results one way
ments as well as directions on how to improve play (e.g., or another. If you’re interested in studying emotional
“Skate faster!”). Both female and male spectators made sensitivity, you can’t ask, “Given that men are drooling
more negative comments when watching competitive, pigs, how likely are they to notice someone is unhappy?”
Similarly, if you’re studying a subject that some individ-
uals might not want to openly discuss, it is important
to develop questions that touch on the issue without
being too off-putting. For example, asking people, “How
depressed are you?” and giving them a 7-point scale
might not work, as some respondents might not want
to state that they are depressed. But, questionnaires can
tap into the symptoms of depression by asking questions
about energy levels, problems with sleeping, problems
concentrating, and changes in one’s mood. The research-
ers could then use the responses for these questions to
determine if a respondent was depressed.
This leads to an important question: How do
researchers figure out if their questions are valid? For
clinical questionnaires, the researchers can compare
CREATISTA/[Link] results to a participant’s clinical diagnosis. For question-
Researchers who use naturalistic observation record behaviour in natural, naires examining other phenomena, researchers perform
non-laboratory settings and do so as unobtrusively as possible. a large amount of pretesting in order to calculate norms,

48 :: Module 2.2 : : Scientific Research Designs

or average patterns of data. Almost all of the question- • What is the average education level of people in every
naires that you will encounter as a psychology student country in the world?
will have undergone prior testing to establish norms • What is the average family income in every country
and to confirm that the research tool is both valid and of the world?
reliable. This testing will involve hundreds or even thou-
These two questions ask for very different types of
sands of participants; their efforts help ensure that self-
information, but their answers may be related. Is it likely
report measures such as questionnaires are a useful tool
that countries with higher education levels also tend
in psychology’s quest to understand different behaviours.
to have higher income levels? By asking two or more
questions—perhaps through a survey—researchers can
start to understand the associations among variables. Explore
Quick Quiz 2.2a Correlations can be visualized when presented Correlations Do Not
Descriptive Research in a graph called a scatterplot, as shown in Figure 2.3. Show Causation

1 When psychologists observe behaviour and record

KNOW …

(in thousands of dollars)

data in the environment where it normally occurs,
50
they are using ________.
A case studies 40

Income
B naturalistic observation 30
C the supervisory method 20
D artificial observation
10

2 Any property of an organism, event, or something else

10 12 14 16 18 20
that can take on different values is called _______.
A an operational definition Years of education
(a)
B data
C a variable
5
D a case study
4
Irritability

3 A psychologist is completing a naturalistic observation 3

APPLY …

study of children’s aggressive behaviour on a 2

playground. She says that aggression is “any verbal
or physical act that appears to be intended to hurt 1
or control another child.” She then goes on to list 0
specific examples. It appears that the psychologist is 4 5 6 7 8 9
attempting to establish a(n)
Hours of sleep
A good relationship with the children. (b)
B variable.
C observational definition.
9.0
D operational definition.
8.5
Answers can be found on page ANS-1.
Hours of sleep

8.0

7.5

7.0
Correlational Research
6.5
Psychologists performing descriptive research almost
6.0
always record information about more than one vari-
able when they are collecting data. In these situations,
10 12 14 16 18 20
the researchers may look for an association among the
variables. They will ask whether the variables tend to Years of education Watch
(c)
occur together in some pattern, or if they tend to occur Research Methods

at opposite times. Correlational research involves mea- {fig. 2.3} Correlations Are Depicted in Scatterplots Here
we see two variables that are positively correlated (a) and
suring the degree of association between two or more variables. negatively correlated (b). In the example of a zero correlation
For example, consider these two questions: (c), there is no relationship between the two variables.

Scientific Research Designs :: Module 2.2 :: 49

 In scatterplot (a), you can see the data for education and correlation between the variables. A coefficient of
income. Each dot represents one participant’s (or in this –1.0 means that there is a very strong negative cor-
example, one country’s) data; when you enter dots for relation between the variables. Importantly, +1.0 and
all of the participants, you often see a pattern emerge. In –1.0 coefficients have an equal magnitude or strength;
this case, the dots show a pattern that slopes upward and however, they have a different direction.
to the right, indicating that countries with higher educa-
You will encounter many correlations in this text,
tion levels tend to have a higher average income. That
and it will be important to keep in mind the direction of
correlation is not surprising, but it illustrates one of the
the relationship—whether the variables are positively or
two main characteristics that describe correlations:
negatively associated. One key point to remember is that
• Correlations take a direction. If correlations are positive the correlation coefficient is a measure of association
(see Figure 2.3a), it means that the two variables change only—it is not a measure of causality. In other words, cor-
values in the same direction. So, if the value of one vari- relation does not equal causation. This is an extremely
able increases, the value of the other variable also tends important point!
to increase, and if the value of one variable decreases, In many cases, a correlation gives the impression
the value of the other variable decreases. For example, that one variable causes the other, but that relationship
education levels and average family income both tend cannot be determined from correlational research. For
to rise and fall together, with educated nations also example, we noted in the beginning of the module that
being rich nations. In contrast, if correlations are nega- a sense of humour is associated with good health—this
tive (see Figure 2.3b), it means that as the value of one is a positive correlation. But that does not mean that
variable increases, the value of the other variable tends humour is responsible for the good health. Perhaps good
to decrease. For instance, if you get a lot of sleep, you health leads to a better sense of humour. Or perhaps nei-
are less likely to be irritable; but, if you don’t get much ther causes the other, but rather a third variable causes
sleep, then you will be more likely to be irritable. both good health and good sense of humour. This possi-
• Correlations have a magnitude or strength. This refers bility is known as the third variable problem, the pos-
to how closely the changes in one variable are linked sibility that a third, unmeasured variable is actually responsible
to changes in another variable (e.g., if variable A goes for a well-established correlation between two variables. Con-
up one unit, will variable B also go up one unit). This sider the negative correlation between sleep and irrita-
magnitude is described in terms of a mathematical bility shown in scatterplot (b) of Figure 2.3. Numerous
measure called the correlation coefficient. A correlation third variables could account for this relationship. Stress,
coefficient of zero means that there is no relationship depression, diet, and workload could cause both increased
between the two variables (see Figure 2.3c). A coeffi- irritability and lost sleep. As you can see, correlations
cient of +1.0 means that there is a very strong positive must be interpreted with caution.

MYTHS IN MIND has hit a few amazing three-point shots, of course his chances
of success just get better and better as the game wears on.
Beware of Illusory Correlations But do they? Each of these three scenarios is an example
of what are called illusory correlations—relationships that really
Chances are you have heard the following claims: exist only in the mind, rather than in reality. It turns out that
well-designed studies have found no evidence that a full moon
• Crime and emergency room intakes suddenly increase leads to, or is even related to, bizarre or violent behaviour
when there is a full moon. (Lilienfeld & Arkowitz, 2009). People who are attracted to
• Opposites attract. each other are typically very similar (Buston & Emlen, 2003).
• Competitive basketball players (and even gamblers) get on Also, although some games may be better than others, overall
a “hot streak” where one success leads to the next. the notion of a “hot streak” is not a reality in basketball or in
Many common beliefs such as these are deeply ingrained blackjack (Caruso et al., 2010; Gilovich et al., 1985).
in our culture. They become even more widely accepted Why do these illusory correlations exist? Instances of
when they are repeated frequently. It is difficult to argue with them come to mind easily and are more memorable than hum-
a hospital nurse or police officer who swears that full-moon drum examples of “normal” nights in the ER, perfectly matched
nights are the busiest and craziest of all. The conventional, couples, and all of the times Steve Nash misses a shot, even in
reserved, and studious man who dates a carefree and spirited his best games. However, just because examples are easy to
woman confirms that opposites attract. And, after Steve Nash imagine, it does not mean that this is what typically occurs.

50 :: Module 2.2 : : Scientific Research Designs

Left: Gary yim/Shutterstock; right: Fancy/Glow Images
Contrary to very popular belief, a full moon is statistically unrelated to unusual events or increased emergency room visits.

Quick Quiz 2.2b Experimental Research

Correlational Research Experimental designs improve on descriptive and correla- Watch
tional studies because they are the only designs that can pro- Basics: Scientific
1 Which of the following correlation coefficients shows
KNOW …

vide strong evidence for cause-and-effect relationships. Like Research Methods

the strongest relationship between two variables?
correlational research, experiments have a minimum of two
A +.54 C +1.1
variables, but there are two key differences between cor-
B –.72 D +.10
relational research and experiments: the random assignment
of the participants and the experimenter’s control over the
2 What does it mean to say that two variables are
UNDERSTAND …

variables being studied. As you will see, these unique fea-

negatively correlated?
tures are what make experimental designs so powerful.
A An increase in one variable is associated with a
decrease in the other.
THE EXPERIMENTAL METHOD Imagine you
B An increase in one variable is associated with an
were conducting an experiment testing whether see-
increase in the other.
ing photographs of nature scenes would reduce people’s
C A decrease in one variable is associated with a
decrease in the other.
responses to stressful events. You carefully created two
sets of images—one of peaceful images of the B.C. coast-
D The two variables have no relationship.
line, Lake Louise, Algonquin Park in Ontario, and rugged
Maritime coastlines—and another of neutral images such
3 Imagine Dr. Martin finds that sense of humour is
ANALYZE …

as houses. When the first two participants arrive at the

positively correlated with psychological well-being.
From this, we can conclude that laboratory for your study, one is wearing a t-shirt support-
ing a local environmental organization and the other is
A humour causes people to be healthier.
wearing a t-shirt emblazoned with an oil sands company
B health causes people to be funnier.
logo. Which participant gets assigned to the nature scene
C people who have a good sense of humour tend to
condition and which gets assigned to the neutral condi-
be healthier.
tion? If you are conducting an objective, unbiased study,
D people who have a good sense of humour tend to
the answer to this question is that either participant is
be less healthy.
equally likely to be assigned to either condition. Indeed, a
Answers can be found on page ANS-1. critical element of experiments is random assignment,
a technique for dividing samples into two or more groups in which
participants are equally likely to be placed in any condition of the

Scientific Research Designs :: Module 2.2 :: 51

 experiment. Random assignment allows us to assume the the performance of participants who are in different groups. One
two groups will be roughly equal (Figure 2.4). of these groups, the experimental group, is the group
If we assigned anyone who looked like they were in the experiment that receives a treatment or the stimuli tar-
nature lovers to the nature scene condition, then our geting a specific behaviour, which in this specific example
experiment might not be telling us about the effects of the would be exposure to nature scenes. The experimental
images. Instead, some other confounding variable—a group always receives the treatment. In contrast, the con-
variable outside of the researcher’s control that might affect or pro- trol group is the group that does not receive the treatment or
vide an alternative explanation for the results—could potentially stimuli targeting a specific behaviour; this group therefore serves
enter the picture. In our example, the variables of politi- as a baseline to which the experimental group is compared. In
cal awareness or tendency to be “outdoorsy” might play an our example, the control group would not be exposed
even larger role in the study than the stimuli you worked to nature photographs. What if the experimental group
so hard to create. Randomly assigning participants to the showed reduced stress compared to the control group?
different experimental conditions also allows the researcher Assuming that the experiment was well designed and all
to assume that other sources of variability such as mood and possible confounds were accounted for, the researchers
personality are evenly spread across the different conditions. could conclude that the independent variable—exposure
This allows you to infer that any differences between the to images of nature—is responsible for the difference.
two groups are because of the variable you are testing. A between-subjects design allows the researcher to
In this experiment, we are manipulating one vari- examine differences between groups; however, it is also
able (the types of images being viewed) and measuring open to criticism. What if the two groups were different
another variable (stress response). The variable that the from each other simply by chance? That would make it
experimenter manipulates to distinguish between two or more more difficult to detect any differences caused by your
Simulate groups is known as the independent variable. The par- independent variable. In order to reduce this possibility,
Distinguishing ticipants cannot alter these variables, as they are controlled researchers often use within-subjects designs, an experi-
Independent and by the researcher. In contrast, the dependent variable mental design in which the same participants respond to all types
Dependent Variables is the observation or measurement that is recorded during the of stimuli or experience all experimental conditions. In the exper-
experiment and subsequently compared across all groups. The iment we’ve discussed in this section, a within-subjects
levels of this variable are dependent upon the participants’ design would have involved participants viewing all of
responses or performance. In our example, the type of the images from one condition (e.g., nature photographs)
images being viewed is the independent variable and the before being tested, and then viewing all of the images
participants’ stress response is the dependent variable. from the other condition (e.g., neutral photographs) before
This experiment is an example of a between- being tested again. In this case, the order of the conditions
subjects design, an experimental design in which we compare would be randomly assigned for each participant.
As you can see, designing an experiment requires
Hypothesis: Nature causes a reduction in stress. the experimenter to make many decisions. However, in
some cases, some of these decisions are taken out of the
Student
Volunteers researchers’ hands.

Heads Tails THE QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL METHOD Random

assignment and manipulation of a variable are required for
Experimental Condition: Control Condition: experiments. They allow researchers to make the case that
Exposure to nature-related Exposure to neutral
material material differences between the groups originate from the inde-
pendent variable. In some cases, though, random assign-
ment is not possible. Quasi-experimental research is
Average stress score Average stress score
a research technique in which the two or more groups that are
compared are selected based on predetermined characteristics, rather
than random assignment. For example, you will read about
{fig. 2.4} Elements of an Experiment If we wanted to test many studies in this text that compare men and women.
whether exposure to nature-related images causes a reduction Obviously, in this case one cannot flip a coin to randomly
in stress (as is assumed by people who have nature scenes
assign people to one group or the other. Also, if you gather
as their computer’s wallpaper), we would first need to ran-
domly assign people in our sample to either the experimental one sample of men and one sample of women, they
or control condition. The dependent variable, the stress levels, could differ in any number of ways that are not necessar-
would be measured following exposure to either nature-related ily relevant to the questions you are studying. As a result,
or neutral material. To test whether the hypothesis is true the
average stress scores in both groups would be compared. all sorts of causes could account for any differences that
Click on this figure in your eText to see more details. would appear: genetics, gender roles, family history, and

52 :: Module 2.2 : : Scientific Research Designs

 Table 2.1 :: Strengths and Limitations of Different Research Designs
METHOD STRENGTHS LIMITATIONS
Naturalistic observation Allows for detailed descriptions of subjects in environments Poor control over possibly influential variables
where behaviour normally occurs
Surveys/questionnaires Quick and often convenient way of gathering large quantities Poor control; participants may not answer honestly,
of self-report data written responses may not be truly representative of
actual behaviour
Case studies Yields detailed information, often of rare conditions or Focus on a single subject limits generalizability
observations
Correlational study Shows strength of relationships between variables Does not allow researcher to determine cause-and-
effect relationships
Experiment Tests for cause-and-effect relationships; offers good control Risk of being artificial with limited generalization to
over influential variables real-world situations

so on. Thus, quasi-experiments can point out relationships confounding variables and outside influences, the situ-
among preexisting groups, but they cannot determine ation may be made so artificial that the results of an
what it is about those groups that lead to the differences. experiment do not apply to natural behaviour. Luckily,
psychologists do not have to settle on only one method
CONVERGING OPERATIONS An underlying theme of studying behaviour. Most interesting topics have been
of this module has been that each method of studying studied using a variety of possible designs, measures, and
behaviour has benefits as well as limitations (see Table 2.1). samples. In fact, when a theory’s predictions hold up to
For example, naturalistic observation research allows dozens of tests using a variety of designs—a perspec-
psychologists to see behaviour as it normally occurs, tive known as converging operations—we can be much
but it makes experimental control very difficult—some more confident of its accuracy, and are one step closer
would argue impossible. Conversely, to achieve true ran- to understanding the many mysteries of human (and
dom assignment while controlling for any number of animal) behaviour.

Quick Quiz 2.2c Experimental Research

1 The process of setting up two or more groups in an 3 A researcher compares a group of Conservatives and
APPLY …
KNOW …

experiment is called _______. Liberals on a measure of beliefs about poverty. What

A correlation makes this a quasi-experimental design?
B observation A The researcher is comparing pre-existing groups,
rather than randomly assigning people to them.
C random assignment
B You cannot be both a Conservative and a Liberal at
D experimental selection
the same time.
C There are two independent variables.
2 A researcher sets up an experiment to test a new
UNDERSTAND …

D There is no operational definition for the depen-

antidepressant medication. One group receives
dent variable.
the treatment, and the other receives a placebo.
The researcher then measures depression using
a standardized self-report measure. What is the 4 A researcher is able to conduct an experiment on study
ANALYZE …

independent variable in this case? habits in his laboratory and finds some exciting results.
A Whether the individuals scored high or low on the What is one possible shortcoming of using this method?
depression measure A Results from laboratory experiments do not always
B Whether the individuals received the treatment or generalize to real-world situations.
a placebo B Experiments do not provide evidence about
C Whether the individuals were experiencing depres- cause-and-effect relationships.
sion before the study began C It is not possible to conduct experiments on issues
D Whether the individuals’ depression decreased or such as study habits.
increased during the study period D Laboratory experiments do not control for
confounding variables.

Answers can be found on page ANS-1.

Scientific Research Designs :: Module 2.2 :: 53

 Module Summary

Module Now that you have read this module you should
2.2
KNOW …

● The key terminology related to research designs:

between-subjects design (p. 52) naturalistic observation (p. 47)

case study (p. 45) quasi-experimental research
confounding variable (p. 52) (p. 52) Blend Images/Alamy
control group (p. 52) random assignment (p. 51)
correlational research (p. 49) self-reporting (p. 48)
third variable problem (p. 50) 2. Dr. Harrington surveyed students on multiple lifestyle
dependent variable (p. 52)
within-subjects design (p. 52) measures. He discovered that as the number of
experimental group (p. 52)
semesters that university students complete increases,
independent variable (p. 52)
their anxiety level increases. If number of semesters
and anxiety increase together, this is an example of a(n)
__________ correlation. Dr. Harrington also found
UNDERSTAND …
that the more time students spent socializing, the less
● What it means when variables are positively or likely they were to become depressed. The increase in
negatively correlated. When two or more variables socializing and decrease in depression is an example of
are positively correlated, their relationship is direct— a(n) __________ correlation.
they increase or decrease together. For example, income
and education level are positively correlated. Negatively
ANALYZE …
correlated variables are inversely related—as one increases,
the other decreases. Substance abuse may be inversely ● The pros and cons of descriptive, correlational, and
related to cognitive performance—higher levels of substance experimental research designs. Descriptive methods
abuse are often associated with lower cognitive ability. have many advantages, including observing naturally
● How experiments help demonstrate cause-and-effect occurring behaviour and providing detailed observations
relationships. Experiments rely on randomization and the of individuals. In addition, when correlational methods are
manipulation of an independent variable to show cause used in descriptive research, we can see how key variables
and effect. At the beginning of an experiment, two or are related. Experimental methods can be used to test
more groups are randomly assigned—a process that helps for cause-and-effect relationships. One drawback is that
ensure that the two groups are roughly equivalent. Then, laboratory experiments may be limited in how far their
researchers manipulate an independent variable; perhaps results may generalize to real-world situations.
they give one group a drug and the other group a placebo.
At the end of the study, if one group turns out to be
different, that difference is most likely due to the effects of
the independent variable.

APPLY …

● The terms and concepts of experimental methods to

research examples. Here are two examples for practice.
Check your answers on page ANS-1.
1. Dr. Vincent randomly assigns participants in a study
to exercise versus no exercise conditions and, after
30 minutes, measures mood levels. In this case,
exercise level is the ________ variable and mood is
the ________ variable.

54 :: Module 2.2 : : Scientific Research Designs

 Bettmann/CORBIS

Module

2.3 Ethics in Psychological Research

Learning KNOW … UNDERSTAND … APPLY … ANALYZE …
Objectives The importance of reporting The ethical principles The role of using deception
The key terminology
After reading of research ethics and storing data of scientific research in psychological research
this module to examples
Why animals are often used
you should in scientific research

In the early 1950s, the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) temporary paralysis or even coma, electroconvulsive therapy set at more than
became involved in the field of psychology. After hearing that their 30 times the recommended strength, constant noises, and even looped tapes
enemies in the Soviet Union, China, and North Korea had tried to use repeating messages (Klein, 2007). These treatments led to amnesia, confusion,
mind-control techniques—including mind-altering drugs—on U.S. prison- and anxiety; participants in these programs were never the same (Collins, 1988).
ers of war, the CIA felt it had no choice but to research these tech-
Project MKUltra was officially ended in 1973. The experiments are now
niques themselves. Project MKUltra had begun. After recruiting former
generally accepted as being among the most unethical studies in the his-
Nazi scientists who had studied torture and “brainwashing” during World
tory of science. In the 1980s, the Canadian government paid $100 000 to
War II (and who had been prosecuted as war criminals), the CIA secretly
each of the 127 victims of Cameron’s unauthorized research program.
poured tens of millions of dollars into research laboratories at hospitals
For several decades, the CIA’s interrogation manual referred to “studies
and universities in order to study mind-control techniques that would
at McGill University” (McCoy, 2006).
alter people’s personalities, memories, and ability to control themselves
while being interrogated. At least one of these institutions was in Canada.
Focus Questions
Scottish psychiatrist Donald Ewen Cameron used CIA funds (as well as
$500 000 from the Canadian government) to perform terrifying experi- 1 Which institutional safeguards are now in place to
ments at the Allan Memorial Institute of McGill University from 1957 to 1964. protect the well-being of research participants?
Patients who were admitted to the institute for fairly minor problems such 2 Does all research today require that people be informed
as anxiety disorders or depression were—without giving proper consent or of risks and consent to participate in a study?
being informed of the reason for the “treatment”—subjected to manipula-
tions that can only be called torture. These patients received drugs that caused

Ethics in Psychological Research :: Module 2.3 :: 55

 The topics that psychologists study deal with living, sens- in promoting health and well-being must be weighed
ing organisms, which raises a number of ethical issues against the short-term risks to the people who consent
that must be addressed before any study begins. These to participate in these studies.
concerns include protecting the physical and mental It must be stressed that physical risks are rare in psy-
well-being of participants, obtaining consent from them, chological research. More common are measures that
and ensuring that their responses remain confidential. involve possible cognitive and emotional stress. Here are
The procedures discussed in the next section have been a couple of examples:
developed as protections for participants; they are critical
• Mortality salience. In this situation participants are made
not only to ensure the individual well-being of the study
more aware of death, which can be done in a number
participants, but also to maintain a positive and trustwor-
of ways. For example, participants may be asked to
thy image of the scientists who conduct research.
read or write about what happens to a human body
after death.
Promoting the Welfare of Research • Writing about upsetting or traumatic experiences. People
who have experienced recent trauma such as the
Participants death of a loved one or being laid off from a long-
The CIA mind-control research program certainly is an term job might be asked to write about that experi-
extreme case—extreme in the harm done to the volun- ence in great detail, sometimes repeatedly.
teers, the disregard for their well-being, and its secretive
nature. Today, most research with human participants Another source of risk is related to the fact that
involves short-term, low-risk methods, and there are now some studies ask participants to provide the experimenter
ethical guidelines and procedures for ensuring the safety with sensitive and/or personal information. Think about
and well-being of all individuals involved in research. all the topics in psychology that people might want to
In Canada, all institutions that engage in research with keep to themselves: opinions about teachers or super-
humans, including colleges and universities, are required visors, a history of substance abuse, criminal records,
Watch to have a research ethics board (REB), a committee of medical records, and so on. Disclosing this information
Special Topics: Ethics researchers and officials at an institution charged with the pro- is a potential threat to a person’s reputation, friends, and
and Psychological tection of human research participants. (If you read a research family. Psychologists must find ways to minimize these
Research report from an American institution, they will refer to risks so that participants do not suffer any unintended
Institutional Review Boards [IRBs]; these are the same consequences of participating in psychological research.
thing as REBs.) REBs help ensure that researchers abide Indeed, everyone involved in the research process—
by the ethical rules set out in the Tri-Council Policy State- the researcher, the REB, and the potential volunteer—
ment: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (2nd must determine whether the study’s inherent risks are
edition), a set of requirements created by the Govern- worth what can potentially be learned if the research
ment of Canada’s Panel of Research Ethics. The REBs goes forward. Consider again the stressors mentioned
are intended to protect individuals in two main ways: previously:
(1) The committee weighs potential risks to the volun- • Mortality salience. The stress tends to be short term,
teers against the possible benefits of the research, and and psychologists learn how decisions are influenced
(2) it requires that volunteers agree to participate in the by recent events in a person’s life, such as the loss of
research (i.e., they give informed consent). a loved one or experiencing a major natural disaster.
These decisions range from making charitable dona-
WEIGHING THE RISKS AND BENEFITS OF
tions to voting for or against going to war.
RESEARCH The majority of psychological research
• Writing about upsetting experiences. Although revisit-
involves minimal exposure to physical or mental stress
ing a stressful experience can be difficult, research-
such as computer-based studies of perception or ques-
ers learn how coping through expression can help
tionnaires studying personality traits. Even so, great care
emotional adjustment and physical health. In fact,
is taken to protect participants. However, some research
participants who write about stress tend to be
is slightly riskier such as exposing individuals to brief
healthier—emotionally and physically—than those
periods of stress, inducing a negative mood, asking about
who write about everyday topics (such as describing
sensitive topics, or even asking participants to engage in
their dorms or apartments).
brief periods of exercise. Some studies have even exposed
humans to the virus that causes the common cold, or These stressful situations have potential benefits
made small cuts to the skin to study factors that affect that can be applied to other people. The psychologists
healing. The benefits that this type of research provides who undertake such research tend to be motivated by

56 :: Module 2.3 : : Ethics in Psychological Research

several factors—including the desire to help others, the
drive to satisfy their intellectual curiosity, and even their Informed Consent Statement
own livelihood and employment. The REB serves as a
You are invited to participate in a research study assessing your
third party that weighs the risks and benefits of research attitudes and behaviours related to alcohol. We ask that you read
without being personally invested in the outcome. this document before agreeing to participate in this study.
Although the legal drinking age is 19, participants do not need
Under today’s standards, there is no chance that the CIA to be of age, nor do they need to be regular drinkers. Participants
mind-control studies would have been initiated, except must be at least 18 years of age and be willing to anonymously
share opinions about alcohol. The study takes 30 minutes to
in secrecy outside of the public process of science. The complete. There are no risks associated with this study.
danger to the participants in that study—victims might
If you agree to be in this study, you will be asked to complete a
be a better term—far outweighed any scientific benefit survey and rate 40 statements about alcohol and alcohol use in
gained from these experiments, even if the participants your life. You may refuse to answer any questions and may
withdraw from the study without penalty at any time. This
had known what they were getting into. Today, it is research project has been reviewed and approved by the
mandatory that research participants be informed of any Research Ethics Board.

risks to which they may be exposed and willfully volun- Thank you for your time.
teer to take part in a study.

OBTAINING INFORMED CONSENT In addition to

__ I give consent to participate in this study
weighing the risks versus the benefits of a study, research-
ers must ensure that human volunteers truly are volun- Participant Signature: ____________________ Date: __________
teers. This may seem redundant, but it is actually a tricky
issue. Recall that the human subjects in the CIA mind-
__ I do not wish to participate in this study
control studies were volunteers only in the sense that
they voluntarily sought treatment from the researchers.
But did they volunteer to undergo procedures that were
very close to being torture? Had the men and women {fig. 2.5} Informed Consent Research participants must
provide informed consent before taking part in any study. As
known the true nature of the study, it is doubtful that shown here, the participant must be made aware of the basic
any would have continued to participate. Currently, par- topic of the study as well as any possible risks.
ticipants and patients have much more protection than
they did in the 1950s and 1960s. Before any experi-
mental procedures begin, all participants must provide do not know exactly what the study is about, because
informed consent: A potential volunteer must be informed such information may lead to subject bias.) Consider the
(know the purpose, tasks, and risks involved in the study) and mortality salience example. If a researcher told a partici-
give consent (agree to participate based on the information pro- pant, “We are going to test how a recent stressor you Watch
vided) without pressure. have experienced has affected your behaviour,” then the Before Informed
To be truly informed about the study, volunteers experiment probably would not work. In these cases, Consent: Robert
should be told, at minimum, the following details (see researchers use deception—misleading or only partially Guthrie

also Figure 2.5): informing participants of the true topic or hypothesis under
investigation. In psychological research, this typically
• The topic of the study
amounts to a “white lie” of sorts. The participants are
• The nature of any stimuli (e.g., images, sounds, smells)
given enough information to evaluate their own risks.
to which they will be exposed
In medical research situations, however, deception can be
• The nature of any tasks (e.g., tests, puzzles) they will
much more serious. For example, patients who are being
complete
tested with an experimental drug may be randomly cho-
• The approximate duration of the study
sen to receive a placebo. Importantly, in both cases, the
• Any potential physical, psychological, or social risks
deception is only short-term; once the experiment is
involved
over, the participants are informed of the true nature of
• The steps that the researchers have taken to minimize
the study and why deception was necessary.
those risks
Once participants are informed, they must also
Ethical practices often involve resolving conflicting be able to give consent. Again, meeting this standard is
interests, and in psychological research the main conflict trickier than it sounds. To revisit the mind-control stud-
is between the need for informed consent and the need ies, the patients were emotionally vulnerable people
for “blinded” volunteers. (Recall from Module 2.1 seeking help from a noted psychiatrist (Dr. Cameron
that in the best experimental designs the participants was the President of both the Canadian and American

Ethics in Psychological Research :: Module 2.3 :: 57

 Psychiatric Associations) at a world-class university. They give consent on behalf of the participant. This usually
were not told of the treatments they would receive; in amounts to a parent or next-of-kin and, of course, all the
some cases, the patients were not informed that they rules of informed consent still apply.
were part of a study at all! Clearly, informed consent was After participating in the research study, participants
not provided by these research participants. Based on the must undergo a full debriefing, meaning that the research-
ethical issues arising from this and many other disturb- ers should explain the true nature of the study, and especially
ing studies, modern psychological (and psychiatric and the nature of and reason for the deception. The debriefing
neurological) research includes the following elements in of subjects is an important part of the scientific process.
determining whether full consent is given: You’ve already read how it is used when deception (or a
placebo) is part of a study. But, even in more straightfor-
• Freedom to choose. Individuals should not be at risk for
ward experiments, debriefing is necessary to ensure that
financial loss, physical harm, or damage to their repu-
the participants understand why their time and effort
tation if they choose not to participate.
was necessary. This results in the participants leaving the
• Equal opportunities. Volunteers should have choices.
experiment better-informed about your topic of study as
For example, if the volunteers are introductory psy-
well as about the many considerations involved in creat-
chology students seeking course credit, they must
ing a psychology experiment.
have nonresearch alternatives available to them for
credit should they choose not to participate in a study. THE RIGHT TO ANONYMITY AND CONFIDENTI-
• The right to withdraw. Volunteers should have the right ALITY A final measure of protection involves anonym-
to withdraw from the study, at any time, without pen- ity and confidentiality. Anonymity means that the data
alty. The right to give informed consent stays with collected during a research study cannot be connected
the participants throughout the entire study. to individual participants. In many cases, volunteers
• The right to withhold responses. Volunteers responding can respond on a survey or through a computer-based
to surveys or interviews should not have to answer experimental task without recording their name. This
any question that they feel uncomfortable answering. setup is ideal because it reduces both methodological
problems (socially desirable responding) and the social
Usually, these criteria are sufficient for ensuring full
risks to participants. If pure anonymity is not possible—
consent. Sometimes, however, psychologists are interested
for example, when a researcher must watch the partici-
in participants who cannot give their consent that easily.
pant perform a task—then confidentiality is a reasonable
If researchers are studying children or individuals with
substitute. Confidentiality includes at least two parts. First,
mental disabilities, some severe psychiatric disorders, or
researchers cannot share specific data or observations
certain neurological conditions, then a third party must
that can be connected with an individual. Second, all
records must be kept secure (for example, in a password-
protected database or locked filing cabinet) so that iden-
tities cannot be revealed unintentionally.
THE WELFARE OF ANIMALS IN RESEARCH
Many people who have never taken a psychology course
view psychology as the study of human behaviour, pos-
sibly because most psychological research does involve
humans. But research with animals is just as important to
psychological science for a number of reasons. The sim-
plest and perhaps most obvious is that the study of psy-
chology does include the behaviour of animals. However,
the most significant reason is that scientists can adminis-
ter treatments to animals that could never be applied to
humans, such as lesioning (damaging) specific areas of
the brain in order to examine the resulting behavioural
impairments. In addition, genetic research requires spe-
cies with much shorter life spans than our own so that
several successive generations can be observed. Finally,
Mona Lisa Production/Science Source scientists can manipulate the breeding of laboratory ani-
Many psychologists use animals in their research, so ethical codes have been extended mals to meet the needs of their experimental procedures.
to cover nonhuman species. Click on this photo in your eText to see more details. Selective breeding allows researchers to study highly

58 :: Module 2.3 : : Ethics in Psychological Research

similar groups of subjects, which helps control for indi- from the use of animal subjects is the study of different
vidual differences based on genetic factors. brain-related diseases. This leads to an ethical dilemma,
These forms of animal-based experimentation have however: Is it ethically acceptable to create disease-like
improved our understanding of a number of different areas symptoms in animals if it could lead to discoveries that
of behaviour. The research area that has benefited most could help thousands—or sometimes millions—of people?

decreased the levels of certain brain chemicals known as

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC neurotransmitters in the brain. Parkinson’s disease is caused by
LITERACY MODEL a loss of the neurotransmitter dopamine; therefore, a drug
that reduced dopamine levels could simulate the symptoms
Animal Models of Disease of Parkinson’s. Third, researchers could create animal mod-
els of certain disorders by altering the environments of the
animals. For instance, placing animals in an environment that
MPTP (1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine) was
is physically or socially stressful can cause them to behave
accidentally discovered in 1976 by a 23-year-old chemis-
similarly to individuals with anxiety disorders (Willner et al.,
try graduate student who was attempting to create MPPP,
1987). Finally, scientists can manipulate the genetic make-up
a synthetic drug that produces morphine-like effects. Three
of animals. While earlier research was limited to selectively
days after injecting himself with what he thought would be
breeding animals so that they became more prone to a dis-
a pleasure-inducing drug, he began to show symptoms of
ease, it is now possible to directly alter the genetic codes
Parkinson’s disease, including tremors and difficulties initiat-
of animals so that particular traits and physical structures
ing movements. Six years later, seven young people in Santa
are altered (Spires-Jones & Knafo, 2012). However, despite the
Clara County, California, were diagnosed with Parkinson’s
enormous possibilities associated with animal models, these
disease, which typically develops in older adults. Again, these
techniques are only as good as the scientists who use them.
individuals had injected doses of MPPP that were contami-
nated with MPTP. Based on these cases, neurologists quickly
realized that the compound MPTP could prove useful as a How can science
model of Parkinson’s disease (Langston et al., 1983). Animals test animal models
receiving injections of MPTP quickly develop Parkinsonian of diseases?
symptoms; it is therefore possible to use these animals to
test possible treatments of this disorder. MPTP is now the The primary goal of develop-
toxin most frequently used for animal models of Parkinson’s ing animal models of a neu-
disease (Blesa et al., 2012). This leads to interesting ques- rological condition, such as the MPTP model of Parkinson’s
tions, however. Are animal models valid and useful tools for disease, is to simulate the characteristics of a disease so that
researchers trying to find treatments and cures for diseases? researchers can test possible treatments without harming
And, is this process ethical? humans. Although this may sound unethical at first, there is a
logic behind the use of animal models. In order to find treat-
ments for a disease, scientists need a very large number of
What do we know individuals with the disease to use as test subjects. Any given
about animal models treatment that is currently available to humans underwent
of diseases? testing with thousands—sometimes tens of thousands—of
animals in order to test different chemical compounds and
MPTP is just one of hundreds of
doses to ensure that the side effects of the treatment did
techniques for modelling different
not outweigh its benefits. There are simply not enough peo-
diseases. There are animal models
ple with some diseases for this type of trial-and-error testing
for Alzheimer’s disease, depres-
to occur. Any study that could take place would require the
sion, schizophrenia, autism, stroke, Huntington’s disease,
cooperation of universities and hospitals across the world.
epilepsy, and drug addiction, among many others (Nestler &
And, if that single attempt did not work, it would be difficult
Hyman, 2010; Virdee et al., 2012). Not all diseases or condi-
to find patients who had not already been tested to use in
tions can be modelled in the same way, however. Depend-
subsequent treatment attempts. Therefore, the use of animal
ing upon the underlying cause of the disorder and the brain
models was a product of necessity.
areas that are likely involved, there are at least four meth-
ods scientists can use to create an animal model. First, if a Importantly, animal models are not developed in a random
disease is associated with a specific brain area, researchers fashion. Instead, each animal model of a disease must have
could anesthetize an animal and remove or damage that part the following three characteristics (Dzirasa & Covington III,
of its brain. Brain damage could also occur by introducing a 2012). First, it must share the same physiological and
toxic substance, as occurred in the MPTP patients. Second, behavioural features of the disease as appear in humans.
scientists could introduce a substance that increased or An animal model of depression would not be accepted if

Ethics in Psychological Research :: Module 2.3 :: 59

 the animals were energetic and playful; instead, the ani- These are all valid criticisms of the use of animal models of
mals’ behaviours must resemble the behaviours of humans diseases. Although there are no perfect counterarguments,
with depression. Additionally, both the animal model and there are points that researchers can make in defence of ani-
the “real” disorder must involve similar brain structures; mal models. First, if the conditions of a good model discussed
otherwise, you are comparing apples and oranges. Second, in the previous section are met, then we can assume that the
the tests used to measure the behaviours must be valid. animal model is a fairly close approximation of the disorder it
For depressed humans, laboratory tests often involve ques- is being used to study. So, if the animals’ behaviours resemble
tionnaires or computer-based tests; these are obviously those of the human patients, if the tasks being used to test
not useful research methods when testing rats or mice. the animals are valid measures, and if the animals respond to
Instead, the researcher must use an indirect test to try to the same treatments as humans (if treatments are available),
tap into the same underlying symptom. So, if a depressed then we can be confident in our animal model. The confi-
human seemed to get less pleasure out of life than she dence will increase if other lines of research produce results
did previously (known as anhedonia), an animal researcher similar to those found with the animal model. So, if brain-
would have to find a way to measure a similar behaviour in imaging tests in humans find problems in the same brain areas
rats. In this case, scientists use a sucrose preference test, being manipulated in an animal model, that model becomes
a task in which rats have the opportunity to seek out a more valid. Through the use of converging operations—
pleasurable taste (sugar!) if they are motivated to do so. using multiple research methods to analyze the same
The assumption is that “depressed” rats, just like depressed question—it is possible to create effective animal models.
humans, would be less likely to seek out such stimuli
(Cryan et al., 2002). Finally, the subjects in animal models
Why is this relevant?
(e.g., mice) must respond to treatments in the same way
that humans would. So, animals that are genetically altered Anyone who has watched
to be prone to depression-like behaviours should respond an elderly relative become a
to anti-depressants. If they don’t, then the animal model is shadow of his or her former
not valid. self as a result of a neurologi-
cal disease such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s disease can
understand the usefulness of animal models. It is impossible
How can we critically to perform large-scale research investigating these disor-
evaluate these models? ders and their possible treatment without the use of these
The easiest criticism of animal mod- experiments. Therefore, the animals used in these studies are
els of disease is that animal brains helping to reduce the suffering of millions of people around
are not human brains. Human brains the world. Whether you agree that it is appropriate to use
are obviously more complex; there- animals in this fashion is a personal decision that you will
fore, how valid is it to assume that treatments that change have to make on your own. It is important to note that the
an animal’s behaviour will benefit humans? And, if this isn’t researchers who perform this type of research also think
guaranteed, is it ethical to use animal subjects in this way? about these issues. They certainly don’t take their ethical
A second criticism is that researchers are only beginning to responsibilities lightly; every university and research hospital
understand the specific brain areas involved with a number has extremely strict requirements for the treatment of labo-
of different conditions. Oftentimes, a large number of inter- ratory animals and the well-being of all animals is monitored
acting brain areas are involved with a disorder. So, if we are by laboratory technicians and veterinarians. Importantly, all of
unclear of the biology involved in the human version of the these activities are closely monitored by the institution’s REB.
disease, how accurate can the resulting animal models really
be? Additionally, it is fairly easy to test the validity of animal
models of neurological diseases that have clear, observable
symptoms (e.g., Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy); animals
modelling epilepsy will have seizures that you can see. How-
ever, models of psychological conditions like depression
and schizophrenia present a greater challenge, as the symp-
toms are often thought-based and subjective. The rat can’t
explain what he is seeing or feeling. Instead, the researchers
must infer that these mental states are occurring (in one
form or another) in the animal subjects being tested. Finally,
is an animal with limited cognitive abilities even capable of
serving as a model for a disorder that involves impairments
of higher-order cognitive abilities (Nestler & Hyman, 2010)?
For example, how can you tell if a laboratory rat is having a
hallucination? Maslov Dmitry/Fotolia

60 :: Module 2.3 : : Ethics in Psychological Research

REBS FOR ANIMAL-BASED RESEARCH Many 3 In a memory study, researchers have participants study

ANALYZE …
ethical standards for animal research were developed a list of words, and then tell them it was the wrong
at the same time as those for human research. In fact, list and that they should forget it. This deception is
hospitals and universities have established committees meant to see how effectively participants can forget
something they have already studied. If the researchers
responsible for the ethical treatment of animals, which
plan to debrief the participants afterward, would this
are in some ways similar to REBs that monitor human design meet the standards of an ethical study?
research. To be sure, there are differences in standards A No, it is not okay to mislead individuals during the
applied to human research and animal research. For course of a study.
example, we obviously do not ask for informed con- B Yes, given that the participants are not at risk and
sent from animals. Nevertheless, similar procedures have that they will be debriefed, this seems to be an
been put in place to ensure that risk and discomfort are ethical study.
managed in a humane way, and that the pain or stress an C No, because the researchers should not debrief the
animal may experience can be justified by the potential participants.
scientific value of the research. D Yes, because participants fully understood all
Three main areas of ethical treatment are empha- aspects of the study.

sized by researchers and animal welfare committees. The Answers can be found on page ANS-1.
first is the basic care of laboratory animals—that is, pro-
viding appropriate housing, feeding, and sanitation for
the species. The second is minimization of any pain or
discomfort experienced by the animals. Third, although Ethical Collection, Storage,
it is rare for a study to require discomfort, when it is nec-
essary, the researchers must ensure that the pain can be
and Reporting of Data
justified by the potential benefits of the research. The Ethical research does not end when the volunteers go
same standards apply if animals are to be sacrificed for home. Researchers have continuing commitments to
the research. the participants, such as the requirement to maintain
the anonymity, confidentiality, and security of the data.
Once data are reported in a journal or at a conference,
they should be kept for a reasonable amount of time—
generally, three to five years is acceptable. The purpose
Quick Quiz 2.3a of keeping data for a lengthy period relates to the public
Promoting the Welfare of Research nature of good research. Other researchers may request
access to the data to reinterpret it, or perhaps examine
Participants
the data before attempting to replicate the findings. It
1 The Research Ethics Board (REB) is the group that might seem as though the confidentiality requirement
KNOW …

determines
conflicts with the need to make data public, but this is
A whether a hypothesis is valid.
not necessarily true. For example, if the data are anony-
B whether the benefits of a proposed study outweigh
mous, then none of the participants will be affected if
its potential risks.
and when the data are shared.
C whether a study should be published in a scientific
In addition to keeping data safe, scientists must
journal.
be honest with their data. Some researchers experience
D whether animal research is overall an ethical
practice.
great external pressure to obtain certain results. These
pressures may relate to receiving tenure at a university;
gaining funding from a governmental, industrial, or non-
2 Which of the following is not a requirement for
UNDERSTAND …

informed consent?
profit agency; or providing evidence that a product (for
A Participants need to know the nature of the stimuli example, a medical treatment for depression) is effective.
to which they will be exposed. Unfortunately, cases of scientific misconduct sometimes
B Participants need to understand any potential arise when individuals fabricate or manipulate their data
physical, psychological, or social risks involved in to fit their desired results. For instance, in 1998, British
the research. researcher Andrew Wakefield and his colleagues pub-
C Participants need to have a face-to-face meeting lished a paper in the highly influential medical journal
with the researcher before volunteering. The Lancet describing a link between the vaccine for
D Participants need to know the approximate measles, mumps, and rubella and the incidence rate of
duration of the study. autism (Wakefield et al., 1998; see Module 10.1). The

Ethics in Psychological Research :: Module 2.3 :: 61

 response was immediate—many concerned parents financial motivation for creating a controversy related to
stopped having their children vaccinated out of fear the vaccine. Luckily, such cases of misconduct seem to be
that their kids would then develop autism. Panic was rare and, as occurred in this instance, other scientists are
increased by sensationalistic media reports of the study likely to find that the study cannot be replicated in such
as well as by an anti-vaccine media campaign launched instances.
by former Playboy centrefold (and, apparently, amateur The chances of fraudulent data being published can
developmental neurobiologist) Jenny McCarthy. Vaccine also be decreased by requiring researchers to acknowl-
rates plummeted. However, autism rates did not change; edge any potential conflicts of interest, which might
what did change were the incidence rates of the diseases include personal financial gain from an institution or
the vaccines would have prevented. Hundreds of prevent- company that funded the work. If you look at most pub-
able deaths occurred because children were not vacci- lished journal articles, you will see a footnote indicating
nated. Then something interesting happened: Numerous which agency or organization provided the funds for the
institutions in several different countries reported that study. This annotation is not just a goodwill gesture; it
they were unable to replicate Wakefield’s results. As his also informs the public when there is the potential for a
data received more attention, it became clear that some company or government agency to influence research.
of it had been manipulated to fit his theory. Additional Incidentally, the CIA was not mentioned in any pub-
investigations uncovered the fact that Wakefield planned lished work resulting from the mind-control studies dis-
to develop screening kits to test for stomach problems cussed at the beginning of this module. Dr. Cameron’s
associated with the vaccine; in other words, he had a family destroyed all of his papers upon his death in 1967.

Quick Quiz 2.3b Ethical Collection, Storage, and Reporting of Data

1 Researchers should store their data after they present or
APPLY … 2 After completing a naturalistic observation study, a
UNDERSTAND …

publish it because researcher does not have quite enough evidence to

A other researchers may want to examine the data support her hypothesis. If she decides to go back to her
before conducting a replication study. records and slightly alters a few of the observations to fit
B other researchers may want to reinterpret the data her hypothesis, she is engaged in ________.
using different techniques. A scientific forgery
C the process of informed consent requires it. B scientific misconduct

D both a and b are true. C correcting the data

D ethical behaviour

Answers can be found on page ANS-1.

62 :: Module 2.3 : : Ethics in Psychological Research

 Module Summary

O
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
2.3

FP
KNOW …

● The key terminology of research ethics:

debriefing (p. 58) informed consent (p. 57)

deception (p. 57) research ethics board (REB) Bettmann/CORBIS
(p. 56)

2. Researchers set up a study on sexuality that involves

UNDERSTAND …
answering a series of questions in an online survey. At
the end of each page of the survey, the software checks
● The importance of reporting and storing data. Making whether all of the questions are answered; it will not
data public allows scientific peers as well as the general continue if any questions are left blank. Students cannot
public to have access to the details of research studies. This advance to the end of the survey and receive credit for
information includes details about participants, the participation until they answer all the questions.
procedures they experienced, and the outcome of the
study. Furthermore, the requirement that data be stored
ANALYZE …
allows fellow researchers to verify reports as well as to
examine the study for any possible misconduct. Fortunately,
● The role of using deception in psychological research.
such cases are rare.
It is often the case that fully disclosing the purpose of a
● Why animals are often used in scientific research. study before people participate in it would render the
First, many research questions that affect medical and results useless. Thus, specific details of the study are not
public health cannot be answered without animal testing. provided during informed consent (although all potential
Second, obvious ethical considerations may not allow such risks are disclosed). When deception of any kind is used,
research to be conducted on human subjects. Third, by researchers must justify that the benefits of doing so
working with animal models, scientists can control genetic outweigh the costs.
and environmental variables that cannot be controlled
with humans.

APPLY …

● The ethical principles of scientific research to examples.

For practice, read the following two scenarios and identify
why they may fail to meet ethical standards. Check your
answers on page ANS-1.
1. Dr. Nguyen wants to expose individuals first to a virus
that causes people to experience colds, and then to
varying levels of exercise to test whether exercise
either facilitates or inhibits recovery. She is concerned
that people will not volunteer if they know they may
experience a cold, so she wants to give them the
informed consent after completing the study.

Ethics in Psychological Research :: Module 2.3 :: 63

 Imagesource/Glow Images

Module

2.4 A Statistical Primer

Learning KNOW … UNDERSTAND … APPLY … ANALYZE …

Objectives The key terminology How and why psychologists Your knowledge to The choice of central tendency
After reading of statistics use significance tests interpret the most statistics based on the
this module frequently used shape of the distribution
you should types of graphs

Would you be surprised to learn that even infants and toddlers can think higher probability of working. If eight-month-olds and preschoolers can
about probability, the foundation of statistics? Dr. Allison Gopnik (2010) think statistically, adults should also be able to do so!
writes about some interesting experiments showing just how statistically
minded young children are. For example, consider the illustration below.
If a researcher reached in and randomly selected five balls, would you be
Focus Questions
more surprised if they were all red or all white? Given that the white balls 1 How do psychologists use statistics to
outnumber the red, you would be much more surprised if the researcher describe their observations?
pulled out five red balls. Interestingly, infants show the same response. In
2 How are statistics useful in testing the results of experiments?
another experiment, Gopnik’s research team placed blue or yellow blocks
into a fancy contraption. Yellow
blocks appeared to make the
machine light up two out of
three times (67% of the time),
Statistics initially seem scary to a lot of people. But, they don’t have
whereas the blue blocks only
seemed to work two out of six to be. Statistics can be boiled down to two general steps. First, we
times (33% of the time). When need to organize the numbers so that we can get a “big picture”
asked to “make the machine view of the results; this process is helped by the creation of tables
light up,” preschoolers selected or graphs. Second, we want to test to see if any differences between
the yellow blocks, which had a groups or between experimental conditions are meaningful. Once

64 :: Module 2.4 : : A Statistical Primer

these steps have been completed, it is possible to deter- test scores corresponding to people who scored around
mine whether the data supported or refuted our hypoth- 500 on the test. Looking over to the vertical axis, you
esis. In order to keep statistics simple, this module is will see there were four individuals in that range. It
organized around these two general steps. is usually easy to describe the distribution of scores
from a histogram. By examining changes in frequency
across the horizontal axis—basically by describing the
Descriptive Statistics heights of the bars—we can learn something about the
Once research data have been collected, psychologists variable.
use descriptive statistics, a set of techniques used to orga- Histograms are a nice and simple way to present
nize, summarize, and interpret data. This gives you the “big data and are excellent for providing researchers and stu-
picture” of the results. In most research, the statistics used dents with an initial idea of what the data look like.
to describe and understand the data are of three types: But, they are not the only way to depict results of an
frequency, central tendency, and variability. experiment. Sometimes it is easier to answer questions
about the distribution of the data if we present the
FREQUENCY Imagine that you asked a group of stu- same information using a smooth line called a curve.
dents who had just taken the Graduate Record Exam Sometimes a distribution is a symmetrical curve , as it
(GRE), a standardized test taken by people who want is with our GRE scores. In this case, the left half is
to go to graduate school, how well they did on the the mirror image of the right half. This is known as a
exam. Assuming they were honest, you would likely find normal distribution (sometimes called the bell curve),
scores ranging from the 300s up to the high 600s. What a symmetrical distribution with values clustered around a
you would want to know is (1) whether some scores central, mean value.
occurred more often than others and (2) whether all of Many variables wind up in a normal distribution,
the scores were clumped in the middle or more evenly such as the scores on most standardized tests. Other vari-
spaced across the whole range. These two pieces of ables have what is known as a skewed distribution, like
information make up the data’s distribution; the exami- the ones shown in Figure 2.7. You’ve likely encoun-
nation of the distribution is a useful first step when ana- tered skewed distributions in your own life. Imagine a
lyzing data. Figure 2.6 depicts these data in the form of situation in which the grades on a school assignment
a histogram, a type of bar graph. As with most bar graphs, were incredibly high, with only a few people perform-
the vertical axis of this graph shows the frequency, the ing poorly. In this case, the curve would show a nega-
number of observations that fall within a certain category or tively skewed distribution, a distribution in which the
range of scores. These graphs are generally very easy to curve has an extended tail to the left of the cluster. However,
interpret: The higher the bar, the more scores that fall what if the test were extremely difficult, like a calcu-
into the specific range. For example, if you look on the lus exam written by an angry professor with a broken
horizontal axis in Figure 2.6, you will see a column of coffee maker? In this case, most people in the course
would have low scores, with only a few stellar students
getting As. These results would produce a positively
skewed distribution, a distribution in which the long tail
4
is on the right of the cluster. Although researchers generally
prefer to have normally distributed data, skewed results
3
are quite common. Most of the time, skews occur
because there is an upper or lower limit to the data. For
Frequency

example, a person cannot take less than 0 minutes to

2 complete a quiz, so a curve depicting times to complete
a quiz cannot continue indefinitely to the left, beyond
the zero point. In contrast, just one person could take a
1 very long time to complete a quiz, causing the right side
of the curve to extend far to the right. Which type of
skew would that be?
0
300 400 500 600 700
CENTRAL TENDENCY When examining data, it is Simulate
Test scores often useful to look at where the scores seem to cluster Doing Simple

{fig. 2.6} Graphing Psychological Data The frequency of together. When we do this, we are estimating central Statistics

standardized test scores forming a normal curve. tendency, a measure of the central point of a distribution.

A Statistical Primer :: Module 2.4 :: 65

 75% 80% 85% 90% 95% 100% 75% 80% 85% 90% 95% 100%

Grades Grades

{fig. 2.7} Skewed Distributions Negatively skewed distributions have an extended tail to the left (as
in the left graph above). Positively skewed distributions have an extended tail to the right (as in the right
graph above).

Although we naturally assume that the

central tendency is “the average,” there are 3
actually three different measures of cen-
tral tendency used in psychology. The first
Frequency

measure is known as the mean, the arithmetic 2

average of a set of numbers. This is the mea-
sure of central tendency that we are most
familiar with as it is used for class averages 1

and in most sports (e.g., batting average in

baseball or goals-against average in hockey).
0
A second measure of central tendency is the
$0 $10 000 $20 000 $30 000 $40 000 $50 000 $60 000
median, the 50th percentile—the point on the
Income
horizontal axis at which 50% of all observations
are lower, and 50% of all observations are higher. The graph shows that Mean income per household:
The third and final measure of central ten- these nine households $270 000 ÷ 9 = $30 000
have the following
dency is the mode, which is the category with incomes: Median (halfway between the lowest and
the highest frequency (that is, the category with highest numbers):
$10 000
$30 000 (10, 20, 20, 30—30—30, 40, 40, 50)
the most observations). $20 000
$20 000
At first glance, it might seem silly to Mode (most frequent number): $30 000
$30 000
have three different methods of measur- $30 000
$30 000
ing the central tendency of your data. $40 000
Indeed, when the data are normally dis- $40 000
$50 000
tributed as they are in Figure 2.8, the mean,
median, and mode are identical. The mean is Total = $270 000
$30 000, which is exactly in the centre of
{fig. 2.8} Central Tendency in Symmetrical Distributions This symmet-
the histogram. The same can be said for the rical histogram shows the annual income of nine randomly sampled house-
median; again, it is $30 000, with half of the holds. Notice that the mean, median, and mode are all in the same spot—this
incomes less than $30 000 and half more than is characteristic of normal distributions.

66 :: Module 2.4 : : A Statistical Primer

 $30 000. Likewise, the mode is the same as the mean and dollars) to the list of nine incomes listed in Figure 2.9,
median—$30 000 has the highest frequency, which, as the mean income becomes just over $371 million. If
seen in Figure 2.8, is 3. So, if the three measures of cen- you take the median of those ten incomes, the cen-
tral tendency are equal, which do we use? If the data are tral tendency is $30 000. Looking at those data, which
normally distributed, researchers generally use the mean. measure seems most consistent with the “big picture”
But, if the data are skewed in some way, then researchers of the results?
need to think about which measure is best. The measure
used least is the mode. Because it provides less information VARIABILITY Measures of central tendency help
than the mean or the median, the mode is typically only us summarize a group of individual cases with a single
used when dealing with categories of data. For example, number by identifying a cluster of scores. However,
when you vote for a candidate, the mode represents the this information only tells us part of the story. As you
candidate with the most votes, and (in most cases) that can see in Figure 2.10 , scores can diff er in terms of
person wins. their variability, the degree to which scores are dispersed
When the data are not a perfectly symmetrical in a distribution. In other words, some scores are quite
curve, the mean, median, and mode produce differ- spread out while others are more clustered. High vari-
ent values. If the histogram spreads out in one direc- ability means that there are a larger number of cases
tion—in Figure 2.9 , it is positively skewed—we are that are closer to the extreme ends of the continuum
usually better off calculating central tendency by using for that set of data (e.g., a lot of excellent students
the median. This is because extreme values (positive or and a lot of poor students in a class). Low variability
negative) will have a large effect on the mean, but will means that most of the scores are similar (e.g., a class
not affect the median. In other words, when you start filled with “B” students). Variability can be caused by
to add extremely wealthy households to the data set, measurement errors, imperfect measurement tools,
the tail extends to the right and the mean is pulled differences between participants in the study, or char-
in that direction. The longer the tail, the more the acter istics of participants on that given day (e.g.,
mean is pulled away from the centre of the curve. By mood, fatigue levels). All data sets have some variabil-
comparison, the median stays relatively stable, so it is ity. But, if information about variability is not pro-
a better choice for describing central tendency when vided by the researcher, it is impossible to understand
dealing with skewed data. For instance, if you added how well the measure of central tendency—the single
Bill Gates’ annual income (approximately $3.71 billion

50
6
Frequency (in thousands of households)

Mode = $30 000

40
5
Frequency

Median = $50 000

30
4

Mean = $65 000

20
3

10
2

1 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
Score
0 {fig. 2.10} Visualizing Variability Imagine that these
$0 $50 000 $100 000 $150 000 $200 000 curves show how two classes fared on a 20-point quiz. Both
Income classes averaged scores of 15 points. However, the students
in one class (depicted in red) scored much more similarly to
{fig. 2.9} Central Tendency in a Skewed Distribution The one another compared to students in another class (depicted
mean is not always the ideal measure of central tendency. in black), whose scores showed greater variability. The class
In this example, the mode and the median are actually more represented by the black line would have a higher standard
indicative of how much money most people make. deviation.

A Statistical Primer :: Module 2.4 :: 67

 score representing the data—refl ects the entire data include over 95% of the IQ scores in the population.
set. Therefore, whenever psychologists report data Therefore, when you hear about people like the physi-
from their research, their measures of central tendency cist Stephen Hawking, whose IQ is estimated to be
are virtually always accompanied by measures of around 160, you can see that these are rare individuals
variability. indeed (comprising less than one-tenth of a percent of
One calculation that allows researchers to link the population).
central tendency and variability is known as the stan- This section of the module demonstrates that by
dard deviation, a measure of variability around the mean. making a graph and reporting two numbers—the mea-
Think of it as an estimate of the average distance from the sure of central tendency and the standard deviation—
mean. Perhaps the best way to understand the standard you can provide a “big picture” summary of your data
deviation is by working through an example. In a stan- that almost anyone can understand. That’s Step 1 of
dard intelligence test, there is a normal distribution (a statistics. Step 2 uses these measures to test whether or
bell curve) with a mean of 100 and a standard devia- not your hypothesis is supported by your data—in other
tion of 15 (see Module 9.1). Based on what you’ve words, whether your project worked.
read in this module, you would infer that 100 is the
mid-point of the curve when these data are graphed.
But, how much of the data is included in each standard
deviation? As you can see in Figure 2.11, researchers Quick Quiz 2.4a
have found that approximately 68% of the data are
Descriptive Statistics
found within one standard deviation of the mean—
34% above the mean (between 100 and 115) and 34% 1 The ________ always marks the 50th percentile of the

KNOW …
below the mean (between 85 and 100). This makes distribution.
A mean C mode
intuitive sense—we would expect a fairly large pro-
portion of the scores to be grouped near the average B median D standard deviation
score. As we move further away from the average score,
each standard deviation would make up less and less 2 The ________ is a measure of variability around the
of the data, because really high or really low scores are mean of a distribution.
A mean deviation C mode
relatively rare. So, the next standard deviation in our
example makes up roughly 27% of the data—13.5% B median D standard deviation
of the scores would fall between 70 and 85 and 13.5%
would fall between 115 and 130. When you add the 3 A histogram is created that presents data on the number
APPLY …

of mistakes made on a memory test by participants in a

two standard deviations together, you can see that they
research study. The vertical axis indicates
A the frequency of errors made.
B the total number of participants.
C the gender of the participants.
D the mean number of errors made.

4 In a survey of recent graduates, your university

ANALYZE …

reports that the mean salaries of the former students

Percent of are positively skewed. What are the consequences
Normal of choosing the mean rather than the median or the
Distribution mode in this case?
Scores in Each
A The mean is likely to provide a number that is
Interval
lower than the largest cluster of scores.
B The mean is likely to provide a reliable estimate of
where the scores cluster.
2.2% 2.2%
13.6% 13.6% C The mean is likely to provide a number that is
.2% 34% 34% .2%
higher than the largest cluster of scores.
–3 –2 –1 0 1 2 D The mean provides the 50th percentile of the dis-
tribution, making it the best choice to depict this
{fig. 2.11} Standard Deviations in a Normal Distribution In a normal cluster of scores.
curve, most of the data are clustered within one standard deviation of the
mean. Over 95% of the data in a normal distribution are found within two Answers can be found on page ANS-1.
standard deviations of the mean.

68 :: Module 2.4 : : A Statistical Primer

Hypothesis Testing: Evaluating the Population of first-year
university students
Outcome of the Study
After researchers have described their data, the next Random assignment
step is to test whether the data support their hypoth-
esis. In order to do this, researchers analyze data using a Independent
Allowed to No text variable:
hypothesis test—a statistical method of evaluating whether messaging
text message Experimental and
differences among groups are meaningful, or could have been control groups
arrived at by chance alone. What scientists are essentially
trying to do is determine if their experimental manipu-
lation is the cause of any difference between groups or Dependent
Mean test Mean test variable:
between conditions. However, the ability to tease out score = 78 score = 81 Loneliness scores
these differences is affected by the concepts discussed
earlier in this module—specifically, the measure of cen-
tral tendency for the groups being measured as well as {fig. 2.12} Testing a Simple Hypothesis To conduct an
experiment on whether texting reduces loneliness, students
the variability of data in each of the groups. The differ- would be randomly assigned to either text-messaging or no-
ence in the central tendency for the two groups repre- text-messaging groups. Their average scores on a loneliness
sents a “signal” that we are trying to detect, similar to scale would then be compared.

a voice in a loud room. The variability represents the

“noise,” the outside forces that are making it difficult to
detect the signal. fairly easy to detect differences between the groups; the
To make this discussion more concrete, let’s use an “signal” is easy to pick out from the “noise.” On the
example of a behaviour that almost everyone performs: other hand, the scores of each group could have a broad
texting. Let’s say that we wanted to test whether text range and therefore look like the graphs on the right.
messaging reduces feelings of loneliness in first-year In that case, the group means are three points apart, but
university students. For three days, randomly selected the groups overlap so much—the standard deviations
students who regularly send text messages are assigned are very high—that they seem virtually identical. In
to one of two groups: those who can text and those this case, the “noise”—the variability within each of the
who cannot. After three days, the students fill out a sur- two groups—is so large that it is difficult to detect the
vey measuring how lonely they have felt. The diagram “signal,” the differences between the two groups.
in Figure 2.12 shows us the key elements of such an How, then, would researchers know if the difference
experiment. Individuals are sampled from the popula- in scores is meaningful? “Meaningful” seems like a vague
tion and randomly assigned to either the experimental term; as we have already discussed, science requires pre-
or control group. The independent variable consists of cise definitions. In order to address this problem, psy-
the two groups, which includes texting or no texting. chologists perform analyses that rely on the concept of
The dependent variable is the outcome—in this case, statistical significance.
loneliness (as measured by a valid questionnaire), with
larger scores indicating greater loneliness.
As you can see, the mean loneliness score of (a) (b)
the group who could text message is three
points below the mean of the group who
did not text message (78 vs. 81, respectively).
So, based on this information, are you will-
ing to say that texting causes people to feel
less lonely? Or have we left something out?
What we do not know from the dia-
gram is the variability of test scores. On the
one hand, it is quite possible that the scores Texting M = 78 No texting Texting M = 78 No texting
M = 81 M = 81
of the two groups look like the graphs on
the left in Figure 2.13. In that situation, the {fig. 2.13} How Variability Affects Hypothesis Testing (a) The means (represented by M)
differ between the two groups, and there is little overlap in the distribution of scores. When this
means are three points apart and the stan-
occurs, the groups are much more likely to be significantly different. (b) Even though the means
dard deviation is very small, so the curves differ, there is much overlap between the distributions of scores. It is unlikely that these two
have very little overlap. In this case, it is means would be significantly different.

A Statistical Primer :: Module 2.4 :: 69

 statistical techniques, so his decision was likely an attempt to
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC compromise with other statisticians; Stigler, 2008). If a p-value
LITERACY MODEL were less than 0.05, then there was less than a 5% chance that
the results were due to chance. This p-value quickly became
Statistical Significance the standard in a number of fields, including psychology.

Of course, just because a particular value is widely accepted

Statistical significance is a concept that implies that the does not mean that scientists can stop using their critical
means of the groups are farther apart than you would expect thinking skills. Sometimes the consequences of having a false
them to be by random chance alone. It was first proposed in positive are quite severe, as in the case of testing new medi-
1925 by Ronald Fisher, an English statistician working at an cines for a disease. It would be tragic to make claims about
agricultural research station east of London (U.K.). Statistical a wonder drug only to find out that the results were due
significance quickly became a key component of research in to a chance result that could not be reproduced. In such
many disciplines. However, it has also been a source of some cases, researchers sometimes use an even more conserva-
surprisingly intense arguments (Cohen, 1994). tive p-value, such as requiring results to be less than 0.01
(i.e., p < 0.01).
What do we know It is also worth noting that when testing small sample sizes, it
about statistical is difficult for the results to reach significance. But, some types
significance? of research, such as studies of rare brain-damaged patients,
have a limited number of potential participants. It therefore
Statistical significance testing is
becomes more difficult to detect statistically significant dif-
based on the researcher making
ferences in these studies despite the fact that the groups do
two hypotheses. The null hypoth-
appear to differ when you look at graphs of the data (Bezeau
esis assumes that any differences
& Graves, 2001). In these cases, significant testing might not
between groups (or conditions) are due to chance. The exper-
be the best statistical tool for analyzing the data. Luckily, sig-
imental hypothesis assumes that any differences are due to a
nificance testing is not the only technique available.
variable controlled by the experimenter. The goal of research-
ers is to find differences between groups that are so large
that it is virtually impossible for the null hypothesis to be true; Can we critically evaluate
in other words, they are not due to chance. The probability of the use of statistical
the results being due to chance is known as a p-value. Lower significance testing in
p-values indicate a decreased likelihood that your results research?
were a fluke, and therefore an increased likelihood that you
had a great idea and designed a good experiment. Although significance testing has
been a potent tool for researchers in
So, how do we find the p-value? The specific formulas used the social sciences for almost a century, it does have some
for these calculations will vary according to how the experi- detractors. American psychologist Paul Meehl (1967) subtly
ment is set up. But, they all involve a measure of central ten- described significance testing as “a potent but sterile intellec-
dency (usually the mean) and a measure of variability (usually tual rake who leaves in his merry path a long train of ravished
the standard deviation). These numbers are then used in sta- maidens but no viable scientific offspring” (p. 265). Although
tistical tests that will produce a p-value. this description may be a touch dramatic, there are at least
two concerns related to significance testing. The first is the
What can science problem of multiple comparisons. If a “fluke” result can occur
tell us about approximately 5% of the time, the more tests you perform
statistical for your experiment, the greater the likelihood that one of
them is due to chance. In order to cope with this problem,
significance? researchers generally use a stricter acceptable p-value; as the
When Fisher first presented number of comparisons increases, researchers decrease the
the idea of significance testing, he noted that scientists needed p-value (i.e., make it more conservative). This makes it more
to establish a fairly conservative threshold for rejecting the null difficult to produce significant results, but does help ensure
hypothesis (i.e., for deciding that the results were significant). that the results are not due to chance. A second problem
He correctly thought that if it were quite easy for research- is the fact that as you increase the number of participants
ers to find a significant result, it would increase the likelihood in your study, it becomes easier to find significant effects. At
that results labelled as being significant were actually due to first blush, this doesn’t seem like a valid concern. Having more
chance. If enough of these false positives occurred, then the participants means that you are sampling a larger portion of
entire idea of significance would soon become meaningless. the population of interest. Isn’t that a good thing? The answer
Fisher therefore recommended that researchers use p < 0.05 is yes, of course it is. But, if you sample thousands of people—
as the cut-off point (this value was consistent with earlier as often happens in medical studies tracking potential lifestyle

70 :: Module 2.4 : : A Statistical Primer

causes of diseases—extremely small differences will still impossible for that research area to move forward—people
be statistically significant. The media provides almost daily would be speaking different languages. Significance testing
reports of different foods increasing or decreasing the risk makes sure that everyone is on the same page, statistically
of particular diseases. Before totally altering your lifestyle, it speaking. However, as noted above, there are alternative
is best to look up the original report to see if the difference methods for examining data. Effect sizes are becoming com-
was large, or was simply due to the fact that the sample size monplace in many areas of psychology; an increasing number
was in the thousands. of academic journals now require researchers to calculate
both statistical significance and effect sizes, thus giving readers
As an alternative to significance testing, Jacob Cohen (1988)
an even more detailed picture of the data.
developed a technique known as power analysis, whose goal is
to calculate effect sizes. Rather than saying that a difference is
significant, which is essentially a yes–no decision, effect sizes
tell the researcher whether the difference is statistically small
or large. So, instead of an experiment supporting or disprov-
ing a theory, effect sizes allow the researcher to adjust how
much they believe that their hypothesis is true (Cohen, 1994).

Why is this relevant?

Statistical significance gives
psychology researchers a use-
ful standard for deciding if the
differences between groups (or
experimental conditions) are meaningful. Having established
criteria for deciding if an effect is significant is important,
because it means that all researchers are using standardized
tools. If different research groups were using different criteria
for deciding that effects were “real,” then it would be nearly pressmaster/Fotolia

A final point is that, although statistical significance can become confident that a difference is meaningful.
tells us that results are meaningful, there is still a pos- Many scientists now make their stimuli and data avail-
sibility that the results were due to chance. It is only able to other researchers in order to encourage this pro-
through replication—having other laboratories repeat cess. This move toward openness and replication is itself
the experiments and produce similar results—that we quite significant.

Quick Quiz 2.4b Hypothesis Testing: Evaluating the Outcome of the Study

1 A hypothesis test is conducted after an experiment to

2
UNDERSTAND …

Imagine an experiment where the mean of the

ANALYZE …

A determine whether the two groups in the study experimental group is 50 and the mean of the control
are exactly the same. group is 40. Given that the two means are obviously
B determine how well the two groups are correlated. different, is it still possible for a researcher to say that
the two groups are not significantly different?
C see if the groups are significantly different, as
opposed to being different due to chance. A Yes, the two groups could overlap so much that the
difference was not significant.
D summarize the distribution using a single score.
B Yes, if the difference was not predicted by the
hypothesis.
C No, because the two groups are so far apart that
the difference must be significant.
D No, in statistics a difference of 10 points is just
enough to be significant.

Answers can be found on page ANS-1.

A Statistical Primer :: Module 2.4 :: 71

 Module Summary
Module Now that you have read this module you should
2.4
KNOW …

● The key terminology of statistics:

central tendency (p. 65) negatively skewed distribution

descriptive statistics (p. 65) (p. 65)
Imagesource/Glow Images
frequency (p. 65) normal distribution (p. 65)
hypothesis test (p. 69) positively skewed distribution
(p. 65)
mean (p. 66)
standard deviation (p. 68)
median (p. 66) 7
statistical significance (p. 70)
mode (p. 66)
variability (p. 67) 6

Frequency
UNDERSTAND … 4

3
● How and why psychologists use significance tests.
Significance tests are statistics that tell us whether 2
differences between groups or distributions are meaningful. 1
For example, the averages of two groups being compared
0
may be very different. However, how much variability

9
9
9
4

9
there is among individuals within each of the groups will

-5

-8
-7
-6
-6

-7

-8

-9

-9
55

85
75
65
60

70

80

90

95
determine whether the averages are significantly different.
In some cases, the averages of the two groups may be Quiz score (% correct)
different, yet not statistically different because the groups {fig. 2.14} Application Activity
overlap so much. This possibility explains why psychologists
use significance tests—to test whether groups really are
different from one another.
ANALYZE …

APPLY … ● The choice of central tendency statistics based on

the shape of the distribution. Although the mean is the
● Your knowledge to interpret the most frequently used most commonly used measure of central tendency, it is
types of graphs. Take a look at Figure 2.14, a histogram not always the best method for describing a set of data.
showing the grades from a quiz in a statistics course, at For example, incomes are positively skewed. Suppose
the top of the next column and then answer the following one politician claims the mean income level is $40 000,
questions and check your answers on page ANS-1. while the other claims that the median income level is
1. What is the shape of this distribution? Normal, $25 000. Which politician is giving the more representative
negatively skewed, or positively skewed? measure? It would seem that the median would be a more
representative statistic because it is not overly influenced
2. What grade range is the mode for this class? by extremely high scores.
3. How many people earned a grade in the “B” range
(between 80 and 89)?

72 :: Module 2.4 : : A Statistical Primer

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Research Design

1 What do we know about scientific research?

On page 50 we discussed the difference between correlation and
2 How can science help differentiate between
different kinds of research designs?
causation. Imagine reading a study that states that aggressive people tend to have Conducting sound research means not only knowing which
red bedrooms. Will painting your bedroom red cause you to act aggressively? questions to ask, but also how to ask them correctly. Early
It simply means that the variables of room colour and aggressive acts are sta- psychological research in North America was based almost
tistically related. Only an experiment can show causality, so turn to Figure 2.4 exclusively on observations of behaviour and self-reports,
on page 52 for a review of its elements. but over time new technologies such as functional magnetic
To understand scientific experiments, you should know the difference between resonance imaging (fMRI) expanded the number of variables
a dependent variable, which is the variable that is measured during the experi- psychologists can study. In the past few centuries, scientists
ment and compared across all of the groups, and the independent variable, have developed a variety of research designs suited to answer
which is the variable that the researcher manipulates. many new research questions; Table 2.1 on page 53 offers a
snapshot of the strengths and limitations of each. Regardless of
To make sure you have correctly labelled the variables in an experiment, insert
the design used, scientific research must be based on objective,
the variable names into the following phrase.
reliable measurements; it should generalize to a population
How ________ affects ________. from which the sample was drawn; it should avoid bias; and it
(i.v.) (d.v.) should be made public so that others can learn from it, evalu-
In this case, the room colour is the independent ate it, and replicate it.
variable and aggressiveness is the dependent
variable.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video
excerpt about the scientific method . You
can access the video at MyPsychLab or by clicking Ryan Jorgensen-Jorgo/Shutterstock
the play button in the centre of your eText. If your
instructor assigns this video as a homework activity, you will find
additional content to help you in MyPsychLab. You can also view
3
Can we critically evaluate scientific research designs?
Understanding the characteristics of different scientific methods
the video by using your smart phone and the QR code below, or can help you evaluate the claims you encounter in everyday life. Think
you can go to the YouTube link provided. back to what you know about correlation and causation. The news media
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, imagine in particular often perpetuate the idea that an association, or correlation,
you have been asked to create an experimental design to test between two variables is the same as a cause-and-effect relationship. For
the hypothesis that talking on a cell phone impairs driving skills. example, “Happiness Makes You Live Longer” is more dramatic than the
Explain why a control condition would be important to include headline “There Is a Positive Correlation between Happiness and Lon-
in testing this hypothesis. How should participants be assigned to gevity.” When evaluating research, notice qualifying words such as “might
conditions? How can the researchers design the experiment so increase” and “could have an effect,” both of which suggest correlation.
that the only difference between both conditions is the use of a Similarly, in Myths in Mind on page 50, we explored the idea that many
cell phone? common beliefs are actually illusory correlations. When two relatively
rare events happen simultaneously, such as a full moon and an uncom-
monly busy night in the emergency room, then we might overestimate
their relationship. That your staunchly conservative friend is dating an
equally passionate liberal is more memorable than the fact that most of
your coupled friends support the same political candidates.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]/workthemodel
[Link]/wor
orkth
kthemo
kth
hemod
dell
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Chapter 2 :: 73

 3
Biological Psychology
3.1 Genetic and Evolutionary
Perspectives on Behaviour
● Heredity and Behaviour p. 76
● Evolutionary Insights into
Human Behaviour p. 82
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: Ruby
Red Lipstick and That Sexy Red Dress p. 85
● Module Summary p. 91

3.2 How the Nervous System Works:

Cells and Neurotransmitters
● Neural Communication p. 93
● The Chemical Messengers:
Neurotransmitters and
Hormones p. 97
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Pain and Substance P p. 100
● Module Summary p. 104

3.3 Structure and Organization of the

Nervous System
● Divisions of the Nervous
System p. 106
● The Brain and Its Structures p. 108
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Neuroplasticity and Recovery
from Brain Injury p. 117
● Module Summary p. 119

3.4 Windows to the Brain: Measuring

and Observing Brain Activity
● Insights from Brain Damage p. 121
Sebastian Kaulitzki/Shutterstock ● Structural and Functional
Neuroimaging p. 122
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Functional MRI and Behaviour p. 125
● Module Summary p. 128

74 :: Module : : • Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 129
 Roberto A Sanchez/iStockphoto

Module

3.1 Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives

on Behaviour
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology How twin and adoption Your knowledge of genes and Claims that scientists have located
After reading related to genes, studies reveal relationships behaviour to hypothesize why a specific gene that controls a
this module inheritance, and between genes and behaviour a trait might be adaptive single trait or behaviour
you should evolutionary psychology Explanations for cognitive gender
differences that are rooted in genetics

Psychologist Martie Haselton has given new meaning to the phrase dress Of course, evolutionary psychologists are quick to point out that females
for success. She is not talking about professional advancement, however; are not alone in “signalling” their receptiveness for sexual activity. Males
rather, she is referring to success in attracting a mate. Dr. Haselton is provide numerous—if not more obvious—examples. Evolutionary psy-
an evolutionary psychologist—she studies how human behaviour has chologists might point out that body building, flaunting material assets,
evolved to solve problems that relate to survival and reproductive suc- and other public displays of strength and status are common male strat-
cess. As part of her work, she has discovered that the clothes people egies for attracting mates. Researchers must ask themselves this ques-
choose are related to sexual motivation in some subtle ways. tion: Is this behaviour just a coincidence? Or is this how the evolutionary
forces that allowed our species to survive for hundreds of thousands of
In one project, Dr. Haselton and her colleagues invited female volunteers to
years are influencing our behaviour in the modern world? Evolutionary
the laboratory to participate in a study about personality, sexuality, and health.
psychologists like Dr. Haselton are building evidence to argue that how
The young women were not given any specific directions about what to wear
we dress and how we send many other signals can be explained by evolu-
and during their visit to the laboratory they agreed to be photographed. Later,
tionary principles, a topic we explore in this module.
male and female volunteers viewed the photographs to judge whether they
thought the women in the photos had dressed to look attractive. It turns out
that women were rated as having dressed more attractively when they were
Focus Questions
in their peak level of fertility of the menstrual cycle (Durante et al., 2008; 1 How is human behaviour influenced by genetic factors?
Haselton et al., 2007). The researchers suggested that wearing such clothing
2 How has evolution played a role in modern-day human behaviour?
during the fertile phase of the menstrual cycle was an attempt to be noticed
by a potential mate (although the women in the study might disagree).

Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour :: Module 3.1 :: 75

 You might have heard something like this before: Leah THE GENETIC CODE Given that genetics can influ-
gets her passion for reading from her father. But does that ence so many aspects of our lives, it is important to
mean Leah inherited this interest? Or did she just grow review some of this field’s basic concepts. Our genetic
up with a lot of books around the home? Are we the code isn’t hidden in the darkest corners of our brains.
products of our genes (nature) or the environment in Instead, it is found in the nucleus of most of the bil-
which we were raised (nurture)? Debates about nature lions of cells in the human body. This genetic material
and nurture have been going on for many decades; is organized into genes, the basic units of heredity; genes are
indeed, the nature-nurture question can easily be applied responsible for guiding the process of creating the proteins that
to almost every module in this textbook. Perhaps one make up our physical structures and regulate development and
reason people have so often debated nature and nurture physiological processes throughout the lifespan.
Explore relationships is because humans have such a strong ten- Genes are composed of segments of DNA (deoxy-
Building Blocks dency to think in either/or categories: yes or no, true ribonucleic acid) , a molecule formed in a double-helix
of Genetics or false, black or white. In reality, all of the available evi- shape that contains four nucleotides: adenine, cytosine, guanine,
dence suggests that nature and nurture lie along a con- and thymine (see Figure 3.1). These nucleotides are typi-
tinuum, with some traits subject to greater influence cally abbreviated using the first letter of their names—A,
from genetics (nature) while others are more environ- C, G, and T. Each gene is a unique combination of these
mentally based (nurture). Most important, we now know four nucleotides. For example, a sequence of nucleotides
that genetics and experience are never independent. on a certain gene may be AGCCTAATCG . . . and so on.
Therefore, the modern scientific nature–nurture ques- This is the individual’s genotype, the genetic makeup of an
tion does not split them into two exclusive possibilities. organism—the unique set of genes that comprise that individu-
Rather, we ask, How do nature and nurture interact to pro- al’s genetic code. This sequence represents the code used to
duce behaviour? create proteins. Genes specify which types of molecules
a cell should produce and when to produce them. The
result of these instructions is an organism’s phenotype,
Heredity and Behaviour the physical traits or behavioural characteristics that show genetic
Examples of genetic influences on physical traits easily variation, such as eye colour, the shape and size of facial features,
come to mind because we tend to share our eye colour, and even personality. This phenotype develops because of
facial characteristics, stature, and skin colouration with differences in the nucleotide sequencing of A, C, G, and
our parents. But research has made it clear that behav- T, as well as through interactions with the environment.
iours are influenced by genes just as physical characteris- Genes are organized in pairs along chromosomes,
tics are; indeed, the two are often related. Genetics has an structures in the cellular nucleus that are lined with all of the
influence on the brain, just as it has an influence on eye genes an individual inherits. Humans have approximately
colour, and changes in brain functions lead to changes in 20 000–25 000 genes distributed across 23 pairs of
behaviour. Therefore, although a discussion of genetics chromosomes, half contributed by the mother and half
may seem unrelated to how you think or feel, the work by the father (see Figure 3.2). (In some cases, an extra
of genes—both during development and during every- chromosome—a trisomy— is present, thus alter ing
day life—has a dramatic effect on your behaviour. the genetic make-up as well as the phenotype of the

Nucleus

Cell
Chromosome Genes contain
DNA Genes
instructions
C T T for making
C
C T G
G T A A proteins.
G
A A A
T G C

{fig. 3.1} DNA Molecules The nucleus of a cell contains copies of each
chromosome. Chromosomes are composed of the genes arranged in the familiar double
helix—a long strand of DNA molecules. Click on this figure in your eText to see more
details.

76 :: Module 3.1 : : Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour

 somersault1824/Shutterstock
{fig. 3.2} Human Chromosomes Human DNA is aligned along 23 paired chromosomes. Numbers 1–22 are common to both
males and females. Chromosome 23 is sex linked, with males having the XY pattern and females the XX pattern.

individual. The most common chromosomal abnormal- People can also inherit a recessive copy of this gene (t).
ity is Down Syndrome, a trisomy on the 21st chromo- Those who report tasting PTC are either homozygous
some, although many others exist.) dominant (TT) or heterozygous (Tt). Nontasters are
If two corresponding genes at a given location on homozygous recessive (tt)—they inherited a recessive
a pair of chromosomes are the same, they are referred copy of the gene from both parents. Those who are tast-
to as homozygous. If the two genes differ, they are hetero- ers may find foods such as Brussels sprouts, cauliflower,
zygous. Whether a trait is expressed depends on which and cabbage to be unpleasant, or at least too bitter to eat,
combination of pairs is inherited. In order to make these as these foods contain PTC.
abstract concepts more concrete, let’s look at an example In this example, the genotype represents what was
that affects everyone: our sense of taste. Researchers have inherited (i.e., tt, Tt, or TT). The phenotype represents
shown that the ability to taste a very bitter substance the physical and behavioural manifestation of that geno-
called phenylthiocarbamide (PTC) is based on which type that occurs through interactions with the environ-
combination of genes we inherit from either parent (the ment (i.e., being a taster or a nontaster for this specific
genotype; see Figure 3.3). The test for whether you can sensation—note that nontasters in this context might
taste PTC (the phenotype) is typically performed by have normal responses to other tastes). As you will see,
placing a small tab of paper soaked in the substance on this attempt to link genes to behaviour is a rapidly grow-
the tongue. Some people are “tasters”; they cringe at the ing area of research in psychology and medicine.
bitter taste of PTC. Others—the “nontasters”—cannot As geneticists continue to unravel different parts of
taste anything other than the tab of paper. Those who the entire human genome, it is becoming increasingly Explore
are tasters inherit at least one copy of the dominant gene clear that simple examples like the taster-nontaster trait Dominant and
for tasting (abbreviated capital “T”) from either parent. provide only a glimpse of what knowledge might soon Recessive Traits

Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour :: Module 3.1 :: 77

 of different groups of people (e.g., depressed and non-
depressed individuals) to look for differences that might
shed light on the cause of different conditions. For
example, in 1997, researchers identified a gene that was
found in families prone to Parkinson’s disease (Polyme-
ropoulos et al., 1997). Since then, a number of muta-
Father Mother tions that are linked to Parkinson’s have been identified
Genes Tt Genes Tt including SNCA , Parkin , PINK1 , DJ1, and LRRK2
Heterozygous Heterozygous
Taster Taster (Klein & Schlossmacher, 2006).
However, we must be cautious in our interpreta-
t T
tion of such discoveries. Like any approach to answering
T T t t T t
scientific questions, behavioural genomic research does
have its limitations. For example, although a single gene
has been identified as a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease,
not everyone who inherits it develops the disease. The
same is true for many other conditions. This brings us
to a common misconception about genes and behaviour.
Genes TT Genes Tt Genes Tt Genes tt
Homozygous Heterozygous Heterozygous Homozygous
Taster Taster Taster Non-taster

{fig. 3.3} Genetic Inheritance Whether someone tastes

the bitter compound PTC depends on which copies of the
MYTHS IN MIND
gene he or she inherits. Shown here is the statistically probable Single Genes and Behaviour
outcome of two heterozygous (Tt) parents with four children.
Enter the phrase “scientists find the gene
be available to us. Indeed, in recent years, an entirely new for” into your favourite Internet search engine and you will
field has developed that attempts to identify the genes wind up with more hits than you would ever have time to
sift through. Although it is true that behaviour, both normal
involved with specific behaviours: behavioural genomics.
and abnormal, can be traced to individual genes, typically
combinations of genes influence behaviour. When it comes
BEHAVIOURAL GENOMICS: THE MOLECULAR
to complex characteristics such as personality or disorders
APPROACH Although researchers have suggested
like Alzheimer’s disease and schizophrenia, there is very little
that genetics play a role in many abilities and behaviours, chance that any single gene could be responsible for them
until recently it has not been possible to determine how (Duan et al., 2010). A person’s intelligence and his predispo-
traits are inherited. To make this determination, research- sition to alcoholism, anxiety, shyness, and depression are all
ers now go straight to the source of genetic influence— examples of traits and conditions with genetic links, but they
to the genes themselves. Behavioural genomics is the all involve multiple genes.
Watch study of DNA and the ways in which specific genes are related Another misconception is that a single gene can affect
Genetic Predisposition to behaviour. The technology supporting behavioural only one trait. In reality, the discovery that a particular gene
to Alcoholism genomics is relatively new, but once it became avail- predisposes someone to alcoholism does not mean that this
able, researchers initiated a massive effort to identify the gene is only relevant to alcohol addiction; it most likely affects
other traits as well. For example, genes that are present in
components of the entire human genome—the Human
people who abuse alcohol are also more likely to be found
Genome Project. This project, which was completed in
in individuals who have a history of other problems such as
2003, resulted in the identification of approximately additional forms of drug dependence and antisocial behaviour.
20 000–25 000 genes. Imagine the undertaking: deter- In other words, these different behaviours may share some
mining the sequences of the billions of A, C, G, and T characteristics, and the gene may be related to that “shared
nucleotides making up the genes, including where each genetic liability” (Dick, 2007).
gene begins and ends, and how they are all arranged on When you encounter a headline beginning “Scientists
Watch the chromosomes. The Human Genome Project itself find gene for . . . ,” don’t read it as “Scientists found THE gene
How the Human did not directly provide a cure for a disease or an under- for . . . .” It would be wise to carefully read on to fully under-
Genome Map standing of any particular behaviour. Instead, it has led to stand what is being reported. It is likely that the news describes
Affects You
an abundance of new techniques and information about the work of scientists who found another one of the many
where genes are located, and it opened the door for an genes involved in a disorder or, in the case of Alzheimer’s dis-
ease, a gene that is a risk factor and not the sole cause.
entirely new era of research (Plomin & Crabbe, 2000).
Indeed, researchers can now compare the genotypes

78 :: Module 3.1 : : Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour

B E H AV I O U R A L G E N E T I C S : T W I N A N D
ADOPTION STUDIES People have long observed
that behavioural characteristics can be inherited. For many
centuries, the clearest evidence of this possibility came
from animal breeding, where animals such as dogs have
been reared to be hunters, herders, protectors, or compan-
ions. Because we cannot use the methods of dog breed-
ers to study humans, some alternatives are required. This
desire to understand the degree to which genetics can
explain individual differences in abilities and behaviours
spawned a new field of research. Behavioural genetics is Watch
the study of how genes and the environment influence behaviour. Basics: Genetic

Behavioural genetic methods applied to humans typically Mechanisms and

involve comparing people of different levels of relatedness, Behavioural Genetics

such as parents and their offspring, siblings, and unrelated

individuals, and measuring resemblances for a specific trait
of interest. However, the group that has provided the most
Top: Creatas Images/Getty Images/Thinkstock;
insight into the genetic effects on behaviour is twins.
bottom: Martin Harvey/Alamy
Twins present an amazing opportunity to conduct
Identical twins are genetically the same, whereas fraternal
natural experiments on how genes influence behaviour. twins are no more closely related than full siblings from
One method commonly used in twin studies involves different pregnancies. However, fraternal twins do share much
comparing identical and fraternal twins. Monozygotic of the same prenatal and postnatal environment if they are
reared together. Researchers assume, then, that if the identical
twins come from a single ovum (egg), which makes them twins are more similar on a given trait than fraternal twins, this
genetically identical (almost 100% genetic similarity). An ideal difference is due to genetics. But, it is possible that identical
comparison group, dizygotic twins (fraternal twins) twins are treated more similarly than are fraternal twins (so
they have more nature and more nurture in common). How
come from two separate eggs fertilized by two different sperm
would this affect your interpretation of twin studies?
cells that share the same womb; these twins have approximately
50% of their genetics in common. Researchers around the not simply reflect how much genetics contributes to the
world have studied the genetic and environmental bases trait itself. Rather, heritability scores tell us the degree to
of behaviour by comparing monozygotic twins, dizy- which genetics explain differences between people with
gotic twins, non-twin siblings, and unrelated individuals. that trait. For instance, the heritability of having a mouth
The assumption underlying these studies is that if a trait
is genetically determined, then individuals with a greater
genetic similarity will also have a greater similarity for
that trait. Researchers have also examined these different
groups in longitudinal studies, studies that follow the same
individuals for many years, often decades. For example,
one twin study determined the degree to which anxiety
and depression are influenced by genetics in children and
adolescents. It was far more likely for both monozygotic
twins to show anxiety or depressive symptoms than for
both dizygotic twins to do so; thus, these results demon-
strate the influential role that genes play in depression
(Boomsma et al., 2005).
Behavioural geneticists use twin studies to calculate
heritability—a statistic, expressed as a number between zero
and one, that represents the degree to which genetic differences
between individuals contribute to individual differences in a
behaviour or trait found in a population. A heritability of 0
means that genes do not contribute to individual dif-
Comstock Images/Getty Images/Thinkstock
ferences in a trait, whereas a heritability of 1.0 indicates
There is heritable variation in body height—although
that genes account for all individual differences in a trait. environmental factors contribute to variation in height among
It is important to point out that heritability scores do family members.

Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour :: Module 3.1 :: 79

 is 0. This is not to say that genetics has nothing to do in the preceding paragraphs: For intelligence, heritability
with us having mouths, but we all have mouths, so there seems to increase with age, whereas the opposite is true
aren’t many individual differences to deal with on this for depression and anxiety.
trait. But, as you read earlier, there are individual differ- Although heritability estimates provide important
ences in the ability to taste certain flavours. Some of this information about the different effects of “nature” and
will be genetic (as you read), and some of this will be “nurture” on different behaviours, we have to be cau-
due to the foods you are exposed to while growing up. tious about how we generalize this information. Heri-
Therefore, the heritability for tasting different flavours tability estimates are limited to the population being
would be between 0 and 1. studied. We cannot make definitive statements about the
Heritability estimates are rarely, if ever, an extreme heritability of depression in Egypt based on the results
value of 0 or 1.0. Instead, genetics and environmental of a study conducted in Canada (although we can use
influences (e.g., family life) both account for some of the the Canadian study to generate hypotheses about what
differences in our behaviour. For instance, the estimated we think we would find if we performed the same study
heritability found in the study on depression and anxiety in Egypt). This is because any estimate of heritability is
described earlier was approximately .76 for 3-year-old affected by (1) the amount of genetic variability within
identical twin pairs (Boomsma et al., 2005). This tells us the group being studied and (2) the variability in the
that 76% of individual differences in depression and anx- environments that members of that group might be
iety at age 3 can be attributed to genetic factors in the exposed to. For example, people from an isolated village
population that was studied. However, depression and in the Amazon rainforest would likely not have much
anxiety can also obviously be influenced by our differ- variability in their genetics because they would not have
ent life experiences. It should not be a surprise to learn a lot of contact with outside groups. In contrast, many
that heritability estimates for these behaviours change as Canadians have diverse genetic backgrounds. The iso-
we age. In the Boomsma et al. (2005) study, the herita- lated Amazon villagers would also spend most of their
bility of anxiety and depression went from .76 at age 3 lives in the same village and its surrounding areas, thus
to .48 at age 12 for the identical twin pairs. This change leading to less variability in their environments than
is likely due to the fact that an individual’s peer group people in a city like Vancouver might experience. This is
and social life can have a larger effect on one’s emotional not to say that one way of life is better than another—
well-being during the “tween” and teen-aged years than but we need to be mindful of these differences in genetic
they would during the toddler years (when family is the and environmental variability so that we don’t incor-
main non-genetic factor). This finding should serve as a rectly assume that North American genetic studies gen-
reminder that the environment never stops interacting eralize to the entire world.
with genes.
Behavioural geneticists also study adopted chil- GENE EXPRESSION AND BEHAVIOUR The fact
dren to estimate genetic contributions to behaviour. that heritability estimates change over time based on
The adopted family represents the nurture side of the our different experiences shows us that nature and nur-
Watch continuum, whereas the biological family represents ture interact to produce behaviour. What these estimates
In the Real World: the nature side. On the one hand, if adopted children don’t tell us is how that interaction occurs in our bod-
Taking Control of Our are more like their biological parents than their adop- ies and brains. Recent advances in our understanding
Genes tive parents on measures of traits such as personality and of genetics and the human genome have begun to shed
intelligence, we might conclude that these traits have a light on some of these relationships.
strong genetic component. On the other hand, if the Almost every cell in our bodies contains the same
children are more like their adoptive, genetically unre- genes, the basic unit of heredity. But, only some of these
lated parents, a strong case can be made that environ- genes are active, leading to the production of proteins
mental factors outweigh the biological predispositions. (or other gene products like ribosomal RNA); the other
Interestingly, young adopted children are more similar genes are inactive and do not influence protein produc-
to their adoptive parents in intelligence levels than they tion. Of the approximately 20 000-25 000 genes in the
are to their biological parents. By the time they reach human genome, between 6000 and 7000 are active in
16 years, however, adopted adolescents score more simi- the human brain. These genes influence the develop-
larly to their biological parents than their adoptive parents ment of different brain structures, the production of
in tests of intelligence, suggesting that some genes related chemicals that allow brain cells to communicate with
to intelligence do not exert their influence(s) on behav- each other, and the refinement of connections between
iour until later on in development (Plomin et al., 1997). cells that allow large-scale brain networks to form
Compare this finding to that from the study described (French & Pavlidis, 2011). The expression of these genes

80 :: Module 3.1 : : Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour

is influenced by genetics, environmental factors that People who inherit one copy of each gene (are hetero-
influence the chemical make-up of the cells, or a combi- zygous) show intermediate responses to stressful events.
nation of the two. Notice that the type of serotonin gene inherited has no
If some genes fail to be activated (or expressed ) effect on depression after only one or two major stress-
properly, people may be at a greater risk for developing ful events. The gene–environment interaction becomes
brain-related disorders. For example, Dan Geschwind apparent after an accumulation of events. This interaction
and colleagues (2011) found that children with autism between a genetic predisposition for a disorder and life
had less gene expression in several regions of the brain. stress is known as the diathesis-stress model of psycho-
This decrease in gene expression was linked to prob- logical disorders (diathesis is Greek for “disposition” or
lems with language, decision making, and understanding “vulnerability”). It is just one of many examples of how
other people’s emotions. Researchers are now inves- nature and nurture interact.
tigating ways to alter gene expression in order to treat The fact that gene expression can be influenced by
different brain disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and the environment is an example of the social part of the bio-
Alzheimer’s disease. psychosocial model of behaviour discussed throughout this
Importantly, gene expression is a life-long process textbook—nurture can influence nature. Some researchers
(Champagne, 2010). Factors such as diet, stress level, have speculated that gene expression could also be influ-
and sleep can influence whether genes are turned on or enced by the culture in which one lives. Culture, family,
off . This study of changes in gene expression that occur as and other social bonds all influence how we respond—
a result of experience and that do not alter the genetic code is both psychologically and biologically—to different situ-
known as epigenetics. Studies with mice have shown ations and stimuli. Therefore, these sociocultural factors Watch
that increased maternal licking and grooming (the have the potential to influence whether or not certain Special Topics:

rodent equivalent of cuddling) led to an increase in the genes are expressed (Richardson & Boyd, 2005). Epigenetics—A
Revolutionary Science
expression of the GR gene in the hippocampus (Francis Although many of the changes in gene expression
et al., 1999). This gene influences stress responses and do not alter the genetic code, some do get passed on from
can affect how well (or poorly) individuals respond to generation to generation. Chemically-induced changes
novel situations. Low levels of licking and grooming led in the expression of genes in the amygdala and hippo-
to decreased GR expression and a larger stress response campus—structures related to emotion and memory—
(Weaver et al., 2004). Similar effects have been observed have been shown to influence anxiety-related behaviours
in humans. Decreased GR expression was noted in a for three generations of rats (Skinner et al., 2008)! Licking
recent study of childhood abuse victims who later com- and grooming have similarly been shown to affect both
mitted suicide, demonstrating the power of these gene– gene expression and maternal behaviours across three
environment interactions. Indeed, there is increasing generations (Champagne et al., 2003). Therefore, how
evidence that epigenetics plays a role in a number of you behave now could have lasting effects on the genetic
psychological disorders (Labrie et al., 2012). codes of your grandchildren.
This process is evident in long-term studies of the
relationship between genes, stress, and depression. The
.50
brain chemical known as serotonin is related to mood,
and imbalances of it are associated with depression (see Short/Short
.40
Module 3.2 and Module 13.3). Recently, researchers
Probability of major
depression episode

have identified a gene related to the release of serotonin. .30 Short/Long

There are two versions of this gene—short and long
(referring to length of the DNA strands). Researchers .20 Long/Long
have found that people who inherit two copies of the
short version are at greater risk for developing depres- .10
sion, whereas those who inherit two long copies are at
a far lower risk (Caspi et al., 2003; Caspi et al., 2010). .00
But what is critical here is not just which genes are 0 1 2 3 4+

inherited, but also how much stress people experience. Number of stressful life events
Figure 3.4 shows how this relationship works. As the {fig. 3.4} Gene and Environment Interactions Stress interacts with
number of major stressful life events increases, those who genes and influences whether someone becomes depressed. People who
inherit two copies of the short version of this gene are inherit two copies of the short version of a gene that codes for serotonin
activity in nerve cells are at an increased risk for becoming depressed in
far more likely to develop depression, whereas those who response to major life stressors. Those who inherit two long copies are buff-
inherit two long copies are buffered from depression. ered from becoming depressed as life stressors accumulate.

Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour :: Module 3.1 :: 81

 South Africa, exposed Darwin to a vast number of spe-
Quick Quiz 3.1a cies and eventually led to him developing one of the most
Heredity and Behaviour important (and controversial) theories in human history.
While travelling among the different Galápagos
1 The chemical units that provide instructions on how

KNOW . . .
specific proteins are to be produced are called ________. Islands (900 km west of modern-day Ecuador), Darwin
A chromosomes C genomic noticed small differences between members of the same
B genes D autosomes species of birds and turtles. These differences meshed
quite well with the particular environments the ani-
mals lived in. He also identified fossils from a number
2 A person who is homozygous for a trait
UNDERSTAND . . .

of extinct species. Based on these observations, Darwin

A always has two dominant copies of a gene.
deduced that some members of a species were more “fit”
B always has two recessive copies of a gene.
for a particular environment than others, and that the
C has identical copies of the gene. fittest individuals would be more likely to prosper and
D has different copies of the gene. reproduce. Individuals that were not well-matched to
their environment would not reproduce. If an entire spe-
cies was not fit for its environment, it could go extinct.
3 If a researcher wanted to identify how someone’s life
APPLY . . .

experiences could affect the expression of different These observations were later described as Darwin’s the-
genes and thus put that person at risk for developing ory of natural selection, the process by which favourable
depression, she would most likely use which of the traits become increasingly common in a population of interbreed-
following methods? ing individuals, while traits that are unfavourable become less
A Behavioural genomics common (see Figure 3.5).
B A comparison of monozygotic and dizygotic twins Of course, individual animals could not control
in different parts of the world
whether or not they were fit for a given environment.
C An adoption study
Instead, the genes of some animals would combine in
D Epigenetics such a way to produce traits favourable to that setting
(i.e., they were adaptive) and the genes of other animals
would combine in less useful ways. Because the adaptive
4 Imagine you hear a report about a heritability study
ANALYZE . . .

that claims trait X is “50% genetic.” Which of the or fit animals were more likely to survive and reproduce,
following is a more accurate way of stating this? these traits would then be more likely to be passed on
A Fifty percent of individual differences of trait X to future generations. Darwin termed this process evo-
Watch
within a population are due to genetic factors. lution, the change in the frequency of genes occurring in an
The Big Picture: B Only half of a population has the trait. interbreeding population over generations.
Genes, Evolution, and C The trait is homozygous. Evolution is not a continuous process, however. If
Human Behaviour D More than 50% of similarities of trait X within a an animal is perfectly adapted for its environment, then
population are due to genetic factors. there is no evolutionary pressure for change to occur.
Answers can be found on page ANS-1. Let’s call that version 1.0 of the animal. But what if some
pressure such as a change in the climate or the avail-
ability of food occurs? In this case, a given trait might
be advantageous in that specific environment and spe-
Knowing about genes gives us some idea as to why
cific point in time. Through natural selection, this trait
individuals differ. Another issue, explored in the next
would eventually become common within that species
section, is how these individual differences contribute to
and may in the future serve other functions and interact
behaviours that lead to survival and reproductive success.
with the environment in novel ways. Let’s call this ver-
sion 2.0 of the animal. When the next environmental
Evolutionary Insights into Human pressure occurred, a subset of version 2.0 of the animal
would possess traits that makes them more evolution-
Behaviour arily fit than the other version 2.0 animals. This subset
On December 27, 1831, a young Charles Darwin began would survive and reproduce, eventually leading to ver-
his voyage on the HMS Beagle, a ship tasked to survey the sion 3.0 of the animal. While this description is over-
coastline of South America. Darwin’s (self-funded) posi- simplified, it does illustrate a key point: Any modern
tion was to act as a naturalist, examining the wildlife, flora, species is based upon version after version after version
and geology of the areas the ship visited. This five-year of species that were fit for their particular environment
voyage, which included additional stops in Australia and and time.

82 :: Module 3.1 : : Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour

{fig. 3.5} How Traits Evolve Evolution through natural selection requires both that a trait be heritable (i.e., be passed down through
reproductive means) and that certain individuals within a breeding population have a reproductive advantage for having the trait.

Suppose colouration is a genetically Suppose a bird that preys on these lady Genes for red colouration should spread
inherited trait in lady bugs. bugs can see the yellow ones better. through the population because natural
This brings about a survival and selection favours red lady bugs over
reproductive advantage to red lady yellow lady bugs.
bugs that have red-coloured offspring.

E VO L U T I O N A RY P S Y C H O L O G Y H ow d o Darwin’s ideas became accepted in almost all scientific Watch

Darwin’s theories of evolution and natural selection circles. Today, a modern branch of psychology known as Thinking Like a
relate to human behaviour? Part of the answer is that evolutionary psychology attempts to explain human behav- Psychologist:
humans are animals too. Just as turtles and birds faced iours based on the beneficial function(s) they may have Evolutionary

numerous evolutionary challenges over the last few served in our species’ development. Psychology

hundred years, so too did modern humanity’s ancestors.

There is fossil evidence showing that many branches of INTRA- AND INTERSEXUAL SELECTION Of
our ancestral family tree died out, likely because their all the evolutionary pressures that an individual faces,
physical and mental characteristics were not fit for their perhaps the most pressing is the need to pass on our
environment. A second part of the answer is that the genetic material to future generations. This challenge
development of traits that improve survival is based on occurs even when there are no environmental pressures,
the shuffling of the genetic material that you read about as individual members of a species will each be moti-
earlier in this module. Although DNA had not been dis- vated to reproduce. It should come as no surprise, then,
covered yet, Darwin’s theory can be directly linked to that adaptations have evolved to help some individuals
the fact that cytosine, adenine, guanine, and thymine can increase their chances of mating (Darwin, 1871).
be reordered to produce different combinations of genes. Of course, having the opportunity to mate is not Watch
Darwin’s theories met with considerable opposi- always simple. In some species, members of one sex (usu- Evolution and Sex:
tion. By stating that animals evolved over time based ally males) compete for access to the other sex (usually Michael Bailey

on environmental pressures, Darwin was challenging females). For instance, some deer and caribou literally
the view that animals had been created “as is” by an all- lock horns in violent fights known as rutting. The winner
knowing deity. By stating that all humans had common of the fight is much more likely to mate with females
ancestors that evolved into modern people, Darwin was than is the loser. Similar examples occur in many primate
demonstrating that all people—regardless of ethnicity or species. Here, a dominant male—often referred to as the
economic status—were essentially equal. This view was alpha male—intimidates other males and is more likely
not popular in Victorian England, where the aristocracy to mate with multiple females than are the subordinate
looked at the working class with disdain and where the males. These are examples of intrasexual selection, a
English felt that they had the right to colonize non- situation in which members of the same sex compete in order to
Caucasian countries such as India. However, over time, win the opportunity to mate with members of the opposite sex.

Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour :: Module 3.1 :: 83

 John E Marriott/Glow Images
In intrasexual selection, members of the same sex compete for access to members of the other sex.

Intrasexual selection is evolutionarily advantageous curious, the actress Jessica Alba’s face perfectly matches
because the animals most likely to become dominant are this geometry.) However, not all elements of intersexual
the strongest and/or smartest, and therefore the most fit selection are the gift (or curse) of our genes. Men often
for that time and place. present cues that highlight their masculinity, such as wear-
A second form of sexual selection is known as inter- ing clothes that display their muscles. They also attempt to
sexual selection, a situation in which members of one sex appear large and athletic, particularly when around poten-
select a mating partner based on their desirable traits. Some of tial mates. For example, if an attractive woman walks by
these traits are a result of genetics. For instance, a number a group of men, they tend to stand up straight to appear
of experiments have shown that people rate symmetri- taller and healthier, and thus more attractive (this makes
cal faces as being more attractive than asymmetrical faces for wonderful people-watching at bars). Women also
(Gangestad et al., 1994; Rhodes et al., 2006). Women pre- attempt to highlight attractive elements of their physique.
fer men who are taller (6’0 or 1.83 m), with good posture, The multibillion-dollar cosmetics industry provides tools
and not very hairy (Buss, 2003; Dixson et al., 2010). Men for women to change their skin tone, skin texture, hair
prefer women who are slightly shorter than them, have colour, fragrance, eyelash colour and thickness, and lip
full lips, high cheekbones, and a small chin. Researchers at colour. Clothing is also used to increase attractiveness. At
the University of Toronto found that participants preferred the beginning of this module, you learned that women
female faces in which the distance between the eyes was dress more attractively when they are ovulating. Recently,
Simulate 46% of the width of the face from ear to ear, and in which a group of researchers have suggested that some of these
Perceptions of the distance between the eyes and the mouth was 36% of clothing selections might actually be tapping into primal
Attractiveness the length of the face (Pallett et al., 2010). (In case you’re impulses that are hard-wired into our genetic code.

Left: Shawn Hempel/[Link]; centre: [Link]/Alamy; right: MartiniDry/[Link]

Animals of many species use colouration as a way to attract the attention of potential mates, and those who are most colourful are often
preferred. This does not include men who paint their chests at football games.

84 :: Module 3.1 : : Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour

University of Western Australia
Facial Symmetry and Attraction Which face do you prefer of these five? You likely chose the middle face because it has
the highest level of symmetry. People can detect this quality without even having to study the faces very closely.

How can science

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC provide evidence
LITERACY MODEL that the colour
Ruby Red Lipstick and That Sexy Red red is sexually
Dress advantageous?
Women who are wearing red clothes are perceived to be
We have all had the experience of seeing a woman in a red more interested in having sex than women wearing other
dress walk into a room and turn everyone’s head. We have colours. This perception occurs even when the same woman
also all seen women with striking red lipstick that makes her is shown in identical t-shirts whose colour has been digitally
lips the focus of attention. As an observer, what do you think altered (Guéguen, 2012); it is not affected by the attrac-
when you see these women? A number of studies suggest tiveness of the female model. Not surprisingly, the assump-
that people assume that these women are highlighting their tion that women in red were more sexually available also
sex appeal, a result that surprises no one. made them more attractive to heterosexual males (Pazda
et al., 2012). Although these assumptions seem crude, they
are consistent with trends found in photographs appear-
What do we know about
ing on dating websites. Elliot and Pazda (2012) found that
the colour red and sexual women who displayed red were more likely to be inter-
attraction? ested in casual sex than were women who displayed
Several studies in different countries any other colour on their website profile picture (see
have found that men respond differ- Figure 3.6). A follow-up study found that women displayed
ently to the colour red than to other red more prominently when posting photographs to websites
colours. Lipstick is generally some
shade of red and serves to make the
lips fuller and more vibrant. Women in red dresses seem Interest in Casual Sex and Colour
Displayed on a Dating Website
to attract more attention from heterosexual males than
other women in the room. These observations are not sim- 200
ply anecdotes; a growing body of research has shown that Yes
Number of women

the colour red changes men’s responses to women. For 150 No

instance, when black-and-white photographs of women are
presented on a red background, these women are rated 100
as being more attractive than when the same images are
presented on a white background (Elliot & Niesta, 2008). 50 *
Researchers in France have found that males tip waitresses
more generously when the women are wearing a red shirt 0
(Guéguen & Jacob, 2012a), have a red ornament in their hair Red Black Blue Green
(Jacob et al., 2012), or are wearing red (rather than pink or Colour displayed in profile
brown) lipstick (Guéguen & Jacob, 2012b). People are also *Statistically different
more likely to pick up female hitchhikers if they are wear-
{fig. 3.6} Red and Sexuality Women were more likely to display red when
ing red (Guéguen, 2010). So why does the colour red have attempting to meet a casual sex partner than when attempting to meet a
these effects? This question has a one-word answer: SEX. potential spouse.

Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour :: Module 3.1 :: 85

 dedicated to facilitating casual sex “hook ups” than to web- mimic primate reproductive organs, evolutionary psycholo-
sites dedicated to meeting a future spouse. These researchers gists would suggest that they are definitely interested in
have also found that women were more likely to choose a some form of monkey business.
red than a green or blue shirt when they expected to con-
verse with an attractive man. There was no colour difference Can we critically evaluate
when the women expected to meet another woman or an
unattractive man (Elliot et al., 2013). So why is red associated
this evidence?
with sex? Evolutionary psychology explana-
tions are often difficult to definitively
Evolutionary psychologists are quick to point out that red
prove, and the red dress and lipstick
is associated with sexual receptivity in many animals, includ-
explanations are no different. It is
ing humans. Female baboons and chimpanzees—species that
difficult to separate the evolution-
are evolutionarily close to humans—have redder chests and
ary forces of the colour red from learned associations, such
genitals when they are near ovulation than at other times of
as the linking of red with brothels (“red-light district”) or
their cycles (Deschner et al., 2004; Dixson, 1983). This blush-
images from literature or the entertainment world (e.g., “the
ing appears to be linked to estrogen levels, which open up the
lady in red”). One critical point about mating is that males are
blood vessels of these regions (Setchell & Wickings, 2004). In
more likely to invest more resources in attempting to mate
these species, males respond to the red swellings with copu-
with someone who is younger and more likely to bear off-
lation attempts and, if unsuccessful, self-stimulation (Waitt
spring. So, would the red-dress effect (as it is now known) be
et al., 2006). These researchers also found that male rhesus
age-specific? One experiment has tested this possibility, and
monkeys (Macaca mulatta) spend more time looking at red-
its results are consistent with the evolutionary explanation.
enhanced photographs of female anogenital regions than at
In a study similar to the tipping experiment discussed ear-
other images.
lier, the colour red had a much larger effect on the tips given
In humans, sexual interest is associated with flushing in the to younger waitresses than to older, post-menopausal wait-
face, neck, and upper chest (Changizi, 2009). Anthropologi- resses (Schwarz & Singer, 2012).
cal research has shown that women have used lipstick and
There is also the possibility that red’s continued associa-
rouge to mimic these vascular changes (and thus appear
tion with sex in society has created a self-fulfilling prophecy
more attractive to men) for over 10 000 years (Low, 1979).
in which women now wear red to highlight their sexuality
Some researchers have even suggested that red lipstick is
because that is how this message is conveyed in our cul-
used by women to make their mouths resemble aroused
ture (as opposed to wearing white or blue). If this is the
female genitals (Morris, 2005; Stephen et al., 2009). While it
case, then would red imply sexual receptivity in other cul-
is doubtful that women are consciously wearing red lipstick to
tures? To test this hypothesis, Elliot and colleagues (2013)
tested individuals in a remote village in Burkina Faso (in
Western Africa); care was taken to select participants with
little exposure to Western people and values. Importantly,
in this village, the colour red had negative associations—
death, bad luck, and sickness—and no sexual connotations.
The participants viewed black-and-white photographs of
women surrounded by either a red or a blue border. Con-
sistent with North American and European studies—and
contrary to their cultural norms—the women with the red
borders were rated as being more attractive. (Due to cul-
tural prohibitions, it was not possible to discuss whether
the women were viewed as being sexually available.) This
study suggests that the findings are more universal than
previously thought, although obviously other explanations
are still possible.

Why is this relevant?

Left: Theo Allofs/Corbis; right: Subbotina Anna/Fotolia The so-called “red-dress effect”
Evolutionary psychologists have suggested that red lipstick serves as a reminder of demonstrates that people can be
genitals and that it may tap into a primal urge to mate. sending subtle messages about

86 :: Module 3.1 : : Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour

themselves to others, sometimes without meaning to (or
having any desire to) do so. Whether or not you believe
the evolutionary psychology explanation for this effect, it is
tough to argue with the data indicating that people associate
the colour red with sexuality, particularly for females. (Red is
also associated with higher status in males; Elliot et al., 2010.)
Interestingly, another staple of the female wardrobe, the little
black dress, is not associated with sexual availability. Instead,
females in such an outfit are judged as being attractive
because they are fashionable (Pazda et al., 2013), thus sug-
gesting that there are multiple cognitive processes involved
with judgments of attractiveness.
Of course, it is important to point out that women wear-
ing red are not necessarily indicating their willingness to have
sex! These data are trends across the population and do not
predict individual people’s behaviour. Sometimes a woman in
a red dress is evidence of nothing more than the fact that her
other clothes are in the laundry.
Deklofenak/[Link]

Of course, there are other qualities we look for in How can we explain this differ- 70
a potential partner, particularly when it comes to long- ence? According to evolutionary psy- Male

Minimum Acceptable Earning Capacity

term mates. But what are these qualities, and do mem- chologists, this difference might be Female
bers of other cultures value similar characteristics? Buss due to the resources required to raise 60

(expressed as percentile)
(1989) conducted a survey of more than 10 000 people offspring. Females have a limited num-
from 37 different cultures to discover what they most ber of eggs, and thus a finite number of
50
valued in a long-term partner. Across this broad sample, opportunities to pass on their genes to
both men and women agreed that love, kindness, com- another generation. If a female became
mitment, character, and emotional maturity were impor- pregnant and had a baby, she would
40
tant. However, there were some interesting differences. require resources to help raise the child,
Women valued men with strong financial prospects, particularly when the child is quite
status, and good health whereas men placed a greater young and it is difficult for the woman 30
emphasis on physical beauty, youth, and other character- to bring in her own [Link],
istics that relate to reproduction. Other researchers have it would make sense that females would
found similar sex differences (see Figure 3.7). Research- be attracted to males who can provide 20
ers in the United States showed yearbook photographs these resources; this sometimes means
g

e
ion

ag
tin

tin
to heterosexual male and female research participants. mating with someone who is older and

rri
Da

da
lat

Ma
re

dy
Along with the photographs, participants were provided more established in life (Trivers, 1972). al

ea
xu
with information about each individual’s socioeco- In contrast, men have a seemingly infi-
St
Se

nomic status (SES), a measure of their financial status. nite amount of sperm and have fewer
{fig. 3.7} Sex Differences in the Mini-
SES had a much greater effect on females’ willingness limits on the number of people they mum Acceptable Earning Level for Dif-
to enter relationships with these individuals than it did could theoretically impregnate. Given ferent Types of Relationships Females
for males (Townsend & Levy, 1990a). In a subsequent that their evolutionary impulse is to pass place a much higher value on economic
stability than do males, particularly for
study, these researchers clothed the same models in out- on their genes to as many offspring as
long-term relationships. This result may
fits that implied high, medium, or low SES. Participants possible, it makes sense for them to be be due to the fact that females can pro-
were asked to rate their willingness to engage in differ- attracted to young, healthy women who duce a limited number of offspring and
ent types of relationships with this person ranging from are likely able to reproduce (Buss, 1989). therefore need to ensure that a mate has
enough resources to ensure their sur-
“Coffee and conversation” to “Sex only” to “Marriage.” Oddly, these motivations don’t appear in vival. Evolutionary psychology is not nec-
Clothing, the indicator of SES, had a much larger effect many love songs. essarily romantic.
on females than males, particularly when the model was
not physically attractive. Men were much more willing EVOLUTION, THE BRAIN, AND BEHAVIOUR
to engage in “Sex only” relationships regardless of SES Evolutionary forces have obviously shaped more than just
or attractiveness (Townsend & Levy, 1990b). our mating [Link] have shaped our bodies and

Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour :: Module 3.1 :: 87

 our brains. The first mem- When reading about this progression in cognitive
ber of the genus from whom power and brain size, it’s easy to fall into the logical trap
modern humans developed, that more brain equals more intelligence. While there is
Homo habilis (“handy man”), definitely a relationship, it’s not quite that simple. Large
appeared roughly 2.5 mil- animals have large brains; elephants and blue whales have
lion years ago (Harris, 1983). brains that are substantially larger than ours. However,
Its brain was 50% larger than although these species are intelligent, theirs are no match
its ancestors’ (Hofman, 1983); for the human brain.
it was also the first of our There are at least three reasons that human brains
ancestors to use stone tools. are more powerful than any other on the planet.
This was a monumental First, human brains have more folds and grooves on
cognitive leap—this species the outer surface of the brain than any other species.
could now actively shape its This tissue is the cerebral cortex, the location of billions
environment to suit its needs of cell bodies and the site of most of our advanced
rather than passively respond- cognitive abilities (see Module 3.3). Second, the front
ing to the forces of nature. third of the human brain is more developed than that
This ability allowed Homo of any other species (see Figure 3.8). This large neural
habilis to thrive for roughly area, known as the frontal lobes, is critical for our abil-
800 000 years. At that point, ity to form plans, solve problems, make decisions, and
a new member of the Homo control our attention and actions, among many other
genus emerged: Homo erec- functions (Stuss, 2011). We therefore have more pro-
tus (“erect man,” based on cessing power at our disposal than any other species.
its ability to walk upright). Finally, humans and a few other species have found
Homo erectus had a brain that a way to “cheat” some of the biological restrictions
Schroewig/DPA/ABACA/Newscom was approximately one-third on brain and head size. In many species, a newborn
Evolutionary psychology explains why females larger than that of Homo habi- infant is able to function to some degree soon after
are more likely to be attracted to older males and lis. This increased brain power being born. Baby deer struggle to their feet within
why males tend to prefer younger women. For
allowed them to harness the minutes. Humans do not. This is because the human
instance, Céline Dion’s husband (who she met
well before she became famous) is significantly use of fire and to make much brain has not finished developing at birth. Instead, the
older than her. more precise hunting tools sections of the skull are not fully fused, thus allowing
than their ancestors. Impor- more brain growth to occur. This process is known
tantly, each advance in the quality of their tools stimu- as neotony, and allows humans to develop large brains
lated further advances (similar to how each version of a while limiting (to some degree) the physical dangers
computer program is, theoretically, an improvement on associated with the baby exiting the narrow birth
the previous version). canal. Without neotony, humans would either have
Homo erectus was able to adapt to different environ- smaller brains, or females would need to change their
mental conditions for over two million years. Around body shape.
200 000 years ago, however, a new member of the Homo
genus arrived on the scene: Homo sapiens (“wise men”). EVOLUTION AND COGNITION Changes in the
Homo sapiens arose in Africa and quickly spread through- size of different brain structures have also been shaped
out the world. Their brains were slightly larger than by evolutionary forces. Some of these differences allow
Homo erectus’, and this small difference in brain size led researchers to link behaviours that were performed
to large differences in their ability to shape their world. by our ancestors with modern cognitive abilities. The
Early Homo sapiens had sophisticated stone tools, sharp best-known example of this line of thinking is the
spear points for hunting, and long blades (Wynn, 2002). hunter-gatherer theory of sex differences in cognition
They were also the first of our ancestors to produce (Silverman & Eals, 1992). Many studies have exam-
symbolic representations of objects and ideas, as shown ined sex differences (and similarities) on a number of
in carvings and cave paintings (Chase & Dibble, 1987). variables (Kimura, 1999; Rogers, 1999). However, the
This ability to think in the abstract and to communicate hunter-gatherer theory explicitly links performance
ideas ensured that knowledge could be passed on from on specifi c tasks to the diff erent roles performed by
generation to generation, a key factor in the develop- males and females over the course of our evolutionary
ment of modern human society. history.

88 :: Module 3.1 : : Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour

 Human Chimpanzee

Cat

Rhesus monkey

Dog

Squirrel monkey

{fig. 3.8} The Prefrontal Cortex in Different Species Human brains have much more space dedicated to the frontal lobes,
particularly the prefrontal cortex, than any other species. This brain area is related to many of our higher cognitive functions like
problem solving and decision making.

BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL {fig. 3.9} Mental Rotation Task

PERSPECTIVES Standard Comparison shapes

Hunters and Gatherers: Men, Women, 1. A. B. C.
and Spatial Memory
Evolutionary psychologists claim that the brain consists of a set
of cognitive adaptations for solving problems related to survival
and reproductive fitness. They also hypothesize that male and
female brains will differ in some ways because males and females
have had to solve a different set of problems in order to sur-
vive and reproduce. Specifically, due to their size and strength, 2. A. B. C.
males were traditionally responsible for tracking and killing
animals. These responsibilities would require males to travel
over long distances without becoming lost. Females, due to the
fact that they cared for children, remained closer to home and
instead spent time foraging for berries and edible plants. Males’
responsibilities would favour individuals with good spatial skills;
females’ responsibilities would favour memory for the location
of objects (e.g., plants). The question, then, is whether the abili- Answers: 1. A; 2. B
ties that were adaptive for males and females over the course of
our species’ evolution are still present today. Put another way,
will modern males and females show performance differences
• Males perform better than females?
on different tests of spatial abilities that are consistent with their
• Females perform better than males?
historic roles as hunter (males) and gatherer (females)?
One sex difference that has been reported involves solv- Research shows that males are generally able to perform this
ing the mental rotation task seen in Figure 3.9. task more quickly than females, and with greater accuracy. In
fact, researchers have found that males with high testoster-
Instructions
one levels were better at solving the task than males with
1. Take a close look at standard object #1 in Figure 3.9. One low levels of testosterone (Hooven et al., 2004). The male
of the three objects to the right of it is the [Link] one advantage in this task has been observed across 40 differ-
matches the standard? Repeat this with standard object #2 ent countries, suggesting that the finding is not restricted
and the three comparison shapes to the right of it. to Canadian universities (Silverman et al., 2007). Overall,
2. Many researchers find that, on average, males and females evidence from many studies suggests that there is a biologi-
differ in their ability to perform this task. Do you think that cal and evolutionary explanation for the male advantage in

Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour :: Module 3.1 :: 89

 Explore performing this specific task. (In Module 9.2, we examine outperformed men in experiments conducted in natural set-
Virtual Brain: these claims in more detail.) tings. In one study, women were able to locate specific plants
Hormones and Sex Researchers have also found that females outperform more quickly than were men and also made fewer mistakes
males on different types of spatial tasks, specifically, tests in identifying them (New et al., 2007). This advantage may be
involving memory for the spatial location of objects (see due to females’ evolutionary role as a gatherer rather than as
Figure 3.10). In addition to laboratory-based tests, females a hunter.

{fig. 3.10} Spatial Location Memory Task In this task, participants are asked to remember the location of specific items.

Before concluding this module, it is worth adding many females outperforming males on spatial tasks. You
a note of caution. Although evolutionary explanations should also remember that there are often alternative
for cognitive behaviour are fascinating, it is important explanations for the results. Therefore, while evolution-
to be careful about over-interpreting the findings. For ary psychology presents possible explanations, it is more
instance, although males and females differ on some likely that they are only one of many factors influencing
skills, the differences are generally quite small, with your behaviour.

Quick Quiz 3.1b Evolutionary Insights into Human Behaviour

1 For a trait to evolve, it must have a(n) _________ basis. 3
KNOW . . .

Evolutionary psychologists have made some claims

ANALYZE . . .

A learned C heritable that sex differences in cognitive abilities are genetically

B adaptive D developmental determined. Which of the following is not an alternative
explanation for such claims?
A Hormone levels affect performance.
2 Evolution is best defined as
APPLY . . .

B Sociocultural history affects performance.

A a gradual increase in complexity.
C Different educational experiences affect performance.
B a change in gene frequency over generations.
D Technological limitations prevent the accurate study
C solving the challenge of survival by adapting.
of sex differences.
D a progression toward a complex human brain.
Answers can be found on page ANS-1.

90 :: Module 3.1 : : Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
3.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology related to genes, inheritance,

and evolutionary psychology:
behavioural genetics (p. 79) genes (p. 76) Roberto A Sanchez/iStockphoto
behavioural genomics (p. 78) genotype (p. 76)
chromosomes (p. 76) heritability (p. 79)
dizygotic twins (p. 79) intersexual selection (p. 84) ANALYZE . . .
DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) intrasexual selection (p. 83)
(p. 76) monozygotic twins (p. 79) ● Claims that scientists have located a specific gene
epigenetics (p. 81) natural selection (p. 82) that controls a single trait or behaviour. As you
evolution (p. 82) phenotype (p. 76)
learned in this module, most psychological traits, as well
as disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, involve multiple
genes, some of which may not even yet be discovered.
UNDERSTAND . . . (See the Myths in Mind feature on page 78.)

● How twin and adoption studies reveal relationships ● Explanations for cognitive sex differences that are
between genes and behaviour. Both methods measure rooted in genetics. The Biopsychosocial Perspectives
genetic, environmental, and interactive contributions to feature on page 89 summarized research showing that
behaviour. Twin studies typically compare monozygotic males have an advantage when it comes to a specific
twins (genetically identical) and dizygotic twins (full mental rotation task. Given that this is a relatively
siblings sharing the prenatal environment) to estimate consistent sex difference, high testosterone levels are
heritability. Adoption studies compare adopted children to associated with better performance on the task, and the
their adoptive and biological parents. These designs allow male advantage has been found cross-culturally, it seems
researchers to determine heritability, a number between plausible that this difference has a genetic basis. In future
0 and 1 that estimates the degree to which individual chapters we will return to issues and discussion of sex-
differences in a trait (in a given population) are due to based differences in cognitive abilities (see Module 9.3).
genetic factors. A heritability of 1.0 would mean that genes
contribute to 100% of individual differences. Many human Mutual
60
characteristics, including intelligence and personality, Choice Combo
have heritability estimates typically ranging between Forced
% most distressed by infidelity

50 Choice
.40 and .70.

APPLY . . . 40

● Your knowledge of genes and behaviour to develop 30

hypotheses about why a trait may be adaptive. Try
putting yourself in an evolutionary psychologist’s position
20
and answer the following two questions (check your
answers on page ANS-1):
10
1. Many evolutionary psychologists claim that men are
more interested in a mate’s physical attractiveness
and youth, whereas women are more interested in 0
Sexual or Emotional Aspects of
qualities that contribute to childrearing success, such
emotional without sexual unfaithfulness:
as intelligence and wealth. If this is the case, then who infidelity infidelity or sexual or
do you think would express more jealousy over sexual sexual without emotional?
infidelity—men or women? emotional
infidelity
2. Researchers (Cramer et al., 2008) asked volunteers to
Format of infidelity
rate how upset they would be by sexual infidelity in
a mate and then they plotted the results in the graph {fig. 3.11} Men’s and Women’s Reactions to Infidelity
shown in Figure 3.11. Do their results confirm your Men find sexual infidelity more distressing than do women,
hypothesis? regardless of how a question is framed.

Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour :: Module 3.1 :: 91

 Rod Williams/[Link]

Module

3.2 How the Nervous System Works:

Cells and Neurotransmitters
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology How nerve cells communicate Your knowledge of neurotransmitters The claim that we are
After reading associated with nerve to form hypotheses about drug actions born with all the nerve
The ways that drugs and other
this module cells, hormones, and cells we will ever have
substances affect the brain
you should their functioning
The roles that hormones
play in our behaviour

A bite from an Australian species of snake called the taipan can kill an Incidentally, not all snake venom attacks the nervous system. The venom
adult human within 30 minutes. In fact, it is recognized as the most found in most rattlesnakes in North America is not neurotoxic (although
lethally venomous species of snake in the world (50 times more potent you still shouldn’t hug one). Instead, it damages tissue in the vicinity of
than the also fatal venom of the king cobra). The venom of the taipan is the bite as well as those tissues it reaches within the bloodstream, par-
neurotoxic, meaning that it specifically attacks cells of the nervous sys- ticularly the heart. Although this is not exactly comforting news, it should
tem. These cells are involved with more than just “thinking”—in fact, net- at least allow you to enjoy nature without being afraid that a snake will
works of nervous system cells working together are critical for basic life attack your nervous system’s cells. That’s what spiders are for . . .
functions like breathing and having a heartbeat. A direct attack on these
cells, therefore, spells trouble. In the case of the taipan, its bite first leads
to drowsiness followed by difficulties controlling one’s head and neck Focus Questions
muscles. Victims then experience progressive difficulty with swallowing,
1 Which normal processes of nerve cells are
followed by tightness of the chest and paralysis of breathing. If enough
disrupted by a substance like snake venom?
venom was injected and treatment is not available, coma and death occur.
All of this happens because of damage to the cells that will be discussed 2 What roles do chemicals play in normal nerve cell functioning?
in this module—cells that work together to produce the complex human
behaviours we engage in every day.

92 :: Module 3.2 : : How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters
When we think of cells, we often imagine looking at the body. Billions of these cells receive and transmit mes-
plants or earthworms through a microscope in high- sages every day, including while you are asleep. Millions
school biology class. Although thrilling, this activity of them are firing as a result of you reading these words.
likely seems to be the furthest thing from the study of In order to understand how this particular type of cell
behaviour. However, cells—particularly cells in the ner- can produce complex behaviours, it is necessary to take
vous system—play an incredibly important role in abso- a closer look at the structure and function of the neuron.
lutely everything you do, from moving and sensing to
thinking and feeling. Understanding how cells function THE NEURON The primary purpose of neurons is to
and communicate with each other as part of networks “fire,” to receive input from one group of neurons and to
will help you better understand topics discussed in later then transmit that information to other neurons. Doing so
modules, such as how we learn (Modules 6.1, 6.2, and allows single neurons to work together as part of networks
7.1), how different drugs (both clinical and recreational) involving thousands (and sometimes millions) of other
work (Modules 5.3 and 16.3), and how stress affects our cells; this will eventually lead to some form of behaviour.
Watch
bodies and brains (Module 14.2). This module therefore To that end, neurons are designed in such a way that there
The Basics: How the
serves as a building block that will deepen your under- are parts of the cell specialized for receiving incoming
Brain Works, Part 1
standing of almost all of the behaviours that make you information from other neurons and parts of the cell spe-
“you.” cialized for transmitting information to other neurons. Explore
All neurons have a cell body (also known as the Structure of a Neuron
soma), the part of a neuron that contains the nucleus that houses
Neural Communication the cell’s genetic material (see Figure 3.12). Genes in the cell
The human body is composed of many different types of body synthesize proteins that form the chemicals and
cells. Psychologists are most interested in neurons, one structures that allow the neuron to function. The activ-
of the major types of cells found in the nervous system, that ity of these genes can be influenced by the input coming Explore
are responsible for sending and receiving messages throughout from other [Link] input is received by dendrites, small Dendritic Spreading

Soma
(cell body)

Dendrites

Axon (inside
myelin sheath)
Myelin sheath

Direction of
Axon terminals nerve impulses
(or terminal buttons)

{fig. 3.12} A Neuron and Its Key Components Each part of a nerve cell is specialized for a specific task.

How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters :: Module 3.2 :: 93
 Interneuron branches radiating from the cell body that receive messages from
other cells and transmit those messages toward the rest of the cell.
At any given point in time, a neuron will receive input
from several other neurons (sometimes over 1000 other
neurons!). These impulses from other cells will travel
across the neuron to the base of the cell body known
Spinal cord as the axon hillock. If the axon hillock receives enough
stimulation from other neurons, it will initiate a chemical
reaction that will flow down the rest of the neuron.
This chemical reaction is the initial step in a neu-
ron communicating with other cells (i.e., influencing
Sensory neuron whether other cells will fire or not). The activity will
Motor neuron travel from the axon hillock along a tail-like structure
Muscle that protrudes from the cell body. This structure, the
axon, transports information in the form of electrochemical
reactions from the cell body to the end of the neuron. When the
activity reaches the end of the axon, it will arrive at axon
terminals, bulb-like extensions filled with vesicles (little
bags of molecules). These vesicles contain neurotrans-
mitters, the chemicals that function as messengers allowing
neurons to communicate with each other. The impulse travel-
ling down the axon will stimulate the release of these
Skin receptors neurotransmitters, thus allowing neural communica-
{fig. 3.13} Sensory and Motor Neurons Sensory neu- tion to take place. Many different types of neurotrans-
rons carry information toward the spinal cord and the brain, mitters exist, and each can have a number of different
whereas motor neurons send messages to muscles of the
functions—something we will explore in more detail
body. The interneuron links the sensory and motor neurons.
This is the pathway of a simple withdrawal response to a pain- later in this module.
ful stimulus. Although all neurons are designed to transmit infor-
mation, not all neurons perform the same function. Sen-
sory neurons receive information from the bodily senses
and bring it toward the brain. Neurons that respond to
touch or pain sensations of the skin bring the message
toward the spinal cord and to the brain. In contrast,
motor neurons carry messages away from the brain and
spinal cord and toward muscles in order to control
their flexion and extension (see Figure 3.13).
Within the brain itself, the structure and function
of neurons varies considerably. Some cells have few if
any dendrites extending from the cell body; these cells
do not perform tasks requiring a lot of interactions
with other neurons. In contrast, some neurons have
huge branches of dendrites. Obviously, these latter
neurons will perform functions involving more com-
munication between neurons. The key point is that
these differences between neurons are not simply due
to chance—they have a purpose. The physical struc-
ture of a neuron is related to the function it performs.

GLIAL CELLS Although neurons are essential for

our ability to sense, move, and think, they cannot func-
Left: Ralph Jr/Getty Images; right: David Becker/Getty Images
tion without support from other cells. This support
Many sensory neurons (left image) are quite simple and have few dendrites. Neurons in the
cerebellum (right image) have large dendritic branches. These structural differences are comes from different types of cells collectively known
related to the different functions served by these different neurons. as glia (Greek for “glue”). Glial cells are specialized cells

94 :: Module 3.2 : : How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters
 When the myelin sheath is damaged, the efficiency
MYTHS IN MIND of the axon decreases substantially. For instance, multiple
sclerosis is a disease in which the immune system does
We Are Born with All the Brain Cells
not recognize myelin and attacks it—a process that can
We Will Ever Have
devastate the structural and functional integrity of the
For decades, neuroscience taught us that nerves do not nervous system. When myelin breaks down in multiple
regenerate; in other words, scientists believed that we are sclerosis, it impairs the ability of the affected neurons
born with all of the brain cells we will ever have. This con- to transmit information along their axons. As a result,
clusion made perfect sense because no one had ever seen groups of brain structures that normally fire together to
new neurons form in adults, and severe neurological damage
produce a behaviour can no longer work as a functional
is often permanent.
network (Rocca et al., 2010; Shu et al., 2011). It would
In the past 15 years or so, however, advances in brain
science have challenged this belief (Wojtowicz, 2012).
be similar to trying to drive a car that is missing a wheel.
Researchers have observed neurogenesis—the formation of The specific symptoms associated with multiple sclero-
new neurons—in a limited number of brain regions, particu- sis differ depending upon where in the brain the myelin
larly in a region critical for learning and memory (Eriksson damage occurred. Numbness or tingling sensations could
et al., 1998; Tashiro et al., 2007). The growth of a new cell, be caused by the disruption of sensory nerve cell signals
including neurons, starts with stem cells—a unique type of that should otherwise reach the brain. Problems with
cell that does not have a predestined function. When a stem voluntary, coordinated movement could be due to the Listen
cell divides, the resulting cells can become part of just about breakdown of myelin that supports motor nerves. The Stem Cells
anything—bone, kidney, or brain tissue. The deciding factor important point is that damage to a small group of axons
seems to be the stem cell’s chemical environment (Abematsu can lead to impairments in the functioning of large net-
et al., 2006).
works of brain areas (Rocca et al., 2012).
Our increased understanding of neurogenesis has raised
As you can see, each part of an individual neuron
some exciting possibilities—perhaps scientists can discover
how to trigger the neural growth in other parts of the ner-
and glial cell performs an important function. Ultimately,
vous system. Doing so might allow scientists to repair dam- however, it is the activity of networks of nerve cells
aged brain structures or to add cells to brain areas affected by that allows messages to be transmitted within the brain
degenerative diseases like Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s and the rest of the body. This activity involves the most
disease. When this technology is developed, there may finally important function a neuron can perform: to fire.
be hope for recovery from injury and disease in all nerve cells.
THE NEURON’S ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: REST-
ING AND ACTION POTENTIALS Neural activity is
of the nervous system that are involved in mounting immune based on changes in the concentrations of charged atoms
responses in the brain, removing waste, and synchronizing the called ions. When a neuron is not transmitting infor-
activity of the billions of neurons that constitute the nervous Explore
mation, the outside of the neuron has a relatively high
Virtual Brain: Neural
system. Given that glial cells perform so many different concentration of positively charged ions, particularly
Conduction
support functions, it should come as no surprise to learn sodium and potassium, while the interior of the axon
that they outnumber neurons in the brain by a ratio of has fewer positively charged ions as well as a relatively
approximately 10 to 1. high concentration of negatively charged chloride ions.
A critical function served by certain glial cells is to This difference in charge between the inside and outside
insulate the axon of a neuron. These glial cells form a of the cell leaves the inside of the axon with a negative
white substance called myelin, a fatty sheath that insu- charge of approximately −70 millivolts (−70 mV; see the
lates axons from one another, resulting in increased speed first panel of Figure 3.14). This relatively stable state dur-
and efficiency of neural communication. In an unmyelin- ing which the cell is not transmitting messages is known as its
ated axon, the neural impulse decays quickly and needs resting potential.
to be regenerated along the axon; the myelin protects Importantly, this seemingly stable resting state
the impulse from this decay, thus reducing how often involves a great deal of tension. This is because of two
the impulse needs to be regenerated. The speed differ- forces, the electrostatic gradient and the concentration gradi-
ence between axons with and without myelin is sub- ent. Don’t let these technical terms scare you: the elec-
stantial. Axons without myelin transmit information at trostatic gradient just means that the inside and outside
speeds ranging from 0.5 to 10 m/s (metres per second); of the cell have different charges (negative and positive,
myelinated axons transmit information at speeds of up to respectively), and the concentration gradient just means
150 m/s (Hartline & Coleman, 2007; Hursh, 1939). For that different types of ions are more densely packed on
obvious reasons, most neurons in the brain have myelin. one side of the membrane than on the other (e.g., there

How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters :: Module 3.2 :: 95
 + +
– + + + + had rushed into the axon are then rapidly pumped
+ –
– + – + + + – + + + + ++ back out of the cell, returning it to a resting state.
+ + + + + –+ +
+
+ – + + +
This process of removing the sodium ions from the
+ + +
– – – – + + + + + cell often causes the neuron to become hyperpolar-
– + + + + + + + +
+ + – + – – + – + – + – – + – + ized; this means that the cell is more negative than
its normal resting potential (e.g., –72 mV instead of
Resting potential. Positively charged ions rush After the nerve has fired, the
into the cell during an action positively charged ions are –70 mV). This additional negativity makes the cell
potential. pumped back out of the cell. less likely to fire. It normally takes 2–3 milliseconds
{fig. 3.14} Electrical Charges of the Inner and Outer Regions of Nerve Cells The inner for the membrane to adjust back to its normal rest-
and outer environments of a nerve cell at rest differ in terms of their electrical charge. During ing potential. This brief period in which a neuron can-
the resting potential, there is a net negative charge. When a nerve cell is stimulated, generat- not fire is known as a refractory period.
ing an action potential, positively charged ions rush inside the cell membrane. After the cell
has fired, the positively charged ions are channelled back outside the nerve cell as it returns to When the action potential reaches the axon
a resting state. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details. terminal, it triggers the release of that cell’s neu-
rotransmitters into the synapses, the microscopically
small spaces that separate individual nerve cells. The cell that
Simulate are more sodium ions outside the cell than inside the releases these chemicals is known as the presynaptic cell
How Synapses Work cell). However, most substances have a tendency to move (“before the synapse”) whereas the cell that receives this
from areas of high concentration to areas of low con- input is known as the postsynaptic cell (or “after the syn-
Explore centration whenever possible; in other words, substances apse”). The dendrites of the postsynaptic cell contain
The Synapse spread out whenever they can so that they are evenly specialized receptors that are designed to hold specific
distributed. So, if small pores (known as ion channels) molecules, including neurotransmitters. Then, this pro-
opened up in the neuron’s cell membrane, there would cess of neural communication will begin again.
be a natural tendency for positively charged sodium ions Although this description of an action potential
to rush into the cell. explains how a neuron fires, it does not explain how
Simulate This is what happens when a neuron is stimulated. the nervous system differentiates between a weak and a
Membrane Transport The surge of positive ions into the cell changes the strong neural response. It would make intuitive sense for
potential of the neuron (e.g., changing from –70 mV to a stronger stimulus (e.g., a loud noise) to produce a larger
–68 mV). These charges flow down the dendrites and action potential than a weak stimulus (e.g., someone
cross the cell body to the axon hillock, where the cell
body meets the axon. If enough positively charged ions
reach the axon hillock to push its charge past that cell’s +50
firing threshold (e.g., –55 mV), the neuron will then ini- +40
Explore tiate an action potential, a wave of electrical activity that +30
Threshold of excitation

The Action Potential originates at the base of the axon and rapidly travels down its +20
Membrane potential (mV)

length (see the middle panel of Figure 3.14). When an +10

Action
Simulate action potential occurs, the charge of that part of the 0 potential
Closer Look: Action axon changes from approximately –70 mV to approxi- –10
Potential mately +35 mV; in other words, the cell changes from –20
being negatively to positively charged (see Figure 3.15). –30
This change does not occur along the entire axon at –40
once. Rather, as one part of the axon becomes depolar- –50
ized, it forces open the ion channels ahead of it, thus –60
causing the action potential to move down the length –70
of the axon as positively charged ions rush through the –80
Refractory period
membrane pores (Hodgkin, 1937). This pattern contin- –90
ues until the action potential reaches the axon terminal. 1 2 3
Of course, if this were the entire story, then all of our Time (ms)
neurons would fire once and never fire again because the
{fig. 3.15} Time Course and Phases of a Nerve Cell Going
ion channels would remain open. Luckily for us, there from a Resting Potential to an Action Potential Nerve cells
are mechanisms in place to help our neurons return to fire once the threshold of excitation is reached. During the
their resting state (–70 mV) so that they can fire again. action potential, positively charged ions rush inside the cell
membrane, creating a net positive charge within the cell. Posi-
At each point of the axon, the ion channels slam shut as tively charged ions are then forced out of the cell as it returns
soon as the action potential occurs. The sodium ions that to its resting potential.

96 :: Module 3.2 : : How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters
whispering); however, this is not the case. When stimu- on the postsynaptic neuron. This binding can
lated, a given neuron always fires at the same intensity have one of two effects on the postsynap-
and speed. This activity adheres to the all-or-none tic cell. If the actions of a neurotransmitter
principle: Individual nerve cells fire at the same strength cause the neuron’s membrane potential to
every time an action potential occurs. Neurons do not “sort become less negative (e.g., changing from
of ” fire, or “overfire”—they just fire. Instead, the strength –70 mV to –68 mV), it is referred to as
of a sensation is determined by the rate at which nerve excitatory because it has increased the prob-
cells fire as well as by the number of nerve cells that are ability that an action potential will occur
stimulated. A stimulus is experienced intensely because a in a given period of time. In contrast, if
greater number of cells are stimulated, and the firing of the actions of a neurotransmitter cause
each cell occurs repeatedly. the membrane potential to become more
negative (e.g., changing from –70 mV
to –72 mV), it is referred to as inhibitory
Quick Quiz 3.2a because it has decreased the likelihood
Neural Communication that an action potential will occur. An
1 A positive electrical charge that is carried away from the important factor in determining whether
KNOW . . .

cell body and down the length of the axon is a(n) ______. a postsynaptic neuron is excited or inhib-
A refractory period C action potential ited is the type of neurotransmitter(s) {fig. 3.16} The Lock-and-Key
B resting potential D dendrite binding with its receptors. Analogy for Matching of Neu-
rotransmitters and Receptors The
Many different types of neurotrans- molecular structures of different
2 Which of the following is a function of glial cells? mitters have been identified, although neurotransmitters must have spe-
A Glial cells slow down the activity of nerve cells. most neurons send and receive a limited cific shapes in order to bind with the
B Glial cells help form myelin. number of neurotransmitters. Each neu- receptors on a neuron.
C Glial cells suppress the immune system response. rotransmitter typically has its own unique molecular
D Glial cells contain the nucleus that houses the cell’s shape. A lock-and-key analogy is sometimes used to
genetic material. explain how neurotransmitters and their receptors work:
When neurotransmitters are released at the axon termi-
3 A neuron will fire when the ions inside the cell body are nal, they cross the synapse and fit in a particular receptor
UNDERSTAND . . .

A in the resting potential. of the dendrite like a key in a lock (see Figure 3.16).
B shifted to a threshold more positive than the After neurotransmitter molecules have bound to
resting potential. postsynaptic receptors of a neighbouring cell, they are
C shifted to a threshold more negative than the released back into the synaptic cleft, the minute space
resting potential. between the axon terminal (terminal button) and the dendrite.
D in the refractory period. This process is almost as important as the action poten-
tial itself. Prolonged stimulation of the receptors makes it
4 Sensory and motor nerves differ in that more difficult for the cell to return to its resting poten-
A only sensory neurons have dendrites. tial; this is obviously necessary for the neuron to be able
B only motor neurons have axons. to fire again. Therefore, if a neurotransmitter remained
C sensory neurons carry messages toward the brain, latched onto a receptor for long periods of time, it would
and motor neurons carry information away from decrease the number of times that the neurons could fire
the brain. (i.e., it would make your brain less powerful).
D sensory neurons carry messages away from the Once neurotransmitters have detached from the
brain, and motor neurons carry information toward receptors and float back into the synapse, they are either
the brain.
broken down by enzymes or go through reuptake, a pro-
Answers can be found on page ANS-1. cess whereby neurotransmitter molecules that have been released
into the synapse are reabsorbed into the axon terminals of the
presynaptic neuron (see Figure 3.17). Reuptake serves as
The Chemical Messengers: a sort of natural recycling system for neurotransmitters.
It is also a process that is modified by many commonly
Neurotransmitters and Hormones used drugs. For example, the class of antidepressant drugs Simulate
As you read in the first part of this module, the presyn- known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), Neurotransmitters:
aptic neuron releases neurotransmitters into the synapse; a not surprisingly, inhibits reuptake of the neurotransmitter Communicators
fraction of these neurotransmitters will bind to receptors serotonin; in this way, SSRIs such as fluoxetine (Prozac) between Neurons

How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters :: Module 3.2 :: 97
 Synaptic vesicles Neural impulse Axon
(with neurotrans- Axon terminal
mitter molecules
inside)

Axon terminal

Synaptic
Reuptake
cleft
protein
Neurotransmitter
molecules

Receptor Receiving
site neuron
Dendrite

{fig. 3.17} Major Events at the Synapse As the action potential reaches the axon terminals, neurotransmitters (packed into
spherically shaped vesicles) are released across the synaptic cleft. The neurotransmitters bind to the postsynaptic (receiving)
neuron. In the process of reuptake, some neurotransmitters are returned to the presynaptic neuron via reuptake proteins. These
neurotransmitters are then repackaged into synaptic vesicles.

eventually increase the amount of serotonin available at in a number of processes, including our ability to form
the synapse. The result is a decrease in depression and new memories (Bliss & Collingridge, 1993; Peng et al.,
anxiety. The process of reuptake occurs for a number of 2011). Abnormal functioning of glutamate- releasing
different neurotransmitters released throughout the ner- neurons has also been implicated in a number of brain
vous system. disorders including the triggering of seizures in epi-
lepsy (During & Spencer, 1993) and damage caused
Watch TYPES OF NEUROTRANSMITTERS There are by strokes (Hazell, 2007; McCulloch et al., 1991). In
In the Real World: literally dozens of neurotransmitters influencing the contrast, GABA (gamma-amino butyric acid, for
Neurotransmitters functioning of your brain as you read this module. The those of you enraged by acronyms) is the primary inhibi-
various neurotransmitters listed in Table 3.1 are only a tory neurotransmitter of the nervous system, meaning that it
small sample of the chemicals that produce your behav- prevents neurons from generating action potentials. It accom-
iour. As noted in the previous section of this module, plishes this feat by reducing the negative charge of
each of these neurotransmitters has a molecular structure neighbouring neurons even further than their resting
and is designed to match particular types of receptors, state of −70 mV. When GABA binds to receptors, it
similar to how different keys will fit into different locks. causes an influx of negatively charged chloride ions to
These substances also differ in terms of the specific brain enter the cell, which is the opposite net effect of what
areas they target. As a result, different neurotransmitters happens when a neuron is stimulated. As an inhibitor,
will have different effects on our behaviour. GABA facilitates sleep (Tobler et al., 2001) and reduces
The most common neurotransmitters in the brain arousal of the nervous system. Low levels of GABA
are glutamate and GABA. Glutamate is the most com- have been linked to epilepsy, likely because there is an
mon excitatory neurotransmitter in the brains of vertebrates imbalance between inhibitory GABA and excitatory
(Dingledine et al., 1999; Meldrum, 2000). It is involved glutamate (Upton, 1994).

Table 3.1 :: Major Neurotransmitters and Their Functions

NEUROTRANSMITTER SOME MAJOR FUNCTIONS
Glutamate Excites nervous system; memory and autonomic nervous system reactions
GABA (gamma-amino butyric acid) Inhibits brain activity; lowers arousal, anxiety, and excitation; facilitates sleep
Acetylcholine Movement; attention
Dopamine Control of movement; reward-seeking behaviour; cognition and attention
Norepinephrine Memory; attention to new or important stimuli; regulation of sleep and mood
Serotonin Regulation of sleep, appetite, mood

98 :: Module 3.2 : : How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters
 Another common neurotransmitter is acetylcho- reward responses (Koob & Volkow, 2010; Martinez &
line. Acetylcholine is one of the most widespread neu- Narendren, 2010; see Module 5.3) and areas in the front
rotransmitters within the body, found at the junctions between third of the brain involved with controlling our attention
nerve cells and skeletal muscles; it is very important for vol- (Robbins, 2000).
untary movement. Acetylcholine released from neu- Attention is also influenced by our overall alert-
rons connected to the spinal cord binds to receptors ness or arousal, a characteristic that is aff ected by the
on muscles. The change in the electrical properties of neurotransmitter norepinephrine. Norepinephrine
the muscle fibres leads to a contraction of that muscle. (also known as noradrenaline ) is a monoamine synthe-
This link between the nervous system and muscles is sized from dopamine molecules that is involved in regulat-
known as a neuromuscular junction. A number of animals ing stress responses, including increasing arousal, attention,
release venom that influences the release of acetylcho- and heart rate. Norepinephrine is formed in specialized
line, including the black widow spider (Diaz, 2004) and nuclei in the bottom of the brain (known as the brain
a number of snakes. Recall the neurotoxic snake venom stem) and projects throughout the cortex, influencing
discussed at the beginning of this module: This toxin the activity of a number of diff erent systems ranging
disrupts the activity of acetylcholine transmission at the from wakefulness to attention (Berridge & Water-
neuromuscular junctions. Different snakes carry slightly house, 2003). It also projects down the spinal cord
different types of neurotoxic venom. Some types of and serves as part of the “fi ght-or-flight” response to
venom block acetylcholine release at the presynap- threatening stimuli (Zimmerman et al., 2012). Nor-
tic terminals, preventing its release into the synapse. epinephrine often works alongside epinephrine (also
Another type of venom blocks the receptors on the known as adrenaline ), a hormone and neurotransmit-
postsynaptic cell, preventing acetylcholine from bind- ter created in the adrenal gland on the kidneys. Both
ing to them (Lewis & Gutmann, 2004). Either way, the norepinephrine and epinephrine energize individu-
effects are devastating. als to help them become more engaged with a given
In addition to these effects in neuromuscular junc- activity. (Interesting trivia: Epinephrine has its name
tions, acetylcholine activity in the brain is associated because the name adrenaline was trademarked by a
with attention and memory (Drachman & Leavitt, 1974; drug company.)
Himmelheber et al., 2000). Altered levels of this neu- Finally, serotonin is a monoamine involved in regu-
rotransmitter have also been linked to cognitive deficits lating mood, sleep, aggression, and appetite (Cappadocia
associated with aging and Alzheimer’s disease (Bartus et al., 2009; Young & Leyton, 2002). It is formed in
et al., 1982; Craig et al., 2011). Indeed, several drugs the brain stem and projects throughout the brain and
used to reduce the progression of Alzheimer’s disease spinal cord. Serotonin is the neurotransmitter that you
are designed to slow the removal of acetylcholine from are most likely to have heard of due to its critical role
the synapse, thus allowing it to have a larger effect on in depression. As discussed earlier in this module, many
postsynaptic cells (Darvesh et al., 2003). The fact that antidepressant medications block the reuptake of sero-
acetylcholine can influence functions ranging from tonin, thus ensuring that this substance remains in the
movement to memory shows us that where in the ner- synapse for longer durations. The result is an elevation
vous system a neurotransmitter is released can have a of mood and a decrease in symptoms of depression
dramatic influence on what roles that neurotransmitter and anxiety. Research also indicates that serotonin is
will serve. related to the perception of pain. For instance, individ-
This point is particularly noticeable when one dis- uals prone to migraine headaches are also more likely
cusses a class of neurotransmitters known as the mono- to have lower levels of serotonin in the brain (Hamel,
amines. This group of brain chemicals includes the 2007; Sicuteri & Testi, 1961). Additionally, altered
well-known neurotransmitters dopamine, norepineph- levels of serotonin have been found in patients with
rine, and serotonin. Dopamine is a monoamine neu- chronic pain conditions such as fibromyalgia; indeed,
rotransmitter involved in such varied functions as mood, control reviews of the research indicate that diff erent medi-
of voluntary movement, and processing of rewarding experi- cations promoting the activity of serotonin decrease
ences. When reading this definition, you can’t help but reports of pain by 50% (Bardin, 2011; Häuser et al.,
be stunned by the variety of processes influenced by 2013). However, we must be careful not to assume that
dopamine. This breadth is due to the fact that dopa- a complex process like pain can be explained by the
mine is released by neurons in (at least) three pathways activity of a single neurotransmitter. In fact, a num-
extending to different parts of the brain including areas ber of diff erent substances have been linked to these
in the centre of the brain related to movement and to unpleasant experiences.

How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters :: Module 3.2 :: 99
 the body. The fact that a neural area known to be associated
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC with pain perception also contains receptors for Substance P
LITERACY MODEL suggests that this neurotransmitter is likely involved with
pain responses.
Pain and Substance P
However, this is not the only part of the brain containing
Substance P receptors. They are also found in the amygdala
Pain is not a simple process. Instead, there are a number of (which responds to fear and arousal) and the hypothalamus
different neural systems and neurotransmitters involved with (which is related to fight-or-flight responses and the release
our responses to painful stimuli (see Module 4.4). In fact, sero- of different hormones). Why would this be the case? One
tonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine have all been implicated possibility is that pain is not simply a physical sensation.
in some part of the pain response. One neurotransmitter that A large body of research now suggests that when we feel
hasn’t been discussed yet, however, is known as Substance P, pain, it is a combination of both sensation and an emotional
a neurotransmitter involved in the experience of pain. response. Sometimes the tears that fall after we stub our
toe are due not only to being hurt, but to being frustrated
What do we know (among many other emotions).
about Substance P?
Can we critically evaluate
Substance P was first discovered
in 1931 when a paste made from
this research?
the brain and intestine of a horse Evidence in favour of the role of
was found to cause muscles to Substance P in pain perception
contract (Von Euler & Gaddum, comes from a group of patients
1931); that was one heck of a party. It was named Substance P with a rare condition called congeni-
because the paste became powdery (Gaddum & Schild, 1934). tal insensitivity to pain. These indi-
Twenty years later, Austrian physiologist Fred Lembeck deter- viduals lack the ability to perceive pain, and even in early
mined that this substance was associated with the transmis- childhood acquire significant damage to the skin, joints,
sion of pain (Harrison & Geppetti, 2001; Lembeck, 1953). eyes, and other body regions. Because they lack a pain
Lembeck and others noted that Substance P was found in response, these individuals do not take action to prevent
the dorsal root of the spinal cord, an area that transmits pain physical damage to the body. Research in the U.K. (ironi-
information back to the brain (Otsuka et al., 1972), as well as cally conducted by someone named Dr. Misery) found that
in several different brain areas related to the pain response some individuals with this disorder lack Substance P recep-
(Mantyh, 2002). So, when tissue on the skin surface is dam- tors in the peripheral nerves (Misery et al., 1999). Studies
aged, sensory nerves carry messages to the spinal cord and such as this provide strong evidence for this neurotrans-
then up to the brain. In turn, these CNS structures release mitter’s role in pain perception.
Substance P, giving rise to the perception of pain.
More contentious is the issue of pain and emotion. There
is a great deal of evidence linking emotion and pain. For
How can science instance, social “pain” resulting from being rejected acti-
explain what vates similar brain areas as physical pain (Eisenberger, 2012;
Substance P does? Eisenberger et al., 2003). There is also evidence that patients
with chronic pain conditions are also more likely to suffer
From an evolutionar y from depression (Dunne & Dunne, 2012). Interestingly, some
standpoint, it makes sense investigators have found that drugs that influence the levels
to have pathways specialized for the perception of pain. Pain of Substance P in the brain have antidepressant properties
is an important messenger telling you to stop doing some- (Adell, 2004). However, these researchers are quick to note
thing that is harming your body. Compelling evidence for the that such drugs could also potentially influence other neu-
role of Substance P comes from an examination of the brain rotransmitter systems. Therefore, more research is needed
areas containing Substance P receptors. These receptors to clarify this issue.
are densely packed in a structure in the middle of the brain
called the periaqueductal grey (Yip & Chahl, 2001). This brain
region receives pain- and temperature-related input from
Why is this relevant?
the spinal cord and sends it to different areas of the cerebral
cortex, the wrinkled outer surface of the brain involved with Millions of people suffer from
many sophisticated processes. It also receives input from the chronic pain. In addition to
cortex and transmits it through the spinal cord to the rest of compromising the well-being

100 :: Module 3.2 : : How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters
of affected individuals, problems with pain translate into
reduced work productivity, increased health care costs,
and, for some people, an increased risk of developing
dependence on or addiction to prescription painkill-
ers (Baumeister et al., 2012). By better understanding
the physiological basis of pain, including how brain areas
related to pain and emotion interact, researchers may be
able to develop more effective drugs and other techniques
to help alleviate pain. Thus, the study of neurotransmit-
ters like Substance P could eventually improve the lives
of millions of patients and their families. That’s research of
substance!
Martin Barraud/OJO Images/Getty Images

DRUG EFFECTS ON NEUROTRANSMISSION neurotransmitter’s binding would also be an indirect Watch

Drugs of all varieties, from prescription to recreational, agonist. What’s in It for Me?
affect the chemical signalling that takes place between Drugs classified as antagonists inhibit neurotransmit- Your Brain on Drugs
nerve cells. Agonists are drugs that enhance or mimic the ter activity by blocking receptors or preventing synthesis of a
effects of a neurotransmitter’s action. The well-known drug neurotransmitter (see Figure 3.18). You may have heard of
nicotine is an acetylcholine agonist, meaning that it the cosmetic medical procedure known as a Botox injec-
stimulates the receptor sites for this neurotransmitter. tion. Botox, which is derived from the nerve-paralyzing
The antianxiety drug alprazolam (Xanax) is a GABA bacterium that causes botulism, blocks the action of ace-
agonist—it causes relaxation by increasing the activity tylcholine by binding to its postsynaptic receptor sites
of this inhibitory neurotransmitter. Drugs can behave as (Dastoor et al., 2007). Blocking acetylcholine could lead
agonists either directly or indirectly. A drug that behaves to paralysis of the heart and lungs; however, when very
as a direct agonist physically binds to that neurotransmit- small amounts are injected into tissue around the eyes,
ter’s receptors at the postsynaptic cells (e.g., nicotine the antagonist simply paralyzes the muscles that lead to
molecules attach themselves to receptors that acetylcho- wrinkles. When muscles are not used, they cannot stretch
line molecules would normally stimulate). A drug that the skin—hence the reduction in wrinkling when acetyl-
acts as an indirect agonist facilitates the effects of a neu- choline activity is blocked. Because Botox directly binds
rotransmitter, but does not physically bind to the same with acetylcholine receptors and thus prevents acetylcho-
part of the receptor as the neurotransmitter. For example, line from doing so, it is considered a direct antagonist. If
a drug that blocks the process of reuptake would be an a chemical reduces the influence of a neurotransmitter
indirect agonist. A drug that attaches to another bind- without physically blocking the receptor, it would be clas-
ing site on a receptor but does not interfere with the sified as an indirect antagonist.

Thinkstock/Getty Images
Botox injections paralyze muscles, which can increase youthful appearance in areas such as the face.

How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters :: Module 3.2 :: 101
 Before Drug Agonist Drug Antagonist Drug

Agonist
drug
Antagonist
drug
Neurotransmitter

Normal Receptor site Enhanced Receptor site Blocked Receptor site

cellular cellular cellular
activity activity activity

{fig. 3.18} Drug Effects at the Synapses Drugs can act as agonists by facilitating the effects of a neurotransmitter, or as
antagonists by blocking these effects. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.

Explore HORMONES AND THE ENDOCRINE SYSTEM Module 11.1). In other words, the brain triggers activity
The Endocrine Neurotransmitters are not the body’s only chemical mes- in the endocrine system which then influences the brain’s
System senger system. Hormones are chemicals secreted by the glands activity via hormones. This cycle continues as our brain
of the endocrine system. Generally, neurotransmitters work and body attempt to maintain the appropriate energy levels
Watch almost immediately within the microscopic space of the for dealing with the environment.
The Endocrine synapse, whereas hormones are secreted into the blood- The brain area that is cr itical for this brain-
System stream and travel throughout the body. Thus, the effects of endocrine relationship is the hypothalamus , a brain
hormones are much slower than those of neurotransmit- structure that regulates basic biological needs and motivational
ters. With help from the nervous system, the endocrine systems. The hypothalamus releases specialized chemi-
system contributes to homeostasis—the balance of energy, cals called releasing factors that stimulate the pituitary
metabolism, body temperature, and other basic functions gland—the master gland of the endocrine system that produces
that keeps the body working properly (see Figure 3.19; see hormones and sends commands about hormone production to
the other glands of the endocrine system. These hormones
can be released by glands throughout the body before
Hypothalamus
Pineal finding their way to the brain via the bloodstream.
Pituitary gland gland
How we respond to stress illustrates nicely how the
nervous and endocrine systems influence each other. In
Thyroid psychological terms, stress is loosely defined as an imbal-
ance between perceived demands and the perceived
resources available to meet those demands. Such an imbal-
Adrenal ance might occur if you suddenly realize your midterm
glands exam is tomorrow at 8:00 [Link] resources—time and
energy—may not be enough to meet the demand of suc-
Pancreas ceeding on the exam. The hypothalamus, however, sets
Ovaries chemical events in motion that physically prepare the
(female) body for stress. It signals the pituitary gland to release a
hormone into the bloodstream that in turn stimulates the
adrenal glands, a pair of endocrine glands located adjacent
to the kidneys that release stress hormones, such as cortisol and
Testes
(male) epinephrine. Cortisol and epinephrine help mobilize the
body during stress, thus providing enough energy for you
to deal with the sudden increase in activity necessary to
{fig. 3.19} The Endocrine System Glands throughout the respond to the stress-inducing situation (see Module 14.2).
body release and exchange hormones. The hypothalamus
interacts with the endocrine system to regulate hormonal Another important chemical is endorphin, a hor-
processes. mone produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus

102 :: Module 3.2 : : How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters
that functions to reduce pain and induce feelings of pleasure. defined as physical vio-
Endorphins are released into the bloodstream dur- lence, then the relation-
ing events such as strenuous exercise, sexual activity, or ship between testosterone
injury. They act on portions of the brain that are attuned and aggression is actually
to reward, reinforcement, and pleasure, inhibiting the rather weak (Archer et al.,
perception of pain and increasing feelings of euphoria 2005; Book et al., 2001). In
(extreme pleasantness and relaxation). Morphine—a other words, testosterone
drug derived from the poppy plant—binds to endor- levels are related to how
phin receptors (the term endorphin translates to endoge- we think and feel, but not
nous [internal] morphine). Morphine molecules fit into the necessarily to how we act.
same receptor sites as endorphins and, therefore, produce
the same painkilling and euphoric effects. NEURONS IN CON-
Testosterone is a hormone that serves multiple func- TEXT When reading
tions, including driving physical and sexual development about neuronal structures,
over the long term, and surging during sexual activity and neurotransmitters, and
in response to threats. This hormone is often cited as an hor mones, it is easy to
explanation for behaviour. It can be tempting to conclude lose sight of how these
that if a behaviour has a biological explanation, then the cells and molecules fit
behaviour cannot change—and testosterone provides a together with discus- Martin Nemec/[Link]
great example. Because it is related to male sexual devel- sions of genetics (Mod- Extracts from the seeds of some poppy flowers con-
ule 3.1) and larger brain tain opium. Morphine and one of its derivatives, her-
opment and functioning, this hormone was traditionally oin, can be synthesized from these seeds.
targeted as an explanation for why men tend to be more structures (Module 3.3).
physically aggressive than women. In other words, there In the last few years, a
was an assumption that testosterone causes aggression. (For number of genes related to different neurotransmitters
the record, women have testosterone and it serves many of have been identified. These genes can influence how the
the same functions in them as it does in men.) In fact, the neurotransmitters are formed as well as processes such
data do show that the highest levels of violence, aggression, as reuptake. These seemingly minor differences in genes
and homicide occur among young males against other can affect neurotransmitter levels and thus how neurons
young males—that is, within the group whose members communicate with each other. This alters the networks
tend to have the highest levels of testosterone (Archer, of neurons firing together in the brain; these networks
2004; O’Connor et al., 2004). But, the truth is much of structures produce your thoughts, movements, and
more complicated than simply attributing aggression to sensations. So, while a discussion of brain cells seems far
testosterone. Testosterone is correlated with more aggres- removed from the science of behaviour, these brain cells
sive thoughts and feelings, but if aggressive behaviour is are, in fact, what makes you “you.”

Quick Quiz 3.2b The Chemical Messengers: Neurotransmitters and Hormones

1 A(n) _________ is a drug that blocks the actions of a
3
KNOW . . .

People who experience a loss of pain sensation in the

APPLY . . .

neurotransmitter. middle of exercise are likely having a rush of ________.

A agonist C stop agent A adrenaline C pituitary
B antagonist D endorphin B norepinephrine D endorphin

2 To reverse the effects of neurotoxic venom from a

4
UNDERSTAND . . .

People often attribute male aggression to high levels

ANALYZE . . .

snakebite, which of the following actions would likely of testosterone. Which of the following statements is
be most effective? an important consideration regarding this claim?
A Give the patient a high dose of dopamine. A High testosterone levels may be correlated with
B Give the patient a substance that would allow the aggression, but may not necessarily be the cause of it.
body to resume transmission of acetylcholine. B Testosterone is found exclusively in males and,
C Give the patient a drug that would increase GABA therefore, is a likely cause of male aggression.
transmission. C Cultural factors are unrelated to testosterone levels.
D Give the patient an acetylcholine antagonist. D Testosterone does not affect aggressive behaviours.
Answers can be found on page ANS-1.

How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters :: Module 3.2 :: 103
 Module Summary

Module Now that you have read this module you should

3.2 KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with nerve cells,

hormones, and their functioning:
acetylcholine (p. 99) hormones (p. 102)
Rod Williams/[Link]
action potential (p. 96) hypothalamus (p. 102)
adrenal glands (p. 102) myelin (p. 95)
agonists (p. 101) neuron (p. 93)
APPLY . . .
all-or-none principle (p. 97) neurotransmitters (p. 94)
antagonists (p. 101) norepinephrine (p. 99) ● Your knowledge of neurotransmitters to form
axon (p. 94) pituitary gland (p. 102) hypotheses about drug actions. In this module you
cell body (p. 93) refractory period (p. 96) read about how SSRIs slow down the reuptake process to
dendrites (p. 93) resting potential (p. 95) increase the amount of serotonin at the synapse. Consider
dopamine (p. 99) reuptake (p. 97) another drug—a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI).
endorphin (p. 102) serotonin (p. 99)
1. Based on its name, monoamine oxidase inhibitor, which
GABA (gamma-amino butyric Substance P (p. 100)
neurotransmitters would be affected by such a drug?
acid) (p. 98) synapses (p. 96)
(See page 98.)
glial cells (p. 94) synaptic cleft (p. 97)
glutamate (p. 98) 2. If monoamine oxidase is an enzyme that breaks down
monoamine transmitters, what would happen if a drug
inhibits the enzyme? What effect would this action
UNDERSTAND . . . have on levels of the neurotransmitters (i.e., an overall
increase or decrease)?
● How nerve cells communicate. Nerve cells fire because
of processes involving both electrical and chemical factors. 3. Would the effects of an MAOI resemble those of an
A stimulated nerve cell goes from resting potential to action SSRI? (SSRIs are discussed on page 97.) Check your
potential following an influx of positively charged ions answers on page ANS-1.
inside the membrane of the cell. As the message reaches
the end of the nerve cell, neurotransmitters are released
ANALYZE . . .
into synapses and bind to neighbouring postsynaptic cells.
Depending on the type of neurotransmitter, the effect can ● The claim that we are born with all the nerve cells
be either inhibitory or excitatory. we will ever have. Earlier in this module, a Myths in Mind
● The ways that drugs and other substances affect the feature (page 95) addressed the question of whether
brain. Drugs can be agonists or antagonists. A drug is an we are born with all of the nerve cells we will ever
agonist if it enhances the effects of a neurotransmitter. have. Although scientists once believed this to be true,
This outcome occurs if the drug increases the release we now know that neurogenesis—the growth of new
of a neurotransmitter, blocks reuptake, or mimics the neurons—takes place in several parts of the brain. One
neurotransmitter by binding to the postsynaptic cell. A drug of these regions is the hippocampus, which is involved
is an antagonist if it blocks the effects of a neurotransmitter. in learning and memory (see Module 7.l). In many other
Antagonists block neurotransmitter release, break areas of the brain, neurogenesis has not been observed.
down neurotransmitters in the synapse, or block Nevertheless, during normal development, neurons make
neurotransmitters by binding to postsynaptic receptors. new connections with neighbouring cells.
● The roles that hormones play in our behaviour.
Hormones have multiple influences on behaviour. The
nervous system—in particular, the hypothalamus—
interacts with the endocrine system in controlling the
release of hormones. A few of humans’ many hormonally
controlled responses include reactions to stress and
pain as well as sexual responses. Some hormones are
associated with, though not necessarily a primary cause of,
aggressive behaviour.

104 :: Module 3.2 : : How the Nervous System Works: Cells and Neurotransmitters
 Montreal Neurological Hospital and Institute

Module

3.3 Structure and Organization

of the Nervous System
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology How studies of split-brain patients Your knowledge of brain regions Whether neuroplasticity will
After reading associated with the reveal the workings of the brain to predict which abilities might help people with brain damage
this module structure and organization be affected when a specific
you should of the nervous system area is injured or diseased

Some of you may have seen this Canadian Heritage Moment on television: regions related to the biology of behaviour. (Note: If you haven’t seen the
A woman smells toast burning and then collapses to the ground while hav- video mentioned in this section, you can find it online here: [Link]
ing a [Link] scene then changes to a surgical suite. [Link] Penfield, .[Link]/watch?v=kNdM9JhTPJw.)
a doctor at the Montreal Neurological Institute, is electrically stimulating
different parts of the woman’s brain prior to her surgery to remove the
Focus Questions
brain tissue causing her seizures. In one scene, she reports that she sees
“the most wonderful lights.” After another electrical burst, she asks, “Did 1 How do the different divisions of the nervous
you pour cold water on my hand, Dr. Penfield?” Then, in the scene’s climax, system work together when you are startled?
the patient says, “Dr. Penfield! I can smell burnt toast!” By locating the sen-
2 How does the brain control movement?
sation that immediately preceded the woman’s seizure, Dr. Penfield was
able to deduce the probable source of the woman’s seizures.

In addition to showing us that early brain researchers were part scientist

and part detective, this Canadian Heritage Moment also makes an impor-
tant point about the organization of the brain: Different parts of the brain In this module, we translate our knowledge of nerve cells into
will be related to different functions, including sensations, memories, and an understanding of how they work as an integrated system. This
emotions. In this module, we will discuss many of the important brain section of the textbook is rich with terminology and can be

Structure and Organization of the Nervous System :: Module 3.3 :: 105

 Watch challenging. As you read through it, try to think about consists of the brain and the spinal cord (see Figure 3.20).The
Nervous System how the different parts of the nervous system apply to human brain is perhaps the most complex entity known.
your own behaviour and experiences. Doing so will Its capacity to store information is almost [Link]
Watch help you remember the terms, and will also show you personality, preferences, memories, and conscious aware-
The Big Picture: My that many different parts of your nervous system interact ness are all packed into this three-pound structure made
Brain Made Me Do It when you perform even the simplest of behaviours. up of approximately 100 billion individual neurons.
The other part of the CNS, the spinal cord, runs from
your neck down to the base of your spine. The spinal
Divisions of the Nervous System cord receives information from the brain and stimulates
Watch Think about it: billions of cells work together to let you nerves that extend out into the body; this stimulation
The Basics: How the have a personality, feel emotions, dance, enjoy music, and produces movements. It also receives information from
Brain Works, Part 2 remember all of the ups and downs you experience in life. sensory nerves in the body and transmits it back to the
In addition to these voluntary activities, the nervous sys- brain (or, in the case of reflexes, organizes rapid move-
tem is also involved in a number of involuntary processes ments without the help of the brain).These two structures
like controlling your heart rate, blinking, and breathing. are critical for our survival. But, our ability to move and
Given these diverse functions, it shouldn’t be surprising to sense the outside world would be impossible without
to hear that the nervous system has a number of divisions another major division of the nervous system.
that allow these processes to seamlessly take place. We
begin our exploration of the nervous system by examin- THE PERIPHERAL NERVOUS SYSTEM Wiggle your
ing the most basic of these distinctions—the difference fingers. Now feel the edges of this book (or the edge of
between the central and peripheral nervous systems. your computer if you’re reading an eText). In both cases,
you are sending information from your central nervous
THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM Look up from system to the nerves in the rest of your body that con-
this page and examine the objects around you. What trol [Link] are also receiving sensory input from
are they? Can you use words to describe them? How your body as you interact with your environment. These
would you use them? Your ability to think up answers processes are performed by the peripheral nervous sys-
to these questions involves different parts of your central tem (PNS), a division of the nervous system that transmits sig-
nervous system. The central nervous system (CNS) nals between the brain and the rest of the body and is divided into

Nervous system

Peripheral nervous system (PNS) Central nervous system (CNS)

Transmits information to and from The brain and spinal cord
the central nervous system

Autonomic nervous system Somatic nervous system Brain Spinal cord

Regulates activity of the Transmits sensory information Interprets and stores Pathway connecting
organs, glands, and other and controls movement of information and the brain and the
physiological processes the skeletal muscles communicates with muscles, peripheral
glands, and organs nervous system

Sympathetic division Parasympathetic division

Prepares the body to react Maintains body functions;
and expend energy in times conserves resources
of stress

{fig. 3.20} The Organization of the Nervous System The nervous system can be divided into several different components, each with a
specific set of structures and functions. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.

106 :: Module 3.3 : : Structure and Organization of the Nervous System

two subcomponents, the somatic system and the autonomic system heart rate, dilated pupils, and decreased salivary flow—responses
(see Figure 3.20). The somatic nervous system consists of that prepare the body for action. If you hear footsteps behind
nerves that control skeletal muscles, which are responsible for volun- you as you are walking alone or if you barely avoid an acci-
tary and reflexive movement; it also consists of nerves that receive dent while driving, then you will experience sympathetic
sensory input from the body. This would be the division of the arousal. In this process, blood is directed toward your skel-
PNS that is active when you wiggle your fingers or feel the etal muscles, heart rate and perspiration increase, and diges-
edge of a book. Any voluntary behaviour, such as coordi- tive processes are slowed; each of these responses helps to
nating the movements needed to reach, walk, or move a direct energy where it is most needed in case you need Simulate
computer mouse, makes use of the somatic nervous system. to respond. However, if you remained in this heightened Muscle Contraction

But, not all behaviours are voluntary. For example, it is state of emotional arousal, you would quickly run out of
unlikely that you can make your heart race or your palms energy resources. It is therefore important for you to have a
sweat. Responses such as these are often automatic, occur- system in place that allows your body to quickly return to
ring outside of our conscious [Link] behaviours are normal levels of energy use. The parasympathetic ner-
performed by the autonomic nervous system, the por- vous system helps maintain homeostatic balance in the presence Explore
tion of the peripheral nervous system responsible for regulating the of change; following sympathetic arousal, it works to return the The Autonomic
activity of organs and glands. This system includes two sub- body to a baseline, nonemergency state. Generally speaking, the Nervous System

components, one that increases our ability to make rapid parasympathetic nervous system does the opposite of what
responses, and one that helps us return back to normal lev- the sympathetic nervous system does (see Figure 3.21).
els of emotional arousal. The sympathetic nervous sys- So, if you thought you saw a snake beside your foot, Simulate
tem is responsible for the fight-or-flight response of an increased you would have a sympathetic nervous system response that Do You Fly or Fight?

Sympathetic Nervous System Parasympathetic Nervous System

(Active during fight-or-flight response) (Active during rest and digestion)

Pupil—dilates Salivary glands— Pupil—constricts

inhibit saliva
production Salivary glands—
stimulate saliva
production
Heart—
increases Lungs—dilate Lungs—constrict bronchi Heart—slows heart
heart rate bronchi rate, decreases
breathing rate
Stomach—
Stomach— digestive activity
slows digestion increases

Liver
Pancreas

Adrenal
gland
Muscles that
erect hairs Kidney
Sweat
glands Large intestine— Small intestine—
digestive activity digestive activity
increases increases

Bladder—
Sympathetic Parasympathetic muscles relax
outflow outflow
Uterus

Genitals

{fig. 3.21} The Autonomic Nervous System The sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions of the autonomic nervous system control and
regulate responses by the glands and organs of the body.

Structure and Organization of the Nervous System :: Module 3.3 :: 107

 would increase your heart rate and would send blood toward The Brain and Its Structures
your leg [Link] brain (CNS) would initiate a move-
Simulate
ment and send that order down the spinal cord (CNS) where When you look at the brain, you will immediately
The Human Cerebrum
it would project out from spinal nerves (PNS) that influence notice that it appears to be divided into two symmetri-
the activity of muscles. Sensory feedback (PNS) from the cal halves known as cerebral hemispheres. Each hemisphere
skin and muscles would travel back to the spinal cord (CNS) contains the same structures, although there are some
and up to the brain (CNS). After some time had passed and small differences in the size of these brain areas (Springer
you realized that it was actually a stick, not a snake, your para- & Deutsch, 1998). Within each hemisphere, the struc-
sympathetic nervous system (PNS) would help you calm tures of the brain are organized in a hierarchical fashion.
down so that you were no longer frightened and no longer The human brain, as well as that of other animals, can be
using up all of your energy responding to this stimulus. subdivided into three main regions: the hindbrain, the
Although these different parts of the PNS and CNS midbrain, and the forebrain (Table 3.2). This system of
clearly influence a number of our responses, most of these dividing the brain may tempt you to view it as a mass
activities are biologically simple. An exception is the activ- of separate compartments. Keep in mind that the entire
ity that occurs in the brain, a stunningly complex struc- brain is composed of highly integrated circuitry and
ture made up of hundreds of smaller parts. As most of our feedback loops. In other words, although the forebrain
behaviour is directed by brain activity, the rest of this mod- may perform complex thinking processes like decision
ule will focus on explaining how the different parts of this making, its activity is influenced by (and influences)
biological marvel function, alone and in larger networks. structures in the midbrain and the hindbrain.

THE HINDBRAIN: SUSTAINING THE BODY The

hindbrain consists of structures that are critical to con-
Quick Quiz 3.3a trolling basic, life-sustaining processes. At the top of the
Divisions of the Nervous System spinal cord is a region called the brain stem, which is
1 Which division of the peripheral nervous system the “stem” or bottom of the brain and consists of two struc-
KNOW . . .

is responsible for countering much of the activity tures: the medulla and the pons (Figure 3.22). Nerve cells
associated with the sympathetic nervous system? in the medulla connect with the body to perform basic
A Somatic nervous C Central nervous system
functions such as regulating breathing, heart rate, sneez-
system D Parasympathetic ing, salivating, and even vomiting—all those actions your
B Spinal cord nervous system
body does with little conscious control on your part.
The fact that the medulla can control all of these activi-
2 The central nervous system consists of which of the ties without us consciously controlling our responses is
following?
important—without this ability, our lives would consist
A The brain and the spinal cord
of nothing more than sending signals to various organs
B The brain and the voluntary muscles to ensure that we stayed alive. The pons contributes to
C The brain and the nerves controlling digestion and
other automatic functions
D The somatic and autonomic systems

3 A major difference between the somatic and

UNDERSTAND . . .

Midbrain
autonomic branches of the nervous system is that
Pons
A the somatic nervous system controls involuntary
responses, and the autonomic nervous system Cerebellum
controls voluntary movement.
B the somatic nervous system is located in the brain, Medulla
and the autonomic nervous system is located
peripherally. Spinal
cord
C the somatic nervous system controls voluntary
movement, and the autonomic nervous system
controls involuntary responses.
D the somatic nervous system controls sensation, and
the autonomic nervous system controls movement. {fig. 3.22} The Hindbrain and Midbrain Structures in the
hindbrain are responsible for basic functions that sustain the
Answers can be found on page ANS-1. body. The midbrain includes structures that control basic sen-
sory responses and voluntary movement.

108 :: Module 3.3 : : Structure and Organization of the Nervous System

 Table 3.2 :: Major Brain Regions, Structures, and Their Functions
REGIONS AND STRUCTURES FUNCTIONS
Hindbrain
Brain stem (medulla and pons) Breathing, heart rate, sleep, and wakefulness
Cerebellum Balance, coordination and timing of movements; attention and emotion
Midbrain
Superior colliculus Orienting visual attention
Inferior colliculus Orienting auditory attention
Forebrain
Basal ganglia Movement, reward processing
Amygdala Emotion
Hippocampus Memory
Hypothalamus Temperature regulation, motivation (hunger, thirst, sex)
Thalamus Sensory relay station
Cerebral Cortex
Frontal lobe Thought, planning, language, movement
Parietal lobe Sensory processing, bodily awareness
Occipital lobe Visual processing
Temporal lobe Hearing, object recognition, language, emotion

general levels of wakefulness, and also appears to have (Yamazaki & Tanaka, 2009). However, recent research
a role in dreaming (see Module 5.1). Due to its con- indicates that these timing functions extend beyond
nections to other structures in the brain and spinal cord, movement. Patients with damage to the cerebellum have
the pons is also part of a number of networks including difficulty controlling their attention (Schweizer et al.,
those that control balance, eye movements, and swallow- 2007a, b). They also have problems with emotional con-
ing (Nolte, 1999). trol, including personality changes and impulsivity, a set
An additional hindbrain structure, the reticular forma- of symptoms now known as the cognitive affective behav-
tion, extends from the medulla upwards to the midbrain, ioural syndrome (Schmahmann & Sherman, 1998). The
a higher brain region that will be described shortly. The cerebellum is likely able to influence this wide variety of
reticular formation influences attention and alertness. functions because it has dense connections to a number
When you wake up in the morning, you can thank (in of areas in the forebrain as well as to evolutionarily older
part) your reticular formation. This structure also com- structures in the base of the brain like the hypothala-
municates with cells in the spinal cord involved with mus, a structure related to the autonomic nervous sys-
movements related to walking and posture. tem (Stoodley & Schmahmann, 2010; Zhu et al., 2006).
The structures in the hindbrain are able to influence Through these connections, the so-called “little brain” is
a number of different behaviours through their connec- able to have a big effect on behaviour.
tions to other parts of the brain and spinal cord. They
also have dense connections with another hindbrain THE MIDBRAIN: SENSATION AND ACTION The
structure, the cerebellum. The cerebellum (Latin for cerebellum is not the only neural region involved with
“little brain”) is the lobe-like structure at the base of the brain both movement and attention. The midbrain, which
that is involved in the monitoring of movement, maintaining resides just above the hindbrain, primarily functions as a relay
balance, attention, and emotional responses. The cerebellum’s station between sensory and motor areas (Figure 3.22). For
role in movement has been known for almost two cen- example, have you ever detected a sudden movement
turies (Flourens, 1824; Schmahmann, 2004). Damage to out of the corner of your eye? This ability to capture
this structure leads to uncoordinated and jerky move- your visual attention is influenced by the superior collicu-
ments that interfere with walking, posture, and most limb lus (plural colliculi). Of course, your ability to orient your
movements. These symptoms suggest that the cerebellum attention is not limited to visual stimuli. How do you
is involved with coordinating and timing ongoing move- respond when someone’s cell phone rings in class? You,
ments rather than with generating responses on its own quite naturally, pay attention to that new sound and turn

Structure and Organization of the Nervous System :: Module 3.3 :: 109

 Lateral
ventricle

Third
ventricle Basal ganglia

Cerebral Thalamus Amygdala

aqueduct
Fourth
ventricle

{fig. 3.23} The Cerebral Ventricles Four ventricles in the

brain contain cerebrospinal fluid. This provides nutrition and
cushioning for many parts of the brain. {fig. 3.24} The Basal Ganglia The basal ganglia function in
both voluntary movement and responses to rewarding stimuli.
Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.
your head toward its source (while mentally judging the
person’s ringtone). This ability to move your auditory
attention is influenced by another midbrain structure, Conn et al., 2005). The basal ganglia form networks
the inferior colliculus (plural colliculi). that promote and inhibit movements. These two net-
Like the hindbrain, structures in the midbrain do not works interact to allow us to have our different mus-
act as independent units; rather, they are part of much cles work together in the correct sequence rather than
larger networks. This concept is powerfully illustrated having them “flex” at random times. People who are
by the substantia nigra. This midbrain area has connec- very practised at a specific motor skill, such as playing
tions to structures in the forebrain (discussed below); this an instrument or riding a bicycle, have actually modi-
network of dopamine-releasing cells is involved with the fied their basal ganglia through practice to better coor-
control of movements. Parkinson’s disease—a condition dinate engaging in the activity. Damage to the basal
marked by major impairments in voluntary movement— ganglia can lead to movement disorders like Parkinson’s
is caused by a loss of the dopamine-producing cells in disease—involving resting tremors and problems initi-
this network. ating and coordinating movements—and Huntington’s
disease—involving uncontrollable movements of the
THE FOREBRAIN: EMOTION, MEMORY, AND body, head, and face. The basal ganglia are also affected
THOUGHT The forebrain , the most visibly obvious in people who have Tourette’s syndrome—a condition
region of the brain, consists of all of the neural structures that marked by erratic and repetitive facial and muscle move-
are located above the midbrain, including all of the folds and ments (called tics), heavy eye blinking, and frequent noise
grooves on the outer surface of the brain; the multiple inter- making such as grunting, snorting, or sniffing. The excess
connected structures in the forebrain are critical to such com- dopamine that appears to be transmitted within the
plex processes as emotion, memory, thinking, and reasoning. basal ganglia contributes to many of the classic Tourette’s
The forebrain also contains spaces called ventricles symptoms (Baym et al., 2008). Incidentally, contrary to
(Figure 3.23). Although the ventricles appear hollow, popular belief, the shouting of obscenities (coprolalia) is
they are filled with cerebrospinal fluid, a solution that actually relatively uncommon in people with Tourette’s
helps to eliminate wastes and provides nutrition and hor- syndrome.
mones to the brain and spinal cord. Cerebrospinal fluid Some parts of the basal ganglia are also involved in
also cushions the brain from impact against the skull. emotion, particularly experiences of pleasure and reward
Sitting next to the ventricles are the basal ganglia, a (Berridge et al., 2009). These structures respond to sev-
group of three structures that are involved in facilitating planned eral different types of rewards including tasty foods like
movements, skill learning, and integrating sensory and move- chocolate (Small et al., 2003) and monetary rewards
ment information with the brain’s reward system (Figure 3.24; (Elliot et al., 2003; Zald et al., 2004). They also form a

110 :: Module 3.3 : : Structure and Organization of the Nervous System

network with a nearby structure—the nucleus Corpus callosum
accumbens—whose activity accompanies many
kinds of pleasurable experiences, including
Thalamus
sexual excitement and satisfying a food crav-
ing (Avena et al., 2008). As you will read in
Module 5.3, this basal ganglia–nucleus accum-
bens network is also related to the pleasurable
effects caused by some drugs (Uchimura &
North, 1990).
Another major set of forebrain structures
comprises the limbic system, an integrated net-
work involved in emotion and memory (Maclean,
1952; see Figure 3.25). One key structure in the Hypothalamus
limbic system is the amygdala, which facilitates Hippocampus
memory formation for emotional events, mediates fear
Amygdala
responses, and appears to play a role in recognizing
and interpreting emotional stimuli, including facial
expressions. In addition, the amygdala connects {fig. 3.25} The Limbic System Structures in the limbic system include the hypothalamus,
hippocampus, and amygdala, which play roles in regulating motivation, memory, and emotion.
with structures in the nervous system that are Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.
responsible for adaptive fear responses such as
freezing in position when a possible threat is detected; it
is also connected to areas responsible for attention, which thalamus. Different types of information are processed Explore
is why you usually notice when a spider is on your wall. by different nuclei before being sent to more special- The Limbic System
Just below the amygdala is another limbic structure called ized regions of the brain for further processing (Sher-
the hippocampus (Greek for “seahorse”—something man, 2007; Sherman & Guillery, 1996). Many of these
it physically resembles if you’ve had a few drinks). The regions are found in the outer layer known as the cere-
hippocampus is critical for learning and memory, particu- bral cortex.
larly the formation of new memories (Squire et al., 2007; see
Module 7.1). THE CEREBRAL CORTEX The cerebral cortex
You have already encountered the hypothalamus in is the convoluted, wrinkled outer layer of the brain that is
Module 3.2 when you read about its relationship to the involved in multiple higher functions, such as thought, language,
endocrine system, and you will encounter it again in and personality. This highly advanced, complex structure
Module 11.1 when you read about its influence on the has increased dramatically in size as the primate brain
regulation of hunger and thirst. The hypothalamus serves has evolved (Kouprina et al., 2002; see Module 3.1).
as a sort of thermostat, maintaining the appropriate The wrinkled surface of the brain seems to have solved
body temperature, and it regulates drives such as aggres- a biological problem endured by our species, as well as
sion and sex by interacting with the endocrine system. by many other mammals: how to pack more cells (i.e.,
In fact, regions of the hypothalamus trigger orgasm for more computing power) into the same amount of
both females and males (Meston et al., 2004; Peeters & space. Because the skull can only be so large, the brain
Giuliano, 2007). Direct electrical stimulation of parts of has countered this constraint by forming a wrinkled
the hypothalamus can produce intense physical pleasure. surface—thereby increasing the surface area of the cor-
In a classic set of studies in the 1950s, Olds (1958) found tex. More surface area means more neurons and, likely,
that rats who could press a lever to stimulate the lateral greater cognitive complexity.
(outside part) of the hypothalamus did so for hours on The cerebral cortex consists primarily of the cell
end, often forgoing food and sleep in order to repeatedly bodies and dendrites of neurons; these parts of the neu-
press the lever. In fact, the rats were willing to cross a ron give the outer part of the brain a grey-brown colour.
painful electrical grid in order to reach the lever so that The axons of these neurons extend throughout the
they could return to stimulating themselves. brain and allow communication between different neu-
Another important, albeit less arousing, forebrain ral regions to occur. Most of these axons are wrapped in
structure is the thalamus, a set of nuclei involved in relay- a white, fatty substance called myelin (see Module 3.2)
ing sensory information to different regions of the brain. Most which helps speed up the transmission of neural impulses.
of the incoming sensory information, including what Figure 3.26 shows a slice of the brain revealing contrast-
we see and hear, is routed through specific nuclei in the ing light and dark regions, known as white matter and grey

Structure and Organization of the Nervous System :: Module 3.3 :: 111

 Frontal lobe Parietal
lobe
White matter

Grey matter

Ventricles

Occipital
lobe

Temporal
lobe

{fig. 3.26} Grey and White Matter of the Brain The cere- {fig. 3.27} The Four Lobes of the Cerebral Cortex The
bral cortex includes both grey matter and white matter, which cerebral cortex is divided into the frontal, parietal, occipital,
consist of myelinated axons. Also seen here are the ventricles and temporal lobes. Click on this figure in your eText to see
of the brain. These cavities within the brain are filled with cere- more details.
brospinal fluid that provides nourishment and exchange of
chemicals with the brain as well as its protective structure. The parietal lobes are involved in our experiences of
touch as well our bodily awareness (see Module 4.4). At the
matter. When you see an image like Figure 3.26, it is easy
anterior (front) edge of the parietal lobe is the somato-
to underestimate the complexity of the brain and its con-
sensory cortex—a band of densely packed nerve cells that
nections. Just to put this image into perspective:
register touch sensations. The amount of neural tissue
• The grey matter of the brain consists of approxi- dedicated to a given body part in this region is roughly
mately 100 billion neurons (Drachman, 2005). based on the number of sensory receptors present at
• The white matter of a 20-year-old male brain would each respective body region. For instance, the volume
extend approximately 176 000 km; for a 20-year-old of nerve cells in the somatosensory cortex correspond-
female brain, it would extend approximately 149 000 km ing to the face and hands is proportionally greater than
(Marner et al., 2003). the volume of cells devoted to less sensitive regions like
• Healthy adults have between 100 and 500 trillion syn- the torso and legs. This is because we acquire more sen-
apses, or connections between cells (Drachman, 2005). sory information from our face and hands than we do
Each of these synapses can fire several times a second. from most other body parts; very few people use their
That is a considerable amount of computing power. stomach when trying to identify objects by touch. This
difference in the amount of space in the somatosensory
THE FOUR LOBES In each cerebral hemisphere, cortex allocated to different parts of the body is depicted
the cortex forms the outer surface of four major areas in Figure 3.28; figures such as this are referred to as a
known as lobes: the occipital, parietal, temporal, and fron- homunculus or “little man.”
tal lobes (Figure 3.27). Each of the cerebral lobes has Regions within the parietal lobes also function in
a particular set of functions. Nerve cells from each of performing mathematical, visuospatial, and attention
the four lobes are interconnected, however, and are also tasks. Damage to different regions of the parietal lobe can
networked with regions of the midbrain and hindbrain lead to specific impairments. For instance, right parietal
already described. lobe damage can lead to neglect, a situation in which the
The occipital lobes are located at the rear of the brain patient does not attend to anything that appears in the
and are where visual information is processed (see Module 4.2). left half of his or her visual field (Heilman & Valenstein,
The occipital lobes receive visual information from the 1979; Hughlings Jackson, 1876/1932); neglect can even
thalamus. After processing this information, they send it occur for the left half of the patient’s imagined visual
out along two different visual pathways, one that projects images (Bisiach & Luzatti, 1978)!
to the temporal lobes and is involved with object rec- The temporal lobes are located at the sides of the brain
ognition and one that projects to the parietal lobes and near the ears and are involved in hearing (see Module 4.3),
is involved with using vision to guide our movements language (see Module 8.3), and some higher-level aspects of
(Milner & Goodale, 2006). vision such as object and face recognition (see Module 4.2).

112 :: Module 3.3 : : Structure and Organization of the Nervous System

Patients with damage to the right parietal lobe sometimes show evidence of neglect, a failure to attend to the left half of their
visual field.

Different sections of the temporal cortex perform dif- 2007; Eichenbaum et al., 2007). The hippocampus—
ferent roles. The anterior (front) part of this region is which is found in the medial or middle portions of
involved with memory for semantic knowledge, basic the temporal lobes—then sends output to different
facts like Victoria is the capital of B.C. Damage to this brain areas, particularly regions of the frontal lobes,
region can lead to semantic dementia, a disorder in showing again that many diff erent areas of the brain
which patients have difficulty remembering informa- work together to produce almost every behaviour we
tion about concepts. For instance, patients might have perform.
problems answering questions about whether pine trees The frontal lobes are important in numerous higher
or palm trees are more likely to be found on a tropical cognitive functions, such as planning, regulating impulses
island (Hodges & Graham, 2001). The superior (top) part and emotion, language production, and voluntary movement
of the temporal cortex is known as the auditory cortex—it (Goldman-Rakic, 1996). The frontal lobes also allow you
is essential for our ability to hear. Damage to this region to deliberately guide and reflect on your own thought
leads to problems with hearing despite the fact that the processes. Like the temporal lobes, the frontal lobes can
patient’s ears work perfectly; this condition is known as be divided into a number of subsections with specific
cortical deafness (Mott, 1907). Slightly behind this region, functions (Miller & Cummings, 2007). A key distinction
near the back of the temporal lobe, is Wernicke’s area, is between areas related to movement and areas related
which is related to understanding language (Wernicke, to the control of our mental lives.
1874). The close proximity of the hearing and language- Toward the rear of the frontal lobes is a thick band
comprehension areas makes sense, as these two functions of neurons that form the primary motor cortex, which is
are closely related (see Module 8.3 for a detailed discus- involved in the control of voluntary movement. Like
sion of language). the somatosensory cortex discussed above, the primary
Some of the structures on the bottom surface of motor cortex is organized in a homunculus, with dif-
the temporal lobes have a key role in memory. These ferent body areas requiring different amounts of space
brain areas send information about the objects being (see Figure 3.28). Body parts such as the fingers that per-
viewed and their location or context to the hippocam- form fine-motor control will require more space in the
pus, a forebrain structure discussed above (Diana et al., motor cortex than areas like the upper thigh, which does

Structure and Organization of the Nervous System :: Module 3.3 :: 113

 Central sulcus not perform many intricate movements.
Importantly, motor areas in the frontal lobes
are active not just when moving the corre-
sponding body part, but also when planning
a movement. This ability to prepare move-
ments before they are needed would clearly
Motor cortex Somatosensory
cortex
be useful when dealing with threats and
likely contributed to our species’ survival.
The front two-thirds of the frontal

Tru
Sh

Ne
He
Tru
ou

nk
Kn
lobes are known as the prefrontal cortex. This

Kn
ck
ad

H ip
l de

nk

Hip

ee

ee
Arm
r

M Ri region, which itself can be divided into a

Lit

Elb

Fi
id ng

Ha
ng
tle

Ar
d
ow

le
Ha r

Th

nd
fin
Wr

m
er
Ind
fin

fin
ge ger
um Leg number of subsections, performs many of

s
nd

ex
ist
ge

fin b
ge r
r
Br
our higher-order cognitive functions such as
Ankle o
Thumb Ey w decision making and controlling our atten-
e Foot
No
se
Brow Toes
tion. The prefrontal cortex has connections
Eye Lips
Genitals
to many of the other brain areas discussed
Face Toes
in this module, and appears to help regu-
Lips
Teeth late their activity; these control processes are
Gums
Jaw Jaw
known as executive functions. Such functions
are not always necessary; however, when we
Tongue
Swallowing
Tongue encounter new situations or need to over-
ride our normal responses, the prefrontal
cortex is almost always involved (Milner,
1963; Stuss & Knight, 2002).
Given their importance, we would obvi-
{fig. 3.28} The Body as Mapped on the Motor Cortex and Somatosensory Cortex The regions
of the motor cortex are involved in controlling specific body parts. The somatosensory cortex regis- ously like to find ways to strengthen our
ters touch and other sensations that correspond to the body region depicted. Why do you think it is executive functions. Recently, researchers
evolutionarily useful to have these two cortices next to each other in the brain? have found a surprising way to do so: exercise.

Watch PSYCH @ the only beneficiaries of an exercise program; similar findings

have been reported for elderly people who regularly engage
Thinking Like a
Psychologist: The
The Gym in aerobic exercise (Erickson et al., 2011).
Prefrontal Cortex: The
Despite the clear benefits associated with exercise, many
Good, the Bad, and
school curricula have dropped physical education in favour of
Somehow, physical exertion, pain, and breaking down and
the Criminal
spending more time on preparation for standardized testing.
rebuilding muscle end up making people feel better. But the
It is not clear that time away from the gym and the playground
benefits of exercise do not apply just to mood: Exercise also
is having much benefit. A review of 14 studies—12 conducted
affects cognitive activities such as learning and memory. But
in the U.S., one in British Columbia (Ahmed et al., 2007), and
how?
one in South Africa—found a “significant positive relation-
Explore In recent years, neuroscientists have begun unravelling
ship” between physical activity and academic performance
Healthy versus Bad the mystery of how exercise benefits brain health. Brain imag-
(Singh et al., 2012). This effect may be due to changes in blood
Habits and Brain ing studies have revealed that people who engage in regular
flow to the brain, a reduction in stress due to time away from
Functioning exercise show improved functioning of the prefrontal cortex
schoolwork, a positive emotional experience associated with
compared to non-exercisers. In addition, people who exer-
play, or, more likely, a combination of several factors. Science
cise perform better than non-exercisers on tasks involving
is clearly demonstrating that exercise affects the brain basis
planning, scheduling, and multitasking (see Davis et al., 2011;
of learning and memory (Cotman & Berchtold, 2002; Hillman
Hillman et al., 2008). Animal studies have shown that exer-
et al., 2008). These results suggest that provincial govern-
cise increases the number of cells in the hippocampus, which
ments should increase, not decrease, funding for physical edu-
is critical for memory, and increases the quantity of brain
cation in schools. Hopefully these studies will help get that
chemicals that are responsible for promoting cell growth and
ball rolling.
functioning (Cotman & Berchtold, 2002). But animals are not

114 :: Module 3.3 : : Structure and Organization of the Nervous System

 The four lobes of the brain are found in both of stimuli, and musical processing. In contrast, the left hemi-
our cerebral hemispheres. It is therefore important to sphere is more specialized for language and math (Cor-
have some way for these brain regions to communicate ballis, 1993; Gazzaniga, 1967, 2000). However, although
with each other. This prevents us from having our left some hemispheric differences are quite pronounced,
and right hemispheres working against each other. In many are a matter of degree (Springer & Deutsch, 1998).
Figure 3.29, you can see that crossing the midline of Our understanding of hemispheric specialization
the brain is a densely concentrated bundle of nerve cells expanded greatly through work with split-brain patients.
called the corpus callosum, a collection of neural fibres In the 1960s, physicians hoping to curtail severe epilep-
connecting the two hemispheres. This thick band of fibres tic seizures in their patients used a surgical procedure
allows the right and left hemispheres to communicate to treat individuals who were not responding to other
with each other. This communication has an added ben- therapies. The surgeon would sever the corpus callosum,
efit: It allows the two hemispheres to work together to leaving a patient with two separate cerebral hemispheres.
produce some of our behaviours. It also opens up the This surgery is not as drastic as it might sound. Patients
possibility that each hemisphere will become specialized were remarkably normal after the operation, but sev-
for performing certain functions. eral interesting observations were made. One was that
split-brain patients responded quite differently to visual
LEFT BRAIN, RIGHT BRAIN: HEMISPHERIC SPE- input that was presented to either hemisphere alone
CIALIZATION Although they appear to be mirror (Sperry, 1982).
images of each other, the two sides of the cortex often To see how this works, take a look at Figure 3.30.
perform very different functions, a phenomenon called Imagine the person pictured has a split brain. On the
hemispheric specialization. Speaking in very general terms, one hand, she is able to match the two objects to her Watch
the right hemisphere is specialized for cognitive tasks right, and can verbalize the match, because the left side
IT-Video: Balancing

that involve visual and spatial skills, recognition of visual of her visual system perceives the objects and language Simulate
is processed in the left hemisphere of the brain. On the Hemispheric
other hand, a visual stimulus presented on the left side Experiments

Left cerebral
of the body is processed on the right side of the brain.
Right cerebral
hemisphere hemisphere As you can see from Figure 3.30, when the object is

Corpus callosum

Spoon

Left Right
hemisphere hemisphere

{fig. 3.30} A Split-Brain Experiment This woman has had Simulate

a split-brain operation. She is able to verbalize which objects Split-Brain
match when they are placed to her right side, because lan-
{fig. 3.29} The Corpus Callosum The left and right hemi- guage is processed in the left hemisphere. She cannot ver-
spheres of the brain are connected by a thick band of axons balize the matching objects at left, but can identify them by
called the corpus callosum. pointing.

Structure and Organization of the Nervous System :: Module 3.3 :: 115

 presented to the left side of the split-brain patient, the THE CHANGING BRAIN: NEUROPLASTICITY
individual does not verbalize which of the objects match, In Module 3.2, you read about stem cells, immature cells
because her right hemisphere is not specialized for lan- whose final role—be it a neuron or a kidney cell—is
guage and cannot label the object. If asked to point at based on the chemical environment in which it develops.
the matching object, however, she is able to do so (but In other words, the cell’s experience (its environment)
only with her left hand, which is controlled by the right influenced its physical structure. While fully formed neu-
hemisphere). Thus, she is able to process the informa- rons will never have this type of flexibility, brain cells do
Watch tion using her right hemisphere, but cannot articulate it have a remarkable property called neuroplasticity—the
Special Topics: The with language. capacity of the brain to change and rewire itself based on individ-
Plastic Brain Today, split-brain studies are extremely rare, as mod- ual experience. For example, numerous studies have shown
ern epilepsy medications are often sufficient to treat the that the occipital lobes of people who are blind are used
symptoms of these patients without the need to sever for non-visual purposes (Pascual-Leone et al., 2005). This
the corpus callosum. However, the insights gained from plasticity was beautifully demonstrated in a brain-imaging
these patients still inform our understanding of the brain. study using healthy individuals. All participants under-
It must be stressed, however, that many of these differ- went brain imaging to determine the areas that became
ences are a matter of degree rather than being an abso- active when they performed tasks related to hearing and
lute one-hemisphere-or-the-other distinction. Indeed, touch; during this initial phase, the occipital lobes—a
the reality is that most cognitive functions are spread region associated with vision—was not active. These par-
throughout multiple brain regions, with one hemisphere ticipants were then blindfolded for five days before being
sometimes being superior to the other hemisphere scanned again. During the second scan session, brain areas
(see Table 3.3). normally dedicated to vision became active during touch
Before finishing a discussion of the hemispheres, it and hearing tasks (Pascual-Leone & Hamilton, 2001).
Watch is also important to point out that the media often mis- There are numerous other examples of neuroplas-
Brain Building represents how hemispheric specialization works. Terms ticity. For example, experienced musicians develop a
like “left-brained” and “right-brained” are used quite greater density of grey matter in the areas of the motor
frequently, with the assumption that left-brained people cortex of the frontal lobe as well as in the auditory
are rigid-thinking accountants who spend hours count- cortex (Gaser & Schlaug, 2003). Studies of children
ing their grey suits and right-brained people are cre- have found that individuals who practised an instru-
ative Bohemian artists who flamboyantly wander from ment regularly for over two years had a thicker corpus
experimental art exhibits to melodramatic poetry read- callosum in areas connecting the left and right frontal
ings. There are numerous websites that allow you to test and temporal lobes (Schlaug et al., 2009). Even a seem-
yourself on this dimension. However, while these types ingly silly skill like learning to juggle can influence the
of characters undoubtedly exist, the degree to which thickness of white-matter pathways connecting differ-
these personalities are linked to different hemispheres is ent brain areas (Scholz et al., 2009). The key point in
very limited. In fact, neuroimaging studies of personality all of these studies is that although genetics controls
traits show that characteristics similar to left- and right- some of your brain’s characteristics, your brain’s con-
brained people (as measured by the pseudoscientific nections are not set in stone. What you do with (and
tests) are distributed across both hemispheres (De Young to) your brain can have a dramatic effect on your
et al., 2010). brain’s connections and thus how your brain functions.

Table 3.3 :: Examples of Hemispheric Asymmetries

LEFT HEMISPHERE RIGHT HEMISPHERE
Language production Visuospatial skills
Language comprehension Prosody (emotional intonation)
Word recognition Face recognition
Arithmetic Attention (rapid orienting to new stimuli)
Moving the right side of the body Moving the left side of the body

116 :: Module 3.3 : : Structure and Organization of the Nervous System

 Broca’s area Wernicke’s area
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC Involved in Involved in
articulating comprehension of
LITERACY MODEL spoken words spoken and written
language
Neuroplasticity and Recovery
from Brain Injury

The fact that neuroplasticity exists makes it seem like recov-

Explore
ery from brain damage should be easy—the remaining brain
Virtual Brain: Brain
areas should simply rewire themselves to take over the
Damage and
functions of the damaged brain areas. However, it’s not that
Neuroplasticity
simple—and we’re lucky it isn’t.

What do we know
about neuroplasticity?
Some animals with relatively sim-
ple brains and spinal cords, such as
fish and some amphibians, have a
lifelong ability to regenerate dam- {fig. 3.31} Brain Specialization Broca’s area and
Wernicke’s area are associated with different aspects of lan- Simulate
aged areas of their central ner-
guage function. Damage to Broca’s area produces difficulties Mechanisms of
vous system. If members of these in generating speech known as Broca’s aphasia. Evolution
species suffer a brain or spinal cord injury, they will auto-
matically create new tissue to replace the damaged nerves
(Sperry, 1951, 1956, 1963, 1968). Humans can do this to a this phenomenon has been found in studies of Melodic Into-
limited degree in the peripheral nervous system as well. This nation Therapy (MIT; Norton et al., 2009). Researchers have
is because chemicals called trophic factors (growth factors) found that some patients with damage to Broca’s area—a
can stimulate the growth of new dendrites and axons. How- part of the left frontal lobe involved with the production of
ever, the ability of the human brain to recover from damage speech—can actually sing using fluent, articulated words, even
is more limited. New neurons can form in adulthood, but only though they cannot speak those same words (see Figure 3.31).
in a few regions such as part of the hippocampus (Eriksson et In a study of this technique, patients who had suffered strokes
al., 1998). That means we can’t simply grow a new brain part affecting Broca’s area underwent intensive MIT sessions. Dur-
whenever we’re injured. ing these sessions the patients would sing long strings of
Our ability to repair our brains is also limited by the pres- words using just two pitches, while rhythmically tapping their
ence of chemicals that actually inhibit the growth of new left hand to the melody. You can try this out with the help
axons around an injured area (Yang & Schnarr, 2008). Why of Figure 3.32. The patients underwent 80 or more sessions
would this occur? Researchers suggest that these inhibitory lasting 1.5 hours each day, 5 days per week. Remarkably, this
chemicals prevent the brain from forming incorrect connec- therapy has worked for multiple patients—after these inten-
tions between brain areas, a result that might produce even sive therapy sessions, they typically regain significant language
larger behavioural problems than the initial damage itself function (Schlaug et al., 2009). The therapy does not “heal”
(Berlucchi, 2011; Kolb et al., 2010). So, if our central nervous
system is protecting us against neuroplasticity, how can neu-
roplasticity be the key to recovering from brain damage? Elementary Level Intermediate Level

How can science

explain how I love you I l o v e m y c h i l - dr e n
neuroplasticity
contributes to Advanced Level
recovery from brain
damage?
Although it seems like the brain is preventing its own recovery, I l o v e m y d a u g h - t e r a n d m y so n
there are actually a number of ways that neuroplasticity can
work to help patients with brain damage. One possibility is that {fig. 3.32} Musical Intonation Therapy During musi-
the same area in the opposite hemisphere will take over some cal intonation therapy, patients are asked to sing phrases of
of the functions of the damaged region. Stunning evidence of increasing complexity.

Structure and Organization of the Nervous System :: Module 3.3 :: 117

 damaged nerve cells in the left hemisphere at Broca’s area. It is also possible that results that seem to be due to neu-
Rather, language function is taken over by the corresponding roplasticity are actually due to some other factor, such as
area of the right [Link] might be wondering why the changes in hormone levels, the brain’s metabolism, or growth
patients tapped the fingers of their left hand. The researchers factor levels (Knaepen et al., 2010; Sperry, 1968). Although all
suggest that because we typically gesture along with speech, of these alternative explanations have been tested to some
and because speech itself involves motor movements, the tap- degree in animal studies, it is sometimes difficult to gener-
ping may facilitate the recovery process. alize those findings to the human brain (Kolb et al., 2010).
Therefore, much more research is needed before researchers
Another method that the brain uses to repair itself is the
can make any definitive statements about how neuroplasticity
reorganization of neighbouring neural regions. In healthy
helps brain-damaged patients recover.
brains, the distinction between most brain areas is not as
clear-cut as it appears on textbook diagrams. For instance,
it is common for parts of the somatosensory cortex related Why is this relevant?
to the hand to overlap a bit with regions related to the wrist. Each year, 40 000–50 000 Cana-
If one of those somatosensory areas were damaged, there dians suffer strokes (Heart and
might still be a small number of neurons associated with that Stroke Foundation of Canada,
body part preserved in other parts of the nearby cortex. 2013) and over 150 000 suffer traumatic brain injuries (e.g.,
When the brain is damaged, it is thought that these preserved car accidents; Brain Injury Society of Toronto, 2013). Over
neurons attempt to form new connections. Doing so would 55 000 Canadians are living with brain tumours (Brain Tumour
allow some sensation to return. This process is enhanced if Foundation of Canada, 2013). Neuroplasticity will occur, to
the doctors force the patient to use the affected brain area some degree, in the majority of these individuals. It is what will
as much as possible during rehabilitation (Mark et al., 2006). help people regain some of their abilities and some of their
Although it seems cruel, patients must remember to “use it independence. Understanding neuroplasticity will improve the
or lose it.” Indeed, research has shown that improvements in care given to patients. It will also inspire new research and
a patient’s recovery are linked to the reorganization of the innovative techniques designed to help the brain heal itself
affected brain area (Pulvermüller & Berthier, 2008). (Kim et al., 2010). This research may affect your grandparents
or your parents. And eventually, this research may affect you.
Can we critically evaluate
this research?
There are obviously limits to the
effects of neuroplasticity. If a patient
has damage to large amount of her
brain, it will not be possible for her
to return to her normal level of functioning. Additionally,
plasticity is more likely to be effective in younger people, par-
ticularly children, than in older adults (Kennard, 1942). Plas-
ticity is most effective when the child is in a developmental
stage that is already associated with the formation of new
synapses (Kolb & Gibb, 2008; Kolb et al., 2010). Therefore, it
is important not to over-generalize the results just discussed. Tony Hutchings/Getty Images

Quick Quiz 3.3b The Brain and Its Structures

1 The ability to hear is based in which of the cerebral 2 Why would a person who has undergone a split-brain
KNOW . . .

UNDERSTAND . . .

lobes? operation be unable to name an object presented to

A Frontal his left visual field, yet be able to correctly point to the
B Parietal same object from an array of choices?
A Because his right hemisphere perceived the object,
C Temporal
but does not house the language function needed
D Hypothalamus for naming it
B Because the image was processed on his left hemi-
sphere, which is required for naming objects
C Because pointing is something done with the right hand
D Because the right hemisphere of the brain is where
objects are seen

118 :: Module 3.3 : : Structure and Organization of the Nervous System

 3 Damage to the somatosensory cortex would most 4 Which of the following statements best summarizes the

ANALYZE . . .
APPLY . . .
likely result in which of the following impairments? results of experiments on exercise and brain functioning?
A Inability to point at an object A Both human and animal studies show cognitive
B Impaired vision benefits of exercise.

C Impaired mathematical ability B Animal studies show benefits from exercise, but
the results of human studies are unclear.
D Lost or distorted sensations in the region of the
body corresponding to the damaged area C Exercise benefits mood but not thinking.
D Exercise only benefits older people.
Answers can be found on page ANS-1.

Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
3.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with the structure

and organization of the nervous system:

amygdala (p. 111) midbrain (p. 109)

autonomic nervous system neuroplasticity (p. 116)
(p. 107) occipital lobes (p. 112) Montreal Neurological Hospital and Institute
basal ganglia (p. 110) parasympathetic nervous system
brain stem (p. 108) (p. 107)
1. While at work, a woman suffers a severe blow to the
central nervous system (CNS) parietal lobes (p. 112)
(p. 106) back of her head and then experiences visual problems.
peripheral nervous system (PNS)
cerebellum (p. 109) (p. 106) Which part of her brain has most likely been affected?
cerebral cortex (p. 111) somatic nervous system 2. If an individual has a stroke and loses the ability to
corpus callosum (p. 115) (p. 107) speak in clear sentences, what part of the brain is most
forebrain (p. 110) sympathetic nervous system likely to have been damaged?
(p. 107)
frontal lobes (p. 113) 3. If an individual develops a tumour that affects the basal
temporal lobes (p. 112)
hippocampus (p. 111) ganglia, which types of behaviours or abilities are likely
thalamus (p. 111)
limbic system (p. 111) to be affected?
4. A man suffers a gunshot wound that slightly damages
UNDERSTAND . . . his cerebellum. Which problems might he experience
(aside from repeatedly asking himself why someone
● How studies of split-brain patients reveal the workings shot him in the head)?
of the brain. Studies of split-brain patients were
important in that they revealed that the two hemispheres
ANALYZE . . .
of the brain are specialized for certain cognitive tasks. For
example, studies of split-brain patients showed that the ● Whether neuroplasticity will help patients with
left hemisphere was specialized for language. These studies brain damage. There are many examples of experience
were carried out before other brain-imaging techniques changing the structure of the brain. Research suggests
(see Module 3.4) became available. that neuroplasticity can also help people recover from
brain damage. If the damage is isolated to one cerebral
APPLY . . . hemisphere, cells in the same region of the opposite
hemisphere may be able to take over some of the impaired
● Your knowledge of brain regions to predict which functions. Additionally, it is possible that some of the cells
abilities might be affected when a specific area involved with a function (e.g., sensation of the hand) were
is injured or diseased. Review Table 3.2 , which undamaged; these remaining cells may form new, stronger
summarizes each of the major brain regions described in connections over the course of rehabilitation.
this module. Then try to answer these questions (check
your answers on page ANS-1):

Structure and Organization of the Nervous System :: Module 3.3 :: 119

 Sun Media/Splash News/Newscom

Module

3.4 Windows to the Brain: Measuring

and Observing Brain Activity
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology How studies of animals with Your knowledge of neuroimaging Whether neuroimaging can be
After reading associated with measuring brain lesions can inform us techniques to see which ones used to diagnose brain injuries
this module and observing brain activity about the workings of the brain would be most useful in answering
you should a specific research question

On March 8, 2011, Boston Bruins’ (giant) defenceman Zdeno Chara dan- For those interested, Pacioretty made a full recovery, scoring 33 goals
gerously bodychecked Montreal Canadiens’ forward Max Pacioretty into for the Canadiens over the course of the next season. Later that year,
the boards; Pacioretty hit the “stanchion,” the location where the plexi- he won the Bill Masterton Trophy, handed out by the National Hockey
glass begins next to the players’ bench. Pacioretty lay motionless on the League to the player who provides the best example of perseverance,
ice for several minutes with many people in the audience concerned for team spirit, and dedication to hockey. He was very, very lucky.
his life. He was taken off the ice on a stretcher while still unconscious and
was rushed to the hospital for a neurological exam. He was diagnosed Focus Questions
with a fracture of the 4th cervical vertebra (a bone in the neck) but, luck-
1 How can lesions help us learn about the brain?
ily, no spinal cord damage; he also had a severe concussion, also known
as a mild traumatic brain injury. Injuries such as Pacioretty’s lead to a 2 How can we make sense of brain activity as it is actually occurring?
number of questions for people interested in the biology of behaviour:
How can psychologists and medical personnel acquire clear images of
a person’s brain for medical or research purposes? Is it possible to map
out which brain areas are firing when people are performing a specific In Module 3.3, you read about different brain areas and their func-
task like viewing photographs or memorizing a list of words? And, can tions. This leads to an obvious question: How did researchers find
scientists learn anything about the healthy brain by studying patients who out what these brains areas do? In this module, we will examine the
have suffered brain damage? These topics will be addressed in the current different methods and tools available to physicians and researchers
module. in their quest to map out the functions of different brain areas.

120 :: Module 3.4 : : Windows to the Brain: Measuring and Observing Brain Activity
Insights from Brain Damage brain totally [Link] diffuse damage makes it dif-
ficult for brain researchers to perform controlled studies
Early studies of the brain often involved case studies. A of patients—each patient will have a unique pattern of
doctor would note a patient’s unique set of symptoms damage. It is also difficult to isolate the effects of damage
and would then ghoulishly wait for him or her to die to one brain area when several are damaged.
so that an autopsy could be performed in order to iden- In order to gain more experimental control (and a
tify the damaged area. As medical knowledge improved, much larger number of subjects), scientists often create
surgeons began to routinely operate on the brains brain damage in [Link] process is known as lesion-
of patients with neurological problems. This allowed ing, a technique in which researchers intentionally damage an
researchers to examine patients before and after brain area in the brain (a lesion is abnormal or damaged brain
surgery to see the effect that removing tissue would have tissue). Creating lesions allows the researcher to isolate
on behaviour. However, in each of these cases, insights single brain structures. He or she can then study animals
into the brain were based on individuals who had suf- with and without lesions to see how specific behaviours
fered some sort of trauma or illness. There was no way to are changed by the removal of that brain tissue. The con-
test how healthy brains function. In the last four decades, trol subjects are often part of a sham group, a set of animals
advances in brain imaging have changed this, and have that go through all of the surgical procedures aside from
allowed researchers to safely measure the brain’s activity. the lesion itself in order to control for the effects of stress,
This is not to say that studying patients with brain anesthesia, and the annoyance of stitches. An example of
damage is not scientifically useful. In fact, quite the the lesion method is found in studies of spatial learn-
opposite is true. The only way researchers can truly hope ing. Researchers hypothesized that the hippocampus
to understand how the brain works is by using a number was vital for this ability. In order to test this hypothesis,
of different methods to assess its function. the researchers lesioned the hippocampus on both sides
LESIONING AND BRAIN STIMULATION Studies of the brains of one group of rats and performed sham
of patients who have suffered brain damage will appear surgery on the other rats. Each rat was then put into the
in a number of modules in this book. The logic of this Morris Water Maze (Morris, 1981); this device consists of
method is that if a person has part of his or her brain a container filled with an opaque (non-transparent) fluid.
damaged and is unable to perform a particular task (e.g., The rat is placed in the water and must swim around
form new memories), then it is assumed that the dam- until it finds a small platform hidden under the fluid. At
aged structure plays a role in that behaviour. One draw- first, the rat finds the platform by chance; over time, the
back of studying human patients, however, is that the rat learns the location of the platform and swims to it
researcher has no control over where the damage occurs. immediately. However, rats with lesions to the hippocam-
A stroke generally produces widespread damage; rarely pus show a marked impairment in learning the location
will it harm a single area while leaving the rest of the of the platform, presumably because the hippocampus is
critical for many spatial abilities (Morris et al., 1982). This

First attempt: rat eventually Future attempts: rat has not

finds platform learned the platform location

Submerged
platform
Rat with lesion
to hippocampus

Rat without
lesions
Opaque
fluid
akg-images/Newscom
Before brain imaging technology became available,
neurosurgeons had to do quite a bit of guesswork.
Dr. Harvey Cushing was one of the world’s first neurosurgeons. Future attempts: rat finds
Dr. Cushing, who operated on patients with brain tumours, had platform immediately
to rely on behavioural symptoms to determine where to target Tools like the Morris Water Maze allow researchers to test the effects of
his attempts at removing the tumours. brain lesions on behaviours such as spatial memory.

Windows to the Brain: Measuring and Observing Brain Activity :: Module 3.4 :: 121
 example demonstrates the power of the lesion method to more cautious, risk-averse manner than when they per-
determine the roles played by specific brain areas. formed the task without this stimulation (Fecteau et al.,
Less drastic techniques impair brain activity only tem- 2007). TMS has also been used to stimulate under-active
porarily; in fact, some can be safely applied to humans. For areas associated with depression, suggesting that this tool
instance, researchers can study brain functions using tran- has clinical applications as well (Kluger & Triggs, 2007). In
scranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), a procedure in fact, researchers have used this technique to help patients
which an electromagnetic pulse is delivered to a targeted region of deal with symptoms of disorders ranging from Parkinson’s
the brain (Bestmann, 2008;Terao & Ugawa, 2002).This pulse disease (Degardin et al., 2012) to movement problems
interacts with the flow of ions around the neurons of the caused by strokes (Corti et al., 2012; Schlaug et al., 2008).
affected area. The result is a temporary disruption of brain Although lesion work and TMS allow researchers to
activity, similar to the permanent disruption caused by a understand what happens to the brain when certain regions
brain lesion. This procedure has the advantage that healthy are removed or inactive, these methods don’t provide a pic-
human volunteers can be studied (as opposed to animals or ture of the brain’s structures or its patterns of activity. Luck-
brain-damaged people, many of whom are elderly). TMS ily, there have been astonishing advances in structural and
has been used to investigate a number of cognitive pro- functional neuroimaging over the past forty years.
cesses ranging from visual perception (Perini et al., 2012)
to arithmetic abilities (Andres et al., 2011) to memory
for words and abstract shapes (Floel et al., 2004). In each Quick Quiz 3.4a
case, impairments in performance after receiving the TMS Insights from Brain Damage
“temporary lesion” tell the researcher that the stimulated
1 The control group in a typical lesion study is called the

KNOW . . .
brain area is likely involved in that cognitive process. A metacranial group. C sham group.
Interestingly, if a weaker electromagnetic pulse is
B pseudo-incision group. D static group.
delivered, TMS can also be used to stimulate, rather than
temporarily impair, a brain region (Figure 3.33). For
2 Why do researchers often use the lesion method

UNDERSTAND . . .
example, TMS has been used to increase the activity in
instead of studying humans with brain damage?
the frontal lobes—an area related to planning and inhib-
A It is possible to test more subjects using the lesion
iting behaviour—when people were performing a gam- method.
bling task. This change led the participants to behave in a B Brain damage usually differs between patients.
C The patients usually only have damage in one
specific area.
D Both (A) and (B) are true.

3 Dr. Cerveau performed a TMS lesion study in her lab.

ANALYZE . . .

She found that applying a pulse to the parietal lobes

prevented people from pressing a keypad in response
to a suddenly appearing image. She concluded that the
lesion affected attention. Why should we be cautious
of her claim?
A TMS is not a valid method of lesioning brain areas.
B The TMS lesion covered a large area and may have
affected other functions that might have slowed
participants’ responses.
C Response times are not a valid measure of how
people pay attention.
D All of the above are valid concerns.
Answers can be found on page ANS-1.

Structural and Functional

{fig. 3.33} Brain Stimulation Transcranial magnetic stimu-
lation involves targeting a magnetic field to a very specific Neuroimaging
region of the brain. Depending on the amount of stimulation,
Watch researchers can either temporarily stimulate or disable the Neuroimaging (or brain imaging) is becoming increas-
Brain Imaging region. ingly important for many fields, particularly for

122 :: Module 3.4 : : Windows to the Brain: Measuring and Observing Brain Activity
psychology. Being able to examine the brains of living CT scans were considered state of the art for over
people and to measure neural activity while participants a decade. However, in the 1970s and early 1980s, a new
perform different tasks provides an astonishing window form of structural neuroimaging emerged. Magnetic
into the mind. Neuroimaging has also revolutionized resonance imaging (or MRI) is a structural imaging tech-
medicine, allowing doctors to see with great precision nique in which clear images of the brain are created based on
the size and location of brain injuries. The remainder of how different neural regions absorb and release energy while in
this module will focus on the two types of brain scan- a magnetic field. Although this sounds confusing, under-
ning: structural and functional neuroimaging. standing MRIs involves three steps. First, a brain (or
other body part) is placed inside a strong magnetic field;
STRUCTURAL NEUROIMAGING At the begin- this causes the protons of the brain’s hydrogen atoms
ning of this module, you read about Montreal Canadiens’ to spin in the same direction. Second, a pulse of radio
forward Max Pacioretty’s scary injury and his surprising waves is sent through the brain; the energy of this pulse
return to the National Hockey League. When Pacioretty is absorbed by the atoms in the brain and knocks them
first arrived at the hospital, the doctors would obviously out of their previous position (aligned with the mag-
have wanted to determine the extent of the damage to netic field). Finally, the pulse of radio waves is turned
his brain. In order to get this information, it was nec- off . At this point, the atoms again become aligned with
essary to use structural neuroimaging, a type of brain the magnetic field. But, as they do so, they release the
scanning that produces images of the different structures of the energy they absorbed during the pulse. Different types
brain. This type of neuroimaging is used to measure the of tissue—grey matter, white matter, and fluid—release
size of different brain areas and to determine whether different amounts of energy and return to their mag-
any brain injury has occurred. netic alignment at different speeds. Computers are
There are three commonly used types of structural used to calculate these differences and provide a very
neuroimaging. Computerized tomography (or CT detailed three-dimensional image of the brain (Huettel
scan) is a structural neuroimaging technique in which x-rays are et al., 2009).
sent through the brain by a tube that rotates around the head. As you can see from Figure 3.34, MRIs produce
The x-rays will pass through dense tissue (e.g., grey mat- much clearer images than CT scans and are more accu-
ter) at a different speed than they will pass through less rate at detecting many forms of damage including con-
dense tissue, like the fluid in the ventricles (Hounsfield, cussions like that suffered by Max Pacioretty (Bazarian
1980). A computer then calculates these differences et al., 2007). So, why are CT scanners still used? Let’s go
for each image that is taken as the tube moves around back to Pacioretty’s injury. He was hit into a structure
the head and combines that information into a three- that consisted of a thin pad covering metal and plexi-
dimensional image (see Figure 3.34). As an interesting glass, so the chances of him having metal in his brain
historical aside, the first commercial CT scanner was cre- were quite slim. But what if a person entered the hos-
ated by EMI in the early 1970s (and was called the EMI- pital after a car accident? He might have fragments of
Scanner), a company also involved in the music industry. metal in his body; these would not react well to a power-
This company had enough money to pay for four years ful magnet. Therefore, CT scans, aside from being cheap,
of medical-imaging research because they were also the are a safe first-assessment tool for brain injuries. When
record label of a band known as The Beatles (Filler, 2009). the doctors have more information about the patient

Left: Guy Croft SciTech/Alamy; centre: Mark Krause; right: Zephyr/Science Source
{fig. 3.34} Structural Neuroimaging Three different types of structural neuroimaging: (a) a CT scan, (b) an MRI scan, and (c) a
diffusion tensor imaging scan.

Windows to the Brain: Measuring and Observing Brain Activity :: Module 3.4 :: 123
 and his injury, then it is possible that the more accurate
MRI will be used. Alert EEG reading

A final type of structural neuroimaging technique is

also the newest. Diffusion tensor imaging (or DTI) is
a form of structural neuroimaging allowing researchers or medi-
cal personnel to measure white-matter pathways in the brain.
Although it is natural to assume that the grey matter—the
cell bodies—is the most sensitive part of the brain, white-
matter damage has been found in an increasing number
of brain disorders (Shenton et al., 2012). This is because
most head injuries cause the brain to twist around in the
[Link] result is that some of the white-matter pathways
connecting different brain areas are torn. A large number
of studies have shown that these pathways are damaged
in individuals who have suffered concussions (Niogi &
Mukherjee, 2010), although it is unclear whether profes-
{fig. 3.35} Measuring Brain Activity The electroencepha-
sional and collegiate/university sports leagues are using logram measures electrical activity of the brain by way of elec-
this technology when making return-to-play decisions trodes that amplify the signals emitted by active regions.
for injured athletes (Johnson et al., 2012).
EEGs have perfect temporal resolution for this task, but
FUNCTIONAL NEUROIMAGING Although struc- they have a problem: How do you link the EEG output
tural images provide useful information about the brain’s (a bunch of squiggly lines) with your stimuli? To do this,
anatomy, they do not tell us much about the functions researchers have developed a technique known as event-
of those brain areas. This information is gathered using related potentials (or ERPs). ERPs use the same sensors as
functional neuroimaging, a type of brain scanning that EEGs; however, a computer takes note of exactly when
provides information about which areas of the brain are active a given stimulus (e.g., a smiling face) was presented to
when a person performs a particular behaviour. There are a the participant. The experimenter can then examine
number of different functional neuroimaging methods the EEG readout for a brief period of time (usually
available to researchers and physicians. A common trade- 1–2 seconds) following the appearance of that stimu-
off is between temporal resolution (how brief a period of lus. Importantly, the experiment can collect the average
time can be accurately measured) and spatial resolution (a brain responses for different types of experimental tri-
clear picture of the brain). Which tool is used depends als; so, if an experiment contained 50 separate stimulus
upon the type of question being asked. presentations—25 happy faces and 25 fearful faces—the
A neuroimaging method with fantastic temporal reso- experimenter could collect the average pattern of data
lution is an electroencephalogram (or EEG), which mea- after each type of stimulus (i.e., there would be one set of
sures patterns of brain activity with the use of multiple electrodes squiggly lines for happy faces and one for fearful faces).
attached to the scalp. The neural firing of the billions of cells Critically, the peaks and valleys of these waveforms
in the brain can be detected with these electrodes, ampli- are not random—each is associated with some sort of
fied, and depicted in an electroencephalogram. EEGs mea- process occurring in the brain. For example, initial
sure this activity every millisecond. They can tell us a lot detection of some sort of visual image could occur after
about general brain activity during sleep (see Module 5.1), 80–120 ms (Mangun et al., 1993); determining that the
during wakefulness, and while patients or research par- image was a face might occur at approximately 170 ms
ticipants are engaged in a particular cognitive activity (see (Bötzel et al., 1995). And, identifying that face as some-
Figure 3.35). EEGs are also used to detect when patients one you know might occur sometime after 300 ms.
with epilepsy are having a seizure; this would be shown Researchers can then look at the size of the peaks and
by a sudden spike in activity (neuronal firing) in one or valleys to determine whether there was a difference in
more brain [Link] convenience and relatively inexpen- the amount of brain activity in response to the different
sive nature of EEGs, compared to other modern methods, stimulus types (e.g., a peak at 200 ms was higher for fear-
make them very appealing to researchers. ful than for happy faces). This technique can also have
But, how can EEG be used to further our under- clinical uses. If a patient (e.g., someone with multiple
standing of human behaviour? In most studies, research- sclerosis) was missing an expected waveform, the neurol-
ers would be interested in how brain responses differ for ogist could conclude that a particular region of her brain
different types of stimuli, such as happy or fearful faces. was not functioning normally (Ruseckaite et al., 2005).

124 :: Module 3.4 : : Windows to the Brain: Measuring and Observing Brain Activity
 Although ERPs are very useful for measuring when the right hemisphere of the brain were involved with
brain activity is occurring, they are much less effective at recognizing faces (Sergent et al., 1992).
identifying exactly where that activity is taking place. Part The greatest strength of PET scans is that they show
of this problem is due to the fact that the skull disrupts the metabolic activity of the brain. PET also allows researchers
electrical signal from the neurons’ firing; this reduces the to measure the involvement of specific types of receptors
accuracy of ERP measurements. In order to get around (e.g., types of dopamine receptors) in different brain regions
this, some researchers measure the magnetic activity associ- while people perform an experimental task (e.g., Wood-
ated with cells firing. This is accomplished by using mag- ward et al., 2009). A drawback is that PET scans take a long
netoencephalography (or MEG), a neuroimaging technique time to acquire—at least two minutes—which is a prob-
that measures the tiny magnetic fields created by the electrical lem when you want to see moment-by-moment activity of
activity of nerve cells in the brain. Like EEG, MEG records the [Link] radioactivity of PET also generally limits the
the electrical activity of nerve cells just a few milliseconds participants to men because it is possible that female partici-
after it occurs, which allows researchers to record brain pants could be in the early stages of pregnancy. In that case,
activity at nearly the instant a stimulus is presented (Ham- the risks of participating would far outweigh the rewards.
alainen et al., 1993). So, in a study with happy and fearful Instead, researchers are increasingly turning to a powerful
faces, MEG could measure when an image was detected neuroimaging technique with excellent spatial resolution.
and when it was recognized as being a face (Halgren
et al., 2000). However, like ERPs, this speed comes with a
trade-off; namely, MEGs do not provide a detailed picture
of the activity of specific brain areas, so it is difficult to iso-
late where in the brain the activity occurred.
A functional imaging method that can show activity
of the whole brain is positron emission tomography
(or PET), a type of scan in which a low level of a radioactive
isotope is injected into the blood, and its movement to regions of
the brain engaged in a particular task is measured. This method
works under the assumption that active nerve cells use up
energy at a faster rate than do cells that are less active. As
a result, more blood will need to flow into those active
areas in order to bring more oxygen and glucose to the
cells. If the blood contains a radioactive isotope (as in a
PET study), more radioactivity will be detected in areas
of the brain that were active during that period of time.
In most studies, participants will complete separate blocks
of trials or even separate scanning sessions for different
types of experimental trials. The activity from these ses-
sions is then compared to see which brain areas are more
(or less) active in response to different types of stimuli. Science Source
For instance, researchers at McGill University provided PET scans use radioactive isotopes to help identify which
the first evidence that the ventral (bottom) portions of areas of the brain were most active.

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC use (and lack of radioactivity) has quickly made it one of the
LITERACY MODEL most influential research tools in modern psychology.

Functional MRI and Behaviour

What do we know about
fMRI and Behaviour?
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (or fMRI )
measures brain activity by detecting the influx of oxygen-rich If you type in “functional MRI” into
blood into neural areas that were just active (Kwong et al., 1992; the [Link] research database,
Ogawa et al., 1992). Like PET scanning, fMRI can produce an you will see that there have been
accurate image of the functional brain. However, its ease of over 5500 papers published since

Windows to the Brain: Measuring and Observing Brain Activity :: Module 3.4 :: 125
 this technology was developed just over 20 years ago.
The growth in this field is staggering—there are literally
hundreds of fMRI research papers published each year.
Researchers are using fMRI to study almost every topic
discussed in this book ranging from sensory processes
( Chapter 4 ) to memory ( Chapter 7 ) to social behav-
iours ( Chapter 13 ). Importantly, fMRI is also being used
to examine clinical issues including psychological disor-
ders ( Chapter 15 ) and disorders of consciousness (e.g.,
vegetative states, Module 5.3). It is also being used to
examine brain activity in neurological patients like Max
Pacioretty—psychologists and medical personnel can
look at what areas of the brain are active when a per-
son is performing different tasks such as remembering lists
of words. If the patterns of activity deviate from normal
patterns, then there may be cause for concern. With this
surge in fMRI research and clinical use, it is important
to examine how fMRI links blood flow to descriptions of
behaviour.

DORIS TSAO/MCT/Landov
How can science explain {fig. 3.36} Functional Magnetic Resonance Imag-
how fMRI is used to ing Functional MRI technology allows researchers to deter-
examine behaviour? mine how blood flow, and hence brain activity, changes as
study participants or patients perform different tasks. In this
When a brain area is involved image, the coloured areas depict increases in blood flow to the
with a particular function, it will left and right temporal lobes, relative to the rest of the brain,
during a cognitive task.
use up oxygen. The result is that blood in these areas
will be deoxygenated (without oxygen molecules). The
body responds by sending in more oxygen-rich blood to Can we critically evaluate
replace the deoxygenated blood. Critically, these two this research?
types of blood have different magnetic properties. So, by
Although researchers have shown that
measuring the changing magnetic properties of the blood
the activity that we see in fMRI images
in different brain areas, it is possible to see which areas
is actually linked to the firing of neurons
were active when the person performed a particular task
(Logothetis et al., 2001), we still need to
(Huettel et al., 2009; Magri et al., 2012). When you see pic-
be cautious when interpreting fMRI data.
tures of different brain areas “lit up,” those colourful areas
One reason is that it is correlational in nature. Activity increases
indicate that more activity occurred in that location dur-
or decreases at the same time as different stimuli are perceived;
ing one experimental condition than during another (see
however, we can’t definitely show that the activity was caused by
Figure 3.36). To continue our example of perceiving faces,
the stimuli. We simply take a leap of faith (of sorts) that it was.
researchers could present happy or fearful faces to par-
Also, just because a brain area is active while we perform a task
ticipants while they were in the fMRI scanner (which is the
does not mean that it is necessary for that task. It is possible that
same machine used for structural MRI scans). After the
a given area that “lights up” on fMRI is a small part of a larger
study, the researchers could look at the average amount of
network, or performs a supporting role. Therefore, it is useful
brain activity that occurred when each participant viewed
to look at research using other methods (if available) to see if
each type of face. In this case, seeing faces would activate
similar brain areas were implicated in a given behaviour.
a region in the bottom of the right hemisphere known as
the fusiform gyrus (Kanwisher et al., 1997; see Module 4.2). There is an additional reason to be cautious of fMRI [Link]
Faces expressing fear would activate the amygdala (see is a growing trend for neuroimaging, particularly fMRI, to be
Module 3.3), and faces expressing happiness activate a wide used to explain or justify phenomena that are not easily mea-
network of structures in the frontal lobes (Phillips et al., sured (Satel & Lilienfeld, 2013). Images of brains with areas lit
1998). Thus, fMRI provides very detailed images of where up can be found on almost every major online news site. The
brain activity is occurring. Unfortunately, it can only mea- problem is that many of the claims made in these stories are
sure activity at the level of seconds rather than milliseconds; overstated (more likely, but not always, by the media than by the
therefore, it lacks the temporal resolution of ERP and MEG scientists). Given the massive connections between brain areas,
(see Table 3.4). headlines that suggest that scientists have discovered the “hate

126 :: Module 3.4 : : Windows to the Brain: Measuring and Observing Brain Activity
centre” or the neural structure associated with how someone evidence of spinal cord activity in response to making emo-
will vote are misleading. Most brain areas are activated by many tional faces (Smith et al., 2013). Thus, it will soon be possible
different situations and stimuli. So, just as you would raise your to measure how the entire central nervous system responds
skeptical eyebrows in response to reports of scientists find- to different stimuli, an ability that will allow us to gain a more
ing the single gene for a given behaviour (see Module 3.2), you complete understanding of human behaviour.
should apply your critical-thinking skills toward claims about sci-
entists identifying the single brain area for any complex process.

Why is this relevant?

It is difficult to overstate how
important fMRI has been to psy-
chological science. It has allowed
researchers to map out the net-
works associated with every topic discussed in this book,
thus providing most of the “bio” components of the bio-
psychosocial model of behaviour. Recently, researchers at
Queen’s University and the University of Manitoba have
found ways to perform fMRI on neurons in the spinal cord
(Kornelsen et al., 2013; Stroman, 2005); in fact, there is even Dr. Jen Kornelsen

Table 3.4 :: Common Methods of Functional Neuroimaging

NEUROIMAGING METHOD ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
EEG/ERP Excellent temporal resolution (measures activ- Poor spatial resolution (does not give a
ity at the millisecond level); inexpensive picture of individual brain structures)
MEG Excellent temporal resolution (measures activ- Poor spatial resolution (does not give a
ity at the millisecond level) picture of individual brain structures)
PET Provides a picture of the whole brain (although Very poor temporal resolution (takes at
not as clear as fMRI); allows researchers to least 2 minutes to scan the brain, often
examine activity related to specific neurotrans- longer); involves radioactive isotopes that
mitters (e.g., dopamine) limit possible participants; very expensive
fMRI Excellent spatial resolution (clear images of Temporal resolution is not as good as
brain structures) ERP or MEG (it takes approximately two
seconds to scan the whole brain)

Quick Quiz 3.4b Structural and Functional Neuroimaging

1 The brain-imaging technique that involves measuring 3 A neuroscientist was interested in identifying the brain
APPLY . . .
KNOW . . .

blood flow in active regions of the brain is called areas involved when women see photographs of their
A magnetic resonance imaging. loved ones. Which functional neuroimaging technique
would be the most useful in identifying these regions?
B MEG scan.
A fMRI C Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
C PET scan.
B MRI D CT scan
D transcranial magnetic stimulation.

4 A drawback of PET scans compared to newer

ANALYZE . . .

2 Which of the following techniques does not provide

UNDERSTAND . . .

techniques, such as magnetoencephalography, is that

an actual picture of the brain?
A PET is slower, which means it is more difficult to
A PET scan measure moment-to-moment changes in brain activity.
B MRI B PET is faster, which makes it difficult to figure out how
C Electroencephalogram (EEG) brain activity relates to what someone sees or hears.
D fMRI C PET is too expensive for research use.
D PET is slower, and it does not provide a picture of
the brain.
Answers can be found on page ANS-1.

Windows to the Brain: Measuring and Observing Brain Activity :: Module 3.4 :: 127
 Module Summary
Module Now that you have read this module you should
3.4
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with measuring

and observing brain activity:
computerized tomography (CT) magnetic resonance imaging
scan (p. 123) (MRI) (p. 123)
diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) magnetoencephalography (MEG) Sun Media/Splash News/Newscom
(p. 124) (p. 125)
electroencephalogram (EEG) positron emission tomography
(p. 124) (PET) (p. 125)
functional magnetic resonance structural neuroimaging (p. 123) 2. Neil was interested in how dopamine neurons in
imaging (fMRI) (p. 125) transcranial magnetic stimulation the brain responded when participants were given
functional neuroimaging (p. 124) (TMS) (p. 122) rewarding foods like jelly beans versus bland foods.
lesioning (p. 121) Which functional neuroimaging method should he use
to answer his question?

UNDERSTAND . . . 3. Jen wanted to measure the precise brain areas that

were active when people experienced pain. Which
● How studies of animals with brain lesions can inform neuroimaging method would give her this information?
us about the workings of the brain. Researchers have 4. Jason was interested in how people pay attention to
learned a great deal from studies of neurological patients; more than one stimulus at the same time. He wanted
however, because most accidental brain damage is spread to measure brain responses within the first half second
out across many structures, it is difficult to determine the after images were flashed on a computer screen.
effect of damage to a particular structure. Lesion studies Which method(s) would allow him to answer his
with animals allow researchers to address this type of research question?
question by intentionally damaging a very specific region
of the brain. These studies also allow researchers to test
far more subjects than they could if they were testing ANALYZE . . .
humans with brain damage; therefore, animal lesion studies
allow researchers to answer more questions than would ● Whether neuroimaging can be used to diagnose brain
otherwise be possible. injuries. Several methods for measuring brain activity
were covered in this module. A CT scan can provide an
initial picture of the brain; this is used most often when a
APPLY . . . patient first enters the hospital. If a more detailed image is
necessary and the patient does not have metal fragments
● Your knowledge of neuroimaging techniques to see in his body, then MRI is used. If researchers are particularly
which ones would be most useful in answering a interested in diagnosing white-matter damage, diffusion
specific research question. Review Table 3.4, which tensor imaging (DTI) may be used as well. Additionally, any
summarizes each of the major types of functional of the functional imaging methods discussed in this module
neuroimaging. Then decide which one should be used to could show different patterns of activity for individuals
answer each of the following research questions (check with and without brain damage, depending upon the task
your answers on page ANS-1): being performed and the location of the injury.
1. Lynn was an epilepsy patient seeking treatment. Her
seizures did not involve the muscle twitches typical
of grand mal seizures. Instead, she would stop talking
and stare blankly into the distance for 20–30 seconds
(this is known as a petit mal seizure). Her neurologist
wanted to use a neuroimaging method to detect when
she was having a seizure. Which one should she use?

128 :: Module 3.4 : : Windows to the Brain: Measuring and Observing Brain Activity
Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Brain Functions

1 What do we know about structures of the brain?

See Table 3.2 for a list of the major brain regions, structures, and their
2 How can science help explain brain
structure and function?
functions. As you review this material, try to come up with strategies to dis- As discussed on page 121, in the very early days of brain
tinguish these terms. For example, two brain structures commonly confused research, scientists had to rely almost exclusively on case stud-
with each other are the hypothalamus and the hippocampus. Although the ies to gather data. There was no way to image the brain of a
hypothalamus and the hippocampus are both part of the limbic system, they living, breathing patient or research participant. Today, through
have very different functions. The hypothalamus serves as a sort of thermostat, neuroimaging technology, researchers are able to take detailed
maintaining the appropriate body temperature, and it can affect drives such as pictures of the brain and can examine the actual activity of
aggression and sex. The hippocampus is critical for learning and memory, par- major structures such as the hypothalamus and the hippocam-
ticularly the formation of new memories. Can you think of a memory device pus while that activity is occurring. Researchers have developed
that might help you keep these two brain structures separate? One suggestion: a variety of methods for studying the brain, each of which
For the hippocampus, think of the last part of the word—“campus.” To suc- offers some advantage over the others. See pages 121–125
cessfully navigate your university’s campus, you need to keep in mind where for detailed descriptions of methods for measuring and
certain buildings are located. This area is exactly the type of task that involves a observing brain activity: electroencephalogram (EEG), positron
functioning hippocampus. As you study, try to come up with your own memory emission tomography (PET) scans, magnetic resonance imaging
devices to help recall the different brain structures (MRI), functional MRI (fMRI), magnetoencepha-
and their functions. lography (MEG), brain lesioning, and transcranial
magnetic stimulation (TMS).

4 Why is this relevant?

Sebastian Kaulitzki/Shutterstock

3
Watch the accompanying video excerpt Can we critically evaluate
on brain functions. You can access the video at MyPsychLab
claims about brain function?
or by clicking the play button in the centre of your eText. If your
instructor assigns this video as a homework activity, you will find Modern methods have helped us understand a great deal about brain
additional content to help you in MyPsychLab. You can also view structures and functions, but many misunderstandings persist. In
the video by using your smart phone and the QR code below, or Myths in Mind on page 95, we addressed the question of whether
you can go to the YouTube link provided. humans are born with all of the nerve cells we will ever have. In the past
15 years or so, advances in brain science have challenged this traditionally
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, imag-
held belief. Researchers have observed neurogenesis in a limited number
ine that your best friends invite you over for pizza and a friendly
of brain regions, particularly in the hippocampus. Some areas within the
game of cards. Describe how the following parts of the brain are
hippocampus have the capacity to generate new cells long after birth.
involved during your evening of eating pizza, socializing, and playing
cards: Broca’s area, hippocampus, hypothalamus, and occipital lobe. Also, in our discussion of hemispheric specialization on page 115, we
discussed how the degree to which people are “right-brained” or “left-
brained” is often exaggerated in the popular media. Creative artists are
often described as “right-brained,” whereas logical and analytical types
are supposedly “left-brained.” In reality, most cognitive functions are
spread throughout multiple brain regions.
It is easy to get caught up in thinking about these kinds of generalities
as absolutes. Whenever you encounter “scientific claims” in the popu-
lar media, it is important to properly evaluate the information before
embracing it as truth.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]/workthemodel
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Chapter 3 :: 129

 4
Sensation and Perception
4.1 Sensation and Perception
at a Glance
● Sensing the World Around Us p. 132
● Perceiving the World
Around Us p. 137
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Backward Messages in Music p. 139
● Module Summary p. 142

4.2 The Visual System

● The Human Eye p. 144
● Visual Perception and
the Brain p. 149
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Are Faces Special? p. 151
● Module Summary p. 158

4.3 The Auditory System

● Sound and the Structures
of the Ear p. 160
● The Perception of Sound p. 162
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Music, Emotion, and Advertising p. 165
● Module Summary p. 167

4.4 Touch and the Chemical Senses

● The Sense of Touch p. 169
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Empathy and Pain p. 171
● The Chemical Senses:
SERHAT AKAVCI/Shutterstock
Taste and Smell p. 173
● Module Summary p. 178

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 179

130 :: Module : :
 Martin Philbey/Redferns/Getty Images

Module

4.1 Sensation and Perception at a Glance

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology of What stimulus thresholds are Your knowledge of signal Claims that subliminal advertising
After reading sensation and perception detection theory to identify and backward messages can
The methods of signal
this module detection theory hits, misses, and correct influence your behaviour
you should responses in examples

In December 1985, 18-year-old Ray Belknap shot himself to death in Focus Questions
Reno, Nevada. His friend, James Vance, attempted to do the same but sur-
vived, his face forever scarred by the shotgun blast. Vance later claimed 1 What is the difference between sensation and perception?
that his actions were influenced by “subliminal messages” found in the 2 What are the principles that guide perception?
heavy metal music of the band Judas Priest. His family sued the band
for damages. The prosecution claimed that when played backwards, the
song “Better by You, Better Than Me” contained the phrase “do it.” This
phrase was allegedly perceived by the two youths, prompting them to Sensation and perception are different, yet integrated processes. To
attempt suicide. Although this claim seems outlandish, it led to lengthy illustrate this point, take a look at the Necker cube in Figure 4.1.
legal proceedings and received heavy media coverage. It took the work of After staring at it for several seconds, you likely noticed that the
two Canadian psychologists to demonstrate that these allegations were perspective changed: The cube seemingly flipped its orientation on
unfounded. Their research, described later in this module, demonstrates the page. Although the cube remains constant on the page and in
the importance of scientific literacy and provides interesting insights
the way it is reflected in the eye, it can be perceived in different
about the abilities—and limitations—of our perceptual systems.

Sensation and Perception at a Glance :: Module 4.1 :: 131

 where perception occurs. Perception involves attending
to, organizing, and interpreting stimuli that we sense. Percep-
tion includes recognizing the sounds as a human voice
and understanding that certain colours, shapes, and
motion together make up the image of a human being
walking toward you.
The raw sensations detected by the sensory organs
are turned into information that the brain can process
through transduction, when specialized receptors transform
the physical energy of the outside world into neural impulses.
These neural impulses travel into the brain and influence
the activity of different brain structures, which ultimately
gives rise to our internal representation of the world.
The sensory receptors involved in transduction are
{fig. 4.1} The Necker Cube Stare at this object for several different for the different senses (summarized in Table 4.1).
seconds until it changes perspectives. The transduction of light occurs when it reaches recep-
tors at the back of the eye; light-sensitive chemicals in the
retina then convert this energy into nerve impulses that
ways. The switching of perspectives is a perceptual phe- travel to numerous brain centres where colour and motion
nomenon that takes place in the brain. are perceived and objects are identified (see Figure 4.2).
The transduction of sound takes place in a specialized
structure called the cochlea, where sound energy is con-
Sensing the World Around Us verted into neural impulses that travel to the hearing cen-
The world outside of the human body is full of light, tres of the brain.
sound vibrations, and objects we can touch. A walk The brain’s ability to organize our sensations into
through campus can be filled with the moving shad- coherent perceptions is remarkable. All of our senses use
ows of towering elm trees, the sounds of birds chirp- the same mechanism for transmitting information in the
ing, and the cool crisp air of an autumn morning. In brain: the action potential (see Module 3.2). As a result,
order to make sense of all this information, the body has the brain is continually bombarded by waves of neural
developed an amazing array of specialized processes for impulses representing the world in all its complexity; yet,
Watch sensing and perceiving the world around us. The process somehow, it must be able to separate different sensory
The Big Picture: Taking of detecting and then translating the complexity of the signals from one another so that we can experience dis-
in the World Around Us world into meaningful experiences occurs in two stages. tinct sensations—sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste. It
The first step is sensation , the process of detecting accomplishes this feat by sending signals from different
external events by sense organs and turning those stimuli into sensory organs to different parts of the brain. Therefore,
neural signals. At the sensory level, the sound of some- it is not the original sensory input that is most impor-
one’s voice is simply noise, and the sight of a person is tant for generating our perceptions; rather, it is the brain
merely a combination of colour and motion. All of this area that processes this information. We see because
raw sensory information is then relayed to the brain, visual information gets sent to the occipital lobes, which

Table 4.1 :: Stimuli Affecting Our Major Senses and Corresponding Receptors
SENSE STIMULI TYPE OF RECEPTOR
Vision (Module 4.2) Light waves Light-sensitive structures at the back of the eye
Hearing (Module 4.3) Sound waves Hair cells that respond to pressure changes in the ear
Touch (Module 4.4) Pressure, stretching, or piercing of the skin Different types of nerve endings that respond to pressure, temperature
surface changes, and pain
Taste (Module 4.4) Chemicals on the tongue and in the Cells lining the taste buds of the tongue
mouth
Smell (Module 4.4) Chemicals contacting mucus-lined Nerve endings that respond selectively to different compounds
membranes of the nose

132 :: Module 4.1 : : Sensation and Perception at a Glance

 Stimulus Sensory receptors Perception
Light, sound, Eyes, ears, Neural impulses Visual, auditory,
smell, etc. nose, etc. olfactory areas

Transduction

Sensation Perception

{fig. 4.2} From Stimulus to Perception Sensing and perceiving begin with the detection of a stimulus by one of our senses.
Receptors convert the stimulus into a neural impulse, a process called transduction. Our perception of the stimulus takes place in
higher, specialized regions of the brain. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.

generates our experience of vision. We hear because perspective, our brains evolved to be highly selective
auditory information gets sent to our temporal lobes, to signals of danger and to rapidly recognize oppor-
which generates our experience of hearing. This idea, tunities for useful resources in the environment. The
that the different senses are separated in the brain, was first orienting response describes how we quickly shift our
proposed in 1826 by the German physiologist Johannes attention to stimuli that signal a change in our sensory
Müller and is known as the doctrine of specific nerve world.
energies. The flip side of this ability is that we allocate pro-
Although this separation seems perfectly logical, it gressively less attention to stimuli that remain the same
requires that distinct pathways connect sensory organs over time; these unchanging stimuli elicit less activity
to the appropriate brain structures. Interestingly, these in the nervous system and are perceived as being less
pathways are not fully distinct in the developing brain. intense over time. So, the sound of traffic outside your
Researchers at McMaster University have demonstrated room will seem less annoying after a few minutes than
that infants have a number of overlapping sensations it did when you first started studying. This process is
(Maurer & Maurer, 1988; Spector & Maurer, 2009). For known as sensory adaptation, the reduction of activity in
instance, spoken language elicits activity in areas of the sensory receptors with repeated exposure to a stimulus. Sensory
brain related to hearing, but also in brain areas related adaptation provides the benefit of allowing us to adjust
to vision. This effect does not disappear until age three to our surroundings and shift our focus to other events
(Neville, 1995). As children age, the pathways in their that may be important.
brains become more distinct, with less useful connec- There is a real-world example of sensory adapta-
tions being pruned away. Thus, perception is a skill that tion that most of us experience every day. Watch televi-
our brains learn through experience. sion for 5–10 minutes; but, rather than follow the plot of
Experience also influences how we adapt to sen- the show, pay attention to how many times the camera
sory stimuli in our everyday lives. Generally speaking, angle changes. Directors change the camera angle (and
our sensory receptors are most responsive upon initial thus your sensation and perception) every few seconds
exposure to a stimulus. For example, when you fi rst in order to prevent you from experiencing sensory
walk into a crowded restaurant or when you exit a dark adaptation. The image on the screen will change from
movie theatre after a matinee, the sound and light you wide-angle shots to close-ups of different actors, and that
encounter initially seem intense. This feeling occurs change stimulates your orienting response, making it dif-
because both the sensory receptors and brain areas ficult for you to look away. Whether this over-exposure
related to perception are extremely sensitive to change. to rapidly changing stimuli is having a permanent effect
A change in the environment provides new informa- on our brains—particularly the developing brains of
tion for the brain, and the processing of new informa- children—is a hotly debated issue in current psychologi-
tion is useful for survival. Thus, from an evolutionary cal research (Bavelier et al., 2010; Healy, 2004).

Sensation and Perception at a Glance :: Module 4.1 :: 133

 an experimenter asked you to put on headphones and
listen for spoken words; however, she manipulated the
volume at which the words were presented so that
some could be heard and some could [Link] absolute
threshold would be the volume at which you could
detect the words 50% of the time. But, your absolute
threshold might differ from the person beside you—the
minimum amount of pressure, sound, light, or chemi-
cal required for detection varies among individuals
and across the life span. There are also large differences
across species. The family dog may startle, bark, and
tear for the door before you can even detect a visitor’s
approach, and a cat can detect changes in shadows and
light that go unnoticed by humans. There is no magic
or mystery in either example: These animals simply
have lower absolute thresholds for detecting sound
Flashon Studio/[Link]
and light.
Sensory adaptation is one process that accounts for why we respond less to a
repeated stimulus—even to something that initially seems impossible to ignore. Another measure of perception refers to how
well an individual can detect whether a stimulus has
changed. A difference threshold is the smallest difference
between stimuli that can be reliably detected at least 50% of
STIMULUS THRESHOLDS How loud does some- the time. When you add salt to your food, for example,
one have to whisper for you to hear that person? If you you are attempting to cross a difference threshold that
touch a railroad track, how sensitive are your fingers to your taste receptors can register. Whether you actually
vibrations from a distant train? One early researcher, detect a difference, known as a just noticeable difference,
physicist and philosopher William Gustav Fechner depends primarily on the intensity of the original stim-
(1801–1887), coined the term psychophysics: the field of ulus. The more intense the original stimulus, the larger
study that explores how physical energy such as light and sound the amount of it that must be added for the difference
and their intensity relate to psychological experience. Fechner threshold to be reached. For example, if you add one
and other early psychophysicists were interested in some pinch of salt to a plate of french fries that already had
basic questions about perceptual experience and sought one pinch sprinkled on them, you can probably detect
to understand general principles of perception. A popu- the difference. However, if you add one pinch of salt to
lar approach was to measure the minimum amount of a fries that already had four pinches applied, you prob-
stimulus needed for detection, and the degree to which ably will not detect much of a difference. Apparently, to
Simulate a stimulus must change in strength for the change to be your senses, a single pinch of salt does not always equal
Weber’s Law perceptible. one pinch.
See if you can estimate human sensory abilities in
the following situations (based on Galanter, 1962):
• If you were standing atop a mountain on a dark, clear 100%
Chance of detecting stimulus

night, how far away do you think you could detect

Here the
the flame from a single candle? stimulus is so
• How much perfume would need to be spilled in a intense it is
always detected.
three-room apartment for you to detect the odour?
50%
Absolute threshold for
On a clear night, a candle flame can be detected the stimulus: at the red
Here the stimulus is dot, the stimulus is
50 km away. One drop of perfume is all that is needed too faint to detect. intense enough to be
for detection in a three-room apartment. Although detected 50% of the
time.
these examples might seem a bit odd, each of these 0%
values represents an absolute threshold —that is, Low High
the minimum amount of energy or quantity of a stimulus Intensity (e.g., brightness or loudness)

required for it to be reliably detected at least 50% of the {fig. 4.3} Absolute Thresholds The absolute threshold is the
time it is presented (Figure 4.3). For example, imagine level at which a stimulus can be detected 50% of the time.

134 :: Module 4.1 : : Sensation and Perception at a Glance

 Is there a bear in the woods?
Yes No

False Alarm:
Hit: Right! Wrong!
“I hear

The individual’s response

He did He must be
something.” hear the bear. imagining it.

Miss: Wrong! Correct Rejection:

“I don’t He didn’t Right! There
hear anything.” hear the bear. is no bear.

{fig. 4.4} Signal Detection Theory Signal detection theory recognizes that a stimu-
lus is either present or absent (by relying on the sensory process) and that the individ-
ual either reports detecting the stimulus or does not (the decision process). The cells
represent the four possible outcomes of this situation. Here we apply signal detection
theory to a man alone in the woods.

situations that signal detection theory can be a power-

Jostein Hauge/[Link] ful tool for the study of our sensory systems. Signal
Compared to people, dogs have amazingly low thresholds detection theory states that whether a stimulus is perceived
for detecting smells. Dogs have even been trained to detect
depends on both sensory experience and judgment made by
tumours in people with various types of cancer.
the subject. Thus, the theory requires us to examine two
The study of stimulus thresholds has its limitations. processes: a sensory process and a decision process. In
Whether someone perceives a stimulus is determined by a typical signal detection experiment conducted in the
self-report—that is, by an individual reporting that she laboratory, the experimenter presents either a faint stim-
either did or did not detect a stimulus. But, not all peo- ulus or no stimulus at all; this is the sensory process. The
ple are equally willing to say they sensed a weak stimulus. subject is then asked to report whether or not a stimulus
Some people may wait until they are 100% certain that a was actually presented; this is the decision process.
candle was viewed whereas other people may claim to see In developing signal detection theory, psycholo-
a faint candlelight just because they expect to see it. This gists realized that there are four possible outcomes (see
concept has real-world implications. Think of a radiologist Figure 4.4). For example, you may be correct that you
trying to detect tumours in a set of images: If there are heard a sound (a hit), or correct that you did not hear a
differences in the absolute threshold of different radiolo- sound (known as a correct rejection). Of course, you will not
gists, then one might miss tumours that the other would always be correct in your judgments. Sometimes you will
have detected. But, this scenario is even more complex— think you heard something that is not there; psychologists
different radiologists might be more or less likely to report refer to this type of error as a false alarm. On other occa-
seeing a tumour when they are unsure of what they have sions you may fail to detect that a stimulus was presented
seen. How do we confirm whether these stimuli were truly (a miss). By analyzing how often a person’s responses fall into
perceived, or whether the individuals were just guessing? each of these four categories, psychologists can accurately
measure the sensitivity of that person’s sensory systems.
SIGNAL DETECTION If you are certain that a stim- Studies using signal detection theory have shown that
ulus exists (e.g., you were hit in the face with a soccer whether a person can accurately detect a weak stimulus
ball), then there is no reason to worry about whether appears to depend on a number of factors. First among
you did or did not perceive something. However, there these is the sensitivity of a person’s sensory organs. For
are many instances in which we must make decisions instance, some people can detect tiny differences in the
about sensory input that is uncertain, as in the previ- tastes of spicy foods, whereas other people experience them
ous example of a radiologist. It is in these ambiguous all as “hot.” But, in addition to these objective differences,

Sensation and Perception at a Glance :: Module 4.1 :: 135

 there are also a number of cognitive and emotional fac- stimulus appeared before the mask (e.g., Cheesman & Merikle,
tors that influence how sensitive a person is to various sen- 1986). Yet, a number of brain imaging studies have shown that
sory stimuli. These include expectations, psychological and these rapidly presented stimuli do in fact influence patterns of
autonomic-nervous-system arousal level, and motivation. If brain activity (Critchley et al., 2000). Thus it appears that sub-
liminal perception can occur, and it can produce small effects
you are lost in the woods, your arousal level will be quite
in the nervous system.
[Link] will likely be better able to notice the sound of
However, can subliminal perception influence behav-
someone’s voice, the far-off growl of a bear, or the sound
iours? Numerous companies selling subliminal self-help
of a car on the road than you will if you are hiking with products would like you to believe so. However, research by
friends on a familiar trail—even if the surrounding noise Canadian psychologists suggests that these claims may be
level is the same. Why does this difference in sensitivity inaccurate. For example, Merikle and Skanes (1992) tested the
occur? Is it due to enhanced functioning of your ears (the usefulness of subliminal weight-loss tapes. Female participants
sensory process) or due to you being more motivated to were randomly assigned to one of three experimental condi-
detect sounds (the decision process)? Research shows that tions: (1) subliminal weight-loss tapes, (2) subliminal tapes for
motivational changes are likely to affect the decision process the reduction of dental anxiety, and (3) a wait list (no tapes).
so that you assume that every snapping twig is a bear on the The women were weighed before and after a six-week period
[Link] change in sensitivity has obvious survival value. to see if the tapes affected weight loss. The researchers found
no difference between the three groups, suggesting that the
So far, we have been describing research about stimuli
tapes were entirely ineffective.
that individuals have consciously perceived. But, what is the
A similar study by American researchers suggests that even
fate of information that stimulated the sensory organs but
if some improvement were to occur after participants heard sub-
was too weak to reach conscious awareness? Could such a liminal tapes, these effects may be due to the participants’ expec-
weak stimulus still influence our behaviour, thoughts, and tations (Greenwald et al., 1991). In this study, participants were
feelings? And, how could we accurately assess such a phe- given subliminal cassettes that supposedly improved memory or
nomenon? These questions abound when discussing the improved self-esteem. Importantly, the labels on the tapes varied
myths—and the realities—of subliminal perception. such that half of the participants received the correct cassette-
label pairing (e.g., a memory cassette with a memory label) and
half received the opposite (e.g., a memory cassette with a self-
esteem label).Testing conducted after one month of use showed
no effects based on the content of the cassettes. However, there
MYTHS IN MIND was a general overall improvement in all conditions, suggesting
that simply being in an experiment helped both self-esteem and
Setting the Record Straight
memory. Importantly, there was also a trend for participants to
on Subliminal Messaging
believe that the cassettes had produced the desired effect—but
Do you think that messages presented to you so rapidly that this perceived improvement was for the ability that was on the
you couldn’t consciously see them would still influence your cassette’s label, not necessarily what the participants actually
behaviour? In the 1950s, a marketing researcher named James heard. In other words, their expectations led them to believe that
Vicary suggested such persuasion can indeed occur. Vicary they had improved an ability even though they hadn’t received
claimed that by presenting the messages “eat popcorn” any subliminal help for that ability.
and “drink Coca-Cola” on a movie screen, he was able Research also demonstrates that subliminal mes-
to increase the sales of popcorn and Coke at that theatre. sages are unlikely to create motivations that hadn’t previ-
Although later exposed as a hoax, Vicary’s claims received ous existed, a grave concern of many people in the 1950s
a great deal of attention from both the public and the CIA and 1960s. At best, such messages might enhance a moti-
and spawned a huge subliminal self-help industry. But, does vation or goal that we already have. Erin Strahan and her
subliminal perception—meaning perception below the thresh- colleagues at the University of Waterloo examined whether
old of conscious awareness—really exist? And if so, can it subliminal stimuli related to thirst would differentially affect
really control our motivations, beliefs, and behaviours? thirsty and non-thirsty viewers (Strahan et al., 2002). They
The answer to the first question is yes, we can perceive found that after viewing thirst-related subliminal stimuli (the
subliminal stimuli under strict laboratory conditions. This phe- words “thirst” and “dry”), thirsty participants drank more of
nomenon has been demonstrated time and again in cogni- a beverage and rated it more positively than did non-thirsty
tive psychology experiments (Van den Bussche et al., 2009). participants (who were not influenced by the subliminal
In this type of study, experimenters often present a word words). No group difference was found when the sublimi-
or an image for a fraction of a second. This presentation is nally presented words were not thirst-related. These results
then immediately followed by another image, known as a demonstrate that although subliminal perception can acti-
mask, which is displayed for a longer period of time. The mask vate an already existing motivational state, it cannot create a
interferes with the conscious perception of the “subliminal” new motivational state. Therefore, it is definitely not a form of
stimulus—indeed, the perceivers are often unaware that any “mind control.”

136 :: Module 4.1 : : Sensation and Perception at a Glance

 5 Is it reasonable to conclude that subliminal messages

ANALYZE . . .
have a strong effect on behaviour?
A No, research shows that they have no effect
whatsoever.
B No, although research shows they might have mild
effects.
C Yes, the research shows that subliminal ads are
powerful.
D Conclusions about subliminal messages have not
been reached by psychologists.

Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

DG Photography/Alamy
Do you see a cigarette advertisement in this photo? There is
not an obvious one, but you may be reminded of Marlboro Perceiving the World Around Us
cigarettes as you look at this race car. Critics have accused
sponsors of this Formula One car of using the barcode design
The study of thresholds, signal detection, and subliminal
to create an image similar to Marlboro Red cigarettes. Inquiries perception has given us answers to many basic questions
into attempts at subliminal advertising over this issue ensued. about how we sense and perceive our environment. But,
how do we actually form perceptions from all of this
sensory information? The attempt to answer this ques-
tion has a rich history in psychology, taking us back to
the first half of the 20th century.
Quick Quiz 4.1a
Sensing the World Around Us GESTALT PRINCIPLES OF PERCEPTION In 1910,
Max Wertheimer was riding on a train from Vienna,
1 ______ is the study of how physical events relate
KNOW . . .

to psychological perceptions of those events.

Austria, to Frankfurt, Germany. As he stared out the win-
A Sensation C Perception dow at the Central European countryside, he noticed
B Sensory adaptation D Psychophysics
that the buildings in the distance appeared to be mov-
ing backwards. Wertheimer was intrigued by this obvious
illusion, and decided to investigate the experience when
2 The minimum stimulation required to detect a stimulus
UNDERSTAND . . .

he arrived in Frankfurt later that day. That evening, he

is a(n) ______, whereas the minimum required to detect
the difference between two stimuli is a(n) ______. bought himself a stroboscope, a toy that displayed pictures
A just noticeable difference; difference threshold in rapid succession. He noticed that individual pictures
B absolute threshold; difference threshold did not move; but, when presented within a fraction of
C difference threshold; absolute threshold a second of each other, the individual images created the
D just noticeable difference; absolute threshold
perception of movement. This simple observation had an
astounding impact on the study of perception, and led to
the development of the Gestalt school of psychology.
3 Signal detection theory improves on simple thresholds
Gestalt psychology is an approach to perception that
by including the influence of
A psychological factors, such as expectations. emphasizes that “the whole is greater than the sum of its
B engineering factors, such as how well a set of parts.” In other words, the individual parts of an image
speakers is designed. may have little meaning on their own, but when com-
C whether an individual has hearing or visual bined together, the whole takes on a significant perceived
impairments. form. Gestalt psychologists identified several key principles
D the actual intensity of the stimulus. to describe how we organize features that we perceive.
One basic Gestalt principle is that objects or “figures”
in our environment tend to stand out against a background.
4 Walking on a crowded downtown sidewalk, Ben thinks
APPLY . . .

he hears his name called, but when he turns around, Gestalt psychologists refer to this basic perceptual rule as Simulate
he cannot find anyone who might be speaking to the figure–ground [Link] text in front of you is a fig- Distinguishing Figure-
him. In terms of signal detection theory, mistakenly ure set against a background, but you may also consider the Ground Relationships
believing he heard his name is an example of a ______. individual letters you see to be figures against the back-
A hit C bogus hit
ground of the [Link] perceptual tendency is particularly
B miss D false alarm apparent when the distinction between figure and ground

Sensation and Perception at a Glance :: Module 4.1 :: 137

 Exactly which object is the figure and which is the ground
in any given moment therefore depends on many factors,
including what you are motivated to pay attention to.
Proximity and similarity are two additional Gestalt
principles that influence perception. We tend to treat
two or more objects that are in close proximity to each
(a) Figure and ground (b) Proximity (c) Similarity other as a group. Because of their proximity, a dozen
eggs in a carton looks like two rows of six eggs, rather
than six rows of two eggs. Similarity can be experienced
by viewing groups of people in uniform, such as at the
opening ceremony of the Vancouver Olympics. We tend
to group together individuals wearing the same uniform
based on their visual similarity.
(d) Continuity (e) Closure Some other key Gestalt principles can also be seen in
{fig. 4.5} Gestalt Principles of Form Perception (a) Figure and
Figure 4.5. Continuity, or “good continuation,” refers to
ground. (b) Proximity helps us group items together so that we see the perceptual rule that lines and other objects tend to be
three columns instead of six rows. (c) Similarity occurs when we per- continuous, rather than abruptly changing direction. The
ceive the similar dots as forming alternating rows of yellow and red,
black object snaking its way around the white object is
not as columns of alternating colours. (d) Continuity is the tendency to
view items as whole figures even if the image is broken into multiple viewed as one continuous object rather than two separate
segments. (e) Closure is the tendency to fill in gaps so as to see a whole ones. A related principle, called closure, refers to the ten-
object. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details. dency to fill in gaps to complete a whole object.
It is important to note that Gestalt concepts are not
Simulate is ambiguous, as can be seen in the face–vase illusion in simply a collection of isolated examples. Rather, when
Gestalt Laws of Figure 4.5(a). Do you see a vase or two faces in profile? put together, they demonstrate an incredibly important
Perception At the level of sensation, there is neither a vase nor two characteristic of the perceptual system: we create our
faces—there is just a pattern. What makes it a perceptual own organized perceptions out of the different sensory
Simulate illusion is the recognition that there are two objects, but inputs that we experience. The next time you go outside,
Ambiguous Figures there is some ambiguity as to which is figure and which is look at how we create organized perceptions of architec-
ground. The figure–ground principle applies to hearing as ture, interior design, fashion, and even corporate logos.
well. When you are holding a conversation with one indi- All of these examples show how much of “you” is in
vidual in a crowded party, you are attending to the figure your perceptual experience the world.
(the voice of the individual) against the background noise The illusions and figures you have viewed in this sec-
(the ground). If the person you are speaking with is dull, tion reveal some common principles that guide how we
you may attend to the music instead of what he or she is perceive the world. We can take this exploration a step
saying to you. In this case, the music would become the further by discussing the cognitive processes that underlie
figure and the droning voice would become the ground. these principles, a topic that brings us back to the contro-
versial court case discussed at the beginning of this module.

Dr. Morley Read/[Link] Shen Hong/Xinhua/Photoshot/Newscom

Animals and insects take advantage of figure–ground ambiguity to The principle of similarity in action. We perceive groups of
camouflage themselves from predators. Can you see the walking sports fans based on the colour of their clothing, as seen here
stick insect in this photo? at the Opening Ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics.

138 :: Module 4.1 : : Sensation and Perception at a Glance

 However, when asked to make judgments about the con-
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC tent of the backward messages, performance fell to chance
LITERACY MODEL levels. Participants were unable to distinguish between
nursery rhymes, Christian, satanic, pornographic, or adver-
Backward Messages in Music tising messages (19.1% correct, where chance performance
is 20%).
Humans are experts at pattern recognition. This ability to But, what if the participants knew what patterns to listen
detect patterns is the basis for our ability to understand for? It is a common experience that when a backward mes-
speech. To newborn babies, speech is a series of nonsense sage is identified in a song and people are told the message
sounds. But, with experience, we are able to group together in advance, they are able to identify it. To test whether such
different sounds, which leads to the perception of spoken expectations could influence perception, Vokey and Read
words. But, how sophisticated are these pattern-recognition asked participants to listen for specific phrases in the back-
abilities? This question is central to the issue of backward ward messages (these were “phrases” that the researchers
messages in music. had picked out after repeatedly listening to the backward
stimuli). When asked to listen for “Saw a girl with a weasel
What do we know in her mouth” and “I saw Satan,” 84.6% of the participants
about backward agreed that the phrases were perceivable.

messages in music?
Can we critically
The idea that music can contain
backward messages has a long his-
evaluate this research?
tory. Fans have reported finding Our perceptions of the world
evidence of these messages in a are influenced both by the stimuli
few songs from The Beatles. “Mes- themselves as well as by our own
sages” have also been found in 1970s songs by Led Zeppelin mindset. For example, the cen-
and Queen. For example, when Queen’s song “Another One tre of Figure 4.6 can be perceived
Bites the Dust” is played backwards, some listeners claim to as either the number 13 or the letter B depending upon
hear “It’s fun to smoke marijuana.” However, most examples whether you’re reading numbers (12 and 14) or letters
of backward messages are due to phonetic reversal, where a (A and C). This is an example of top-down processing ,
word pronounced backwards sounds like another word (e.g., when our perceptions are influenced by our expectations or
dog and god). Indeed, in most cases, the bands claim to be by our prior knowledge. Reading “12” and “14” gives us the
unaware that any backward messages exist. expectation that the ambiguous stimulus in between them
must be “13.” In the backward messages experiment, partici-
Importantly, until the 1980s, few people believed that these
pants used top-down processing to perceive specific phrases.
messages could be perceived when the music was played
forward (i.e., properly), let alone that these messages could If the participants were not given any directions from the
influence people’s behaviour. This changed with the Judas Priest experimenters and instead simply listened to the music
lawsuit discussed at the beginning of this module. In that backwards and tried to detect messages based on the dif-
case, the prosecution claimed that “backward messages” in ferent sounds that could be heard, they would be engaging
the music caused two boys to attempt suicide. Could psy- in a different type of processing. Bottom-up processing
chology research explain whether these claims were valid? occurs when we perceive individual bits of sensory information
(e.g., sounds) and use them to construct a more complex percep-
How can science tion (e.g., a message). As you might expect, bottom-up pro-
cessing would occur when you encounter something that is
explain backward unfamiliar or difficult to recognize.
messages?
John Vokey and Don Read
(1985) from the University
of Lethbridge conducted a series of studies that related
A
to the backward messages controversy. These research-
ers recorded a number of passages onto audio cassettes
and then played the cassettes backwards for participants.
12 14
They found that people could make superficial judgments
about the gender of the speaker (98.9% correct), about
whether two speakers were the same (78.5% correct), and C
about the language being spoken—English, French, or Ger- {fig. 4.6} Top-Down Processing Is the centre the letter
man (46.7% correct, where chance performance is 33.3%). B or the number 13?

Sensation and Perception at a Glance :: Module 4.1 :: 139

 Why is this relevant?
These results suggest that we
interpret patterns of stimuli
in ways that are consistent
with our expectations. Several researchers have demon-
strated that it is possible to form a perceptual set —a fil-
Explore
ter that influences what aspects of a scene we perceive
Perceptual Set
or pay attention to. But, focusing on particular patterns of
stimuli also means that we are not focusing on other pat-
terns; in some cases, we ignore pieces of information that
don’t fit with our expectations. In the backward messages
study, participants had to ignore many different sounds in
{fig. 4.7} Expectations Influence Perception Is this a rat order to detect the sounds that resembled “Saw a girl with
or a man’s face? People who look at pictures of animals before
a weasel in her mouth.” As we’ll see in the next section,
seeing this image see a rat, whereas those looking at pictures
of faces see the image as a man’s face. sometimes our perceptual sets are so fixed that we fail to
notice unexpected objects that are clearly visible . . . and
very interesting.
Top-down and bottom-up processing can be studied using
some interesting stimuli, such as the image in Figure 4.7. When
you initially looked at this image, you might have seen either a
rat or a man. Unless you are currently surrounded by animals
or a lot of people, there was very little to guide your percep-
tion of the image—you were using bottom-up processing and
were just as likely to have thought the image was a rat or a
man. However, when people first look at pictures of animals,
they tend to see the rat first; if they look at pictures of people,
the man is perceived first. Thus, top-down processes can influ-
ence the perception of the image as well. In short, the way we
perceive the world is a combination of both top-down and
bottom-up processing (Beck & Kastner, 2009).

Incidentally, Vokey and Read were asked to testify in the

Judas Priest case in order to explain how their psychology
experiments related to the legal proceedings. Judas Priest
was found not guilty. Anna Omelchenko/Shutterstock

ATTENTION AND PERCEPTION The example of can accurately sense and perceive the information it
backward messages shows us that what we pay attention might provide (e.g., watching the road while driving).
to can affect what we perceive. In fact, in many cases, While useful, this process comes at a cost—your percep-
we are paying attention to more than one stimulus or task at tion of other parts of your environment suffers (e.g., you
the same time, a phenomenon known as divided atten- don’t notice the birds in the trees). Most of the time,
tion. Simultaneously playing a video game and holding selective attention is quite beneficial; however, there are
a conversation involves divided attention; so does using times when this focus is so powerful that we fail to per-
Facebook and Twitter while you are listening to your ceive some very obvious things.
charming professor lecture. Although we often feel that Imagine you are watching your favourite team play
dividing our attention is not affecting our performance, basketball. You’re a big fan of a particular player and are
there is substantial evidence from both laboratory and intently watching his every move. Would you notice if a
real-world studies telling us otherwise (Pashler, 1998; person in a gorilla suit ran onto the court for a few sec-
Stevenson et al., 2013). onds? Most people would say “yes.” However, psycholog-
Simulate In contrast, selective attention involves focusing on ical research suggests otherwise. Missing the obvious can
Selective Attention one particular event or task, such as focused studying, driv- be surprisingly easy—especially if you are focused on just
ing without distraction, or attentively listening to music one particular aspect of your environment. For example,
or watching a movie. In this case, you are paying more researchers asked undergraduate students to watch a
attention to one part of your environment so that you video of students dressed in white t-shirts actively moving

140 :: Module 4.1 : : Sensation and Perception at a Glance

around while passing a ball to one another. The partici- Although this doesn’t necessarily mean that referees will
pants’ task was to count the number of times the ball was be haunted by missed calls, it does mean that the refs
passed. To complicate matters, there were also students weren’t blind—just inattentionally blind.
in black t-shirts doing the same thing with another ball;
however, the participants were instructed to ignore them.
This is a top-down task because the participants selec-
tively attended to a single set of events. The participants
in this study found the task very easy; most were able to
accurately count the number of passes, give or take a few.
But what if a student wearing a gorilla suit walked
through the video, stopped, pounded her chest, and walked
off screen? Who could miss that? Surprisingly, about half
the participants failed to even notice the gorilla (Simons
& Chabris, 1999). This number was even higher in elderly
populations (Graham & Burke, 2011). This result is an
example of inattentional blindness, a failure to notice
clearly visible events or objects because attention is directed elsewhere
(Mack & Rock, 1998).You can imagine how shocked the
participants were when they watched the film again with-
out selectively attending to one thing and realized they had
completely missed the gorilla. Inattentional blindness shows
that when we focus on a limited number of features, we
might not pay much attention to anything else.
Inattentional blindness accounts for many com-
mon phenomena. For example, people who witness
automobile accidents or criminal behaviour may offer
faulty or incomplete testimony. In sports, athletes and
referees often miss aspects of a game because they are Top: Simons, D. J., & Chabris, C. F. (1999). Gorillas in our
focusing on one area of action (Memmert & Furley, midst: Sustained inattentional blindness for dynamic events.
Perception, 28, 1059–1074. Figure provided by Daniel Simons;
2007); inattentional blindness decreases as expertise with
bottom: Courtesy of Chris Chabris. Photo by Matt Milless
the game increases (Furley et al., 2010). Interestingly,
Do you think you would fail to notice the student in the gorilla
research conducted at Dalhousie University has shown suit at a basketball game (top photo, Simons & Chabris,
that stimuli that were not perceived in an inattentional 1999)? In another study of inattentional blindness, researchers
blindness study still influenced performance on later discovered that when participants were focused on running
after a confederate at night, only 35% of the subjects noticed a
memory tasks, suggesting that these stimuli did in fact staged fight going on right in their pathway, and during the day
influence our perceptual system (Butler & Klein, 2009). only 56% noticed (Chabris et al., 2011).

Quick Quiz 4.1b Perceiving the World Around Us

1 Which gestalt principle refers to the perceptual rule 3 While watching television, you see a report about a
ANALYZE . . .
KNOW . . .

that lines and other objects tend to be continuous, group of parents complaining that backward messages in
rather than abruptly changing direction? music are making their children misbehave. According to
A Figure–ground C Proximity and similarity research, you would tell these parents that
B Continuity D Psychophysics A only backward messages containing emotional
information can influence people.
2 Failure to notice particular stimuli when paying close B there is no evidence that backward messages can be
UNDERSTAND . . .

attention to others is known as ________. perceived unless people are told what to listen for.
A misattention C multitasking C previous research has shown that backward
B divided attention D intentional blindness messages can influence behaviour.
D researchers have not come to a definitive
conclusion about the effects of backward messages.

Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

Sensation and Perception at a Glance :: Module 4.1 :: 141

 Module Summary

Module Now that you have read this module you should
4.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology of sensation and perception:

absolute threshold (p. 134) perception (p. 132)

bottom-up processing (p. 139) selective attention (p. 140) Martin Philbey/Redferns/Getty Images
difference threshold (p. 134) sensation (p. 132)
divided attention (p. 140) sensory adaptation (p. 133)
doctrine of specific nerve signal detection theory (p. 135)
energies (p. 133) top-down processing (p. 139) there really are monsters in the closet. You can find the
inattentional blindness (p. 141) transduction (p. 132) answers on page ANS-2.

Hit: False alarm:

Miss: Correct rejection:

UNDERSTAND . . .

● What stimulus thresholds are. Stimulus thresholds can A. There is no monster in the closet, and the girl is
be either absolute (the minimum amount of energy to confident that she has not heard anything.
notice a stimulus) or based on difference (the minimum B. There really are monsters in the closet, but the girl has
change between stimuli required to notice they are not heard them.
different). C. There really is a monster in the closet and she hears it.
● The methods of signal detection theor y. Signal D. There is no monster in the closet, but the girl insists
detection theory involves testing whether a participant that she heard something.
perceives stimuli by measuring hits (stimulus was
presented and detected), misses (stimulus was presented
and undetected), false alarms (stimulus was not presented ANALYZE . . .
and reported as present), and correct rejections (stimulus
was not presented and not reported as present). ● Claims that subliminal advertising and backward
messages can influence your behaviour. As you read
in the Myths in Mind feature, we certainly can perceive
APPLY . . . stimuli below the level of conscious awareness, and
this perception can affect our behaviour in some ways.
● Your knowledge of signal detection theory to identify However, research suggests that subliminal advertising
hits, misses, and correct responses in examples. For has little effect on one’s consumer behaviour. Similarly,
practice, consider Figure 4.4 (p. 135), along with this studies of backward messages in music have shown that
example: Imagine a girl who has seen a scary television individuals cannot perceive the meaning of these messages
program and now, while trying to go to sleep, worries unless they are specifically told what they should listen for,
about monsters in the closet. Identify which of the four suggesting that the Devil in heavy metal music is really just
events (A–D) goes within the correct box; that is, identify top-down processing.
it as a hit, a miss, a false alarm, or a correct rejection.
Warning: For half of these events, you may have to assume

142 :: Module 4.1 : : Sensation and Perception at a Glance

 Stephen Smith

Module

4.2 The Visual System

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology How visual information travels Your knowledge to explain How we perceive objects and faces
After reading relating to the from the eye through the brain to how we perceive depth
this module eye and vision give us the experience of sight in our visual field
you should The theories of colour vision

A man stood on a wooden footbridge with his two-year-old son star- Focus Questions
ing at a beautiful pond filled with lily pads. Vibrant pink tropical flow-
ers thrust their green stalks out of the water, appearing to dance in 1 Which brain areas are involved with identifying your
the sunlight reflecting off tiny waves rippling from a small grey fountain coffee cup versus reaching for your coffee cup?
in the middle of the pond. Amidst the lily pads, the man and his son 2 What tricks can artists use to make two-dimensional
could see reflections of palm trees, a blue sky, and the powerful Carib- paintings appear three dimensional?
bean sun. However, despite the fact that both individuals were process-
ing the same sensory stimuli, their perceptions of those stimuli were
dramatically different. The man’s experience with different environments
allowed him to recognize that there were a variety of plant species in
the pond (even if he had no idea what they were called). The toddler, on
The world is a visual place to most humans. We use vision to navi-
the other hand, saw different colours and objects, but likely didn’t notice
gate through beautiful landscapes, city centres, and the interiors
the diversity of plant species. They were just “green things.” A member
of the gardening staff who worked in that environment every day would of buildings. We also use vision to communicate via facial expres-
have had a much more intricate and detailed perception of the visual sions and the written word (such as this textbook, which you
scene than either the man or his son . . . even though they all sensed the undoubtedly photocopy and tape to your bedroom walls). In this
same thing. Vision—and the cognition that goes with it—is something module, we explore how vision works—starting out as patterns
we finetune with experience. of light entering the eye, and ending up as a complex, perceptual

The Visual System :: Module 4.2 :: 143

 Wave correspond to our perception of bluish colours.
Interestingly, some organisms, such as bees, can
Wavelength
see in ultraviolet and some reptiles can see in
White infrared light. These interspecies differences are
light
likely due to the different evolutionary demands

Amplitude
Prism
the different species have faced. What pressures
do you think led humans to develop their specific
visual system? Although no one can answer this
Wavelength question with absolute certainty, some researchers
(nanometres) have suggested that our red-green vision allowed
(b) Distance
Visible light us to distinguish between types of edible vegeta-
Gamma X-rays Ultra- Infrared Radar Radio waves tion (Regan et al., 2001). Others have suggested
rays violet rays FM TV AM AC that our vision developed to allow us to take
rays circuits
advantage of pigment-related social cues such as
Visible light blushing (Changizi et al., 2006).
Shorter wavelengths Longer wavelengths
Wavelength is not the only characteris-
(a) tic that is important for vision. Amplitude refers
{fig. 4.8} Light Waves in the Electromagnetic Spectrum (a) The electromagnetic spec- to the height of a wave (see Figure 4.8b). Low-
trum: When white light is shined through a prism, the bending of the light reveals the visible amplitude waves are seen as dim colours, whereas
light spectrum. The visible spectrum falls within a continuum of other waves of the electro- high-amplitude waves are seen as bright colours.
magnetic spectrum. (b) Wavelength is measured by amplitude and distance.
Light waves can also differ in terms of how many
experience. We begin with an overview of the basic diff erent wavelengths are being viewed at once. When
physical structures of the eye and brain that make vision you look at a clear blue sky, you are viewing many dif-
possible, and then discuss the experience of seeing. ferent wavelengths of light at the same time—but the
blue wavelengths are more prevalent and therefore dom-
inate your impression. If a large proportion of the light
The Human Eye waves are clustered around one wavelength, you will see
The eye is one of the most remarkable of the human an intense, vivid colour. If there are a large variety of
body’s physical structures. It senses an amazing array wavelengths being viewed at the same time, the colour
of information, translates that information into neural will appear to be “washed out.” Figure 4.9 depicts these
impulses, and transfers it to the brain for complex, per- Hue
ceptual processing. To ensure that this sequence of events
begins correctly, the eye needs specialized structures that
allow us to regulate how much light comes in, to start
decoding the various colours, to maintain a focus on the Saturation
most important objects in a scene, and to turn physi-
cal energy into action potentials, the method by which
information is transmitted in the brain.

HOW THE EYE GATHERS LIGHT The primary

function of the eye is to gather light and change it into
an action potential. But, “light” itself is quite complex.
y

Although physicists have written vast tomes on the topic

sit
en

of light, for the purposes of human perception, “light”

Int

actually refers to radiation that occupies a relatively nar-

row band of the electromagnetic spectrum, shown in
Figure 4.8a. Light travels in waves that vary in terms
of two different properties: length and amplitude. The
term wavelength refers to the distance between peaks of
a wave—differences in wavelength correspond to differ-
ent colours on the electromagnetic spectrum. As you can
{fig. 4.9} Hue, Intensity, and Saturation Colours vary by
see from Figure 4.8a, long wavelengths correspond to hue (colour), intensity (brightness), and saturation (colourful-
our perception of reddish colours and short wavelengths ness or “density”).

144 :: Module 4.2 : : The Visual System

different characteristics of light—wavelength, ampli- The pupil regulates the amount of light that enters by chang-
tude, and purity—as we generally perceive them. These ing its size; it dilates (expands) to allow more light to enter and
characteristics of light will be experienced by us as hue constricts (shrinks) to allow less light into the eye. The changes
(colour of the spectrum), intensity (brightness), and satu- in the pupil’s size are performed by the iris, a round muscle
ration (colourfulness or density). It is in the eye that this that adjusts the size of the pupil; it also gives the eyes their char-
transformation from sensation to perception takes place. acteristic colour. Behind the pupil is the lens, a clear structure
that focuses light onto the back of the [Link] lens can change
THE STRUCTURE OF THE EYE The eye consists of its shape to ensure that the light entering the eye is
specialized structures that regulate the amount of light refracted in such a way that it is focused when it reaches
that enters the eye and organizes it into a pattern that the back of the eye. This process is known as accommoda-
the brain can interpret (see Figure 4.10). The sclera is the tion. When the light reaches the back of the eye, it will
white, outer surface of the eye and the cornea is the clear layer stimulate a layer of specialized receptors that convert light
that covers the front portion of the eye and also contributes to into a message that the brain can then interpret, a process
the eye’s ability to focus. Light enters the eye through the known as transduction. These receptors are part of a com-
cornea and passes through an opening called the pupil. plex structure known as the retina.

Fovea (point of
central focus)

Iris

Pupil

Cornea
Lens
Optic Lens
Ciliary muscle Blind nerve Transparent disc
(controls the lens) spot that focuses light
Retina (contains rods and cones) rays onto the retina

Fovea
The part of the retina Cornea
where light rays are Curved, transparent
most sharply focused dome that protects
the eye and helps
bend incoming light

Iris
Optic nerve Coloured area
Transmits containing
impulses from muscles
the retina to the that regulate
visual centres the size of
of the brain the pupil

Retina
Innermost layer of the
eye, where incoming
light is converted into
nerve impulses
Pupil
Opening in the centre of
Eye muscle the iris that lets in light
One of six surrounding muscles
responsible for rotating the eye.
Sclera
The white of the eye

{fig. 4.10} The Human Eye and Its Structures Notice how the lens inverts the image that appears on the retina (see inset). The
visual centres of the brain correct the inversion.

The Visual System :: Module 4.2 :: 145

 Direction
of nerve
impulses
Light
Ganglion
cells

Bipolar
neurons

Optic disc
Optic nerve
Blind spot fibres going
to the brain {fig. 4.12} Finding Your Blind Spot To find your blind
spot, close your left eye and, with your right eye, fix your gaze
Photoreceptor cells on the + in the green square. Slowly move the page toward
you. When the page is approximately 6 inches away, you will
Rods
notice that the black dot on the right disappears because of
Retina Cones your blind spot. Not only does the black dot disappear, but
its vacancy is replaced by yellow: The brain “fills it in” for you.

{fig. 4.11} Arrangement of Photoreceptors in the Retina notice a completely blank area of our visual field? If we
Bipolar and ganglion cells collect messages from the light- consider only the process of sensation, we cannot answer
sensitive photoreceptors and converge on the optic nerve, which
then carries the messages to the brain.
this question. We have to invoke perception: The visual
areas of the brain are able to “fill in” the missing infor-
mation for us (Ramachandran & Gregory, 1991). Not
Explore The retina lines the inner surface of the eye and con-
only does the brain fill in the missing information, but it
Receptive Fields sists of specialized receptors that absorb light and send signals
does so in context. Thus, once the black dot at the right
related to the properties of light to the brain. The retina con-
of Figure 4.12 reaches the blind spot, the brain automati-
tains a number of different layers, each performing a
cally fills in the vacancy with yellow.
slightly different function. At the back of the retina are
specialized receptors called photoreceptors. These recep- The Retina: From Light to Nerve Impulse Now that
tors, which will be discussed in more depth below, are you have read an overview of the eye’s structures, we can
where light will be transformed into a neural signal that ask an important question: How can the firing of millions
the brain can understand. It may seem strange that light of little photoreceptors in the retina produce vivid visual
would stimulate the deepest layer of the retina, with the experiences like seeing sunlight reflect off of a pond? The
neural signal then turning around and moving forward simple answer is that not all photoreceptors are the same.
in the eye (see Figure 4.11); however, there is a reason for There are two general types of photoreceptors—rods and
this strange design. Having the photoreceptors wedged cones—each of which responds to different characteristics
into the back of the eye protects them and provides of light. Rods are photoreceptors that occupy peripheral
them with a constant blood supply, both of which are regions of the retina; they are highly sensitive under low light
useful to your ability to see. levels (see Figure 4.13). This type of sensitivity makes rods
Information from the photoreceptors at the back of particularly responsive to black and grey. In contrast, cones
the retina is transmitted to the ganglion cells closer to are photoreceptors that are sensitive to the different wavelengths of
the front of the eye. The ganglion cells gather up infor- light that we perceive as colour. Cones tend to be clustered
mation from the photoreceptors; this information will around the fovea, the central region of the retina.
then alter the rate at which the ganglion cells fire. The When the rods and cones are stimulated by light,
activity of all of the ganglion cells is then sent out of the their physical structure briefly changes. This change
eye through a dense bundle of fibres that connect to the brain; decreases the amount of the neurotransmitter glutamate
this structure is called the optic nerve. This nerve pres- being released, which alters the activity of neurons in
Explore
ents a challenge to the brain. Because it travels through the different layers of the retina. The final layer to receive
Light and the Optic
Nerve
the back of the eye, it creates an area on the retina with this changed input consists of ganglion cells, which will
no photoreceptors, called the optic disc. The result is a eventually output to the optic nerve. Interestingly, the
Watch blind spot—a space in the retina that lacks photorecep- ratio of ganglion cells to cones in the fovea is approxi-
IT Video: Blindspot tors. You can discover your own blind spot by perform- mately one to one; in contrast, there are roughly 10 rods
ing the activity described in Figure 4.12. for every ganglion cell. So, all of the input from a cone is
The blind spot illustrates just how distinct the pro- clearly transmitted to a ganglion cell whereas the input
cesses of sensation and perception are. Why do we fail to from a rod must compete with input from other rods

146 :: Module 4.2 : : The Visual System

 interprets different wavelengths on the electromagnetic
spectrum (refer back to Figure 4.8). Colour is not actually
Fovea
a characteristic of the objects themselves, but is rather
an interpretation of these wavelengths by the visual
system. As you learned earlier, the cones of the retina
are specialized for responding to different wavelengths
of light that correspond to different colours. However,
Rods
the subjective experience of colour occurs in the brain.
Currently, two theories exist to explain how neurons in
the eye can produce these colourful experiences.
One theory suggests that three different types of
cones exist, each of which is sensitive to a different range
Cones of wavelengths on the electromagnetic spectrum. These
three types of cones were initially identified in the 18th
century by physicist Thomas Young and then indepen-
dently rediscovered in the 19th century by Hermann
{fig. 4.13} Distribution of Rods and Cones on the Retina von Helmholtz. The resulting trichromatic theory (or
Cones are concentrated at the fovea, the centre of the ret-
Young-Helmholtz theory) maintains that colour vision
ina, while rods are more abundant in the periphery. There
are approximately 120 million rods and approximately 6 to is determined by three different cone types that are sensitive to
8 million cones in the adult retina. short, medium, and long wavelengths of light. These cones
respond to wavelengths associated with the colours blue,
green, and [Link] relative responses of the three types of
(similar to ten people talking at you at the same time).
cones allow us to perceive many different colours on the
So, cones are clustered in the fovea (i.e., are the centre of
spectrum (see Figure 4.14) and allow us to experience
our visual field) and have a one-to-one ratio with gan-
glion cells while rods are limited to the periphery of the
retina and have a ten-to-one ratio with ganglion cells.
These differences help explain why colourful stimuli
are often perceived as sharp images while shadowy grey
images are perceived as being hazy or unclear.
In daylight or under artificial light, the cones in the
retina are more active than rods—they help us to detect Long
differences in the colour of objects and to discriminate
the fine details of them. In contrast, if the lights suddenly
go out or if you enter a dark room, at first you see next to
nothing. Over time, however, you gradually begin to see
your surroundings more clearly. Dark adaptation is the
process by which the rods and cones become increasingly sensi-
tive to light under low levels of illumination. What is actually
happening during dark adaptation is that the photorecep-
Medium
tors are slowly becoming regenerated after having been
exposed to [Link] complete process of dark adaptation
typically takes approximately 20 minutes, although most
of the changes occur within the first 10 minutes of dark-
[Link] do not see colour at night or in darkness because
rods are more active than cones under low light levels.
The phenomenon of dark adaptation explains why
we can find our friends in a dark movie theatre. It does Short
not, however, explain why we perceive the sky as being
blue or a stop sign as being red. Luckily, 200 years of
{fig. 4.14} The Trichromatic Theory of Colour Vision
vision research has provided answers to such questions. According to this theory, humans have three types of cones
that respond maximally to different regions of the colour spec-
The Retina and the Perception of Colours Our trum. Colour is experienced by the combined activity of cones
experience of colour is based on how our visual system sensitive to short, medium, and long wavelengths.

The Visual System :: Module 4.2 :: 147

 states that we perceive colour in terms of opposing pairs: red to
green, yellow to blue, and white to black. This type of per-
ception is consistent with the activity patterns of retinal
ganglion cells. A cell that is stimulated by red is inhibited
by green; when red is no longer perceived (as when you
suddenly look at a white wall), a “rebound” effect occurs.
Suddenly, the previously inhibited cells that fire during
the perception of green are free to fire, whereas the pre-
viously active cells related to red no longer do so. The
same relationship occurs for yellow and blue as well as
for white and black.
{fig. 4.15} The Negative Afterimage: Experiencing The trichromatic and opponent-process theories
Opponent-Process Theory Stare directly at the white dot are said to be complementary because both are required
within the flag above and avoid looking away. After about a
minute, immediately shift your focus to a white background. to explain how we see colour. The trichromatic theory
What do you see? explains colour vision in terms of the activity of cones.
The opponent-process theory of colour vision explains
the vast array of colours seen in environments like that what happens when ganglion cells process signals from
discussed at the beginning of this module. For example, a number of different cones at the same time. Together,
yellow is perceived by combining the stimulation of red- they allow us to see the intense world of colours that we
and green-sensitive cones, whereas light that stimulates experience every day.
all cones equally is perceived as white. (Note: mixing
different wavelengths of light produces different colours COMMON VISUAL DISORDERS Of course, not
than when you mix different colours of paint.) Mod- everyone can see colours. In fact, many people reading
ern technology has been used to measure the amount of this book will have some form of colour blindness. Most
light that can be absorbed in cones and has confirmed forms of colour blindness affect the ability to distinguish
that each type responds to different wavelengths. Addi- between red and green. In people who have normal
tionally, different types of colour blindness have been colour vision, some cones contain proteins that are sensi-
linked to (relatively common) genetic anomalies that tive to red and some contain proteins that are sensitive to
impair the functioning of particular types of cones. Thus, green. However, in most forms of colour blindness, one
some aspects of our colour vision can be explained by the of these types of cones does not contain the correct pro-
characteristics of the cones in our retinas. tein (e.g., a “green cone” contains proteins that are sensi-
However, not all colour-related experiences can be tive to wavelengths of light that produce the colour red).
explained by the trichromatic theory. For instance, stare Most forms of colour blindness are genetic in origin.
Explore at the image in Figure 4.15 for about a minute and then There are also visual disorders caused by the shape
Normal Vision, look toward a white background. After switching your of the eye itself. Changes to the shape of the eye some-
Nearsightedness, gaze to a white background, you will see the colours of times prevent a focused image from reaching the photo-
and Farsightedness red, white, and blue rather than green, black, and yellow. receptors in the retina. Nearsightedness, or myopia, occurs
How can we explain this tendency to see such a negative when the eyeball is slightly elongated, causing the image
afterimage, a different colour from the one you actually that the cornea and lens focus on to fall short of the
viewed? In the 19th century, Ewald Hering proposed the retina (see Figure 4.16). People who are nearsighted can
opponent-process theory of colour perception, which see objects that are relatively close up but have difficulty

(a) Nearsighted eye (b) Farsighted eye

{fig. 4.16} Nearsightedness and Farsightedness Nearsightedness and farsightedness result from misshapen eyes. If the eye
is elongated, or too short, images are not centred on the retina. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.

148 :: Module 4.2 : : The Visual System

focusing on distant objects. Alternatively, if the length of It is important to remember that the initial sensa-
the eye is shorter than normal, the result is farsightedness tions of light that are processed in the eye itself provide
or hyperopia. In this case, the image is focused behind the very specific information about the environment that
retina. Farsighted people can see distant objects clearly we are viewing. But, in order for this raw sensory infor-
but not those that are close by. Both types of impair- mation to be perceived by the person, this information
ments can be corrected with contact lenses or glasses, needs to exit the eye and enter the brain.
thus allowing a focused visual image to stimulate the
retina at the back of the eye, where light energy is con-
verted into neural impulses. Visual Perception and the Brain
In the last 20 years, an increasing number of people Information from the optic nerve travels to numerous areas
have undergone laser eye surgery in order to correct of the brain. The first major destination is the optic chiasm,
near- or farsightedness. In this type of surgery, surgeons the point at which the optic nerves cross at the midline
use a laser to reshape the cornea so that incoming light of the brain (see Figure 4.17). For each optic nerve, about
focuses on the retina, which produces close to perfect half of the nerve fibres travel to the same side of the brain
vision. In nearsighted patients, the doctors attempt to (ipsilateral), and half of them travel to the opposite side of
flatten the cornea, whereas in farsighted patients the the brain (contralateral). As can be seen in Figure 4.17, the
doctors attempt to make the cornea steeper. Although outside half of the retina (closest to your temples) sends its
the idea of having a laser fire into your eyes sounds optic nerve projections ipsilaterally. In contrast, the inside
frightening, approximately 95% of the patients who half of the retina (closest to your nose) sends its optic nerve
undergo these surgeries report being satisfied with the projections contralaterally. The result of this distribution is
results (Solomon et al., 2009). Seeing is believing. that the left half of your visual field is initially processed by

Quick Quiz 4.2a Left visual field Right visual field

The Human Eye
1 Cones are predominantly gathered in a central part of
KNOW . . .

the retina known as the ________.

A fovea C blind spot
B photoreceptor D optic chiasm Left eye Right eye

2 Which of the following conditions occurs when the

eye becomes elongated, causing the image to fall short
of the retina? Optic nerve
A Prosopagnosia C Farsightedness
B Motion parallax D Nearsightedness
Optic chiasm

3 Crystal was at a modern art gallery. After staring at a

UNDERSTAND . . .

large, red square (that was somehow worth $20 million),

she looked at the wall and briefly saw the colour green. Nerve
Which theory can explain Crystal’s experience? signal
A Opponent process theory
B Hyperopia
C Trichromatic theory
D Motion parallax
Left visual Right visual
4 Jacob cannot distinguish between the colours red and cortex cortex
APPLY . . .

green. What structure(s) of the eye is/are most likely

{fig. 4.17} Pathways of the Visual System in the Brain The optic nerves
not functioning properly?
route messages to the visual cortex. At the optic chiasm, some of the cells
A Rods C Cones remain on the same side and some cross to the opposite side of the brain.
B Cornea D Lens This organization results in images appearing in the left visual field being
processed on the right side of the brain, and images appearing in the right visual
Answers can be found on page ANS-2. field being processed on the left side of the brain. Click on this figure in your
eText to see more details.

The Visual System :: Module 4.2 :: 149

 the right hemisphere of your brain, whereas the right half begin the process of putting together primitive visual
of your visual field is initially processed by the left hemi- information into a bigger picture.
sphere of your brain. Although this system seems like it was These specialized areas are the beginning of two
designed by a confused person pushing a shopping cart full streams of vision, each of which performs different visual
of stray cats, this system serves important functions, particu- functions (see Figure 4.19).The ventral stream extends from
larly if a person’s brain is damaged. In this case, having both the visual cortex to the lower part of the temporal lobe.
eyes send some information to both hemispheres increases The dorsal stream, on the other hand, extends from the
the likelihood that some visual abilities will be preserved. visual cortex to the parietal lobe. Both streams are essential
Fibres from the optic nerve first connect with the for our ability to function normally in our visual world.
thalamus, the brain’s “sensory relay station.” The thalamus
is made up of over 20 different nuclei with specialized THE VENTRAL STREAM The ventral stream of vision
functions. The lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) is special- extends from the visual cortex in the occipital lobe to the
ized for processing visual information. Fibres from this anterior (front) portions of the temporal [Link] division
nucleus send messages to the visual cortex, located in of our visual system performs a critical function: object
the occipital lobe, where the complex processes of visual recognition. Groups of neurons in the temporal lobe
perception begin. gather shape and colour information from different regions
How does the visual cortex make sense of all this of the secondary visual cortex and combine it into a neu-
incoming information? It starts with a division of labour ral representation of an object. This region also gives that
among specialized cells. One set of cells in the visual representation a name, such as “cat” or “dog.” Brain imag-
cortex—first discovered by Canadian David Hubel and ing experiments have shown that damage to this stream of
his colleague Torsten Wiesel in 1959—are referred to as vision causes dramatic impairments in object recognition
feature detection cells; these cells respond selectively to sim- (James et al., 2003). Other studies have noted that differ-
ple and specific aspects of a stimulus, such as angles and ent categories of objects such as tools and instruments are
edges (Hubel & Wiesel, 1962). Researchers have been represented in distinct areas of the anterior temporal lobes
able to map which feature detection cells respond to (Tranel et al., 1997). Indeed, researchers have identified
specific aspects of an image by measuring the firing rates rare cases where brain-damaged individuals show a strik-
of groups of neurons in the visual cortex in lab animals ing inability to name items from one category while being
(Figure 4.18). Feature detection cells of the visual cortex unimpaired at naming other categories (e.g., Dixon et al.,
are thought to be where visual input is organized for 1997); this deficit only affects the visual perception of those
perception, but additional processing is required as well objects (e.g., a guitar), not the knowledge about those
and involves additional neural pathways. From the pri- objects (e.g., that a guitar has six strings). But tools, ani-
mary visual cortex, information about different features mals, and musical instruments are not the only categories
is sent for further processing in the surrounding second- that are represented in distinct areas of the ventral stream
ary visual cortex. This area consists of a number of spe- of vision. One group of stimuli—possibly the most evolu-
cialized regions that perform specific functions such as tionarily important one in our visual world—may have an
the perception of colour and movement. These regions entire region of the brain dedicated to its perception.

Occipital
(visual) Action Dorsal
stream
cortex potentials

Electrode

Ventral
stream

{fig. 4.18} Measuring the Activity of Feature Detection

Cells Scientists can measure the activity of individual feature {fig. 4.19} The Two Streams of Vision Neural impulses
detector cells by inserting a microscopic electrode into the visual leave the visual centres in the occipital lobe along two different
cortex of an animal. The activity level will peak when the animal is pathways. The ventral (bottom) stream extends to the temporal
shown the specific feature corresponding to that specific cell. lobe and the dorsal (top) stream extends to the parietal lobe.

150 :: Module 4.2 : : The Visual System

 WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC
LITERACY MODEL
Are Faces Special?

Faces provide us with an incredible amount of social infor-

mation. In addition to using faces to identify specific other
people, we can use them as a source of important social
information such as someone’s emotional state. Other
people’s faces could therefore give you hints as to how you
respond to them, or to the situation you are both in. Given
their importance, it seems logical that faces would be pro- Michael Nichols/National Geographic/Getty Images
cessed differently than many less important types of visual World-renowned chimpanzee researcher Jane Goodall has
stimuli. face blindness (prosopagnosia). Her sister also has it—there
appear to be genetic links to the condition. Despite being face
blind, Dr. Goodall and others with this condition use nonfacial
What do we know characteristics to recognize people, or, in her case, hundreds
about face perception? of individual chimpanzees (Goodall & Berman, 1999).

Look at the painting in Figure 4.20.

What do you see? When you look are inverted, they become less “face-like” and responses in
at the image on the left, you will this brain region decrease. (Figure 4.21 provides an interest-
likely see a somewhat dreary bowl ing visual phenomenon related to inverted faces). Addition-
filled with vegetables. However, ally, the FFA responds more strongly to the entire face than
when most people see the image on the right, they perceive to individual features; unlike other types of stimuli, faces are
a face. They can obviously tell that the “face” is just the bowl processed holistically rather than as a nose, eyes, ears, chin,
of vegetables turned upside down, but the different items in and so on (Tanaka & Farah, 1993).
the bowl do resemble the general shape of a face. The Italian
artist Guiseppe Archimboldo produced a number of similar Importantly, like many other sensory functions, the ability
paintings in which “faces” could be perceived within other to perceive faces is dependent upon experience. Research-
structures. What Archimboldo was highlighting was the fact ers at McMaster and Brock Universities have found that early
that faces appear to stand out relative to other objects in our visual input to the right, but not left, hemisphere of the brain
visual world. is essential for the development of normal face perception Watch
(Le Grand et al., 2004, 2005). Our face perception skills also Special Topics:
develop as we grow up—adults out-perform children on Recognizing Faces
How can science
explain how we
perceive faces?
Not ever yone sees the
faces in Archimboldo’s
painting, however; in fact, some neurological patients don’t
see faces at all. Specific genetic problems or damage to this
area can lead to an inability to recognize faces, a condition
known as prosopagnosia, or face blindness. People with face
blindness are able to recognize voices and other defining fea-
tures of individuals (e.g., Angelina Jolie’s lips), but not faces.
Importantly, these patients tend to have damage or dysfunc-
tion in the same general area of the brain: the bottom of
the right temporal lobe. So, although prosopagnosia is a rare
clinical condition, it does help us understand some basic pro-
cesses that are involved in perceiving faces.

Brain-imaging studies have corroborated the location of the Museo Civico Ala Ponzone, Cremona, Italy/ The Bridgeman Art Library
“face area” of the brain (Kanwisher et al., 1997). Using fMRI, International
researchers have consistently detected activity in this region, {fig. 4.20} Seeing Faces At left is a painting of turnips and other vegeta-
now known as the fusiform face area (FFA). This area appears bles by the Italian artist Giuseppe Archimboldo. The image at right is the same
to be specialized for recognizing upright faces. When faces image rotated 180 degrees—does it resemble a human face?

The Visual System :: Module 4.2 :: 151

 PA Photos/Landov
{fig. 4.21} The Face Inversion Effect After viewing both upside-down faces, you probably noticed a differ-
ence between the two pictures. Now turn your book upside down and notice how the distortion of one of the
faces is amplified when viewed from this perspective.

tests of face recognition (Mondloch et al., 2006) and the fusi- doesn’t negate the studies showing face-specific processing
form face area does not show special sensitivity to faces until in this area, it does suggest that more research is necessary
approximately age 10 (Aylward et al., 2005). to see just how specialized this region of the ventral stream
of vision really is.

Can we critically
evaluate this evidence?
Although no one doubts that faces
are processed by the fusiform face
area, there are alternative explana-
tions for these effects. One possibil-
ity is that the FFA is being activated
by one of the perceptual processes involved with perceiving
faces rather than by the faces themselves. One such process
is expertise. We are all experts at recognizing faces. Think of
all of the people that you’ve gone to school with over the
years. Think of all of the entertainers, athletes, and politi-
cians you could recognize. You have the ability to distinguish
between thousands of different faces. Canadian psychologist
Isabel Gauthier and her colleagues suggested that maybe
face recognition isn’t all that special. Instead, maybe the fusi-
form face area is simply an area related to processing stimuli
that we have become experts at recognizing. To test this
hypothesis, she trained undergraduate students to recognize
different types of a novel group of objects called Greebles
(see Figure 4.22). Before training, these stimuli did not trig-
{fig. 4.22} Expertise for Faces and “Greebles” The above
ger activity in the fusiform face area; however, after training, images are Greebles, faceless stimuli used to test whether
this area did become active (Gauthier et al., 1999). Further the fusiform face area responds only to faces (Gauthier & Tarr,
support for this expertise hypothesis comes from studies 1997). Participants in these studies are taught to classify the
of bird and car experts (Gauthier et al., 2000). Both groups Greebles on a number of characteristics such as sex (“male”
and “female”). Although this task seems difficult, after several
showed greater levels of brain activity in the fusiform face
training sessions participants can rapidly make such a deci-
area in response to stimuli related to their area of exper- sion. These “Greeble experts” also show increased activity in
tise (e.g., cars for car enthusiasts). Although this research the region of the brain associated with processing faces.

152 :: Module 4.2 : : The Visual System

 Why is this relevant?
The fact that a specific brain
region is linked with the per-
ception of faces is very useful
information for neurologists
and emergency room physicians. If a patient has trouble rec-
ognizing people, it could be a sign that he has damage to the
bottom of the right temporal lobe. Indeed, based on stud-
ies of prosopagnosia, tests of face memory are now part
of most assessment tools used by doctors and research-
ers. The fact that fMRI studies corroborate the location
of the FFA increases our confidence that such tools are in
fact valid. Inga Dudkina/[Link]

At this point in the module, we have looked at how whether in the shade or in full sunlight. Size constancy is
we sense visual information and how this information is based on judgments of how close an object is relative to
constructed by our brain-based perceptual system into one’s position as well as to the positions of other objects.
objects that can influence our behaviour, such as a face In each of these cases, the constancy is aided by our
or an animal. But, our visual system has even more tricks experience with the objects as well as by the presence
for us. Somehow, we can identify objects even when of other objects that can serve as comparisons. In other
they are viewed in different lighting conditions or at words, constancies are affected by top-down processing
different angles—your cat is still your cat, regardless of (see Module 4.1) when our perceptions are influenced
whether it is noon or midnight. This observation is an by expectations and prior knowledge. This processing
example of what is called perceptual constancy, the becomes even more important when we have to decide
ability to perceive objects as having constant shape, size, and how we plan to interact with the objects we are perceiv-
colour despite changes in perspective. What makes perceptual ing, a function performed by the second stream of our
constancy possible is our ability to make relative judg- visual system.
ments about shape, size, and lightness. For shape constancy,
we judge the angle of the object relative to our position THE DORSAL STREAM The dorsal stream of vision
(see Figure 4.23). Colour constancy allows us to recognize extends from the visual cortex in our occipital lobe
an object’s colour under varying levels of illumination. upwards to the parietal lobe. Its function is less intuitive
For example, a bright red car is recognized as bright red than that of the ventral stream, but is just as important.

(a) (b) (c)

Centre: Brian Prawl/Shutterstock; right: Forget Patrick/[Link]/Alamy
{fig. 4.23} Perceptual Constancies (a) We perceive the door to be a rectangle despite the fact that the two-dimensional
outline of the image on the retina is not always rectangular. (b) Colour constancy: We perceive colours to be constant despite
changing levels of illumination. (c) Size constancy: the person in the red shirt appears normal in size when in the background. A
replica of this individual placed in the foreground appears unusually small because of size constancy.

The Visual System :: Module 4.2 :: 153

 Imagine looking at your morning cup of coffee sitting was involved with visually guided movement . So, when
on the table you’re working at. You immediately recog- you reach out to grab your backpack after reading this
nize that the object is a cup, and that the liquid inside module, remember that the “simple” ability to recog-
of it is coffee, something you drink. You also decide nize and reach for the object requires multiple path-
that it is time to have a sip, thus requiring your arm to ways in the brain.
move so that your hand can grasp the mug of caffein-
ated goodness. Someone with a healthy brain can do DEPTH PERCEPTION Our ability to use vision to
this effortlessly. However, someone with damage to the guide our actions is dependent on our depth percep-
dorsal stream of vision would have great difficulty per- tion. We need to be able to gauge the distances between
forming this simple function. How can we explain this different objects as well as to determine where different
impairment? objects are located relative to each other. This type of
Leslie Ungerleider and Mortimer Mishkin (1982) information can be detected in a number of ways.
suggested that the ventral and dorsal stream of vision Binocular depth cues are distance cues that are based
could be referred to as the “what” and “where” path- on the differing perspectives of both eyes. One type of bin-
ways. The ventral stream identifies the object, and ocular depth cue, called convergence, occurs when the
the dorsal stream locates it in space and allows you eye muscles contract so that both eyes focus on a single object.
to interact with it. Although this description is accu- Convergence typically occurs for objects that are rela-
rate, researchers at Western University (formerly the tively close to you. For example, if you move your fin-
University of Western Ontario) have suggested that gertip toward your nose, your eyes will move inward and
the function of the “where” pathway is more specific will turn toward each other. The sensations that occur as
(Goodale et al., 1991; Milner & Goodale, 2006). Their these muscles contract to focus on a single object pro-
initial research was based on studies involving a patient vide the brain with additional information used to create
known as “D.F.” (in order to preserve patients’ anonym- the perception of depth.
ity, their names are never provided in research papers). One reason humans have such a fine-tuned abil-
D.F. was a healthy middle-aged woman who suffered ity to see in three dimensions is that both of our eyes
damage to her temporal lobe, interfering with the ven- face forward. This arrangement means that we perceive
tral stream of vision. As a result, her ability to recognize objects from slightly different angles, which in turn
objects was severely impaired; indeed, she could not enhances depth perception. For example, choose an
recognize letters or line drawings. However, she could object in front of you, such as a pen held at arm’s length
still reach for objects as though she had perfect vision. from your body, and focus on that object with one eye
For instance, when asked to put a letter in a mailbox, while keeping the other eye closed. Then open your
she was able to do so, even if the angle of the mail slot other eye to look at the object (and close the eye you
was changed by a sneaky researcher (see Figure 4.24). were just using).You will notice that the position of your
Goodale and colleagues correctly hypothesized that pen appears to change. This effect demonstrates retinal
D.F.’s dorsal stream was preserved, and that this pathway disparity (also called binocular disparity), the difference

Perceptual
orientation
matching

Visuomotor
“Posting”

D.F. Control

{fig. 4.24} Testing the Dorsal Stream Patient D.F. was able to rotate her hand to fit an envelope into a mail slot despite having
difficulties identifying either object. Her preserved dorsal stream of vision allowed her to use vision to guide her arm’s motions.

154 :: Module 4.2 : : The Visual System

 Observer movement
(a) (b)

{fig. 4.25} Two Monocular Depth Cues (a) Accommodation. From the top left image light comes from a distant object, and
the lens focuses the light on the retina. From the bottom left image the lens changes shape to accommodate the light when the
same object is moved closer. (b) Motion parallax. Looking out the train window, objects close to you race past quickly and in the
opposite direction that you are headed. At the same time, distant objects appear to move slowly and in the same direction that you
are travelling.

in relative position of an object as seen by both eyes, which pro- opposite direction of your travel. By comparison, far-off
vides information to the brain about depth. Your brain relies objects such as foothills and mountains in the distance
on cues from each eye individually and from both eyes appear to move much more slowly, and in the same
working in concert—that is, in stereo. Most primates, direction as your vehicle. The disparity in the directions
including humans, have stereoscopic vision, which results travelled by near and far-off objects provides a monocu-
from overlapping visual fields. The brain can use the dif- lar cue about depth.
ference between the information provided by the left
and right eye to make a judgment about the distance of
the objects being viewed. Species that have eyes with no
overlap in their visual field, such as some fish, likely do
not require as much depth information in order to sur-
vive in their particular environment. These species might
also be able to make use of depth information perceived
by each eye individually.
Monocular cues are depth cues that we can perceive
with only one eye. We have already discussed one such
cue, called accommodation, earlier in this module. Dur-
ing accommodation, the lens of your eye curves to
allow you to focus on nearby objects. Close one eye and
focus on a nearby object, and then slightly change your
focus to an object that is farther away; the lens changes
shape again so the next object comes into focus (see
Figure 4.25a). The brain receives feedback about this
movement which it can then use to help make judg-
ments about depth. Another monocular cue is motion
parallax ; it is used when you or your surroundings
are in motion. For example, as you sit in a moving Left: photofriday/[Link]; right: David Davis/[Link]
vehicle and look out of the passenger window, you will The parakeet on the left, lacking stereoscopic vision, must turn its head to the side
to view images directly. In contrast, owls have stereoscopic vision, as indicated by
notice objects closer to you, such as the roadside, parked their forward-facing eyes. This gives owls superior depth perception—not to mention
cars, and nearby buildings, appear to move rapidly in the outstanding predatory skills.

The Visual System :: Module 4.2 :: 155

 PSYCH @
The Artist’s Studio

Although we often think of painters as being eccentric people

prone to cutting off their ears, they are actually very clever
Watch amateur vision scientists. Rembrandt (1606–1669) varied the
What’s in It for Me? texture and colour details of different parts of portraits in
Perceptual Magic in Art order to guide the viewer’s gaze toward the clearest object.
The result is that more detailed regions of a painting attract
attention and receive more eye fixations than less detailed
regions (DiPaola, Riebe, & Enns, 2011).
In addition to manipulating a viewer’s eye movements,
painters also use a variety of depth cues to transform their
two-dimensional painting into a three-dimensional percep-
tion. This use of pictorial depth cues is quite challenging, which
The Art Gallery Collection /Alamy
is why some paintings seem vibrant and multilayered (like
nature) while others seem flat and artificial. So what are some {fig. 4.26} Pictorial Depth Cues Artists make use of cues
such as linear perspective, texture gradient, relative size, and
strategies that artists use to influence our visual perception? others to create the sense of depth.
Explore To understand how artists work, view the painting by
Five Well-Known Gustave Caillebottein shown in Figure 4.26. In this painting, Interestingly, Harvard neurobiologists recently specu-
Illusions you will notice that the artist used numerous cues to depict lated that Rembrandt suffered from “stereo blindness,” an
depth: inability to form binocular images (Livingstone & Conway,
2004). He would therefore have had to rely on monocular
• Linear perspective: Parallel lines stretching to the hori- cues to form the perceptions that led to his innovative depic-
zon appear to move closer together as they travel far- tions of the visual world.
ther away. This effect can be seen in the narrowing of the
streets and the converging lines of the sidewalks and the
top of the building in the distance. This effect is nicely
demonstrated by the illusion in Figure 4.27.
• Interposition : Nearby objects block our view of far-off
objects, such as the umbrellas blocking the view of build-
ings behind them.
• Light and shadow: The shadow cast by an object allows us
to detect both the size of the object and the relative loca-
tions of objects. In addition, closer objects reflect more
light than far-away objects.
• Texture gradient: Objects that are coarse and distinct at
close range become fine and grainy at greater distances.
In the painting, for example, the texture of the brick street
varies from clear to blurred as distance increases.
• Height in plane: Objects that are higher in our visual field
are perceived as farther away than objects low in our
visual field. The base of the main building in the back-
ground of the painting is at about the same level as the
man’s shoulder, but we interpret this effect as distance,
not as height.
• Relative size : If two objects in an image are known to {fig. 4.27} The Corridor Illusion Linear perspective and
be of the same actual size, the larger of the two must height in plane create the perception of depth here. The result
be closer. This can be seen in the various sizes of the is that the object at the “back” of the drawing appears to be
pedestrians. larger than the one in the foreground; in reality, they are identi-
cal in size.

156 :: Module 4.2 : : The Visual System

Quick Quiz 4.2b Perception and the Brain
1 Also called face-blindness, which of the following 4 A patient with brain damage can recognize different

APPLY . . .
KNOW . . .
conditions is the inability to recognize faces? objects but is unable to reach out to grasp the object
A Prosopagnosia C Trichromatism that she sees. This impairment is best explained by the
B Farsightedness D Astigmatism difference between the
A primary and secondary visual cortices.
B rods and cones.
2 The ________ in the thalamus is where the optic
nerves from the left and right eyes converge. C temporal lobe and the frontal lobes.
A fovea C lateral geniculate nucleus D ventral and dorsal streams.
B occipital lobe D retina
5 Some people claim that there is a brain area dedicated

ANALYZE . . .
3 A familiar person walks into the room. Which of to the perception of faces. Although there is a great
UNDERSTAND . . .

the following choices places the structures in the deal of evidence in favour of this claim, what is the
appropriate sequence required to recognize the best evidence against it?
individual? A Doctors have yet to find a brain-damaged patient
A Optic chiasm, visual cortex, photoreceptors, optic who cannot recognize faces.
nerve B The neuroimaging studies of face perception do
B Visual cortex, optic chiasm, photoreceptors, optic not show consistent results.
nerve C The brain area related to face processing is also
C Photoreceptors, optic nerve, optic chiasm, visual active when people see images from categories in
cortex which they have expertise.
D Photoreceptors, optic chiasm, optic nerve, visual D The brain area related to face processing is equally
cortex sensitive to faces that are upright or upside down.

Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

The Visual System :: Module 4.2 :: 157

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
4.2
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology relating to the eye and vision:

binocular depth cues (p. 154) opponent-process theory (p. 148)
cones (p. 146) optic nerve (p. 146)
Stephen Smith
convergence (p. 154) perceptual constancy (p. 153)
cornea (p. 145) pupil (p. 145)
dark adaptation (p. 147) retina (p. 146)
fovea (p. 146) retinal disparity (p. 154) APPLY . . .
iris (p. 145) rods (p. 146)
● Your knowledge to explain how we perceive depth
lens (p. 145) sclera (p. 145)
in our visual field. For practice, take a look at the
monocular cues (p. 155) trichromatic theory (p. 147)
accompanying photo. Can you identify at least four
monocular depth cues that are present in the image
below? Check out our answers on page ANS-2.
UNDERSTAND . . .

● How visual information travels from the eye through

the brain to give us the experience of sight. Light is
transformed into a neural signal by photoreceptors in the
retina. This information is then relayed via the optic nerve
through the thalamus and then to the occipital lobe of
the cortex. From this location in the brain, neural circuits
travel to other regions for specific levels of processing.
These include the temporal lobe for object recognition
and the parietal lobe for visually guided movement.
● The theories of colour vision. The two theories
reviewed in this module are the trichromatic and
opponent-process theories. According to trichromatic
theory, the retina contains three different types of cones
that are sensitive to different wavelengths of light. Colour Getty Images/Thinkstock
is experienced as the net combined stimulation of these
receptors. The trichromatic theory is not supported by
phenomena such as the negative afterimage. Opponent- ANALYZE . . .
process theory, which emphasizes how colour perception
is based on excitation and inhibition of opposing colours ● How we perceive objects and faces. Object perception
(e.g., red–green, blue–yellow, white–black), explains this is accomplished by specialized perceptual regions of the
phenomenon. Taken together, both theories help explain temporal lobe (the ventral stream of vision). Perceptual
how we perceive colour. constancies allow us to recognize objects even though
their shape, size, and colour may appear to change because
their orientation, distance, and lightness in relation to us
are not always the same. Facial recognition is a specialized
perceptual process, which is supported by evidence from
people who are face blind but are otherwise successful at
recognizing objects.

158 :: Module 4.2 : : The Visual System

 IGphotography/iStockphoto

Module

4.3 The Auditory System

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology Different characteristics of sound and Your knowledge of How the emotional characteristics
After reading relating to the ear how they correspond to perception sound localization of music can be used by advertisers
this module and hearing How technology is used
you should to restore hearing

What would the soundtrack to your life sound like? Although each of us Focus Questions
has our own musical preferences, some songs have the power to evoke
similar emotions in large groups. Stadiums pump out songs that unite and 1 How does the auditory system sense and
energize fans, DJs at dance clubs select songs that fit the mood of excite- perceive something complex like music?
ment and sexual energy, and even in the workplace certain types of music 2 How do we localize sounds in our environment?
can harmonize people focusing on a common goal (or can unite the
workers in a common dislike of Nickelback). Daniel Levitin, a McGill psy-
chologist, musician, and author of This Is Your Brain on Music, believes that
we are hard-wired not just to hear music, but to feel a significant emo-
tional connection to it. Each of our lives’ soundtracks would probably be In this module we will explore characteristics of sound, the physi-
different, but Dr. Levitin argues that human identity has music at its core, cal structures that support the sensation of sound, and the pathways
and that common themes in music include love, friendship, knowledge, involved in its perceptual processing. We will also examine how
religion, relationships, and joy (Levitin, 2006). Music is perceived both at a music affects memory and emotion, and how this relationship can
basic level of sound and at a much deeper emotional level. influence our behaviour.

The Auditory System :: Module 4.3 :: 159

 Amplitude Amplitude

Baseline Baseline

Wavelength Wavelength
(one cycle) (one cycle)

(a) Long-wavelength (low-frequency) sound (b) Short-wavelength (high-frequency) sound

{fig. 4.28} Characteristics of Sound: Frequency and Amplitude The frequency of a sound wave (cycles per second) is
associated with pitch, while amplitude (the height of the sound wave) is associated with loudness.

Explore Sound and the Structures of the Ear tires screeching on the road, have short wavelengths and
Virtual Brain: a high pitch. Low-frequency sounds, such as those pro-
Mechanisms of The function of the ear is to gather sound waves. The duced by a bass guitar, have long wavelengths and a low
Perception function of hearing is to extract some sort of meaning pitch. The amplitude of a sound wave determines its loud-
from those sound waves; this meaning informs you about ness: High-amplitude sound waves are louder than low-
Explore the nature of the sound source, such as someone call- amplitude waves. Both types of information are gathered
Frequency and ing your name, a referee’s whistle, or a vehicle coming and analyzed by our ears.
Amplitude of Sound toward you. How do people gain so much information Humans are able to detect sounds in the frequency
Waves from invisible waves that travel through the air? range from 20 Hz to 20 000 Hz. Figure 4.29 compares
SOUND The function of that remarkably sensitive and
the hearing ranges of several different species. Look
delicate device, the human ear, is to detect sound waves closely at the scale of the figure—the differences are of
and to transform that information into neural signals. a much greater magnitude than could possibly fit on this
Sound waves are simply changes in mechanical pressure page using a standard scale. The comparisons show that
transmitted through solids, liquids, or gases. Sound waves mice, for example, can hear frequencies close to five times
Watch
have two important characteristics: frequency and ampli- greater than humans, but have difficulty hearing lower
Ear Ringing
tude (see Figure 4.28). Frequency refers to wavelength and frequencies that we can easily detect.
is measured in hertz (Hz), the number of cycles a sound Loudness—a function of sound wave amplitude—is
wave travels per second. Pitch is the perceptual experience typically expressed in units called decibels (dB). Table 4.2
Watch
IT Video: Mosquito of sound wave frequencies. High-frequency sounds, such as compares decibel levels ranging from nearly inaudible to
injury inducing. Although we doubt you spend much
time beside jet engines, we do suggest wearing
earplugs to concerts to protect your ears, even
if they don’t match your always-stylish “I’m a
Human Belieber” t-shirt.

Cat THE HUMAN EAR The human ear is divided

into outer, middle, and inner regions (see
Figure 4.30). The most noticeable part of your
Bat
ear is the pinna, the outer region that helps chan-
Dog
nel sound waves to the ear and allows you to
determine the source or location of a sound. The
Elephant auditory canal extends from the pinna to the ear-
drum. Sound waves reaching the eardrum cause it
Moth to vibrate. Even very soft sounds, such as a faint
whisper, produce vibrations of the eardrum. The
Mouse middle ear consists of three tiny moveable bones
called ossicles, known individually as the malleus
10 100 1000 10 000 100 000
(hammer), incus (anvil), and stapes (stirrup). The
eardrum is attached to these bones, so any move-
Frequency (Hz)
ment of the eardrum due to sound vibrations
{fig. 4.29} A Comparison of Hearing Ranges in Different Species results in movement of the ossicles.

160 :: Module 4.3 : : The Auditory System

 Table 4.2 :: Decibel Levels for Some Familiar Sounds
SOUND NOISE LEVEL (dB) EFFECT
Jet engines (near) 140 We begin to feel pain at about 125 dB
Rock concerts (varies) 110–140
Thunderclap (near) 120 Regular exposure to sound over 100 dB for more than one minute risks permanent
Power saw (chainsaw) 110 hearing loss
Garbage truck/Cement mixer 100 No more than I5 minutes of unprotected exposure is recommended for sounds
between 90 and 100 dB
Motorcycle (25 ft) 88 85 dB is the level at which hearing damage (after eight hours) begins
Lawn mower 85–90
Average city traffic 80 Annoying; interferes with conversation; constant exposure may cause damage
Vacuum cleaner 70 Intrusive; interferes with telephone conversation
Normal conversation 50–65 Comfortable hearing levels are under 60 dB
Whisper 30 Very quiet
Rustling leaves 20 Just audible

The ossicles attach to an inner ear structure called that line the basilar membrane of the [Link] pressing Watch
the cochlea —a fluid-filled membrane that is coiled in a and pulling action of the ossicles causes parts of the bas- Noise and the Brain
snail-like shape and contains the structures that convert sound ilar membrane to flex. This causes the fluid within the
into neural impulses. Converting sound vibrations to neu- cochlea to move, displacing these tiny hair cells. When
ral impulses is possible because of hair-like projections hair cells move, they stimulate the cells that comprise

Eardrum
Membrane that
vibrates in response
to sound waves

Semicircular canal
One of three
fluid-filled
structures that play
a role in balance

Cochlea
Converts vibration
into neural activity

Auditory canal
Conducts sound
waves to the
eardrum

Pinna Ossicles
Flexible outer flap Bones of the Outer Auditory
of the ear, which middle ear hair Inner hair
nerve
channels sound cells cells
fibres
waves into the ear
canal
Outer Ear Middle Ear Inner Ear

{fig. 4.30} The Human Ear Sound waves travel from the outer ear to the eardrum and middle ear, and then through the inner
Explore
ear. The cochlea of the inner ear is the site at which transduction takes place through movement of the tiny hair cells lining the
basilar membrane. The auditory cortex of the brain is a primary brain region where sound is perceived. Click on this figure in your Major Structures
eText to see more details. of the Ear

The Auditory System :: Module 4.3 :: 161

 the auditory nerves. The auditory nerves are composed
of bundles of neurons that fire as a result of hair cell
movements. These auditory nerves send signals to the
thalamus—the sensory relay station of the brain—and
then to the auditory cortex, located within the temporal
lobes.
As you might expect, damage to any part of the
auditory system will result in hearing impairments.
However, recent technological advances are allowing
individuals to compensate for this hearing loss. Cochlear
Listen implants are now quite common and have been used
Psychology in the News: to help tens of thousands of individuals regain some
Carlos Osorio/Toronto Star/Getty Images
Cochlear Implants of their hearing. These devices typically consist of a
{fig. 4.31} A Cochlear Implant The speech processor and
small microphone that detects sounds from the out- microphone are located just above the pinna. A wire with tiny
side world and electronically stimulates parts of the electrodes attached is routed through the cochlea.
Watch
Cochlear Implants
membranes in the cochlea (see Figure 4.31). Although
these devices are not a perfect substitute for a normally
section we examine how the auditory system accom-
functioning auditory system, they do allow individu-
plishes these two tasks, starting with the ability to locate
als to hear low-frequency sounds such as those used
a sound in the environment.
in human speech. These devices are particularly useful
for young children (Fitzpatrick et al., 2011; Peterson SOUND LOCALIZATION: FINDING THE SOURCE
et al., 2010), as the brains of children more easily form Accurately identifying and orienting oneself toward
new pathways in response to the stimulation from the a sound source has some obvious adaptive benefits.
implants. Over the course of evolution, failure to do so could
result in an organism becoming someone else’s dinner,
or failing to catch dinner of one’s own. Thus, auditory
Quick Quiz 4.3a systems have developed to allow organisms, including
Sound and Structures of the Ear humans, to orient toward sounds in the environment.
This sound localization, the process of identifying where
1 The ________ is the quality of sound waves that is
KNOW . . .

associated with changes in pitch.

sound comes from, is handled by parts of the brain stem
A frequency C pinna as well as by a midbrain structure called the inferior
B amplitude D decibel
colliculus.
There are two ways that we localize sound. First, we
take advantage of the slight time difference between a
2 The ________ is a snail-shaped, fluid-filled organ that
sound hitting both ears to estimate the direction of the
converts sound waves into a neural signal.
A ossicle C cochlea source. If your friend shouts your name from your left
B pinna D outer ear side, the left ear will receive the information a fraction of
a second before the right ear. Second, we localize sound
by using differences in the intensity in which sound is
3 The amplitude of a sound wave determines its
UNDERSTAND . . .

loudness; ________-amplitude sound waves are louder heard by both ears—a phenomenon known as a sound
than ________-amplitude waves. shadow (Figure 4.32). If the source of the sound is to
A low; high C wide; narrow your left, the left ear will experience the sound more
B short; tall D high; low intensely than the right because the right ear will be in
the sound shadow. The inferior colliculi (plural) detect
differences in the times when sound reaches the left ver-
Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
sus the right ear, as well as the intensity of the sound
between one side and the other, allowing us to identify
where it is coming from.
The Perception of Sound THEORIES OF PITCH PERCEPTION To explain
It is quite remarkable that we are able to determine what how we perceive pitch, we will begin in the cochlea
makes a sound and where the sound comes from by and work toward brain centres that are specialized for
simply registering and processing sound waves. In this hearing. How does the cochlea pave the way for pitch

162 :: Module 4.3 : : The Auditory System

 location (place) along the basilar membrane that sound stimu-
Sound source lates, a tendency known as the place theory of hear-
ing. As it turns out, place theory works well to explain
hearing at higher frequencies, but hair cells for detecting
Path of sound lower frequencies are not so conveniently laid out at the
to far (right) ear end the cochlea.
Another determinant of how and what we hear is
the rate at which the ossicles press into the cochlea,
Path of sound
to near (left) ear sending a wave of activity down the basilar membrane.
According to frequency theory, the perception of pitch is
Extra distance sound related to the frequency at which the basilar membrane vibrates.
must travel to reach Sound
right ear
A 70-Hz sound stimulates the hair cells 70 times per
shadow
second. Thus, 70 nerve impulses per second travel from
the auditory nerves to the brain, which interprets the
{fig. 4.32} How We Localize Sound To localize sound, the
brain computes the small difference in time at which the sound
sound frequency in terms of pitch (Figure 4.33). How-
reaches each of the ears. The brain also registers differences ever, we quickly reach an upper limit on the capac-
in loudness that reach both ears. ity of the auditory nerves to send signals to the brain:
Neurons cannot fire more than 1000 times per second.
Given this limit, how can we hear sounds exceeding
perception? One explanation involves the specific 1000 Hz?
arrangement of hair cells along the basilar membrane. The answer lies in the volley principle . A single
Not all hair cells along the basilar membrane are equally neuron cannot fire more than 1000 times per second,
responsive to sounds within the 20 to 20 000 Hz range but a group of neurons could certainly accomplish this
of human hearing. High-frequency sounds stimulate feat. According to the volley principle, groups of neu-
hair cells closest to the ossicles, whereas lower-frequency rons fire in alternating (hence the term “volley”) fashion.
sounds stimulate hair cells toward the end of the cochlea A sound measuring 5000 Hz can be perceived because
(see Figure 4.33). Thus, how we perceive pitch is based on the groups of neurons fire in rapid succession.

Unrolling of cochlea
According to frequency theory, sound
pitch is based on the rate at which the
Basilar membrane basilar membrane vibrates.
High-frequency sounds create short,
fast waves. Low-frequency sounds
create long, slower waves.

Cochlear base

According to place theory, high-

frequency sounds stimulate hair
cells near the base of the cochlea.
Low-frequency sounds stimulate Basilar membrane
hair cells at the end of the cochlea.

“Unrolled” cochlea

{fig. 4.33} The Basilar Membrane of the Cochlea and Theories of Hearing

The Auditory System :: Module 4.3 :: 163

 Currently, the place, frequency, and volley theories patterns of brain activity when hearing culturally
are all needed to explain our experience of hearing. familiar and unfamiliar sounds (Fujioka et al. , 2011).
Place theory is most applicable to high-pitched noises. This brain plasticity explains why many of us have dif-
Frequency theory, in combination with the volley prin- ficulty hearing fine distinctions in the sounds of lan-
ciple, better explains how we hear low-pitched noises. guages we are exposed to later in life. Interestingly, this
When we hear complex stimuli, such as music, the place, fine-tuning of the auditory cortex also influences how
frequency, and volley principles are likely all function- we perceive music.
ing at the sensory level. However, turning this sensory
information into the perception of music, voices, and THE PERCEPTION OF MUSIC The next time you
other important sounds occurs in specialized regions of listen to music, concentrate on what you are thinking
the brain. and on how your body is responding. Do you find your-
self subtly moving with the music? Do you notice that
AUDITORY PERCEPTION AND THE BRAIN The you are moving your fingers to the beat? Do you sing (or
primary auditory cortex is a major perceptual centre hum) along to the music? Are you able to stay in tune?
of the brain involved in perceiving what we hear. The audi- Most people are able to perform some or all of these
tory cortex is organized in very similar fashion to the musical responses, even if they have no musical training.
cochlea. Cells within different areas across the auditory Because our auditory systems have evolved to be able
cortex respond to specific frequencies. For example, high to distinguish between different rapidly changing pitches
musical notes are processed at one end of the auditory that are important for understanding speech, we also
cortex, and progressively lower notes are heard as you have a brain that is nicely designed for perceiving differ-
move to the opposite end (Wang et al., 2005). As in the ent elements of music (Levitin, 2008). However, music
visual system, the primary auditory cortex is surrounded perception has evolved out of more than our linguistic
by brain regions that provide additional sensory process- capabilities; mysteriously, the brain areas involved in the
ing. This secondary auditory cortex helps us to interpret perception of some elements of music are also involved
complex sounds, including those found in speech and in coordinating movements.
music. Interestingly, the auditory cortices in the two For example, researchers at the Montreal Neu-
hemispheres of the brain are not equally sensitive. In rological Institute have found that areas of the frontal
most individuals the right hemisphere is able to detect lobes and cerebellum related to the planning of move-
smaller changes in pitch than the left hemisphere (Hyde ments increase their activity levels when people are
et al., 2007). Given this fact, it is not surprising that the perceiving rhythms (Chen et al., 2008). Other research-
right hemisphere is also superior at detecting sarcasm, as ers have shown that individual differences in the abil-
this type of humour is linked to the tone of voice used ity to detect musical beats are linked to differences in
(Voyer et al., 2008). activity in the basal ganglia (Grahn & McAuley, 2009),
However, we are not born with a fully devel- a group of brain structures in the centre of the brain
oped auditory cortex. In order to perceive our com- that are related to the coordination of movement.
plex auditory world, the auditory cortices must learn However, brain-imaging experiments show which areas
to analyze different patterns of sounds. Research- of the brain are active; this does not guarantee that these
ers have identifi ed a number of diff erent changes in regions are necessary for a function to occur. We there-
the brain’s responses to sounds during the course of fore need evidence from other types of research studies
development. Brain-imaging studies have shown that to support this finding. Recently, Jessica Grahn (now at
infants as young as three months of age are able to Western University) found that individuals with Par-
detect simple changes in pitch (He et al., 2007, 2009). kinson’s disease—who have damage to structures that
Infants can detect silent gaps in a tone (an ability that input to the basal ganglia—have difficulty picking out
may help us learn languages) between the ages of subtle musical beats (Grahn, 2009). Therefore, there is
4–6 months (Trainor et al ., 2003), and develop the evidence from multiple types of research studies link-
ability to localize sound at approximately eight months ing the perception of music to brain areas related to
of age (Trainor et al., 2010). By twelve months of age, movement.
the auditory system starts to become specialized for But, it is important to remember that music is more
the culture in which the infant is living. Infants who than just a bunch of pitches and beats. Instead, music
are 10–12 months of age do not recognize sound pat- adds its own “texture” to many aspects of our lives, even
terns that are not meaningful in their native language if we’re not paying attention to it. It does this by tapping
or culture (Werker & Lalonde, 1988; see Module 8.3); into our more primal brain areas, namely those related to
indeed, children in this age group show different the experience of emotions.

164 :: Module 4.3 : : The Auditory System

 perceptions (Cohen, 2002). Try watching a horror movie
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC with no sound—without the music “telling you” when to
LITERACY MODEL become tense and when to relax, your experience of the
film will be as muted as the volume. This influence of music
Music, Emotion, and Advertising on our thinking extends beyond the movie theatre, however.
Advertisers have been aware of music’s powerful effects for
decades.
At the beginning of this module, we discussed the important
emotional information conveyed by music. The fact that music
influences our emotions is not new—politicians always have How can science
music playing before their speeches, many churches include be used to explain
music as part of their ceremonies, and sports teams blast music the influence
during stoppages of play. However, as with many areas of psy- of music on
chology, the pioneers of using music’s emotional characteris-
advertising success?
tics were people trying to sell products. Advertisers have been
using catchy jingles and mood music in radio ads for almost A key factor in mixing music and advertising is finding the
100 years (O’Reilly & Tennant, 2009) and some webpages now correct balance. Music should be emotionally arousing,
have music as part of the banner ads. So, what do we know but not overwhelming. We have all had the experience of
about music and emotion, and how do marketing companies thinking, “What a cool commercial! What were they selling
use this knowledge to influence which products we buy? again?” That’s bad news for a company paying tens of thou-
sands of dollars for a 30-second commercial on Hockey
Night in Canada. Researchers have found that some musi-
What do we know
cal characteristics are useful in improving memory for a
about music and commercial’s product. Music with meaningful lyrics had a
advertising? more positive effect on memory for product information
Music perception involves the emo- than instrumental music or nonsense lyrics (Olsen, 2002).
tional brain centres, such as those Additionally, people tend to prefer popular songs to new
found in the limbic system (Bhatara music, likely because popular songs already have positive
et al., 2011; Gosselin et al., 2005). memories associated with them (Hébert & Peretz, 1997).
Indeed, in a novel study, researchers Sometimes, an ad will be so successful that the song and
at the Université de Montréal and Concordia University found product are permanently linked, such as Feist’s “1-2-3-4”
that patients with damage to the amygdala, an area of the brain and Apple’s iPod. So, what about the lyrics themselves?
related to the experience of fear, were impaired in their ability We all know that music helps us recall lyrics; research-
to recognize that particular pieces of music, such as the theme ers have found that musical jingles in commercials greatly
to Jaws, were scary. Studies such as this imply that in healthy enhance memory if the jingle contains the brand’s name
brains, the emotion centres respond during the perception of (Yalch, 1991).
music in order to help us understand its meaning.
Can we critically
In addition to influencing our feelings, the emotional
aspects of music also allow us to structure our other
evaluate this
information?
One explanation for the positive
effects of music on attitudes toward
products relates to the vast number
of associations we have with songs
and melodies. Music evokes visual images, and images have
been shown to improve performance on memory tests. So,
if music is paired with a commercial (or, better yet, in a jingle
with the product’s name in it), it is easier for the consumer
to remember and feel positively toward that particular prod-
uct (Stewart & Punj, 1998). Recent studies of the brain pro-
vide one possible explanation for the effectiveness of jingles.
Using EEG, researchers found that people learning verbal
material that was sung (like a jingle) showed more coherent
Ulrich Niehoff/imagebroker/Alamy patterns of firing in the network of neurons in the frontal
lobes than did people who heard the same material spoken
What song comes to mind when you see an iPod? For many
people, it is Feist’s “1-2-3-4.” Can you think of other examples normally. Thus, music provides structure, and structure aids
of music and products becoming strongly linked? memory.

The Auditory System :: Module 4.3 :: 165

 Why is this relevant? older people who might harm the store’s youthful image.
Admittedly, given that many of these old folks are parents
The fact that an auditor y with credit cards, these retailers might soon be singing a
stimulus—music—can influ- different tune.
ence what products we pur-
chase at the mall is astounding. It is also a wonderful example
of how different areas of our brain interact to produce com-
plex behaviours. It is easy to forget how interconnected these
seemingly distinct behaviours really are. People often view psy-
chology as consisting of independent ideas (or modules), yet
no part of human behaviour is truly independent—everything
is interconnected in some way.

Incidentally, if you go to a shopping mall, you’ll notice that

music is used for an additional purpose in stores. Stores
whose images are based on being “cool” and youth-oriented
will blast modern music in an attempt to show that they are
trendy. Although one goal of this action is to draw in young
customers in the same way that commercials do, there
is an extra goal at work. These stores also need to repel argo74/Shutterstock

Quick Quiz 4.3b The Perception of Sound

1 The primary auditory cortex is found in which lobe 4 While crossing the street, you know a car is

APPLY . . .
KNOW . . .

of the brain? approaching on your left side because

A Frontal C Occipital A the left ear got the information just a fraction of a
B Temporal D Parietal second before the right ear.
B the right ear got the information just a fraction of a
second before the left ear.
2 ________ explains pitch perception when hair cells are
UNDERSTAND . . .

stimulated at the same rate that a sound wave cycles. C the right ear experienced the sound more intensely
A Place theory C The volley principle than the left ear.
B Frequency theory D Switch theory D both ears experienced the sound at the same
intensity.

3 Neurons cannot fire fast enough to keep up with high- Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
pitched sound waves. Therefore, they alternate firing
according to the ________.
A place theory C volley principle
B frequency theory D switch theory

166 :: Module 4.3 : : The Auditory System

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
4.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology relating to the ear and hearing:

cochlea (p. 161) place theory of hearing (p. 163)

frequency theory (p. 163) primary auditory cortex (p. 164)
pitch (p. 160) sound localization (p. 162)
IGphotography/iStockphoto

UNDERSTAND . . . ANALYZE . . .

● Different characteristics of sound and how they ● How the emotional characteristics of music can
correspond to perception. Sound can be analyzed be used by advertisers. Music is an important part of
based on its frequency (the number of cycles a sound television and radio commercials. They can capture our
wave travels per second) as well as on its amplitude (the attention and can influence how we perceive different
height of a sound wave). Our experience of pitch is based products. Researchers have found that musical “jingles”
on sound wave frequencies. Amplitude corresponds to that mention the product’s name are quite effective in
loudness: The higher the amplitude, the louder the sound. making that product more memorable. Using popular
● How technology is used to restore hearing. Cochlear songs is also an effective method of influencing consumers.
implants are remarkable devices that can restore much But, now that you know how marketers are using music
of a person’s hearing. However, this technology works to persuade you, you can be aware of this manipulation.
best for young children because their brains are more You might still buy their products, but the knowledge of
adaptable than the brains of adults. advertisers’ techniques will allow you to make an informed
decision when making your purchase, or to march to a
different drummer.
APPLY . . .

● Your knowledge of sound localization. Get a friend to

participate in a quick localization demonstration. Have
her sit with her eyes closed, covering her right ear with
her hand. Now walk quietly in a circle around your friend,
stopping occasionally to snap your fingers. When you do
this, your friend should point to where you are standing,
based solely on the sound. If her right ear is covered, at
which points will she be most accurate? At which points
will she have the most errors? Use the principles of sound
localization to make your predictions.

The Auditory System :: Module 4.3 :: 167

 tuja66/iStockphoto

Module

4.4 Touch and the Chemical Senses

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology How pain messages Your knowledge about touch to describe How different senses are
After reading of touch and travel to the brain the acuity of different areas of skin combined together
this module chemical senses
The relationship between smell, Your knowledge to determine
you should taste, and food flavour experience whether you or someone you
know is a “supertaster”

Would you ever describe your breakfast cereal as tasting pointy or response (Dixon et al., 2000). Synesthesia can also involve blending taste
round? Probably not. Touch, taste, and smell combine together to make and touch, which certainly can influence dining experiences. People may
your favourite foods, yet most of us can still identify the separate com- avoid oatmeal because it tastes bland, but can you imagine avoiding a food
ponents associated with what is felt, tasted, and smelled. Individuals with because it tastes “pointy,” or relishing another food because of its delicate
a condition called synesthesia experience blended perceptions, such that hints of corduroy? Synesthesia occurs in an estimated 1 in 500 people. For
affected individuals might actually hear colours or feel sounds (Cytowic, the 499 others, touch, taste, and smell are distinct senses.
1993). For the individuals who experience this condition, even letters or
numbers may have a colour associated with them. To illustrate this effect, Focus Questions
find the number 2 below:
1 How are our experiences of touch, taste, and smell distinct?
55555555555555555555555
2 What are the different types of sensations that
55555555555555555555555
are detected by our sense of touch?
55555555555555525555555
55555555555555555555555

People who have a type of synesthesia in which words or numbers have

unique colours associated with them find the 2 faster than people without Generally speaking, vision and hearing are the senses that we seem
synesthesia because the colours cause the 2s to “pop out” (Blake et al., to be aware of the most and, therefore, have received the most atten-
2005). In some individuals, even the idea of a number can elicit a colourful tion from researchers. In this module, we will explore the senses of

168 :: Module 4.4 : : Touch and the Chemical Senses

touch, taste, and smell. Putting them together in a single pressure points of the device, whereas less sensitive
module is not meant to diminish their importance, how- regions such as the lower back will perceive the same
ever. Our quality of life, and possibly our survival, would stimuli as only one pressure point. Body parts such as
be severely compromised without these senses. We will the fingertips, palms, and lips are highly sensitive to
also examine how we combine information from our touch compared to regions such as the calves and fore-
different senses into vibrant multimodal experiences, such arm. Research has shown that women have a slightly
as when taste and smell are combined to create a percep- more refined sense of touch than men, precisely because
tion of flavour. their fingers (and therefore their receptors) are smaller
(Peters et al., 2009). Importantly, the sensitivity of differ-
ent parts of the body also influences how much space in
The Sense of Touch the somatosensory cortex is dedicated to analyzing each
The sense of touch allows us to actively investigate our body part’s sensations. Regions of the body that send a
environment and the objects that are in it (Lederman & lot of sensory input to the brain such as the lips have
Klatzky, 2004; Lederman et al., 2007). Using touch, we taken over large portions of the somatosensory cortex
can acquire information about texture, temperature, and while less sensitive regions like the thigh use much less
pressure upon the skin. These different forms of stimula- neural space.
tion are combined to give us a vivid physical sense of Like vision and hearing, touch is very sensitive to
every moment. Imagine you’re at a concert. You don’t change. Merely laying your hand on the surface of an
just hear music. You feel the vibrations of the bass rip- object does little to help identify it. What we need is an
pling through [Link] feel the heat of the [Link] feel active exploration that stimulates receptors in the hand.
other people brushing up against you. And, you feel your Haptics is the active, exploratory aspect of touch sensation and
own body moving to the rhythm of the music. These perception. Active touch involves feedback. For example, as
sensual experiences—which seem so social and so dis- you handle an object, such as a piece of fruit, you move
tant from the nervous system—are dependent on the your fingers over its surface to identify whether any
actions of several types of receptors located just beneath faults may be [Link] fingertips can help you deter-
the surface of the skin, and also in the muscles, joints, and mine whether the object is the appropriate shape and
tendons. These receptors send information to the somato- can detect bruising or abnormalities that may make it
sensory cortex in the parietal lobes of the brain, the neural unsuitable. Haptics allows us not only to identify objects,
region associated with your sense of touch. but also to avoid damaging or dropping them. Fingers
Sensitivity to touch varies across different regions of and hands coordinate their movements using a comple-
the body. One simple method of testing sensitivity, or mentary body sense called kinesthesis, the sense of bodily
acuity, is to use the two-point threshold test shown in motion and position. Receptors for kinesthesis reside in
Figure 4.34. Regions with high acuity, such as the fin- the muscles, joints, and tendons. These receptors transmit
gertips, can detect the two separate, but closely spaced, information about movement and the position of your

(a) (b)

{fig. 4.34} Two-Point Threshold Device for Measuring Touch Acuity The more sensitive regions of the body can detect two
points even when they are spaced very close together. Less sensitive parts of the body have much larger two-point thresholds.

Touch and the Chemical Senses :: Module 4.4 :: 169

 muscles, limbs, and joints to the brain (Figure 4.35). As
you handle an object, your kinesthetic sense allows you
Information to brain
to hold it with enough resistance to avoid dropping it,
and to keep your hands and fingers set in such a way as
to avoid letting it roll out of your hands. Touch, there-
fore, provides us with a great deal of information about
our bodies and the world around them.
Motor neurons

Spinal cord FEELING PAIN Of course, not all of the information

Sensory neurons we receive from our sense of touch is pleasant. Nocicep-
tion is the activity of nerve pathways that respond to uncom-
fortable stimulation. Our skin, teeth, corneas, and internal
organs contain nerve endings called nociceptors, which are
receptors that initiate pain messages that travel to the cen-
Muscle spindle tral nervous system (see Figure 4.36). Nociceptors come
Watch in varieties that respond to various types of stimuli—for
In the Real World: Muscle example, to sharp stimulation, such as a pin prick, or to
Managing Pain extreme heat or cold (Julius & Basbaum, 2001).
Two types of nerve fibres transmit pain messages.
Fast fibres register sharp, immediate pain, such as the
pain felt when your skin is scraped or cut. Slow fibres
Golgi tendon organ register chronic, dull pain, such as the lingering feelings
{fig. 4.35} The Sense of Kinesthesis Receptors in mus- of bumping your knee into the coffee table. Although
cles and at the joints send sensory messages to the brain, both slow and fast fibres eventually send input to the
helping us maintain awareness and control of our movements.
brain, these impulses first must travel to cells in the spinal
Muscle spindles and Golgi tendon organs are sensory recep-
tors that provide information about changes in muscle length cord; the firing of neurons within the spinal cord will
and tension. influence how this pain is experienced.
Watch Pain varies from mild to severe and from acute
Brain Pain (brief) to chronic. How do we explain differences in pain
experiences? One long-held theory of pain perception
is the gate-control theory , which explains our
experience of pain as an interaction between nerves that
transmit pain messages and those that inhibit these mes-
sages. According to this theory, cells in the spinal
Hair
cord regulate how much pain signalling reaches
the brain. The spinal cord serves as a “neural gate”
Skin surface Sweat gland that pain messages must pass through (Melzack &
Wall, 1965, 1982). The spinal cord contains small
Skin layers nerve fibres that conduct pain messages and larger
nerve fibres that conduct other sensory signals
such as those associated with rubbing, pinch-
Pressure-sensitive ing, and tickling sensations. Stimulation of the
nerves
small pain fibres results in the experience of pain,
whereas the larger fibres inhibit pain signals. Thus,
the large fibres close the gate that is opened by the
smaller fibres. According to gate-control theory, if
Blood vessels Subcutaneous fat you stub your bare toe, rubbing the area around
the toe may alleviate some of the pain, because
Pain-sensitive and touch-sensitive
free nerve endings the large fibres carrying the message about touch
inhibit the firing of smaller fibres carrying pain
{fig. 4.36} Cross-Section of Skin and Free Nerve Endings That Respond to Pain The signals. Likewise, putting ice on a wound reduces
nerve endings that respond to pain reside very close to the surface of the skin and, as you are
likely aware, are very sensitive to stimulation. Click on this figure in your eText to see more pain by overriding the signals transmitted by the
details. small fibres.

170 :: Module 4.4 : : Touch and the Chemical Senses

 Input from both the large and small fibres will be likely think of situations in which you were quite upset
sent from the spinal cord to the brain. There, the sen- and frustrated after hurting yourself. These feelings are
sory information will branch off to (at least) two differ- due, in part, to activity of the anterior cingulate gyrus,
ent areas of the brain. One region, the somatosensory which forms networks with many structures within the
cortex, registers the pain sensations occurring over the limbic system.
entire surface of the body. The other region, the anterior Our discussion thus far has focused on how we per-
cingulate gyrus, influences our attentional and emotional ceive pain when it affects our own body. But, how do
responses to the pain; this brain region is found on the you feel when you see someone else in pain? And, does
medial (middle) surface of the brain immediately above the pain of other people affect how your own pain feels?
the corpus callosum. Although you might not immedi- Psychology researchers have begun to address these
ately think of pain as an emotional experience, you can complicated—and fascinating—questions.

videos (cityscape scenes). Participants rated the unpleasant-

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC ness of the pain as being higher when they watched disaster
LITERACY MODEL scenes (Loggia et al., 2008a). These results suggest that the
emotional component of pain can influence our physical sen-
Empathy and Pain sations, particularly when it involves seeing the suffering of
others.
A running theme of this chapter has been that sensation and In another study, these researchers asked participants to
perception involve an interaction with your environment. either feel high or low levels of empathy for an actor in a
While the term environment often makes people think of video. The researchers then measured the participants’ sen-
birds, trees, and buildings, a key part of our environment is sitivity to painful heat stimuli while they watched the actor
other people. Is it possible for one person’s somatosensory experience similar stimulation. Participants who felt empa-
experiences to influence those of another person? thy for the actor reported experiencing higher levels of pain
than did low-empathy participants. This result suggests that
What do we know emotionally connecting with someone else in pain can influ-
ence our own sensitivity (Loggia et al., 2008b).
about empathy and
pain?
Can we critically
We’ve all seen someone in pain.
evaluate the research?
Sometimes it’s a friend stubbing
his toe on a chair, other times it’s An obvious criticism of research
a hockey player crushed against studies involving emotion and the
the boards in front of thousands of spectators. Our experi- experience of pain is that the par-
ence of those situations differs a great deal. If we see some- ticipants may simply be reporting
one we care about in pain, we experience negative emotions what they think the experimenters
and sometimes even feel pain ourselves. If it is a stranger want to hear. If you were in a study in which someone was
or someone we don’t like (e.g., an opposing hockey team’s manipulating your mood, you would likely be able to predict
player), we might not have as intense a reaction. This leads to the hypotheses being tested in that study. It is therefore nec-
several interesting questions. Are you able to feel the pain of essary to find additional support for these self-report exper-
others? Under what conditions? And how does the presence iments. Numerous neuroimaging studies have found that
of another person influence how you experience pain? activity in a brain structure called the insula (near the junc-
tion of the frontal lobes and the top of the temporal lobes)
is related to the awareness of bodily sensations (Wiens,
How does
2007). Activity in the insula also increases when people are
science explain performing empathy-related tasks (Fukushima et al., 2011).
the influence of Thus, there might be a biological link between feeling pain
empathy on pain and feeling empathy.
perception? Stronger support comes from studies that show an effect
The power of emotion in the experience of pain is profound. of empathy on pain perception in individuals that are much
In one study, researchers at McGill University asked partici- less likely to be influenced by the experimenter’s expecta-
pants to immerse their right hand in hot water while view- tions: mice! When injected with a pain-inducing substance,
ing emotionally negative videos (disaster scenes) and neutral mice that were tested in pairs showed more pain-related

Touch and the Chemical Senses :: Module 4.4 :: 171

 behaviours than did mice that were tested alone. But, this Why is this relevant?
effect only occurred when the mice were cagemates with
their test partner (i.e., they knew the other mouse)! Addi- These studies demonstrate
tionally, observing a cagemate in pain altered the mouse’s that our sensations, particu-
own pain sensitivity, suggesting that these animals are capable larly pain, can be influenced by
of some form of empathy (Langford et al., 2006). Even more the experiences of other peo-
remarkable, some male mice refused to show pain responses ple. Feeling negative emotions or seeing someone else feel
in the presence of mice they didn’t know (a mouse version of pain makes our own pain more unpleasant. Although these
the male tendency to act macho); this effect, not surprisingly, studies might seem a bit morbid, they do offer an incredibly
appears to be dependent upon the hormone testosterone important insight that could affect the well-being of many
(Langford et al., 2011). Taken together, these neuroimaging people. If people can influence each other’s negative sensa-
and animal-based studies suggest that our own pain can be tions, then it should be possible to influence each other’s
dramatically influenced by the pain of those around us. positive sensations. Just as pain can be “contagious,” so too
might happiness and well-being.

blickwinkel/Alamy
Studies conducted at McGill University provide evidence that
mice can feel empathy. Vuk Vukmirovic/Shutterstock

PHANTOM LIMB PAIN Astonishingly, it is possible for

people to feel pain in body parts that no longer exist. Phan-
tom limb sensations are frequently experienced by amputees,
who report pain and other sensations coming from the
absent limb. Amputees describe such sensations as itch-
ing, muscle contractions, and, most unfortunately, pain.
One explanation for phantom pain suggests that rewiring
occurs in the brain following the loss of the limb. After
limb amputation, the area of the somatosensory cortex for-
merly associated with that area is no longer stimulated by
the lost limb. Thus, if someone has her left arm amputated,
the right somatosensory cortex that registers sensations
from the left arm no longer has any input from this limb.
Healthy nerve cells become hypersensitive when they lose
connections. The phantom sensations, including pain, may {fig. 4.37} A Mirror Box Used in Therapy for People with
occur because the nerve cells in the cortex continue to be Limb Amputation In this case, a woman who has lost her left
arm can experience some relief from phantom pain by moving
active, despite the absence of any input from the body.
her intact hand, such as by unclenching her fist. In turn, she
One ingenious treatment for phantom pain involves will experience relief from phantom pain corresponding to her
the mirror box (Figure 4.37). This apparatus uses the left side.

172 :: Module 4.4 : : Touch and the Chemical Senses

reflection of the amputee’s existing limb, such as an arm 70
and hand, to create the visual appearance of having both Randomized trial Crossover to mirror
therapy
limbs. Amputees often find that watching themselves 60
move and stretch the phantom hand, which is actually
Mental visualization
the mirror image of the real hand, results in a significant 50

Level of pain reported

Covered mirror
decrease in phantom pain and in both physical and emo- Mirror
tional discomfort (Ramachandran & Altschuler, 2009). 40
Researchers have conducted experiments to deter-
mine how well mirror box therapy works compared 30

both to a control condition and to mentally visualiz-

20
ing the presence of a phantom hand. Over the course
of four weeks of regular testing, the people who used
10
the mirror box had significantly reduced pain compared
to a control group who used the same mirror apparatus,
0
except the mirror was covered, as well as compared to
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
the group who used mental visualization (Figure 4.38; Week
Chan et al., 2007). Notice in Figure 4.38 that everyone
was given mirror therapy after the fourth week of the {fig. 4.38} Mirror Box Therapy Compared to Mental Visualization and a
Control Condition
study, and that the procedure seems to have lasting, posi-
tive benefits. No one is sure why mirror box therapy
works, but evidence suggests that the short-term ben-
efits are due to how compelling the illusion is; in the APPLY . . . 4 A student gently touches a staple to her fingertip and
to the back of her arm near her elbow. How are these
long term, this therapy may actually result in reorgani- sensations likely to differ? Or would they feel similar?
zation of the somatosensory cortex (Ramachandran & A The sensation would feel like two points on the
Altschuler, 2009). fingertip but is likely to feel like only one point on
the arm.
B The sensations would feel identical because the
same object touches both locations.
C The sensation would feel like touch on the finger-
Quick Quiz 4.4a tips but like pain on the elbow.
The Sense of Touch D The sensation would feel like two points on the
arm but is likely to feel like only one point on the
1 The sense associated with actively touching objects is
KNOW . . .

fingertip.
known as _______.
A tactile agnosia C nociception Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
B haptics D gestation

2 Phantom limb sensations are

The Chemical Senses:
A sensations that arise from a limb that has been
amputated. Taste and Smell
B sensations that are not perceived.
The chemical senses comprise a combination of both
C sensations from stimuli that do not reach
conscious awareness.
taste and smell. Although they are distinct sensory sys-
tems, both begin the sensory process with chemicals
D sensations from stimuli that you typically identify as
intense, such as a burn, but feel dull. activating receptors on the tongue and mouth, as well as
in the nose.
3 Nociceptors send pain signals to both the ______ and
UNDERSTAND . . .

THE GUSTATORY SYSTEM: TASTE The gustatory

the _______.
system functions in the sensation and perception of taste.
A occipital lobe; hypothalamus
But, what exactly is this system tasting? Approximately
B cerebellum; somatosensory cortex
2500 identifiable chemical compounds are found in the
C somatosensory cortex; anterior cingulate gyrus
food we eat (Taylor & Hort, 2004). When combined,
D occipital lobe; cochlea these compounds give us an enormous diversity of taste

Touch and the Chemical Senses :: Module 4.4 :: 173

 processes the pleasurable experiences associated
with food.
Why do some people experience tastes viv-
idly while other people do not? One reason is that
the number of taste buds present on the tongue
influences the psychological experience of taste.
Although approximately 10 000 taste buds is the
average number found in humans, there is wide
variation among individuals. Some people may
have many times this number. Supertasters, who
account for approximately 25% of the popula-
tion, are especially sensitive to bitter tastes such as
those of broccoli and black coffee. They typically
have lower rates of obesity and cardiovascular dis-
ease, possibly because they tend not to prefer fatty
{fig. 4.39} Papillae and Taste Buds The tongue is lined with papillae (the bumpy surfaces). and sweet foods. Figure 4.40 shows the number
Within these papillae are your taste buds, the tiny receptors to which chemicals bind. of papillae, and hence taste buds, possessed by a
supertaster compared to those without this ability.
sensations. The primary tastes include salty, sweet, bitter, How much of our taste preferences are learned
and sour. In addition, a fifth taste, called umami, has been and how much is innate? Like most of our behaviours,
identified (Chaudhari et al., 2000). Umami, sometimes there is no simple answer. Human infants tend to pre-
referred to as “savouriness,” is a Japanese word that refers fer the foods consumed by their mothers during ges-
to tastes associated with seaweed, the seasoning monoso- tation (Beauchamp & Mennella, 2009). Soon after
dium glutamate (MSG), and protein-rich foods such as starting solid foods, children begin to acquire a taste
milk and aged cheese. for the foods prevalent in their culture. Would you eat
Taste is registered primarily on the tongue, where a piece of bread smeared with a sticky brown paste that
roughly 9000 taste buds reside. On average, approxi- was processed from wasted yeast used to make beer in
mately 1000 taste buds are also found throughout the
sides and roof of the mouth (Miller & Reedy, 1990).
Sensory neurons that transmit signals from the taste
buds respond to different types of stimuli, but most tend
to respond best to a particular taste. Our experience of
taste reflects an overall pattern of activity across many
neurons, and generally comes from stimulation of the
entire tongue rather than just specific, localized regions.
The middle of the tongue has very few taste receptors,
giving it a similar character to the blind spot on the
retina (Module 4.2). We do not feel or sense the blind
spot of the tongue because the sensory information
is filled in, just as we find with vision. Taste receptors Taste buds

replenish themselves every 10 days throughout the life

span—the only type of sensory receptor to do so.
Receptors for taste are located in the visible, small
bumps (papillae) that are distributed over the surface of the
tongue. The papillae are lined with taste buds. Figure 4.39
shows papillae, taste buds, and an enlarged view of an indi-
vidual taste bud and a sensory neuron that sends a message
to the [Link] bundles of nerves that register taste at the
taste buds send the signal through the thalamus and on to
higher-level regions of the brain, including the gustatory
cortex; this region is located in the back of the frontal lobes Supertaster Normal taster
and extends inward to the insula (near the top of the tem- {fig. 4.40} Density of Papillae, and Hence Taste Buds, in
poral lobe). Another region, the secondary gustatory cortex, a Supertaster and in a Normal Taster

174 :: Module 4.4 : : Touch and the Chemical Senses

a brewery? This product, called vegemite, is actually Different combinations of cilia are stimulated in response
quite popular among people in Switzerland, Australia, to different odours.
and New Zealand. People brought up eating vegemite These groups of cilia then transmit messages to neu-
may love it, while most others find it tastes like death. rons that converge on the olfactory bulb (on the bottom
The Masai people of Kenya and Tanzania enjoy eating surface of the frontal lobes), which serves as the brain’s
a coagulated mixture of cow’s blood and milk. These central region for processing smell. The olfactory bulb
foods may sound unappetizing to you. Of course, non- connects with several regions of the brain through the
Canadians are often repulsed by poutine, a decadent olfactory tract, including the limbic system (emotion) as
mixture of French fries, cheese curds, and gravy, so we well as regions of the cortex where the subjective expe- Watch
should be careful not to judge . . . too much. rience of pleasure (or disgust) occurs. Alzheimer’s Smell Test
Closely related to taste is our sense of smell, which
senses the chemical environment via a different mode MULTIMODAL INTEGRATION Modules 4.2–4.4 Watch

have described our five different sensory systems. After Basics: In Full
than does taste.
Appreciation of the
reading about them, it is quite tempting to view the five
Cookie
THE OLFACTORY SYSTEM: SMELL The olfactory systems as being distinct from one another. After all, our
system is involved in smell—the detection of airborne particles brains are set up in such a way that it is simple to separate Watch
with specialized receptors located in the nose. Our sensation the different senses. Indeed, the Doctrine of Specific Ener- Aromatherapy
of smell begins with nasal air flow bringing in molecules gies stated in 1826 that our senses are separated in the brain
Watch
that bind with receptors at the top of the nasal cavity. (So, (see Module 4.1). However, this view is at odds with some
Thinking Like a
when you smell something, you are actually taking in of our sensory experiences. Many of these experiences are
Psychologist: Can
part of the environment—including other people—into actually combinations of multiple types of sensations, just
Smells Alter Mood and
your body.) Within the nasal cavity is the olfactory epi- as they are in individuals with synesthesia, the condition
Behavior?
thelium, a thin layer of cells that are lined by sensory receptors discussed at the beginning of this module. For example, the
called cilia—tiny hair-like projections that contain spe- perceptual experience of flavour combines taste and smell
cialized proteins that bind with the airborne molecules (Small et al., 1997).You have probably noticed that when
that enter the nasal cavity (Figure 4.41). Humans have you have nasal congestion, your experience of flavour is
roughly 1000 different types of odour receptors in their diminished. This loss of taste occurs because approximately
olfactory system. If this is the case, then how it is possible 80% of our information about food comes from olfaction
for us to detect approximately 10 000 different smells? (Murphy et al., 1977). This link between taste and smell is
The answer is that it is the pattern of the stimulation, a perfect example of multimodal integration, the ability Simulate
involving more than one receptor, which gives rise to to combine sensation from different modalities such as vision and Which Senses Do You
the experience of a particular smell (Buck & Axel, 1991). hearing into a single integrated perception. Use?

Olfactory
bulb

Olfactory
bulb
Fibres of
olfactory
receptor
cell Nerve
fibre

Olfactory
epithelium
Receptor
cell

Cilia

(a) (b)

{fig. 4.41} The Olfactory System Lining the olfactory epithelium are tiny cilia that collect airborne chemicals, sending sensory
messages to the nerve fibres that make up the olfactory bulb. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.

Touch and the Chemical Senses :: Module 4.4 :: 175

 Multimodal integration is so much more than sim- judgments of the emotional content of songs (Thomp-
ply combining different senses. In fact, it’s a form of son, Russo, & Quinto, 2008). These studies show us that
problem-solving performed by your brain hundreds of we naturally form auditory expectations when we visu-
times each day. We must decide, almost instantaneously, ally perceive a face.
if two types of sensation should be integrated into a So, if our brains are set up to perceive our senses
multimodal perception. How do we do this? One fac- separately and then combine them only when it seems
tor is whether the different sensations are in a similar appropriate (due to location, time, and expectations),
location. If you hear a “meow” and see a cat with its how can we explain synesthesia, the condition discussed
mouth open, you infer that the movements of the cat’s in the opening of this module? These blended multi-
mouth and the “meow” sound were linked together. We modal associations (e.g., chicken that tastes “pointy”) do
also make use of temporal information. Sensations that not come and go. Rather, they occur automatically and
occur in roughly the same time period are more likely to are consistent over time (Ramachandran & Hubbard,
be linked than those that are not. If you hear a “meow” 2003). Why does synesthesia occur?
five seconds before the cat’s mouth moved, you will This question has puzzled scientists since the
not likely combine the sound with the sight of the cat first reported case of synesthesia in 1812 (Sachs, 1812;
(unless you know your cat is a ventriloquist). Jewanski et al., 2009). To date, there is still no clear
Multimodal integration occurs quite naturally— answer. Researchers have noted that synesthesia does run
we’re often unaware of these perceptions until some out- in families (Baron-Cohen, 1996). However, the exact
side force interferes with it. We’ve all had the experience genes involved with this condition are still unknown. In
of watching a television show or [Link] clip in fact, researchers at the University of Waterloo found a
which the movement of the characters’ lips didn’t match pair of identical twins, only one of whom had synesthe-
up with the sound of their voices. These perceptions are sia (Smilek et al., 2001)!
often annoying because the lag between the image and Neuroimaging studies have provided some insight
the sound makes it difficult to combine the two into the into this condition. For instance, one research group
expected multimodal perception. In fact, sometimes this tested synesthetes who have specific colour perceptions
mismatch can interfere with perception, even to the appear whenever they read a number (e.g., every time
point of producing new perceptions that did not actu- they see “2”, it appears with a yellow border). These
ally occur. researchers found activity in areas of the brain related to
This result occurred by accident in a study con- colour perception in synesthetes, but not non-synesthetes
ducted by Harry McGurk and John MacDonald in 1976. (Nunn et al., 2002). Studies such as this suggest that the
These researchers were investigating language percep- brains of people with synesthesia may contain networks
tion in infants and had videos of different actors speak- that link different sensory areas in ways not found in
ing sounds such as /ba-ba/. However, when the sound other people.
/ba-ba/ was presented during the video of someone This finding demonstrates a point made repeatedly
mouthing the sound /ga-ga/, the experimenters noticed in this book: Our experiences involve groups of brain
that it seemed to produce an entirely different multi- areas working together. This point holds for all five of
modal stimulus: /da-da/. It was as though the movement our senses, as well as for their multimodal integration.
of the speaker’s lips provided the viewer with the expec-
tation of a particular sound; this expectation biased the
perception of the presented sounds. This phenomenon is
now known as the McGurk Effect.
Expectations and multimodal integration can also
influence our social interactions. We routinely integrate
visual and auditory information when we are speak-
ing with someone. Researchers have found that both
woman and men rated masculine faces (i.e., tough,
rugged faces) as being more attractive when they were
matched with a masculine voice (Feinberg et al., 2008).
Other studies have shown that heterosexual men pre-
ferred viewing female faces that were paired with a
Synesthetes who experience colours when they see letters
high-pitched than a low-pitched voice (Feinberg et al., or numbers have stronger connections between brain areas
2005). Facial expressions of a singer also influence related to colour (red) and letters/numbers (green).

176 :: Module 4.4 : : Touch and the Chemical Senses

Quick Quiz 4.4b The Chemical Senses: Taste and Smell
KNOW . . .
1 The bumps that line the tongue surface and house our 4 After eating grape lollipops, you and a friend notice that

APPLY . . .
taste buds are called ______. your tongues have turned purple. With the change in colour,
A epithelia C the gustatory cortex it is easy to notice that there are many more papillae on
your friend’s [Link] is more likely to be a supertaster?
B gustates D papillae
A You are, because you have fewer, and therefore
more distinct, papillae.
2 Where are the receptor cells for smell located? B Your friend is, because she has many more papillae
A The papillae to taste with.
B The olfactory epithelium C You are, because less dye stuck to your tongue,
C The olfactory bulb allowing you to taste more.
D The odour buds D It could be either of you because supertasting is
unrelated to the number of papillae.

3 The perceptual experience of flavour originates from:

UNDERSTAND . . .

5 An exchange student at your school dislikes root

ANALYZE . . .
A taste cues alone.
beer but often craves seaweed. What is the best
B olfactory cues alone. explanation for her taste preferences?
C olfactory and taste cues together. A She grew up drinking root beer and is sick of it.
D haptic and olfactory cues together. B She grew up consuming seaweed.
C Seaweed is a culturally universal preference.
D These are most likely individual preferences that
are unrelated to culture and experience.

Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

Touch and the Chemical Senses :: Module 4.4 :: 177

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
4.4
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology of touch and chemical senses:

gate-control theory (p. 170) multimodal integration (p. 175)
gustatory system (p. 173) nociception (p. 170) tuja66/iStockphoto
haptics (p. 169) olfactory epithelium (p. 175)
kinesthesis (p. 169) olfactory system (p. 175)
does it feel like a single object is touching you? Now try
the experiment again with the two points closer together.
UNDERSTAND . . .
Can you detect a change in acuity?
● How pain messages travel to the brain. According ● Your knowledge to determine whether you or
to gate-control theory, small nerve fibres carry pain someone you know is a “supertaster.” Scientists use a
messages from their source to the spinal cord, and then very precise measurement system to identify supertasters,
up to, among other regions, the anterior cingulate gyrus but one less complicated way to do so is to dye your
and somatosensory cortex. However, large nerve cells tongue by placing a drop of food colouring on it, or by
that register other types of touch sensations (such as eating or drinking something dark blue or purple. Next,
rubbing) can override signals sent by small pain fibres. count the number of papillae you can see in a 4-mm circle.
● The relationship between smell, taste, and food You can accomplish this by viewing the dyed portion
flavour experience. Both senses combine to give us of your tongue through the punched hole in a sheet of
flavour experiences. Contact with food activates patterns loose-leaf notebook paper. If you can count more than
of neural activity among nerve cells connected to the taste 30 papillae, then chances are you are a supertaster. Of
buds, and food’s odours activate patterns of nerve activity course, if you already know that you do not like bitter
in the olfactory epithelium. The primary and secondary vegetables like broccoli or asparagus, then perhaps you
gustatory cortex and the olfactory bulb are involved in would expect to find a high number of papillae.
the perceptual experience of flavour.
ANALYZE . . .
APPLY . . .
● How different senses are combined together. Humans
● Your knowledge about touch to describe the acuity have five distinct types of senses. However, that does not
of different areas of skin. You can try this yourself by mean that these senses always operate independently—
creating a two-point threshold device like the one shown they often interact to form more vivid experiences. The
earlier in Figure 4.34 (page 169). You can fashion one flavour of food is an experience that involves both taste
out of a straightened paper clip that you could hold up to and smell. Numerous other studies have shown that our
a ruler. Set the two points about 5 mm apart and gently visual perception interacts with our auditory system,
apply them to different parts of the body—your fingertips, leading us to be surprised when sounds such as the pitch
your elbow, your cheek. Which parts of your body are of someone’s voice don’t match the visual image of his or
sensitive enough to feel both points, and on which parts her face.

178 :: Module 4.4 : : Touch and the Chemical Senses

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Visual Perception

1 What do we know about the process of perception?

Review Figure 4.2 on page 133 for a reminder of the complex pro-
2 How can science help explain how visual
perception works?
cesses of sensation and perception. But what about the cognitive processes See pages 139–140 for a discussion of studies that show how
that guide this perception? As mentioned on page 139, depending on the top-down and bottom-up processing often work together
information available, we process information, or stimuli, in either a top-down to help us categorize and identify stimuli. Research has also
or bottom-up direction. Remember that top-down processing happens when revealed that our brains have limited resources and, conse-
our perception of an object is shaped by our existing knowledge or prior quently, sometimes make errors in perception. For example,
information, and bottom-up processing happens when our perception is based inattentional blindness prevents us from seeing one stimulus if
only on the information available from the stimulus. Think of it this way: Bot- we are focused on another. This was demonstrated in a clas-
tom-up processing occurs when perception starts at the most basic (bottom) sic study when subjects viewing a video were asked to attend
level—the stimulus. Top-down processing occurs at a higher (top) level, as you to one cognitive task (counting the number of times a ball
are approaching the stimulus armed with previous knowledge. was passed back and forth) and didn’t notice a person in a
Consider a baby’s toy giraffe. You are familiar with giraffes and children’s toys, gorilla suit strolling across the screen. This is an example of
so you would process the object from the top down. But giraffes, and even the how processing information in a top-down manner can impede
concept of toys, are new to an infant. Perceiving this stimulus would consist our ability to notice events that, in hindsight, should have been
of taking in all of its elements, including its shape, size, and texture. Thus, this obvious.
brand-new object is perceived from the bottom
up—from its most basic elements.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video
excerpt on sensation and perception. You
can access the video at MyPsychLab or by clicking SERHAT AKAVCI/Shutterstock
the play button in the centre of your eText. If your
instructor assigns this video as a homework activity, you will find
additional content to help you in MyPsychLab. You can also view
3
Can we critically evaluate claims about perception?
If the frequency with which we encounter objects influences our
the video by using your smart phone and the QR code below, or ability to perceive them, and concentrating on one stimulus can make
you can go to the YouTube link provided. us blind to another, then is it possible to trick our perceptions through
Once you have read this chapter and watched the video, consider exposure to subliminal stimuli? Myths in Mind on page 136 notes
what you know about the processes of perception. The Gestalt that while the brain exhibits a small response to subliminal stimuli, the
psychologists maintained that when people perceive sensory ele- key word is small. Your behaviour is unlikely to be drastically influenced,
ments, their tendency is to see things in terms of the entire form either positively or negatively, by subliminal messaging. There is also no
or pattern rather than as individual parts. Identify and describe evidence that backward messages in music will influence your behav-
each of the basic principles of perceptual organization from the iour. Also keep in mind how the concept of inattentional blindness can
Gestalt perspective, including figure–ground, similarity, proximity, be important when it comes to critically evaluating the value of eyewit-
continuity, closure, and symmetry. ness testimony. For example, can a person who witnesses a hit-and-run
accident, even from a close range, accurately recall the model and colour
of the car if, at the time of the accident, her attention was focused on a
cell phone conversation?

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]//wor
[Link]/workthemodel
work
kthemo
kth
hemod
de
del
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Chapter 4 :: 179

 5
Consciousness
5.1 Biological Rhythms of
Consciousness
● What Is Sleep? p. 182
● Why We Need Sleep p. 185
● Theories of Dreaming p. 189
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Dreams, REM Sleep, and Learning p. 190
● Disorders and Problems
with Sleep p. 192
● Module Summary p. 197

5.2 Altered States of Consciousness

● Hypnosis p. 199
● Meditation p. 201
● Disorders of Consciousness p. 203
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Assessing Consciousness
in the Vegetative State p. 205
● Module Summary p. 208

5.3 Drugs and Conscious Experience

● Physical and Psychological
Effects of Drugs p. 210
● Commonly Abused
Illegal Drugs p. 213
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Marijuana, Memory,
and Cognition p. 217
● Legal Drugs and Their Effects
on Consciousness p. 219
● Module Summary p. 223
Lava 4 images/Shutterstock

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 224

180 :: Module : :
 Sylvia Serrado/Glow Images

Module

5.1 Biological Rhythms of Consciousness:

Wakefulness and Sleep
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology How the sleep cycle works Your knowledge to identify and Different theories
After reading associated with sleep, practise good sleep habits about why we dream
Theories of why we sleep
this module dreams, and sleep disorders
you should

Smashing through a window in your sleep seems perfectly plausible if it Focus Questions
occurs as part of a dream. Mike Birbiglia did just this—but in his case, it
was both dream and reality. Birbiglia is a comedian whose show, Sleepwalk 1 How do body rhythms affect memory and thinking?
with Me, is full of stories of personal and embarrassing moments, which 2 What is REM and how is it related to dreaming?
include jumping through a second-storey window of his hotel room while
he was asleep. He awoke upon landing; picked his bloodied, half-naked self
up; and went to the hotel front desk to notify personnel of what hap-
pened. Perhaps his comedy is just his way of dealing with an otherwise Consciousness is a person’s subjective awareness, including thoughts,
troubling sleep problem—a serious condition called REM behaviour dis-
perceptions, experiences of the world, and self-awareness. Every day we
order. People with REM behaviour disorder act out their dreams, which
go through many changes in consciousness—our thoughts and per-
clearly has the potential to be very dangerous. In Mike’s case, the injury
was self-inflicted. Other people with the condition, however, have been
ceptions are constantly adapting to new situations. In some cases,
known to hit or choke their bed partner. As it turns out, jumping through when we are paying close attention to something, we seem to
windows is not entirely uncommon for people with REM behaviour dis- be more in control of conscious experiences. In other situations,
order (Schenck et al., 2009). In this module, we explore how normal such as when we are daydreaming, consciousness seems to wander.
sleep works, and we explain how and why sleep disorders, such as Mike These changes in our subjective experiences, and the difficulty in
Birbiglia’s, occur. defining them, make consciousness one of the most challenging

Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep :: Module 5.1 :: 181

 areas of psychological study. We will begin this module However, the biological rhythm that appears to have
by exploring the alternating cycles of consciousness— the most obvious impact upon our lives is a cycle that
sleeping and waking. occurs over the course of a day. Circadian rhythms
are internally driven daily cycles of approximately 24 hours
affecting physiological and behavioural processes (Halberg
What Is Sleep? et al.,1959). They involve the tendency to be asleep or
It makes perfect sense to devote a module to a behaviour awake at specific times, to feel hungrier during some
that humans spend approximately one-third of their lives parts of the day, and even the ability to concentrate bet-
doing. What happens during sleep can be just as fascinat- ter at certain times than at others (Lavie, 2001;Verwey &
ing as what happens during wakefulness. Psychologists Amir, 2009).
and non-psychologists alike have long pondered some Think about your own circadian rhythms: When are
basic questions about sleep, such as “Why do we need you most alert? At which times of day do you feel the
sleep?” and “Why do we dream?” But perhaps we should most tired? Night shift workers and night owls aside, we
begin with the most basic question: “What is sleep?” tend to get most of our sleep when it is dark outside
because our circadian rhythms are regulated by daylight
Listen BIOLOGICAL RHYTHMS Life involves patterns— interacting with our nervous and endocrine (hormonal)
Brain Time patterns that cycle within days, weeks, months, or years. systems. One key brain structure in this process is the
Organisms have evolved biological rhythms that are neatly suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus. Cells
adapted to the cycles in their environment. For example, in the retina of the eye relay messages about light lev-
bears are well known for hibernating during the cold els in the environment to the SCN (Hendrickson
winter months. Because this behaviour happens on a et al., 1972; Morin, 2013). The SCN, in turn, communi-
yearly basis, it is part of a circannual rhythm (a term that cates signals about light levels with the pineal gland (see
literally means “a yearly cycle”). This type of rhythm is Figure 5.1). The pineal gland releases a hormone called
an example of an infradian rhythm, which is any rhythm melatonin, which peaks in concentration at nighttime and
that occurs over a period of time longer than a day. In is reduced during wakefulness. Information about mela-
humans, the best-known infradian rhythm is the men- tonin levels feeds back to the hypothalamus (i.e., they
strual cycle. However, most biological rhythms occur influence each other); our sleep–wake cycle is controlled
with a much greater frequency than once a month. For by these interactions.
instance, heart rate, urination, and some hormonal activ- But what actually causes us to adopt these circadian
ity occur in 90–120-minute cycles. These more frequent rhythms? Why don’t we stay awake for days and then
biological rhythms are referred to as ultradian rhythms. sleep all weekend? There are two explanations for our
24-hour rhythms. One is entrainment, when biological
rhythms become synchronized to external cues such as light,
temperature, or even a clock. Because of its effects on the
SCN-melatonin system, light is the primary entrain-
ment mechanism for most mammals (Wever et al.,
1983). We tend to be awake during daylight and asleep
during darkness. We’re also influenced by the time on
our clocks. If you’re tired at 8 p.m., you normally try to
fi ght your fatigue until a “normal” bed time such as
10 p.m. Why? Because we’ve been trained to believe that
some times of day are associated with sleep and others
are not.
However, not all of our body rhythms are a prod-
Suprachiasmatic
nucleus uct of entrainment. Instead, some are endogenous
rhythms, biological rhythms that are generated by our body
independent of external cues such as light. Studying endog-
Hypothalamus
enous rhythms is tricky because it is difficult to remove
all of the external cues from a person’s world. To over-
Pineal gland come this problem, researchers in the 1960s and 1970s
asked motivated volunteers to spend extended periods
{fig. 5.1} Pathways Involved in Circadian Rhythms Cells in the retina send
messages about light levels to the suprachiasmatic nucleus, which in turn relays of time (months) in caves or in isolation chambers. For
the information to the pineal gland, which secretes melatonin. instance, Jürgen Aschoff (1965; Aschoff et al., 1967;

182 :: Module 5.1 : : Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep

 24

20

16
Waking
Hours

12

8 REM sleep

4 NREM sleep
Total
daily
sleep
0
2 4 6 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
Age in years

{fig. 5.2} Sleep Requirements Change with Age People tend to spend progressively less time sleeping as they age. The
amount of a certain type of sleep, REM sleep, declines the most.

Aschoff & Wever, 1962) had participants stay in an patterns are more than just preferences: People actu-
underground chamber for four weeks. These research- ally do show higher alertness and cognitive functioning
ers noted that individuals tended to adopt a 25-hour during their preferred time of day (Cavallera & Giudici,
day. Michel Siffre, a French cave expert, remained by 2008; Hahn et al., 2012). For instance, researchers at
himself in a dark cave for much longer durations than the University of Toronto have found that when older
Aschoff ’s participants: two months in 1962 and six adults (approximately 60–80 years of age) are tested
months in 1972 (Foer & Siffre, 2008). Whenever he later in the day as opposed to early in the morning, they
woke up or intended to go to sleep, he called his sup- have a greater difficulty separating new from old infor-
port team who were stationed at the entrance to the mation (Hasher et al., 2002) and have a larger variability
cave. Data from Siffre and a number of his subsequent in their reaction times on a test in which they learned
participants indicated that most people fell into a to pair together a digit and a symbol (Hogan et al.,
24.5-hour circadian rhythm. Although a few participants 2009). These results have implications for the cognitive
would briefly enter longer cycles—sometimes as long testing older patients receive in hospitals; clearly, these
as 48-hour days—most people possess an endogenous individuals will appear healthier if tested in the morn-
circadian rhythm that is 24–25 hours in length (Lavie, ing as opposed to later in the day, when their bodies are
2001; Mills, 1964). preparing to go to sleep.
Although our sleep–wake cycle remains rela-
tively close to 24 hours in length throughout our lives, THE STAGES OF SLEEP We have already seen Watch
some patterns within our circadian rhythms do change how sleep fits into the daily rhythm, but if we take a Basics: Rhythms of

with age (Caci et al., 2009). As shown in Figure 5.2, closer look, we will see that sleep itself has rhythms. In Consciousness

researchers have found that we need much less sleep— order to measure these rhythms, scientists use poly-
especially a type called REM sleep—as we move from somnography , a set of objective measurements used to
infancy and early childhood into adulthood. More- examine physiological variables during sleep. Some of the
over, people generally experience a change in when devices used in this type of study are familiar, such
they prefer to sleep. In your teens and 20s, many of you as one to measure respiration and a thermometer to
will become night owls who prefer to stay up late and measure body temperature. In addition, electr ical
sleep in. When given the choice, those of you in this sensors attached to the skin measure muscle activity
age range prefer to work, study, and play late in the day. around the eyes and other parts of the body. How-
Later in adulthood, many of you will fi nd yourselves ever, sleep cycles themselves are most often defined by
going to bed earlier and getting up earlier, and you may the electroencephalogram (EEG), a device that measures
begin to prefer working or exercising before teenag- brain waves using sensors attached to the scalp (see
ers even begin to stir. In fact, research shows that these Module 3.4).

Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep :: Module 5.1 :: 183

 Awake

Beta waves
Awake and calm

Alpha waves
Stage 1

Theta waves
Stage 2
K complex

Sleep spindles
Stages 3 and 4

Delta waves
REM sleep

Hank Morgan/Science Source

Using physiological recording devices, sleep researchers and
{fig. 5.3} EEG Recordings during Wakefulness and doctors can monitor eye movements, brain waves, and other
Sleep Brain waves, as measured by the frequency and ampli- physiological processes.
tude of electrical activity, change over the course of the normal
circadian rhythm. Beta waves are predominant during wakeful-
ness, but give way to alpha waves during periods of calm and
as we drift into sleep. Theta waves are characteristic of stage 1
sleep. As we reach stage 2 sleep, the amplitude (height) of all decrease slightly as an individual begins to sleep.
brain waves increases. During deep sleep (stages 3 and 4), However, at this stage of sleep, you are still sensitive
the brain waves are at their highest amplitude. During REM to noises such as the television in the next room. After
sleep, they appear similar to the brain waves occurring when
we are awake. Click on this figure in your eText to see more
approximately 10 to 15 minutes, the sleeper enters
details. stage 2, during which brain waves continue to slow.
As shown in Figure 5.3, stage 2 includes sleep spindles
(clusters of high-frequency but low-amplitude waves)
The output of an EEG is a waveform, like that and K complexes (small groups of larger amplitude
shown in Figure 5.3. These waves can be described by waves), which are detected as periodic bursts of EEG
their frequency—the number of up-down cycles every activity. What these bursts in brain activity mean is not
second—and their amplitude—the height and depth of completely understood, but evidence suggests they
the up-down cycle. Beta waves—high-frequency, low- may play a role in helping maintain a state of sleep
amplitude waves—are characteristic of wakefulness. and in the process of memory storage (Fogel et al.,
Their irregular nature reflects the bursts of activity in 2007; Gais et al., 2002)—a topic we cover more fully
different regions of the cortex, and they are often inter- later on.
preted as a sign that a person is alert. As the individual As stage 2 sleep progresses, we respond to fewer and
begins to shift into sleep, the waves start to become fewer external stimuli, such as lights and sounds. Approx-
slower, larger, and more predictable; these alpha waves imately 20 minutes later, we enter stage 3 sleep, in which
signal that a person may be daydreaming, meditating, brain waves continue to slow down and assume a new
or starting to fall asleep. These changes in the charac- form called delta waves (large, looping waves that are
teristics of the waves continue as we enter deeper and high-amplitude and low-frequency). The process contin-
deeper stages of sleep. ues with the deepest stage of sleep, stage 4, during which
The EEG signals during sleep move through four time the sleeper will be difficult to awaken.
different stages. In stage 1, brain waves slow down and About an hour after falling asleep, we reach the
become higher in amplitude—these are known as end of our first stage 4 sleep phase. At this point, the
theta waves . Breathing, blood pressure, and heart rate sleep cycle goes in reverse and we move back toward

184 :: Module 5.1 : : Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep

stage 1. However, we do not remain in stage 1
sleep for long; instead, we move into a unique
Awake
stage of REM sleep—a stage of sleep characterized
by quickening brain waves, inhibited body movement,
1
and rapid eye movements (REM). This stage is some-

Stages of sleep
times known as paradoxical sleep because the EEG
waves appear to represent a state of wakefulness, 2
despite the fact that we remain asleep. The REM
pattern is so distinct that the first four stages are 3
known collectively as non-REM (NREM) sleep. At REM sleep
the end of the fi rst REM phase, we cycle back 4 NREM sleep
toward deep sleep stages and back into REM
sleep again every 90 to 100 minutes. (Think back
to the beginning of this module: What type of 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
biological rhythm would a 90–100-minute cycle Hours of sleep
represent?) {fig. 5.4} Order and Duration of Sleep Stages through a Typical Night Our sleep stages
The sleep cycle through a typical night of progress through a characteristic pattern. The first half of a normal night of sleep is domi-
sleep is summarized in Figure 5.4. As shown in the nated by deep, slow-wave sleep. REM sleep increases in duration relative to deep sleep dur-
ing the second half of the night. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.
figure, the deeper stages of sleep (3 and 4) predom-
inate during the earlier portions of the sleep cycle,
but gradually give way to longer REM periods.
Why We Need Sleep
Sleep is such a natural part of life that it is difficult to
imagine what the world would be like if there were no
Quick Quiz 5.1a such thing. It raises another question: Why do humans
What Is Sleep? and other animals need to sleep in the first place?
1 Large, periodic bursts of brain activity that occur
KNOW . . .

THEORIES OF SLEEP The most intuitive explanation

during stage 2 sleep are known as ________.
A beta waves C delta waves
for why we sleep is probably the restore and repair
hypothesis, the idea that the body needs to restore energy
B sleep spindles D alpha waves
levels and repair any wear and tear experienced during the day’s
activities. Research on sleep deprivation clearly shows
2 Why is REM sleep known as paradoxical sleep?
UNDERSTAND . . .

that sleep is a physical and psychological necessity, not

A The brain waves appear to be those of an awake just a pleasant way to relax. A lack of sleep eventually
person, but the individual seems to be in a
deep sleep.
leads to cognitive decline, emotional disturbances, and
impaired functioning of the immune system (Born et
B The brain waves resemble those of a sleeping
individual, but the person behaves as if he is al., 1997). For some species, sleep deprivation can be
nearly awake. more detrimental—even fatal—than food deprivation
C The brain wave patterns in REM sleep are totally (Rechtschaffen, 1998).
unlike those produced by brain activity at any Although there is good evidence supporting the
other time. restore and repair hypothesis, it does not account for
D The brain waves resemble those of a sleeping indi- all the reasons why we sleep. Imagine you have had an
vidual, and the person seems to be in a very deep unusually active day on Saturday and then spend all day
sleep.
Sunday relaxing. Research shows that you are likely to
feel sleepier on Saturday night, but you will need only
3 Which of the following is the most likely order of sleep slightly more sleep after the high-activity day, despite
APPLY . . .

stages during the first 90 minutes of a night of rest?

what the restore and repair hypothesis would suggest
A Stages 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4-REM
(Horne & Minard, 1985). The same is true for days filled
B Stages 1-2-3-4-REM-1-2-3-4
with mentally challenging activities (De Bruin et al.,
C Stages 1-2-3-4-3-2-1-REM 2002). Rather than requiring more sleep, it could be that
D Stages REM-4-3-2-1 sleep is more efficient after an exhausting day (Mont-
Answers can be found on page ANS-2. gomery et al., 1987); in other words, more restoring and
repairing may go on in the same amount of time.

Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep :: Module 5.1 :: 185

 Thus, there are complementary theories that answer
the question of why we sleep. The amount that any ani-
mal sleeps is a combination of its need for restoration and
repair along with its need for preservation and protec-
tion. Each theory explains part of our reasons for drifting
off each night. Importantly, both theories would produce
sleep patterns that would improve a species’ evolutionary
fitness. Of course, this discussion of the reasons for sleep
leads to an equally important discussion, particularly for
students: What happens when we don’t get enough sleep?

Watch SLEEP DEPRIVATION AND SLEEP DISPLACEMENT

Virtual Brain: Sleep Chances are you have experienced disruptions to your
and Dreaming sleep due to jet lag or to an “occasional late night” (i.e.,
life as a student). And, we’ve all had that awful feeling
in the spring when we are robbed of a precious hour
of slumber by Daylight Savings Time. We don’t usu-
ally think of time shifts as being anything more than an
annoyance. However, researchers have found that, over a
20-year period, switching to Daylight Savings Time in
the spring costs workers an average of 40 minutes of sleep
and significantly increases work-related injuries on the
Monday following the time change (Barnes & Wagner,
2009). The same analysis showed that returning to stan-
dard time in the fall produces no significant changes in
sleep or injuries. Similar results have been noted for traf-
Kurhan/Fotolia fic accidents. Stanley Coren at the University of British
The restore and repair hypothesis suggests that people will Columbia found that there was a significant increase
need more sleep after a physically demanding day.
in the number of accidents immediately following the
“spring forward,” but not after the “fall back” (1996a; see
A second explanation for sleep, the preserve and Figure 5.5). Coren also looked at accidental deaths unre-
protect hypothesis, suggests that two more adaptive func- lated to car accidents (Coren, 1996b). Using U.S. data
tions of sleep are preserving energy and protecting the organ- from 1986–1988, he found a 6.6% increase in acciden-
ism from harm (Berger & Philips, 1995; Siegel, 2005). To tal deaths in the four days following the “spring forward”
support this hypothesis, researchers note that the animals of Daylight Savings Time. Importantly, the effects of
most vulnerable to predators sleep in safe hideaways and disrupted sleep aren’t limited to clumsiness; a substan-
during the time of day when their predators are most tial amount of research has shown that it can affect our
likely to hunt (Siegel, 1995). Because humans are quite thinking and decision making as well (Lavie, 2001).
dependent upon our vision, it made sense for us to sleep Sleep deprivation occurs when an individual cannot or
at night, when we would be at a disadvantage compared does not sleep. In other words, it can be due to some exter-
to nocturnal predators. Quantity of sleep differs between nal factor that is out of your control (e.g., noisy neigh-
animal species as well. Hoofed species like antelope (the bours) or to some self-inflicted factor (e.g., studying,
species you always see getting killed in nature programs) staying up to watch the late hockey game on TV, etc.).
sleep less than four hours per day, primarily because they Exactly how sleep deprivation affects daily functioning
have to remain alert in case a predator attacks. Con- has been the subject of scientific inquiry since 1896,
versely, animals such as lions and bears rarely fall vic- when researchers examined cognitive abilities in people
tim to predators and can therefore afford a luxurious kept awake for 90 consecutive hours (Patrick & Gilbert,
15 hours of sleep per day. (The sleepiest animal appears 1896). In almost all of the studies in the past century, the
to be the brown bat. It sleeps an average of 19.9 hours strength of the circadian rhythms was evident; the vol-
out of each 24 hours . . . because really, who would eat unteers generally went through cycles of extreme sleepi-
a bat?) The underlying message from this theory is that ness at night, with normal levels of wakefulness in the
each species’ sleep patterns have evolved to match their daytime (especially the afternoon). However, each night
sensory abilities and their environment. saw an increasing level of sleepiness, likely as an attempt

186 :: Module 5.1 : : Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep

by the body to preserve and protect the 2800
health of the individual. In addition to feel-
ings of fatigue, researchers have discovered 4200
a number of specific impairments resulting
from being deprived of sleep. These include 2700
difficulties with multitasking, maintaining
attention for long periods of time, assessing

No. of accidents
4000
risks, incorporating new information into a
strategy (i.e., “thinking on the fly”), working 2600
memory (i.e., keeping information in con-
scious awareness), inhibiting responses, and
keeping information in the correct temporal 3800
order (Durmer & Dinges, 2005; Lavie, 2001; 2500
Wimmer et al., 1992). Importantly, these def-
icits also appear after partial sleep deprivation,
such as when you don’t get enough sleep
(Cote et al., 2008). In fact, cognitive deficits 2400 3600
typically appear when individuals have less

re

re

r
te

te

te

te
fo

fo
af

af

af

af
than seven hours of sleep for a few nights in a

Be

Be
y

k
el

el
w

w
at

at
1

1
row (Dinges, 2006; Dinges et al., 2005).

i
ed

ed
m

m
The problems associated with sleep
Im

Im
deprivation aren’t limited to your ability to Spring shift Fall shift
think. Research with adolescents shows that
{fig. 5.5} Car Accident Statistics for the Years 1991 and 1992 These data represent the num-
for every hour of sleep deprivation, pre- ber of car accidents on the Monday before, the Monday immediately after, and the Monday one
dictable increases in physical illness, fam- week after the spring and fall time changes. Note the dramatic increase in accidents immediately
ily problems, substance abuse, and academic following the spring time change, when we lose one hour of sleep. Astute observers will also note
that, overall, there were still more accidents in the fall than in the spring (the y-axes are different in
problems occur (Roberts et al., 2009). Issues the two graphs); this is likely due to the inclement weather found in many parts of Canada in Octo-
also arise with your coordination, a problem ber. These data are from the Canadian Ministry of Transport (and exclude Saskatchewan, which
best seen in studies of driving ability. Using doesn’t observe Daylight Savings Time).
a driving simulator, researchers found that
participants who had gone a night without sleeping per- it should have been, and causing an accidental overdose Watch
formed at the same level as people who had a blood- of benzodiazepines (Landrigan et al., 2004). Exhausted In the Real World:
alcohol level of 0.07 (Fairclough & Graham, 1999). A medical interns were also more likely to crash their Sleep, Memory, and

study of professional truck drivers accustomed to long cars on the way home (Barger et al., 2005) and suffer Learning

shifts found that going 28 hours without sleep produced from job stress and burnout (Chen et al., 2008). These
driving abilities similar to someone with a blood-alcohol findings have motivated some researchers to investigate
level of 0.1, which is above the legal limit throughout potential benefits of alternative work schedules; by lim-
North America (Williamson & Feyer, 2000). Given that iting the length of shifts and reducing the number of
sleep deprivation is as dangerous as driving while mildly hours worked per week, the number of medical errors
intoxicated (Dawson & Reid, 1997; Maruff et al., 2005), decreased by 36% (Figure 5.6; Landrigan et al., 2004).
it is not surprising that it is one of the most prevalent Recently, Canadian medical residents (“residency” is the
causes of fatal traffic accidents (Lyznicki et al., 1998; Sag- 2- to 5-year internship performed after completing
berg, 1999). medical school that precedes becoming a licensed, inde-
Sleep deprivation has led to some serious errors in pendent physician) were granted limits on the length of
the medical field as well. Medical residents and attend- their shifts and on the number of nights they can be “on call”
ing physicians often work through the night at hospi- per month. Perhaps someone was reading psychology
tals; in some fields such as Internal Medicine, the doctors research . . . or listening to the lawyers.
often don’t even have time for naps. From what you’ve Cognitive and coordination errors are not limited to
read in the preceding paragraphs, you can see that this is situations involving full or partial sleep deprivation. They
obviously a recipe for disaster. For instance, researchers can also occur when the timing of our sleep is altered. This
at Harvard noted a number of critical errors by medi- phenomenon, sleep displacement, occurs when an indi-
cal interns who were tired, including draining the wrong vidual is prevented from sleeping at the normal time although
lung, prescribing a medication dose 10 times higher than she may be able to sleep earlier or later in the day than usual.

Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep :: Module 5.1 :: 187

 Traditional schedule Medical errors
Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Monday Tuesday

Group A

Group A
Noon Midnight Noon Midnight Noon Midnight 0 50 100 150 200 250

Intervention schedule
Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Monday Tuesday
Group B

Group B
Noon Midnight Noon Midnight Noon Midnight 0 50 100 150 200 250

{fig. 5.6} The Costly Effects of Sleep Deprivation The traditional schedule of a medical intern (Group A) requires up to a
31-hour on-call shift, whereas the modified schedule (Group B) divides the 31 hours into two shorter shifts. The latter schedule
reduces the effects of prolonged sleep deprivation as measured in terms of medical errors.

For example, consider a man from balmy Winnipeg who the negative effects on a worker’s sleep patterns, which
flies to London (U.K.) for a vacation. The first night in reduces the symptoms of sleep deprivation, thus giving
London, he may try to go to bed at his usual 12 a.m. the employer a more alert (and friendlier) employee.
time. However, his body’s rhythms will be operating six
hours earlier—they are still at 6 p.m. Winnipeg time.
If he is like most travellers, this individual will experi-
ence sleep displacement for three or four days until he
can get his internal rhythms to synchronize with the
external day–night cycles. Jet lag is the discomfort a person
feels when sleep cycles are out of synchronization with light and
darkness (Arendt, 2009). How much jet lag people experi-
ence is related to how many time zones they cross, and
how quickly they do so (e.g., driving versus flying). Also,
it is typically easier to adjust when travelling west. When
travelling east, a person must try to fall asleep earlier than
usual, which is difficult to do. Most people find it eas-
ier to stay up longer than usual, which is what westward
travel requires.
For someone on a long vacation, jet lag may not be
too much of an inconvenience. But imagine an athlete
who has to be at her physical best, or a business execu-
tive who must remain sharp through an afternoon meet-
ing. For these individuals, it is wise to arrive a week early
if possible, or to try to adapt to the new time zone before
leaving.
Although jet lag has limited implications for our
lives (unless you happen to be a pilot or a flight atten-
dant who crosses oceans several times a month), many
of you will at some point in your lives have jobs that
require shift work. In many hospitals, nurses and support
staff rotate across three different 8-hour shifts over the
course of a month (e.g., midnight–8 a.m., 8 a.m.–4 p.m.,
Tyler Olson/[Link]
4 p.m.–midnight). Switching shifts requires a transition
How can you reduce jet lag? A person who is used to sleeping
similar to jet lag; your day is suddenly altered by several from midnight until 8 A.M. should go to bed an hour earlier
hours. In order to better adapt to these changes, com- each night and stay in bed for eight hours. Five hours before
panies and hospitals are increasingly scheduling the shift bedtime, he should take a melatonin supplement and, upon
waking, should turn on bright lights. Following these steps
rotations so that workers are able to stay up later (similar should reduce the effects of jetlag and will allow him to enjoy
to travelling westward in the jet lag example).This reduces his first day in Europe (as opposed to sleeping through it).

188 :: Module 5.1 : : Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep

 world’s view of both the function and meaning of dreams. Simulate
Quick Quiz 5.1b Freud viewed dreams as an unconscious expression of wish Are Dreams
Why We Need Sleep fulfillment. He believed that humans are motivated by pri- Meaningful?

mal urges, with sex and aggression being the most domi-
1 When does sleep displacement occur?
KNOW . . .

A When an individual tries to sleep in a new location nant. Because giving in to these urges is impractical most
B When an individual is allowed to sleep only at night
of the time (not to mention potentially immoral and ille-
gal), we learn ways of keeping these urges suppressed and
C When an individual is allowed to sleep, but not at
his normal time outside of our conscious awareness. When we sleep, how-
D When an individual is not allowed to sleep during a
ever, we lose the power to suppress our [Link] this
controlled laboratory experiment active suppression, these drives are free to create the vivid
imagery found in our dreams. This imagery can take two
forms. Manifest content involves the images and storylines
2 Sleep may help animals stay safe and conserve energy for
UNDERSTAND . . .

when it is needed most. This is known as the _________. that we dream about. In many of our dreams, the manifest
A preserve and protect hypothesis content involves sexuality and aggression, consistent with
B restore and repair hypothesis the view that dreams are a form of wish fulfillment. How-
C REM rebound hypothesis ever, in other cases, the manifest content of dreams might
D preserve and repair hypothesis seem like random, bizarre images and events. Freud would
argue that these images are anything but random; instead,
he believed they have a hidden meaning. This latent
3
APPLY . . .

Jamie reports that it is easier for her to adjust to a content is the actual symbolic meaning of a dream built on
new time zone when flying west than when flying east.
suppressed sexual or aggressive urges. Because the true mean-
This occurs because
A it is easier to get to sleep earlier than dictated by ing of the dream is latent, Freud advocated dream work, the
your circadian rhythms. recording and interpreting of [Link] such work,
B it is easier to stay up later than your circadian Freudian analysis would allow you to bring the previously
rhythms expect. hidden sexual and aggressive elements of your dreams into
C there is more sunlight when you travel west. the forefront, although it might mean you’d never look at
D there is less sunlight when you travel west. the CN Tower the same way again.
It is difficult to overstate the influence that Freud’s
Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
ideas have had on our culture’s beliefs about dreaming.
There is an abundance of books offering insight into inter-
preting dreams including dictionaries that claim to define
certain symbols found in a dream’s latent content. How-
Theories of Dreaming ever, it is important to note that the scientific support for
It is very difficult to think about sleeping without think- Freud’s work is quite limited. Although his theories are
ing about dreaming. Dreams are mysterious, and have cap- based on extensive interviews with patients, many of these
tured our imaginations for most of human history. A study theories are difficult to test in a scientific manner because
of 1348 Canadian university students found that some pat- they cannot be falsified (i.e., there is no way to prove
terns emerge when we analyze the content of our dreams. them wrong). Moreover, dream work requires a subjective
Using a statistical technique called factor analysis, these interpreter to understand dreams rather than using objec-
researchers found that students’ dreams can be reduced to tive measures. Therefore, the analysis of your dream might
16 different factors or subtypes. Females tended to have a have more to do with the mindset of the analyst than it
larger number of negative dreams related to failures, loss does your own hidden demons. Not surprisingly modern
of control, and frightening animals. Males, on the other dream research focuses much more on the biological activ-
hand, had more positive dreams including those related to ity of dreaming. These studies focus primarily on REM
magical abilities and encounters with alien life (Nielsen sleep, when dreams are most common and complex.
et al., 2003). However, studies such as this one, despite
being conducted properly, do not provide insight into the THE ACTIVATION–SYNTHESIS HYPOTHESIS
purpose(s) dreams serve in our lives. Freud saw deep psychological meaning in the latent con-
tent of dreams. In contrast, the activation–synthesis
Listen
THE PSYCHOANALYTIC APPROACH One of the hypothesis suggests that dreams arise from brain activity origi-
Lucid Dreaming
earliest and most influential theories of dreams was devel- nating from bursts of excitatory messages from the pons, a part of
oped by Sigmund Freud in 1899. His classic work, The Inter- the brain stem (Hobson & McCarley, 1977). This electrical
pretation of Dreams, dramatically transformed the Western activity produces the telltale signs of eye movements and

Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep :: Module 5.1 :: 189

 Cerebral cortex the EEG activity during REM sleep; moreover, the burst
of activity stimulates the occipital and temporal lobes
of the brain, producing imaginary sights and sounds, as well
as numerous other regions of the cortex (see Figure 5.7).
Thus, the brain stem initiates the activation component of
the model. The synthesis component arises as different areas
of the cortex of the brain try to make sense of all the images,
sounds, and memories (Hobson et al., 2000). Imagine having
a dozen different people each provide you with one ran-
domly selected word, with your task being to organize these
words to look like a single message; this is essentially what
your cortex is doing every time you dream. Because we are
Thalamus often able to turn these random messages into a coherent
story, researchers assume that the frontal lobes—the region
of the brain associated with forming narratives—play a key
Pons role in the synthesis process (Eiser, 2005).
The activation–synthesis model, although important in
Spinal cord its own right, has some interesting implications. If the cor-
tex is able to provide (temporary) structure to input from
{fig. 5.7} The Activation–Synthesis Hypothesis of Dreaming The the brain stem and other regions of the brain, then that
pons, located in the brain stem, sends excitatory messages through the
thalamus to the sensory and emotional areas of the cortex. The images
means the brain is able to work with and restructure infor-
and emotions that arise from this activity are then woven into a story. mation while we dream. If that is the case, then is it possible
Inhibitory signals are also relayed from the pons down the spinal cord, that dreaming is part of our ability to learn or think?
which prevents movement during dreaming.

influenced by dreaming. In contrast, increasing evidence sug-

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC gests that REM sleep, the sleep stage involved with dreaming, is
LITERACY MODEL essential for a number of cognitive functions.

Dreams, REM Sleep, and Learning

What do we know about
dreams, REM sleep, and
The activation–synthesis model of dreaming suggests that our learning?
dreams result from random brain stem activity that is
Approximately 20–25% of our total
organized—to some degree—by the cortex. Although this the-
sleep time is taken up by REM, or
ory is widely accepted, it doesn’t provide many specifics about
rapid eye movement, sleep. When
the purpose of dreams. Why do we have these processes occur-
we are deprived of REM sleep, we
ring and what functions do they serve? Dream researcher Rosa-
typically experience a phenomenon called REM rebound—our
lind Cartwright (Cartwright et al., 2006; Webb & Cartwright,
brains spend an increased time in REM-phase sleep when given
1978) proposed the problem-solving theory—the theory that
the chance. If you usually sleep 8 hours but get only 3 hours
thoughts and concerns are continuous from waking to sleeping, and
of sleep on a particular night, you can recover from the sleep
that dreams may function to facilitate finding solutions to problems
deficit the next time you sleep with only the normal 8 hours;
encountered while awake. This theory suggests that many of the
however, your time in REM sleep will increase considerably.
images and thoughts we have during our dreams are relevant
The fact that our bodies actively try to catch up on missed
to the problems that we face when we are awake. For instance,
REM sleep suggests that it may serve an important function.
researchers have found that individuals who are in poor physi-
cal health have more dreams about pain, injuries, illnesses, and As discussed earlier in this module, REM sleep produces
medical themes than do healthy individuals (King & DeCicco, brainwaves similar to being awake, yet we are asleep
2007). Another study showed that the number of threatening (Aserinsky & Kleitman, 1953). This similarity suggests that
images in participants’ dreams increased immediately follow- the types of functions being performed by the brain are
ing the September 11 terrorist attacks (Propper et al., 2007). likely similar during the two states. Studies with animals have
However, although no one doubts that our daily concerns find shown that REM sleep is associated with a number of differ-
their way into our dreams, the problem-solving theory does ent neurotransmitter systems, all of which influence activity
not explain if (or how) any specific cognitive mechanisms are of the brain stem. Projections from the brain stem can then

190 :: Module 5.1 : : Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep

affect a number of different functions, including movement Can we critically
(which is inhibited), emotional regulation (through connec-
evaluate this evidence?
tions to the amygdala and frontal lobes), and learning (Brown
et al., 2012). Clearly REM is not simply about twitching eyes! We have to be cautious when we
The challenge for psychologists is to determine the specific consider the different effects that
functions that are, and are not, affected by REM. REM sleep, and perhaps dreaming,
have on memory and problem solv-
How can science ing. Although there is a great deal of
evidence that REM sleep does influence a number of differ-
explain the effects ent abilities, most of this research is correlational. As you’ve
of dreams and undoubtedly heard before, correlation does not equal causa-
REM sleep on tion. Therefore, we can’t guarantee that REM sleep is caus-
learning? ing the improvements in memory—just that its disruption is
related to poor performance on a number of tasks. It is also
In the last 25 years, scientists have performed an extraordi-
unclear whether the observed effects are due to dreaming or
nary number of experiments in their attempt to understand
to some other REM-related function.
how REM sleep (and possibly dreaming) influences our think-
ing. The results of these studies show that REM sleep affects In addition to these questions, it is also worth noting that
some, but not all, types of memory. If someone were to give the effects from these studies are not occurring during every
you a list of words to remember and then tested you later, period of REM sleep. When it comes to memory, not all REM
this would be an example of declarative memory. The effect sleep is created equally. The final few REM periods in the early
of REM sleep disruption on declarative memory was tested morning appear to be critical for learning (Smith, 2001). Stick-
in a study conducted by Carlyle Smith at Trent University. gold and colleagues (2000) found that performance on a visual
Different groups of participants had only their REM sleep search task (in which you try to find a particular target image
disrupted, only their non-REM sleep disrupted, or all of their that is hidden amongst distracter images, similar to “Where’s
sleep disrupted. When their memory for the words was Waldo?”) correlated with the amount of non-REM sleep a
tested, there were no differences between the groups, sug- person had in the early part of the night and the amount of
gesting that REM sleep is not critical for this simple type of REM sleep in the early morning. Therefore, to say that REM
memory. However, when researchers gave participants tests sleep, in general, improves some types of learning is an over-
that involved a larger number of steps or procedures, a dif- simplification. Further research is needed to understand what
ferent pattern of results emerged: Being deprived of REM makes these early morning windows of REM special.
sleep produced large deficits in performance (Smith, 2001).

Several studies have shown that the amount of REM sleep Why is this relevant?
people experience increases the night after learning a new task Studies of REM sleep and learning
(Smith et al., 2004). For instance, Mandai and colleagues (1989) show us that the benefits of sleep
found increases in REM sleep in individuals the night follow- go beyond restoring and repairing
ing a Morse-code learning task. There was a high correlation the body. Rather, the effect(s) of REM sleep on our ability to learn
between retention levels for the Morse code signals, the num- new tasks should serve as a wake-up call to all of us. Almost
ber of REM episodes, and the density of the REM activity (i.e., everyone in a university setting is working on a less-than-optimal
the frequency of eye movements made during REM episodes). amount of sleep despite the fact that REM sleep is clearly an
In a study directly related to students’ lives, Smith and Lapp important part of our ability to [Link] seems counterproduc-
(1991) measured REM sleep 3–5 days after senior undergrad- tive. Studying and sleeping every night is a much more effective
uate students had completed their fall semester final exams. way to retain information than pulling a frantic all-nighter just
These students had more REM sleep episodes and a greater before the exam, even if we all feel like we’re out of time.
REM sleep density than they had when they were tested in
the summer, when less learning was taking [Link] also had
higher values than age-matched participants who were not in
university. These results suggest that REM sleep may help us
consolidate or maintain newly learned information.

Several studies have demonstrated that REM sleep and dream-

ing also influence our ability to problem solve. Depriving peo-
ple of REM sleep reduces their ability to perform a complex
logic task (Smith, 1993). This may be due to the fact that our
ability to form new associations increases during REM sleep
(Stickgold et al., 1999; Walker et al., 2002). REM sleep appears
to be involved with linking together steps in the formation of
new memories and in reorganizing information in novel ways. Deklofenak/Fotolia

Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep :: Module 5.1 :: 191

 Interestingly, REM sleep is not the only stage of Disorders and Problems with Sleep
sleep that affects our ability to learn. There is some
evidence that the sleep spindles found in stage 2 sleep Throughout this module, we have seen that sleep is an
are involved with learning new movements (Fogel essential biological and psychological process; without
et al., 2007). Smith and MacNeil (1994) found that sleep, individuals are vulnerable to cognitive, emotional,
disrupting stage 2 sleep impaired performance on a and physical symptoms. Given these widespread effects,
pursuit-rotor task in which participants try to move a it should come as no surprise that a lot of research has
computer mouse so that the cursor follows an object been directed at improving our ability to diagnose and
on the computer screen. However, when participants treat sleep disorders. In the final section of this mod-
were asked to move as though the image was in a ule, we will discuss some of the more common sleep
mirror (so that an object farther away on the screen disorders.
was closer to their body), REM, and not stage 2 sleep,
Watch became essential. The only difference between the two INSOMNIA The most widely recognized sleep-
Special Topics: Sleep tasks was the cognitive difficulty associated with figur- ing problem is insomnia , a disorder characterized by
Disorders
ing out which movement to perform (Aubrey et al., an extreme lack of sleep. According to a 2002 Canadian
1999). This suggests that the brain has different systems Community Health Survey from Statistics Canada, one
for processing simple and complex movements and in seven Canadian adults (3.3 million people) suffer from
that these systems are influenced by different stages of insomnia. This number was lowest in the 18–25 age
sleep (Smith, 2001). bracket (10%) and highest in individuals 75 years of
age and older (20%). Although the average adult may
need 7 to 8 hours of sleep to feel rested, substantial
individual differences exist. For this reason, insomnia is
Quick Quiz 5.1c defined not in terms of the hours of sleep, but rather in
Theories of Dreaming terms of the degree to which a person feels rested dur-
ing the day. If a person feels that her sleep disturbance
1 The problem-solving theory of dreaming proposes
KNOW . . .

that is affecting her schoolwork, her job, or her family and

A dreams create more problems than they solve. social life, then it is indeed a problem. However, for this
B the problems and concerns we face in our waking condition to be thought of as a sleep disorder, it would
life also appear in our dreams. have to be present for three months or more—one or
C the symbols in our dreams represent unconscious two “bad nights” is unpleasant, but is not technically
urges related to sex and aggression. insomnia.
Watch
D we cannot solve complex moral or interpersonal Although insomnia is often thought of as a single
IT Video: Night Sleep
problems until we have dreamed about them. disorder, it may be more appropriate to refer to insomnias
in the plural. Onset insomnia occurs when a person has
difficulty falling asleep (30 minutes or more), maintenance
2 The synthesis part of the activation–synthesis
UNDERSTAND . . .

insomnia occurs when an individual cannot easily return

hypothesis suggests that
to sleep after waking in the night, and terminal insomnia
A the brain interprets the meaning of symbolic
images. or early morning insomnia is a situation in which a person
B the brain stem activates the cortex to produce
wakes up too early—sometimes hours too early—and
random images. cannot return to sleep (Pallesen et al., 2001).
C the cortex stimulates the brain stem to produce It is important to remember that for a sleep disorder
interpretations of dreams. to be labelled insomnia, the problems with sleeping must
D the brain tries to link together, or make sense of, be due to some internal cause; not sleeping because your
randomly activated images. roommate snores does not count as insomnia. Some-
times insomnia occurs as part of another problem, such
3 Scientists are skeptical about the psychoanalytic as depression, pain, too much caffeine, or various drugs
ANALYZE . . .

theory of dreaming because the ________ of a dream (Schierenbeck et al., 2008); in these cases, the sleep disor-
is entirely subject to interpretation. der is referred to as a secondary insomnia. In cases in which
A latent content C activation insomnia is the only symptom that a person is showing,
B sleep stage D manifest content and other causes can be ruled out, physicians would label
Answers can be found on page ANS-2. the sleep disorder as insomnia disorder. If you think back
to our earlier discussion of sleep deprivation, you can see

192 :: Module 5.1 : : Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep

 due to problems with our brains’ emotion networks
(Nielsen & Levin, 2007). When we dream, several brain
structures related to emotion are activated (Maquet et
al., 1996). Although the thought of these emotional
systems firing when you are asleep seems frightening,
it appears that they are serving an adaptive function
(Levin & Nielsen, 2007). When we are awake and we
experience negative events, we tend to link the event
with our emotional response (fear, anger, etc.). During
dreaming, however, recollection of the negative event is
paired with a number of random images and memories
due to the random firing of the brain stem. As a result,
the event-emotion link becomes less prominent. So,
these emotional brain areas are reducing our emotional
responses to negative thoughts and experiences (Fisher
et al., 1970; Nielsen & Zadra, 2005). During night-
mares, however, this process does not occur properly,
leading to an emotionally unpleasant dream. Individu-
Steve Prezant/Glow Images als with emotional disorders have a greater likelihood
Insomnia can arise from worrying about sleep. It is among the of having dysfunctions with this emotional regulation
most common of all sleep disorders.
system because different emotional brain structures—
particularly the amygdala—tend to be overactive in
why insomnia—despite not seeming serious—can have a these individuals (Kellett & Kokkinidis, 2004; Shin
profound effect on a person’s ability to function in our et al., 2006).
demanding world. However, it isn’t the only disorder Nightmares, although unpleasant, are a normal part
that can affect our ability to sleep a full eight hours each of life. In contrast, 1–6% of children and 1% of adults
night. experience night terrors — intense bouts of panic and
arousal that awaken the individual, typically in a heightened
NIGHTMARES AND NIGHT TERRORS Although emotional state . A person experiencing a night terror
most of our dreams are interesting and often bizarre, may call out or scream, fi ght back against imaginary
some of our dreams really scare us. Nightmares are attackers, or leap from the bed and start to flee before
particularly vivid and disturbing dreams that occur during waking up. Unlike nightmares, night terrors are not
REM sleep. They can be so emotionally charged that dreams. These episodes occur during NREM sleep, and
they awaken the individual (Levin & Nielsen, 2007). the majority of people who experience them typically
Almost everyone—as many as 85% to 95% of adults— do not recall any specific dream content. Night terrors
can remember having bad dreams that have negative increase in frequency during stressful periods, such as
emotional content, such as feeling lost, sad, or angry, when parents are separating or divorcing (Schredl, 2001).
within a one-year period (Levin, 1994; Schredl, 2003). There is also some evidence linking them to feelings of
Data from numerous studies indicate that nightmares anxiety, which suggests that for some sufferers, counsel-
are correlated with psychological distress including ling and other means for reducing anxiety may help
anxiety (Nielsen et al., 2000; Zadra & Donderi, 2000), reduce the symptoms (Kales et al., 1980; Szelenberger
negative emotionality (Berquier & Ashton, 1992; Levin et al., 2005).
& Fireman, 2002), and emotional reactivity (Kramer
et al., 1984).They are more common in females (Nielsen MOVEMENT DISTURBANCES To sleep well, an
et al., 2006), likely because women tend to have higher individual needs to remain still. During REM sleep, the
levels of depression and emotional disturbances. Indeed, brain prevents movement by sending inhibitory signals
in individuals with emotional disorders, the “synthesis” down the spinal cord. A number of sleep disturbances,
part of dreaming appears to reorganize information in a however, involve movement and related sensations. For
way consistent with their mental state, with a focus on example, restless legs syndrome is a persistent feeling of
negative emotion. discomfort in the legs and the urge to continuously shift them
Tore Nielsen from the Université de Montréal into different positions (Smith & Tolson, 2008). This disor-
and his colleagues have suggested that nightmares are der affects approximately 5% to 10% of the population

Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep :: Module 5.1 :: 193

 (generally older adults), and occurs at varying
levels of severity. For those individuals who
are in constant motion, sleep becomes very
difficult. They awake periodically at night to
reposition their legs, although they often have
no memory of doing so. The mechanism caus-
ing RLS is unclear; however, there is some
evidence that it is linked to the dopamine sys-
tem and to an iron defi ciency (Allen, 2004).
Therefore, current treatments are focused on
keeping dopamine and iron at normal levels in
these patients.
A more common movement disturbance
is somnambulism, or sleepwalking, a disorder
Custom Medical Stock Photo/Alamy
that involves wandering and performing other activi-
This CPAP device treats apnea by maintaining pressure in the airway.
ties while asleep. It occurs during NREM sleep,
stages 3 and 4, and is more prevalent during
childhood. Sleepwalking is not necessarily indicative of or someone else, as occurred with Mike Birbiglia
any type of sleep or emotional disturbance, although it (Schenck et al., 1989). Unlike sleep-walking and restless
may put people in harm’s way. People who sleepwalk are legs syndrome, REM behaviour disorder can be treated
not acting out dreams, and they typically do not remem- with medication; benzodiazepines, which inhibit the
ber the episode. (For the record, it is not dangerous central nervous system, have proven effective in reduc-
to wake up a sleepwalker, as is commonly thought. At ing some of the symptoms associated with this con-
worst, he or she will be disoriented.) There is no reliable dition (Paparrigopoulos, 2005). However, given the
medicine that curbs sleepwalking; instead, it is important potential side effects of this class of drug, this option
to add safety measures to the person’s environment so should only be taken if the person is a threat to himself
that the sleepwalker doesn’t get hurt. or others.
A similar, but more adult, disorder is sexomnia or
sleep sex. Individuals with this condition engage in sex- SLEEP APNEA The disorders discussed thus far have
ual activity such as the touching of the self or others, focused on changes in the brain that lead to altered
vocalizations, and sex-themed talk while in stages 3 and 4 thinking patterns (nightmares and night terrors) and
sleep (Shapiro et al., 2003). In the original case report of movements. In contrast, sleep apnea is a disorder char-
this disorder (Motet, 1897, described in Thoinot, 1913), a acterized by the temporary inability to breathe during sleep
man exposed his genitals to a policeman (that’s bad). He ( apnea literally translates to “without breathing”).
was unable to recall the incident afterwards and was sen- Although a variety of factors contribute to sleep apnea,
tenced to three months in jail. Other reports are more this condition appears to be most common among
extreme, including sex with strangers and unwanted overweight and obese individuals, and it is roughly
contact with sleeping partners (Béjot et al., 2010). The twice as prevalent among men as among women (Lin
exact cause of sexomnia is unknown, although stress, et al., 2008; McDaid et al., 2009). In most cases of apnea,
fatigue, and a history of trauma have all been mentioned the airway becomes physically obstructed, at a point
as possible factors (Schenck et al., 2007). anywhere from the back of the nose and mouth to the
Another potentially dangerous condition is REM neck (Figure 5.8). Therefore, treatment for mild apnea
behaviour disorder, which was introduced in the begin- generally involves dental devices that hold the mouth
ning of this module. People with this condition do not in a specific position during sleep. Weight-loss efforts
show the typical restriction of movement during REM should accompany this treatment in cases in which it
sleep; in fact, they appear to be acting out the content is a contributing factor. In moderate to severe cases,
of their dreams (Schenck & Mahowald, 2002). Imag- a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device
ine what happens when an individual dreams of being can be used to force air through the nose, keeping the
attacked—the dreamed response of defending oneself airway open through increased air pressure (McDaid
or even fi ghting back can be acted out. Not surpris- et al., 2009).
ingly, this action can awaken some individuals. Because In rare but more serious cases, sleep apnea can
it occurs during REM sleep, however, some individu- also be caused by the brain’s failure to regulate breath-
als do not awaken until they have hurt themselves ing. This failure can happen for many reasons, including

194 :: Module 5.1 : : Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep

 may last only a few minutes or more, so it is not the same
as falling asleep for a night’s rest.
Narcolepsy differs from more typical sleep in a
number of other ways. People with a normal sleep pat-
tern generally reach the REM stage after more than an hour
of sleep, but a person experiencing narcolepsy is likely to
go almost immediately from waking to REM sleep. Also,
because REM sleep is associated with dreaming, people
with narcolepsy often report vivid dream-like images
even if they did not fully fall asleep.
Why does narcolepsy occur? Scientists have inves-
tigated a hormone called orexin that functions to main-
tain wakefulness. Individuals with narcolepsy have fewer
{fig. 5.8} Sleep Apnea One cause of sleep apnea is the
brain cells that produce orexin, resulting in greater dif-
obstruction of air flow, which can seriously disrupt the sleep ficulty maintaining wakefulness (Nakamura et al., 2011).
cycle. Luckily, medications are available to treat this condition,
thus allowing these individuals to function relatively
damage to or deterioration of the medulla of the brain normally (Mayer, 2012).
stem, which is responsible for controlling the chest mus-
cles during breathing. OVERCOMING SLEEP PROBLEMS Everyone has
You might wonder if disorders that stop breathing difficulty sleeping at some point, and there are many
during sleep can be fatal. They can be, but rarely are. As myths and anecdotes about what will help. For some
breathing slows too much or stops altogether, oxygen people, relief can be as simple as a snack or a warm glass
levels in the blood rapidly decline, resulting in a gasp- of milk; it can certainly be difficult to sleep if you are
ing reflex and resumed oxygen flow. Actually, gasping hungry. Others might have a nightcap—a drink of
may not even result in waking up. A person with sleep alcohol—in hopes of inducing sleep, although the effects
apnea may not be aware that he is constantly cycling can be misleading. Alcohol may make you sleepy, but it
through oxygen loss and gasping as he sleeps, although disrupts the quality of sleep, especially the REM cycle,
it would certainly be noticed by anyone sharing a bed and may leave you feeling unrested the next day. Fortu-
with him. It is often the case that affected individuals nately, most people respond very well to psychological
discover that they have sleep apnea only after visiting interventions. By practising good sleep hygiene—healthy
their physician. sleep-related habits—they can typically overcome sleep
Although sleep apnea is serious in its own right, it disturbances in a matter of a few weeks (Morin et al.,
also leads to a number of other problems. Repeatedly 2006; Murtagh & Greenwood, 1995). The techniques
waking up during the night reduces the quality of an shown in Table 5.1 are effective for many people who
individual’s sleep and can lead to a mild form of sleep prefer self-help methods, but effective help is also avail-
deprivation (Naelgele et al., 1995). In fact, individuals able from psychologists, physicians, and even (sometimes)
who suffer from sleep apnea often perform more poorly over the Internet (Ritterband et al., 2009; van Straten &
on tests requiring mental flexibility, the control of atten- Cuijpers, 2009).
tion, and memory (Fulda & Schulz, 2003). Treating sleep Although research supports the use of cognitive and
apnea will therefore not only improve a person’s physi- behavioural techniques, people often turn to drugs to
cal safety and fatigue levels, but also the person’s ability help them sleep. A number of sleep aids are available on
to think. an over-the-counter basis, and several varieties of pre-
scription drugs have been developed as well. For most of
NARCOLEPSY While movement disorders, sleep the 20th century, drugs prescribed for insomnia included
apnea, and night terrors can all lead to insomnia, another sedatives such as barbiturates (Phenobarbital) and benzo-
condition is characterized by nearly the opposite effect. diazepines (e.g.,Valium). Although these drugs managed
Narcolepsy is a disorder in which a person experiences to put people to sleep, several problems with their use
extreme daytime sleepiness and even sleep attacks. These were quickly observed. Notably, people quickly devel-
bouts of sleep may last only a few seconds, especially if oped tolerance to these agents, meaning they required
the person is standing or driving when she falls asleep increasingly higher doses to get the same effect, and
and is jarred awake by falling, a nodding head, or swerv- many soon came to depend on the drugs so much
ing of the car. Even without such disturbances, the sleep that they could not sleep without them (Pallesen et al.,

Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep :: Module 5.1 :: 195

 Table 5.1 :: Nonpharmacological Techniques for Improving Sleep
1. Use your bed for sleeping only, not for working or studying. (Sexual activity is an appropriate exception to the rule.)
2. Do not turn sleep into work. Putting effort into falling asleep generally leads to arousal instead of sleep.
3. Keep your clock out of sight. Watching the clock increases pressure to sleep and worries about getting enough sleep.
4. Get exercise early during the day. Exercise may not increase the amount of sleep, but it may help you sleep better. Exercising late in the day,
however, may leave you restless and aroused at bedtime.
5. Avoid substances that disrupt sleep. Such substances include caffeine (in coffee, tea, many soft drinks, and other sources), nicotine, and alcohol.
Illicit drugs such as cocaine, marijuana, and ecstasy also disrupt healthy sleep.
6. If you lie in bed worrying at night, schedule evening time to deal with stress. Write down your worries and stressors for approximately
30 minutes prior to bedtime.
7. If you continue to lie in bed without sleeping for 30 minutes, get up and do something else until you are about to fall asleep, and then return to
bed.
8. Get up at the same time every morning. Although this practice may lead to sleepiness the first day or two, eventually it helps set the daily rhythm.
9. If you still have problems sleeping after four weeks, consider seeing a sleep specialist to get tested for sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, or
other sleep problems that may require more specific interventions.

Source: Based on recommendations from the American Psychological Association, 2004.

2001). Even though benzodiazepines are generally safer approved for long-term use as well. However, few mod-
than barbiturates, the risk of dependence and worsening ern drugs have been studied in placebo-controlled
sleep problems makes them suitable only for short-term experiments, and even fewer have actually been studied
use—generally for a week or two—and only after sleep for long-term use (e.g., for more than a month; Krystal,
hygiene efforts have failed. 2009). So, it is safer to change your sleep hygiene (sleep-
Modern sleep drugs are generally thought to be ing routines) than to directly alter your brain chemistry
much safer in the short term, and many have been if you want to put your sleeping problems to rest.

Quick Quiz 5.1d Disorders and Problems with Sleep

1 When people do not show the typical restriction of 3 Which of the following is not good advice for
APPLY . . .
KNOW . . .

movement during REM sleep, despite physical evidence improving your quality of sleep?
to the contrary, they are experiencing ____________. A Use your bed for sleeping only—not homework or
A somnambulism watching TV.
B REM behaviour disorder B Exercise late in the day to make sure you are tired
C insomnia when it is time to sleep.

D restless legs syndrome C Avoid drinking caffeine, especially late in the day.
D Get up at the same time every morning to make
sure you develop a reliable pattern of sleep and
2 ____________ is(are) a condition in which a person’s
wakefulness.
breathing becomes obstructed or stops during sleep.
A Somnambulism C Narcolepsy Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
B Night terrors D Sleep apnea

196 :: Module 5.1 : : Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
5.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with sleep, dreams,

and sleep disorders:
Sylvia Serrado/Glow Images
activation–synthesis hypothesis polysomnography (p. 183)
(p. 189) preserve and protect hypothesis
circadian rhythms (p. 182) (p. 186) potential threats, and to reduce the amount of energy
consciousness (p. 181) problem-solving theory (p. 190) intake required. Evidence supports both theories, so it is
endogenous rhythms (p. 182) REM sleep (p. 185) likely that there is more than one reason for sleep.
entrainment (p. 182) restless legs syndrome (p. 193)
insomnia (p. 192) restore and repair hypothesis APPLY . . .
jet lag (p. 188) (p. 185)
latent content (p. 189) sleep apnea (p. 194) ● Your knowledge to identify and practise good sleep
manifest content (p. 189) sleep deprivation (p. 186) habits. Try completing the Epworth Sleepiness Scale to
narcolepsy (p. 195) sleep displacement (p. 187) make sure you are getting enough sleep (Table 5.2). If
somnambulism (p. 194) you score 10 points or higher, you are probably not
night terrors (p. 193)
getting enough sleep. You can always refer to Table 5.1
nightmares (p. 193)
for tips on improving your sleep.

UNDERSTAND . . .
ANALYZE . . .

● How the sleep cycle works. The sleep cycle consists of a ● Different theories about why we dream. Dreams have
series of stages going from stage 1 through stage 4, cycles fascinated psychologists since Freud’s time. From his
back down again, and is followed by a REM phase. The first psychoanalytic perspective, Freud believed that the manifest
sleep cycle lasts approximately 90 minutes. Deep sleep content of dreams could be used to uncover their symbolic,
(stages 3 and 4) is longest during the first half of the sleep latent content. Contemporary scientists are skeptical about
cycle, whereas REM phases increase in duration during the the validity of this approach given the lack of empirical
second half of the sleep cycle. evidence to support it. The activation–synthesis theory
● Theories of why we sleep. Sleep theories include the eliminates the meaning of dream content, suggesting instead
restore and repair hypothesis and the preserve and protect that dreams are just interpretations of haphazard electrical
hypothesis. According to the restore and repair hypothesis, activity in the sleeping brain that are then organized to
we sleep so that the body can recover from the stress and some degree by the cortex. Increasing evidence suggests
strain on the body that occurs during waking. According that REM sleep, the sleep stage associated with dreaming,
to the preserve and protect hypothesis, sleep has evolved improves our ability to form new procedural (step-by-step)
as a way to reduce activity and provide protection from memories and to find solutions to problems.

Table 5.2 :: Epworth Sleepiness Scale

Use the following scale to choose the most appropriate number for each situation:
0 = would never doze or sleep 1 = slight chance of dozing or sleeping
2 = moderate chance of dozing or sleeping 3 = high chance of dozing or sleeping
SITUATION CHANCES OF FALLING ASLEEP
Sitting and reading 0 1 2 3
Watching TV 0 1 2 3
Sitting inactive in a public place 0 1 2 3
Being a passenger in a motor vehicle for an hour or more 0 1 2 3
Lying down in the afternoon 0 1 2 3
Sitting and talking to someone 0 1 2 3
Sitting quietly after lunch (no alcohol) 0 1 2 3
Stopped for a few minutes in traffic while driving 0 1 2 3
Your total score

Source: Johns (1991)

Biological Rhythms of Consciousness: Wakefulness and Sleep :: Module 5.1 :: 197

 Gennadiy Poznyakov/Fotolia

Module

5.2 Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis,

Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology associated The competing Your knowledge of The effectiveness of meditation
After reading with hypnosis, meditation, and theories of hypnosis hypnosis to identify what for use in therapy
this module disorders of consciousness it can and cannot do The ability of researchers to detect
you should consciousness in brain-damaged patients

“Just a moment! I don’t like the patient’s colour. Much too blue. Her lips illustrate, however, is that consciousness is not a simple on-off switch.
are very blue. I’m going to give a little more oxygen. . . . There, that’s bet- Instead, there are a number of possible states of consciousness, each with
ter now. You can carry on with the operation” (Levinson, 1965, p. 544). its own abilities and limitations.
If you were undergoing surgery with a local anesthetic and heard this,
you would certainly be worried . . . if not panicking. But, what if you had
Focus Questions
been given general anesthetic so that you were “unconscious”? Presum-
ably, you should be blissfully unaware of the fact that you were turning 1 How is information perceived in different states of consciousness?
blue. However, when prompted by an experimenter one month later, 8 of 2 Is information processed in the background of our awareness?
the 10 patients who heard these statements—which were a script read
during real surgeries as part of an experiment—were able to report back
some elements of the fake crisis. Four of the patients were able to give an
almost verbatim account of what the experimenter said. In other studies,
Consciousness varies by degree—much lies between being awake
post-operative patients were able to fill in word stems (e.g., H O - - - )
with words presented under anesthesia (e.g., HORSE, not HOUSE) at versus being asleep. Humans have a remarkable ability to alter
levels far above chance (Bonebakker et al., 1996; Merikle & Daneman, where on this continuum they want to reach. Techniques such as
1996). How is this possible? At present, no one knows exactly how hypnosis and meditation are ways of inducing what many regard as
someone who is anesthetized can still recall some of the information an altered state of consciousness. Also, injury or illness can tempo-
presented to them while they were unconscious. What these studies do rarily or permanently change a person’s level of consciousness. In

198 :: Module 5.2 : : Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis, Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness
this module, we examine each of these topics related to
consciousness.

Hypnosis
The caricature of a hypnotist as an intense-looking
bearded man swinging his glistening pocket watch back
and forth before an increasingly subdued subject will
probably always be around, though it promotes just one
of many misunderstandings about hypnosis. Hypnosis
is actually a procedure of inducing a heightened state of sug-
gestibility. According to this definition, hypnosis is not a
trance, as is often portrayed in the popular media (Kirsch
& Lynn, 1998). Instead, the hypnotist simply suggests
changes, and the subject is more likely (but not certain)
to comply as a result of the suggestion.
Although one could conceivably make suggestions
about almost anything, hypnotic suggestions gener-
ally are most effective when they fall into one of three
categories:
• Ideomotor suggestions are related to specific actions
that could be performed, such as adopting a specific
position.
• Challenge suggestions indicate actions that are not to
be performed, so that the subject appears to lose the
ability to perform an action. Bookstaver/AP Images
• Cognitive-perceptual suggestions involve a subject Stage hypnotists often use the human plank demonstration with their subjects. They
remembering or forgetting specific information, or support an audience volunteer on three chairs. To the audience’s amazement, when
the chair supporting the mid-body is removed, the hypnotized subject does not
experiencing altered perceptions such as reduced fall (even when weight is added, as shown in the photo). However, nonhypnotized
pain sensations (Kirsch & Lynn, 1998). subjects also do not fall. (Please do not try this at home—there is a trick behind it!)

People who have not encountered scientific infor-

mation about hypnosis are often skeptical that hypnosis behaviours and (2) a supervisory system (Norman & Simulate

can actually occur or are very reluctant to be hypnotized Shallice, 1986), sometimes referred to as executive process- What Altered

ing. The roles played by these two pieces of the puzzle States Have You
themselves (Capafons et al., 2008; Molina & Mendoza,
Experienced?
2006). It is important to note that hypnotists cannot differ across theories of hypnosis.
make someone do something against their will. For Dissociation theory explains hypnosis as a unique Watch
example, the hypnotist could not suggest that an hon- state in which consciousness is divided into two parts: an The Big Picture:
est person rob a bank and expect the subject to com- observer and a hidden observer (Hilgard, 1977, 1986). It may States of

ply. Instead, the hypnotist can increase the likelihood sound magical, but this kind of divided state is actually Consciousness

that subjects will perform simple behaviours that they quite common. Take any skill that you have mastered,
Watch
have performed or have thought of before, and would such as driving a car or playing an instrument. When
Hypnosis
be willing to do (in some contexts) when in a normal you began, it took every bit of your conscious awareness
conscious state. to focus on the correct movements—you were a single,
highly focused observer of your actions. In this case, your
THEORIES OF HYPNOSIS In the previous section, behaviour required a lot of executive processing. After a
we discussed the types of behaviours that can and cannot few years of practice, you could do it automatically while
be influenced by hypnosis; in this section, we attempt you observed and paid attention to something else. In
to uncover how this process actually works. The word this case, you required much less executive processing.
hypnosis comes from the Greek hypno, meaning “sleep.” Although we call the familiar behaviour automatic, there
In reality, scientific research tells us that hypnosis is noth- is still a hidden observer—that is, a part of you that is
ing like sleep. Instead, hypnosis is based on an interac- paying attention to the task. During hypnosis, a similar
tion between (1) automatic (unconscious) thoughts and split occurs between automatic (observer) and executive

Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis, Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness :: Module 5.2 :: 199
 At this point, there appears to be some evidence in
favour of both hypotheses. This lack of clarity is due to
the fact that hypnosis did not receive much scientific
attention for most of the 20th century. However, despite
the fact that there is not a clear answer as to how hypno-
sis works, most scientists agree that for some individuals
hypnosis can be a powerful therapeutic tool.

APPLICATIONS OF HYPNOSIS Although it is used

far less frequently than medications or talk-based thera-
pies, hypnosis has been used to treat a number of dif-
ferent physical and psychological conditions. Hypnosis
is often used in conjunction with other psychotherapies
such as cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) rather than
Paula Connelly/iStockphoto
as a stand-alone treatment. The resulting cognitive hypno-
Hypnotherapy involves a trained therapist giving hypnotic suggestions to a client.
therapy has been used as an effective treatment for depres-
sion (Alladin & Alibhai, 2007), anxiety (Abramowitz
et al., 2008; Schoenberger et al., 1997), eating disorders
Watch (hidden observer) processing. Susceptible individuals (Barabasz, 2007), hot flashes of cancer survivors (Elkins
Thinking Like a will experience less input from the executive (Jamieson et al., 2008), and irritable bowel syndrome (Golden,
Psychologist: The & Sheehan, 2004; Woody & Bowers, 1994). Instead, the 2007), among many others (Nash et al., 2009). Hypnosis
Uses and Limitations suggestion from the hypnotist will act as an executive, is far from a cure-all, however. For example, research-
of Hypnosis guiding the behaviours that feel automatic. In support ers found that hypnotherapy combined with a nicotine
of this view, neuroimaging studies have found reduced patch is more effective as a smoking cessation interven-
activity in the anterior cingulate cortex, a region of the tion than the patch alone. Nonetheless, only one-fifth
frontal lobe related to executive functions, in hypnotized of the individuals receiving this kind of therapy man-
subjects (Raz et al., 2005). aged to remain smoke-free for a year (Carmody et al.,
A second approach, social-cognitive theory , 2008). Moreover, the individuals receiving hypnotherapy
explains hypnosis by emphasizing the degree to which beliefs for depression improved only 5% to 8% more on sev-
and expectations contribute to increased suggestibility. This eral measures of depressive symptoms than those who
perspective is supported by experiments in which indi- received traditional therapy. The best conclusion regard-
viduals are told either that they will be able to resist ing hypnosis in therapy is that it shows promise, especially
ideomotor suggestions or that they will not be able to when used in conjunction with other evidence-based
resist them. In these studies, people tend to conform to psychological or medical treatments.
what they have been told to expect—a result that cannot Perhaps the most practical use for hypnosis is in the
be easily explained by dissociation theory (Lynn et al., treatment of pain. If researchers can demonstrate its effec-
1984; Spanos et al., 1985). Similarly, research on hypnosis tiveness in this application, it may be a preferred method
as a treatment for pain shows that response expectancy— of pain control given painkillers’ potential side effects and
whether the individual believes the treatment will risk of addiction. What does the scientific evidence say
work—plays a large role in the actual pain relief expe- about the use of hypnosis in treating pain? A review of
rienced (Milling, 2009). The idea that expectations 18 individual studies found that approximately 75% of
influence hypnotic responses implies that some form of all individuals experienced adequate pain relief with this
executive processing is influencing the experiences of an approach beyond that provided by traditional analgesics
individual. Consistent with this view, researchers have or no treatment (Montgomery et al., 2000). What hap-
found that different brain areas related to executive func- pened to the other 25%? Perhaps the failure of the treat-
tions have stronger connections (fire at the same time ment in this group is attributable to the fact that some
more frequently) in highly hypnotizable than in less hyp- people are more readily hypnotized than others. In addi-
notizable individuals (Hoeft et al., 2012). Hypnotizable tion, to truly understand pain control, researchers must
subjects also show larger changes from “baseline levels” distinguish among different types of pain. Research has
of activity in the frontal lobes when they view images shown that hypnosis generally works as well as drug treat-
while hypnotized, suggesting that they are more engaged ments for acute pain, which is the intense, temporary pain
with external stimuli (e.g., the voice of a hypnotist) than associated with a medical or dental procedure (Patterson
are less hypnotizable individuals (McGeown et al., 2009). & Jenson, 2003).The effect of hypnosis on chronic pain is

200 :: Module 5.2 : : Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis, Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness
more complicated, as some conditions are due to purely
physical causes whereas others are more psychological Quick Quiz 5.2a
in nature. For these latter conditions, it is likely that the Hypnosis
patient will expect to continue to feel pain regardless of
1 _____________ suggestions specify that certain

KNOW . . .
the treatment, thus reducing the effectiveness of hypnosis. actions cannot be performed while hypnotized.
A Ideomotor C Cognitive-perceptual
B Challenge D Disassociation

2 Dr. Johnson claims that hypnosis is a distinct state of

UNDERSTAND . . .
consciousness in which there is a “hidden” observer.
It appears that she is endorsing the _____________
theory of hypnosis.
A social-cognitive
B psychoanalytic
C dissociation
D hypnotherapy

3 Hypnosis has been shown to be moderately successful

APPLY . . .
as a therapy for all of the following except
A addiction.
B pain therapy.
C causing long-term personality changes.
susaro/[Link] D depression and anxiety.
Under hypnosis, people can withstand higher levels of pain
for longer periods of time, including the discomfort associated
4 Which of the following statements best describes the
ANALYZE . . .

with dental procedures.

scientific consensus about recovering memories with
hypnosis?
A Memories “recovered” through hypnosis are highly
unreliable and should never be used as evidence in
MYTHS IN MIND court.
B If the memory is recovered by a trained
Recovering Lost Memories psychologist, then it may be used as evidence
through Hypnosis in court.
Before the limitations of hypnosis were fully understood, pro- C Recovering memories through hypnosis is a simple
fessionals working in the fields of psychology and law regu- procedure and, therefore, the findings should be a
larly used this technique for uncovering lost memories. What regular part of court hearings.
a powerful tool this would be for a psychologist—if a patient D Memories can be recovered only in individuals who
could remember specifics about trauma or abuse it could are highly hypnotizable.
greatly help the individual’s recovery. Similarly, law enforcement
Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
and legal professionals could benefit by learning the details of a
crime recovered through hypnosis—or so many assumed.
As you have read, hypnosis puts the subject into a
highly suggestible state. This condition leaves the individual Meditation
vulnerable to prompts and suggestions by the hypnotist.
A cooperative person could certainly comply with sugges- During hypnosis, an individual enters an altered state
tions and create a story that, in the end, was entirely false. of consciousness in which he or she is more suggestible
This has happened time and again. In reality, hypnosis does than at other times. In many ways, hypnosis seems like
not improve memory (Kihlstrom, 1997; Loftus & Davis, 2006). a reduced state of awareness. In contrast, there are some
Today, responsible psychologists do not use hypnotherapy to instances in which individuals feel as though they have
uncover or reconstruct lost memories. Police officers have a greater-than-normal awareness of some elements of
also largely given up this practice. In 2007, the Supreme Court their world. One such instance is meditation.
of Canada ruled that testimony based on hypnosis sessions Watch
alone cannot be submitted as evidence (R. v. Trochy, 2007, TYPES OF MEDITATION We have all seen people What’s in It for Me?
1 S.C.R. 239, 2007 SCC6). meditating, be it in person, on television, or on the Altered States of
Internet. Some people lie down; others sit cross-legged Consciousness

Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis, Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness :: Module 5.2 :: 201
 or on their knees. Some people close their eyes. Some become quite good at maintaining their attention on their
chant a word or phrase repeatedly while others focus on chosen object. This increase in expertise is also reflected
a point in space or on their body. Regardless of the dif- in how the brains of FA meditators function. In an fMRI
ferences in meditation techniques, almost all meditators study, expert meditators (more than 19 000 hours of
go through similar experiences—noticing their racing meditation) produced greater levels of activity in the dor-
thoughts, experiencing boredom or doubt that meditat- sal (top) part of the frontal lobes as well as in the parietal
ing is worthwhile, and perhaps, as they concentrate on lobes, areas related to the control of attention (Brefczyn-
their bodily sensations, some negativity. However, as they ski-Lewis et al., 2007). Interestingly, individuals with an
gain experience, most meditators report feeling happy extraordinary number of meditation hours—44 000!—
and more relaxed. These reports lead to a number of sci- had lower levels of activation in most of these areas. This
entific questions. What is meditation? And, how would may reflect the fact that less effort is required to control
you go about testing its effect? the focus of attention as people reach this level of exper-
Meditation is any procedure that involves a shift in con- tise with meditation (Lutz et al., 2008).
sciousness to a state in which an individual is highly focused, A second type of meditation is open monitoring (OM)
aware, and in control of mental processes. However, to say meditation. This technique also uses focused attention to
“meditation” is a bit simplistic, as meditation has many train the mind and to reduce the influence of distrac-
different techniques and is practised, in some form, in tions. After initial training with FA, however, people can
almost every known culture. You may be familiar with then transition into the use of OM styles of meditat-
some of these practices, or at least their associated names, ing. Here, meditators pay attention to the moment-by-
such as transcendental meditation and Zen Buddhist moment sensations without focusing on any particular
meditation. object (Lutz et al., 2008). A key feature of OM is to
In some types of meditation, the individual focuses attempt to experience each sensation intensely, exam-
his or her attention on a chosen object, such as a point ining its rich sensory properties and emotional charac-
on the wall or a physical sensation like the feeling related teristics in great depth; however, these sensations should
to breathing. This technique is known as focused attention not become the sole focus of attention, preventing the
(FA) meditation. When distracting or negative thoughts meditator from responding to other sensations. Not sur-
enter into one’s awareness and interfere with meditation, prisingly, OM meditation uses different brain areas than
people are taught to accept these thoughts in a non- FA meditation. Rather than using neural regions related
judgmental manner, and to then nudge their attention to focusing attention, it activates structures involved with
back to its original focus (Lutz et al., 2008). Although disengaging attention (i.e., letting go) and on awareness of
this technique is initially quite difficult, over time people bodily states (Farb et al., 2007).

MEDITATION, COGNITION, AND EMOTION

Regardless of the specific meditation technique used, most
meditators report that they have greater emotional control
than they did prior to meditation training. Their reports
are supported by neuroimaging studies showing reduced
activity in emotion-related structures such as the amygdala
and emotional regions of the frontal lobes of meditators
(Brefczynski-Lewis et al., 2007; Taylor et al., 2011).
Computer-based studies of meditators have shown
that meditating also enhances our ability to control what
we pay attention to (Tang et al., 2007). Additionally,
improvements in our ability to inhibit responses (e.g.,
stopping yourself when you are about to press the wrong
button) that occur as a result of meditation training
predict improvements in emotional well-being (Sahdra
et al., 2011). Presumably, focusing attention on specific
objects or ideas during meditation takes attention away
BOISVIEUX Christophe/[Link]/Alamy
from more negative thoughts about the self. In other
The neural activity of expert meditators differs from that of novices. This difference
demonstrates how the patterns of activity in your brain change as a result of your life words, it allows meditators to pay less attention to their
experiences. own emotions and narratives about their lives.

202 :: Module 5.2 : : Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis, Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness
 The idea that the feelings of happiness and relax-
ation associated with meditation are due, in part, to us Quick Quiz 5.2b
becoming more attentive to the present moment and Meditation
less attentive to our own “stories” has found some sup-
1 What function is not affected by meditation?

KNOW . . .
port in research performed at the University of Toronto. A Visual perception
Norm Farb and colleagues (2007) used fMRI to exam- B The control of attention
ine brain activity in trained meditators and a control
C Emotional well-being
group of non-meditators. Participants were asked to take
D Awareness of bodily sensation
one of two perspectives while reading lists of positive
(e.g., charming) and negative (e.g., greedy) words. Dur-
ing half of the experiment, participants were asked to use
2 What is known about the effects of meditation on

ANALYZE . . .
a Narrative Focus, which required them to think about pain perception?
what each word meant and how it related to him or her. A Beliefs about meditation are mostly superstition.
During the other half of the experiment, participants B All forms of meditation have proven effective at
were asked to use an Experiential Focus, which required reducing pain.
them to pay attention to their thoughts and bodily reac- C Some forms of meditation such as MBSR are
tions to the words as they happened, but without any effective in controlling chronic pain.
judgment or elaboration. If they found themselves dis- D Meditation is not an effective method for
tracted by any memories or thoughts inspired by a controlling pain.
word, they were to calmly return their attention to the
present moment. The results were intriguing: During Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
the Experiential Focus condition (which is quite simi-
lar to a meditative state), trained meditators showed a
larger decrease in activity in areas of the frontal lobes
related to “the self ” (the medial prefrontal cortex) than
did novices. They also showed increased activity in areas
Disorders of Consciousness
related to the perception of one’s bodily states. These In 1990, a Florida woman named Terri Schiavo col-
results suggest that meditation does in fact help us sepa- lapsed to the ground. She had suffered a full cardiac
rate ourselves from our own narratives and live in the arrest, resulting in massive brain damage due to a lack
present moment. Given that numerous other studies of oxygen. She would never regain consciousness. After
have shown that meditation leads to decreased levels of she had been in a coma for almost three months, her
anxiety (Chen et al., 2012; Hoffman et al., 2011), it is diagnosis was changed to a persistent vegetative state.
possible that redirecting attention away from our own In 1998, her husband asked the hospital to remove her
self-focused thoughts might improve our ability to feeding tube because he was sure she wouldn’t want to
be happy. live this way. Her parents fought the decision, claiming
Meditation (in its different forms) has become a part of Terri was still conscious. The ethical and legal
part of a number of different clinical treatment pro- battles continued for seven years, and included Presi-
grams. For example, mindfulness-based stress reduc- dent George W. Bush cutting his vacation short in order
tion programs have been developed to teach and to return to Washington to sign a legal order keeping
promote mindfulness meditation as a way of improv- her alive (Cranford, 2005). Eventually, after the U.S.
ing well-being and reducing negative experiences (see Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal, her feeding
Module 14.3). These programs are generally well tube was removed for the last time. Terri Schiavo died on
received by patients and can significantly reduce every- March 31, 2005.
day levels of stress, depression, and anxiety, as well as The Terri Schiavo case highlights the importance
more chronic psychiatric disorders (Chiesa & Serretti, of consciousness in medical decision making. As you
2011; Olivo et al., 2009). Additionally, meditation pro- have already seen in this module, consciousness can take
grams have been used to help people reduce pain, in many forms, all of which vary in terms of how aware
both short-term experiments (e.g., Zeidan et al., 2010) a person is of his or her environment. In patients with
and in long-term studies with chronic pain patients brain damage, the degree to which a patient is con-
(Grant & Rainville, 2009; McCracken et al., 2007). scious of her surroundings can influence the diagno- Watch
Thus, meditation appears to affect attention, sensation, sis that she receives. Neurologists distinguish between In the Real World:
and emotional well-being. six types of consciousness, ranging from little-to-no Managing Pain

Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis, Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness :: Module 5.2 :: 203
 Left: Schindler Family Photo/AP Images; right: Reuters/Landov
Terri Schiavo suffered severe brain damage after going into cardiac arrest. She was diagnosed as being in a persistent vegetative
state and subsequently taken off of life support in 2005.

brain function up to normal levels of awareness (see

Consciousness
Figure 5.9).
The lowest level of consciousness in a person who
is still technically alive is known as brain death, a condi-
Wakefulness/Awareness

Locked-in syndrome
tion in which the brain, specifically including the brain stem, no
longer functions (American Academy of Neurology, 1995).
Minimally conscious state
Individuals who are brain dead have no hope of recovery
because the brain stem regions responsible for maintain-
Vegetative state
ing basic life functions like breathing and maintaining
the heartbeat do not function (see Figure 5.10).
Coma
In contrast to brain death, a coma is a state marked
by a complete loss of consciousness. It is generally due to
Brain Death damage to the brain stem or to widespread damage to
both hemispheres of the brain (Bateman, 2001). Patients
who are in a coma have an absence of both wakeful-
{fig. 5.9} Disorders of Consciousness Although more nuanced
diagnoses exist, this diagram depicts six key levels of consciousness
ness and awareness of themselves or their surroundings
used in the diagnosis of brain-damaged individuals. (Gawryluk et al., 2010). Some of the patient’s brain stem
reflexes will be suppressed, including pupil dilation and
constriction in response to changes in brightness. Typi-
cally, patients who survive this stage begin to recover
to higher levels of consciousness within
2–4 weeks, although there is no guarantee
that the patient will make a full recovery.
If a patient in a coma improves slightly,
the individual may enter a persistent
vegetative state , a state of minimal to no
consciousness in which the patient’s eyes may be
open, and the individual will develop sleep–wake
cycles without clear signs of consciousness. For
example, vegetative state patients do not
appear to focus on objects in their visual
field, nor do they track movement. These
patients generally do not have damage to
{fig. 5.10} Neuroimaging of Brain Death This positron emission tomography (PET) scan shows the brain stem. Instead, they have exten-
the amount of glucose being used by the brain. In a healthy brain, most of the image would be yellow,
green, or red, indicating activity. Here, only the tissue surrounding the brain is using glucose, giving sive brain damage to the grey matter and
the image the appearance of being an empty skull; functionally speaking, it is one. white matter of both hemispheres, leading

204 :: Module 5.2 : : Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis, Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness
to impairments of most functions (Laureys et al., 2004; Thus far, we have discussed disorders of conscious-
Owen & Coleman, 2008). The likelihood of recovery ness as though there were a quick-and-easy tool for
from a vegetative state is time dependent. If a patient diagnoses. While this is definitely true for brain death,
emerges from this state within the first few months, distinguishing between other conditions is much more
he or she could regain some form of consciousness. difficult. In fact, misdiagnosis of these disorders is esti-
In contrast, if symptoms do not improve after three mated to be as high as 43% (Gawryluk et al., 2010;
months, the patient is classified as being in a permanent Schnakers et al., 2009). The challenge, therefore, is to
vegetative state; the chances of recovery from that diag- develop or adapt tools that will help neurologists more
nosis decrease sharply (Wijdicks, 2006). accurately diagnose these mysterious conditions.

tools focus more on overt behaviours (i.e., movements) than

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC on questions of awareness. A patient’s inability to move may
LITERACY MODEL imply a greater disturbance of consciousness than actually
exists, thus leading to potential misdiagnoses. Improvements
Assessing Consciousness in brain-imaging techniques may prove to be a more sensitive
in the Vegetative State tool for investigating consciousness.

Determining a brain-damaged patient’s level of consciousness How can

is quite challenging. It also has important implications for the science explain
patient’s treatment. If she is shown to have some degree of
awareness of her situation and/or her environment, then
consciousness in
it seems reasonable to get her opinion on matters affect- vegetative patients?
ing her treatment. In contrast, if she is unresponsive, then Researchers have argued
such decisions should be made entirely by the family and the for some time that some patients in a persistent vegetative
medical team. Everyone wants what is best for the patient, state can show some signs of consciousness. For example,
but the tools used to assess consciousness are still a work some patients have shown rudimentary responses to lan-
in progress. guage. There have been cases of neurological changes in
response to one’s name (Staffen et al., 2006) as well as the
What do we know emotional tone of a speaker’s voice (Kotchoubey et al., 2009).
about the assessment However, the most stunning example of consciousness
in this patient group was shown by Adrian Owen (now at
of consciousness in
Western University) and his colleagues (Owen et al., 2006).
vegetative patients? In their study, a 23-year-old patient in a vegetative state was
The initial assessment of con- asked to perform two different mental imagery tasks during
sciousness in severely brain- an fMRI scan. In one task, she was asked to imagine playing
damaged patients is generally tennis, an activity involving a specific set of movements. In
performed at the patient’s bedside. Doctors will perform the other task, she was asked to imagine visiting all of the
tests of a patient’s reflexes (e.g., pupil responses, which rooms in her house, starting at the front door (this required
involve the brain stem) and examine other simple responses. her to develop a spatial map of her house). Despite not being
The most common assessment tool is the Glasgow Coma able to respond to any questions verbally, this patient’s brain
Scale (GSC), a 15-item checklist for the physician. The GCS showed clear evidence of understanding the commands.
measures eye movements—whether they can open at all, Imagining playing tennis activated brain areas related to
open in response to pain, open in response to speech, or movement; imagining walking through her house activated a
open spontaneously without any reason. The next five items spatial network including the parahippocampal gyrus, and the
on this checklist assess language abilities (e.g., does she use parietal lobe. This result provided stunning evidence that the
incorrect words?). The final six items measure movement patient did, in fact, have some degree of consciousness.
abilities such as whether the patient responds to pain and
Owen and his colleagues have performed several subse-
whether she can obey commands. Scores of 9 or below
quent studies with larger groups of patients. However, not
reflect a severe disturbance of consciousness. (For compari-
all patients are able to modify their own brain activity. In a
son, individuals suffering from a concussion tend to score
study including 54 patients, only five were able to perform
between 13 and 15, which is labelled as a mild disturbance.)
the tennis–house task (Monti et al., 2010). But, one of these
Checklists such as the GSC provide a useful initial indica- patients was able to do something remarkable: He was able
tor of a brain-damaged patient’s abilities. However, many to learn to use the tennis–house imagery task to communi-
of the behaviours measured by this and similar assessment cate! The experimenters asked him simple questions and told

Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis, Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness :: Module 5.2 :: 205
 him to imagine playing tennis if he wanted to respond “yes” However, there are some important issues that need to be
and to imagine walking through his house if he wanted to dealt with. First, we mentioned above that up to 43% of patients
respond “no” (see Figure 5.11). Using this technique, he was with disorders of consciousness are misdiagnosed. Given that
able to demonstrate that some of his cognitive abilities were only a small subset of the vegetative state patients were able
preserved. Of course, we must be cautious and remember to modify their brain activity, it is possible that they were not
that this is only one patient among dozens who were tested. actually in a vegetative state, but instead had a less severe con-
The ongoing challenge for researchers is to determine what dition. Second, the researchers are equating language abilities
made the five “fMRI responders” different from the 49 non- with consciousness; yet, consciousness could take the form of
responders, and to use that information to help identify other responses to other, non-linguistic stimuli (Overgaard & Over-
patients who might still retain some degree of consciousness. gaard, 2011). This criticism would be particularly important if a
vegetative state patient had damage to brain areas related to
language comprehension.
Can we critically
We also have to be cautious about the use of PET and fMRI
evaluate this evidence? scans in patients with widespread brain damage. Both types
The initial neuroimaging stud- of neuroimaging measure characteristics of blood flow in the
ies of consciousness in vegetative brain. But, damage to the brain will alter how the blood flows
state patients are indeed promising. (Rossini et al., 2004); therefore, we need to be careful when

A “Is your father’s name Alexander?” “Yes” response with the use B “Do you have any brothers?” “Yes” response with the use
of motor imagery of motor imagery
Patient

Control

C “Is your father’s name Thomas?” “No” response with the use D “Do you have any sisters?” “No” response with the use
of spatial imagery of spatial imagery
Control
Patient

New England Journal of Medicine, 362(7), p. 587

{fig. 5.11} Using fMRI to Communicate with a Vegetative Patient Results of two sample communication scans obtained
from Patient 23 (Panels A and C) and a healthy control subject (Panels B and D) during functional MRI are shown. In Panels A and B, the
observed activity pattern (orange) was very similar to that observed in the motor-imagery localizer scan (i.e., activity in the supple-
mentary motor area alone), indicating a “yes” response. In Panels C and D, the observed activity pattern (blue) was very similar to
that observed in the spatial-imagery localizer scan (i.e., activity in both the parahippocampal gyrus and the supplementary motor
area), indicating a “no” response. This figure depicts the results of this vegetative patient (Panels A and C) and a healthy control
participant (Panels B and D); the names used in the questions have been changed to protect the privacy of the patient.

206 :: Module 5.2 : : Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis, Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness
comparing patients with healthy controls. One way around consciousness if they cannot move or make some sort of
this latter concern is to use multiple methods of neuroimag- response. However, this information influences the decision
ing (Gawryluk et al., 2010). Increasing numbers of research about whether to remove that patient from life support. If
groups are using EEG, which measures neural activity using brain imaging could provide insight into the inner world of
electrodes attached to the scalp, to search for brain function patients (or, in some cases, lack thereof), it would provide
in vegetative patients (Cruse et al., 2011; Wijnen et al., 2007). doctors and family members with valuable information that
Given that distinct brain waves have been identified for sen- would help them make the right decision for the patient.
sory detection of a stimulus, the detection of unexpected
auditory stimuli, higher-level analysis of stimuli, and semantic
(meaning) analysis of language, this technology could provide
important insights into the inner worlds of vegetative state
patients. Indeed, Canadian researchers have developed the
EEG-based Halifax Consciousness Scanner for this specific
purpose ([Link]

Why is this relevant?

Neuroimaging investigations
of consciousness in vegeta-
tive state patients could lit-
erally have life-and-death implications. Currently, doctors
have a very difficult time determining a patient’s level of Tyler Olson/[Link]

There are two other disorders of consciousness that remain paralyzed. Luckily, new technology is making it
are often diagnosed by neurologists. One is the mini- easier for these patients to communicate with the out-
mally conscious state (MCS), a disordered state of con- side world.
sciousness marked by the ability to show some behaviours that The final stage of consciousness is the healthy, con-
suggest at least partial consciousness, even if on an inconsis- scious brain. That’s you. Be grateful.
tent basis. A minimally conscious patient must show some
awareness of himself or his environment, and be able to
reproduce this behaviour. Examples of some behaviours
that are tested are following simple commands, making
gestures or yes/no responses to questions, and producing
movements or emotional reactions in response to some
person or object in their environment. When neuroim-
aging is used, minimally conscious patients show more
activity than vegetative patients (see Figure 5.12), includ-
ing activity in some higher-order sensory and cognitive
regions (Boly et al., 2004).
The disorder of consciousness that most resembles
the healthy, awake state—at least in terms of awareness—
is locked-in syndrome, a disorder in which the patient
is aware and awake but, because of an inability to move his
or her body, appears unconscious (Smith & Delargy, 2005).
Locked-in syndrome was brought to the attention
of most people by the movie The Diving Bell and the
Butterfly , which depicted Jean-Dominique Bauby’s
attempts to communicate to the outside world using eye {fig. 5.12} Brain Activity in Four Levels of Consciousness PET images of brain
movements. This disorder is caused by damage to part of activity found in a healthy conscious brain and the brains of three patients with different
types of brain damage. The highlighted red area near the back of the brain (along the
the pons, the region of the brain stem that sticks out like midline) is the precuneus and the posterior cingulate cortex; these areas are involved in
an Adam’s apple. Most patients with locked-in syndrome a number of different functions and use the most energy in the brain.

Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis, Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness :: Module 5.2 :: 207
 Quick Quiz 5.2c Disorders of Consciousness
1 ________ is a disorder of consciousness in which an 2 What is the difference between a persistent vegetative

KNOW . . .

UNDERSTAND . . .
individual may open the eyes and exhibit sleep–wake state (PVS) and a minimally conscious state (MCS)?
cycles but show no specific signs of consciousness. A Nothing—they are both names for the same state.
A A coma B Someone in an MCS can have conversations, unlike
B A persistent vegetative state someone in a PVS.
C Brain death C Someone in an MCS has sleep–wake cycles, unlike
D A minimally conscious state someone in a PVS.
D People in an MCS show at least some behaviours that
indicate consciousness, even if on an irregular basis.

Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

Module Summary
Module Now that you have read this module you should
5.2
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with hypnosis,

meditation, and disorders of consciousness:

brain death (p. 204) minimally conscious state (MCS)

coma (p. 204) (p. 207)
dissociation theory (p. 199) persistent vegetative state Gennadiy Poznyakov/Fotolia
(p. 204)
hypnosis (p. 199)
social-cognitive theory (p. 200)
locked-in syndrome (p. 207) 5. Recovering a traumatic memory
meditation (p. 202)
6. Helping someone relax
7. Reducing pain sensation
UNDERSTAND . . .

● The competing theories of hypnosis. Dissociation ANALYZE . . .

theory states that hypnosis involves a division between
observer and hidden observer, whereas social-cognitive ● The effectiveness of meditation for use in therapy.
theory states that hypnosis is a process in which the People who meditate often find that this practice helps
beliefs and expectations about the process heighten the reduce symptoms of depression, stress, and anxiety, and
subject’s willingness to follow suggestions. provides pain relief. For serious conditions, meditation
typically needs to be accompanied by additional therapies
or treatments to provide relief.
APPLY . . .
● The ability of researchers to detect consciousness in
● Your knowledge of hypnosis to identify what it can brain-damaged patients. Consciousness is difficult to
and cannot do. Answer the following statements with detect using traditional bedside testing because many of
true or false and check your answers on page ANS-2. these testing tools require movement. Using neuroimaging
(specifically fMRI), it has been possible to detect conscious
True or False? awareness in some patients who are in a vegetative state,
Hypnosis could potentially work in the following scenarios: as well as in patients who are in a minimally conscious
1. Temporarily increasing physical strength state and those with locked-in syndrome.
2. Helping someone quit smoking
3. Inducing a hallucination
4. Remembering details of a crime scene

208 :: Module 5.2 : : Altered States of Consciousness: Hypnosis, Meditation, and Disorders of Consciousness
 Benne Ochs/Glow Images

Module

5.3 Drugs and Conscious Experience

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology related Drug tolerance and Your knowledge to better The difference between spiritual
After reading to different categories of dependence understand your own and recreational drug use
this module drugs and their effects on the beliefs about drug use The short- and long-term
you should nervous system and behaviour effects of drug use

Could taking a drug-induced trip be a way to cope with traumatic stress outlook on life (Griffiths et al., 2008). This study would best be described
or a life-threatening illness? A variety of medications for reducing anxiety as preliminary, as additional experiments involving controls and follow-up
or alleviating depression are readily available. However, a few doctors and evaluations are needed. It is likely that such investigations will be forthcom-
psychologists have suggested that perhaps a 6-hour trip on psychedelic ing, as Griffiths is one of several researchers who are now exploring the
“magic” mushrooms (called psilocybin) could be helpful to people deal- possibility that mushrooms and similar drugs could be used in therapy.
ing with difficult psychological and life problems. (It would also help them
communicate with the sparkling trilingual dragon sighing in the bathtub.)
Focus Questions
In the 1960s, a fringe group of psychologists insisted that psychedelic drugs
1 How do we distinguish between recreationally
were the answer to all the world’s problems. The outcast nature of this
abused drugs and therapeutic usage?
group and the ensuing “war on drugs” prompted mainstream psychologists
to shelve any ideas that a psychedelic drug or something similar could be 2 Which other motives underlie drug use?
used in a therapeutic setting. This perception appears to be changing, how-
ever. Recently, Roland Griffiths from Johns Hopkins University in Maryland
has been conducting studies on the possible therapeutic benefits of psilo-
cybin mushrooms. Cancer patients who were experiencing depression vol-
unteered to take psilocybin as a part of Dr. Griffiths’ study. Both at the end Every human culture uses drugs. It could even be argued that
of their experience and 14 months later, they reported having personally every human uses drugs, depending on your definition of the
meaningful, spiritually significant experiences that improved their overall term. Many of the foods that we eat contain the same types of

Drugs and Conscious Experience :: Module 5.3 :: 209

 compounds found in mind-altering drugs. For exam-
ple, nutmeg contains compounds similar to those
found in some psychedelic substances, and choco-
late contains small amounts of the same compounds
found in amphetamines and marijuana (Wenk, 2010).
Of course, caffeine and alcohol—both of which are
mainstream parts of our culture—are also drugs. The
difference between a drug and a nondrug compound
seems to be that drugs are taken because the user has
an intended effect in mind. Regardless of why we use
them, drugs influence the activity of some elements of
Nucleus
our central nervous system, affecting us both physically accumbens
and psychologically. In this module, we will discuss Ventral tegmental
these physical and psychological effects of drug use. We (VTA)
will then examine how these processes are affected by
{fig. 5.13} Brain Regions Associated with the Effects of
different classes of drugs. Drugs The nucleus accumbens and ventral tegmental area
are associated with reward responses to many different drugs.

Physical and Psychological Effects

of Drugs Different drugs will influence different neurotrans-
Although we often think of drugs as having a simple mitter systems. For instance, the “club drug” ecstasy
effect such as relieving pain or “getting someone high,” primarily affects serotonin levels whereas painkillers
the reality is actually much more complicated. To truly like OxyContin™ affect opioid receptors. However,
understand the impact of a drug on how people act and the brain chemical that is most often influenced by
feel, we have to look at both the short-term and the drugs is dopamine, a neurotransmitter that is involved
long-term effects of drugs. in responses to rewarding, pleasurable feelings (Volkow
et al., 2009). Dopamine release in two brain areas, the
SHORT-TERM EFFECTS As you’ve already learned nucleus accumbens and the ventral tegmental area, is likely
elsewhere in this book, your brain contains a number related to the “high” associated with many drugs (Koob,
of different chemical messengers called neurotransmit- 1992; see Figure 5.13). These positive feelings serve an
ters. These brain chemicals are released by a neuron important, and potentially dangerous, function: They
(the pre-synaptic neuron) into the synapse, the space reinforce the drug-taking behaviour. This reinforcing
between the cells. They then bind to receptors on the effect is so powerful that, for someone who has experi-
surface of other neurons (the post-synaptic neurons), ence with a particular drug, even the anticipation of tak-
thus making these neurons more or less likely to fire. ing the drug is pleasurable and involves the release of
Drugs influence the amount of activity occurring in dopamine (Schultz, 2000).
the synapse. Thus, they can serve as an agonist (which But, the drug–neurotransmitter relationship is
enhances or mimics the activity of a neurotransmitter) not as simple as it would seem. This is because the
or an antagonist (which blocks or inhibits the activity of effects of drugs involve biological, psychological, and
a neurotransmitter). social mechanisms. Think about the effects of alcohol.
The short-term effects of drugs can be caused Drinking half a bottle of wine at a party often leads
by a number of different brain mechanisms including people to be more outgoing, whereas drinking half a
(1) altering the amount of the neurotransmitter being bottle at home might cause them to fall asleep on the
released into the synapse, (2) preventing the reuptake couch. In each case, the drug was the same: alcohol.
(i.e., reabsorption back into the cell that released it) of But the effects of the drug differed because the situa-
the neurotransmitter once it has been released, thereby tions in which the drug was consumed changed. The
allowing it to have a longer influence on neurons, setting in which drugs are consumed can also have a
(3) blocking the receptor that the neurotransmitter more sinister effect: Overdoses of some drugs are more
would normally bind to, or (4) binding to the recep- common when they are taken in new environments
tor in place of the neurotransmitter. In all of these sce- than when they are taken in a setting that the person
narios, the likelihood of the postsynaptic neurons firing often uses for drug consumption (Siegel et al., 1982).
is changed, resulting in changes to how we think, act, When people enter an environment that is associ-
and feel. ated with drug use, their bodies prepare to metabolize

210 :: Module 5.3 : : Drugs and Conscious Experience

 frequent users. Think about a drug that
most of you use: caffeine (found in cof-
fee, tea, and some soft drinks). The first
time you had a cup of coffee, you were
likely wired and unable to sleep. But,
veteran coffee drinkers rarely experience
such a large burst of energy; some can
even drink coffee before going to bed.
This is an example of tolerance, when
repeated use of a drug results in a need for a
higher dose to get the intended effect. While
tolerance might seem annoying, it is
actually the brain’s attempt to keep the
level of neurotransmitters at stable levels.
When receptors are overstimulated by
Kzenon/Shutterstock neurotransmitters, as often happens dur-
Expectations and the environment both play a large role in the effects that a drug ing drug use, the neurons fire at a higher
will have on a person’s behaviour. rate than normal. In order to counteract
this effect and return the firing rate to
normal, some of the receptors move further away from
drugs even before they are consumed (i.e., their bodies the synapse so that they are more difficult to stimulate, a
become braced for the drug’s effects). Similar prepara- process known as down-regulation.
tions do not occur in new environments, which leads to Tolerance is not the only effect that can result
larger, and potentially fatal, drug effects (see Module 6.1). from long-term use of legal or illegal drugs. Another is
Another psychological factor that influences drug physical dependence, the need to take a drug to ward off
effects is the person’s experience with a drug. It takes unpleasant physical withdrawal symptoms. The characteris-
time for people to learn to associate taking the drug tics of dependence and withdrawal symptoms differ from
with the drug’s effects on the body and brain. There- drug to drug. Caffeine withdrawal can involve head and
fore, a drug might have a much more potent effect on muscle aches and impaired concentration. Withdrawal
a person the third or fourth time he took it than it did from long-term alcohol abuse is much more serious.
the first time, which is very common with some drugs, A person who is dependent on alcohol can experi-
such as marijuana. Finally, a person’s expectations about ence extremely severe, even life-threatening, withdrawal
the drug can dramatically influence its effects. If a per- symptoms including nausea, increased heart rate and
son believes that alcohol will make him less shy, then it blood pressure, and hallucinations and delirium. How-
is likely that a few glasses of wine will have that effect. ever, drug dependence is not limited to physical symp-
How can we reconcile these psychological effects toms. Psychological dependence occurs when addiction
with the physiological effects discussed above? To do develops without any physical symptoms of withdrawal. Many
so, we have to remember that the psychological states people use drugs in order to ward off negative emotions.
mentioned above also influence the activity of brain When they no longer have this defence mechanism,
areas. For instance, dealing with novel or stressful situ- they experience stress, depression, and anxiety. Therefore,
ations (e.g., being surrounded by strangers, or your par- treatment programs for addiction often include some
ents arriving home early) often requires input from the form of therapy that will allow users to learn to cope
frontal lobes; this activity might reduce the impact that with these emotional symptoms while they are attempt-
drugs are having on a person’s behaviour. A similar result ing to deal with the physical symptoms of withdrawal.
can occur when a person has expectations about a drug. There is no single cause of drug dependence;
This mental set can itself change the activity of differ- instead, researchers believe that numerous factors—
ent brain areas and can alter the effects of a drug. Thus, biological, psychological, and social—influence whether
the effects of drugs are yet another example of how our someone will become dependent upon a drug as well
biology and psychology interact to create our conscious as the severity of that dependence. Increasing evidence
experiences. suggests that genetics play a role in addiction (Foroud
et al., 2010). Currently, researchers are attempting to
LONG-TERM EFFECTS Importantly, the effects that identify the specific genes—or groups of genes—that
different drugs will have on us change as we become make someone prone to becoming addicted to different

Drugs and Conscious Experience :: Module 5.3 :: 211

 drugs such as alcohol. However, genes are obviously not
the only cause of drug dependence. Early experiences Quick Quiz 5.3a
with different drugs can shape our attitudes toward Physical and Psychological Effects of Drugs
them and influence how we consume those drugs later
1 Dependence occurs when

KNOW . . .
in life (Zucker et al., 2008). If someone tries wine in a A an individual will die if he does not continue to use
family setting, it will feel much less like a “cool” part the drug.
of teenage rebellion than if that person tries the same B an individual desires a drug for its pleasant effects.
drink at a high school house party. That initial introduc- C an individual has to take the drug to prevent or
tion can alter how that person views alcohol for years stop unpleasant withdrawal symptoms.
to come. Dependence is also influenced by the fact that D an individual requires increasingly larger amounts
drugs are often taken in the same situations, such as a cup of a substance to experience its effects.
of coffee to start your day or alcohol whenever you see
particular friends. Eventually, taking the drug becomes 2 When does drug tolerance occur?

UNDERSTAND . . .
linked in your memory to that setting or that group of A When an individual needs increasingly larger
people. When you next see those people or enter that amounts of a drug to achieve the same desired
environment, thoughts of the drug will often resurface, effect
making it more likely that you will use, or at least crave, B When individuals do not pass judgment on drug
that drug. Addiction rates are also affected by the cul- abusers

ture in which the person lives; for instance, alcoholism C When an individual experiences withdrawal
symptoms
rates are lower in religious and social groups that pro-
hibit drinking even though these groups are genetically D When an individual starts taking a new drug for
recreational purposes
similar to the rest of the population (Chentsova-Dutton
& Tsai, 2007; Haber & Jacob, 2007). Finally, all of these
3 Which is NOT a way in which drugs affect

APPLY . . .
variables interact with a person’s personality; individu-
neurotransmitter levels?
als with impulsive personality traits are more likely to
A Binding to receptors that would normally receive
become addicted to drugs regardless of their early expe- the neurotransmitters
riences or cultural setting (Lejuez et al., 2010; Perry &
B Stimulating the release of excess neurotransmitters
Carroll, 2008). Thus, drug dependence does not have a
C Preventing down-regulation from occurring
single, simple cause, but is instead influenced by a num-
D Preventing neurotransmitters from being reab-
ber of interacting factors, as would be expected by the
sorbed into the cell that released them
biopsychosocial model of behaviour.
Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

Table 5.3 :: The Major Categories of Drugs

PSYCHOLOGICAL LIKELIHOOD OF
DRUGS EFFECTS CHEMICAL EFFECTS TOLERANCE DEPENDENCE
Stimulants: cocaine, Euphoria, increased energy, Increase dopamine, serotonin, Develops quickly High
amphetamine, ecstasy lowered inhibitions norepinephrine activity
Marijuana Euphoria, relaxation, distorted Stimulates cannabinoid receptors Develops slowly Low
sensory experiences,
paranoia
Hallucinogens: LSD, Major distortion of sensory Increase serotonin activity Develops slowly Very low
psilocybin, DMT, and perceptual experiences. Block glutamate receptors
ketamine Fear, panic, paranoia
Opiates: heroin Intense euphoria, pain relief Stimulate endorphin receptors Develops quickly Very high
Sedatives: barbiturates, Drowsiness, relaxation, Increase GABA activity Develops quickly High
benzodiazepines sleep
Alcohol Euphoria, relaxation, Primarily facilitates GABA activity; Develops gradually Moderate to high
lowered inhibitions also stimulates endorphin
and dopamine receptors

212 :: Module 5.3 : : Drugs and Conscious Experience

Commonly Abused Illegal Drugs
Thus far, we have discussed some of the ways in which
drugs can affect our brain and our behaviour. These
drugs are categorized based on their effects on the ner-
vous system. Drugs can speed up the nervous system,
slow it down, stimulate its pleasure centres, or distort
how it processes the world. Table 5.3 provides an over-
view of some of the better-known drugs.
Almost all of the drugs discussed in this chapter
are known as psychoactive drugs, substances that affect
thinking, behaviour, perception, and emotion. However, not all
of them are legal. As you will see, the boundary between
illicit recreational drugs and legal prescription drugs
can be razor-thin at times. Many common prescription
medications are chemically similar, albeit safer, versions
of illicit drugs; additionally, many legal prescription drugs
are purchased illegally and used in ways not intended by
the manufacturer.
Advertising Archive/Courtesy Everett Collection
It often comes as a surprise to learn that the very substances that people can become
STIMULANTS Stimulants are a category of drugs that addicted to, or whose possession and use can even land them in prison today, were
speed up the nervous system, typically enhancing wakefulness once ingredients in everyday products. Cocaine was once used as an inexpensive,
over-the-counter pain remedy. A concoction of wine and cocaine was popular, and
and alertness. There are a number of different types of the drug was also added to cough syrups and drops for treating toothaches. Coca-
stimulant drugs, ranging from naturally occurring sub- Cola used to contain nine milligrams of cocaine per glass; this practice ceased in 1903
stances such as leaves (cocaine) and beans (coffee) to (Liebowitz, 1983).
drugs produced in a laboratory (crystal meth). Addition-
ally, each drug has its own unique effect on the nervous
system, influencing the levels of specific neurotransmitters oftentimes, however, these drugs are used recreationally. Simulate
in one of the four ways discussed earlier in this module. Other stimulants, such as methamphetamine, are not pre- What Drugs Have You
Cocaine, one of the most commonly abused stimu- scribed drugs. Methamphetamine, which stimulates the Used?
lants, is synthesized from coca leaves, most often grown in release of dopamine in presynaptic cells (see Figure 5.14),
South American countries such as Colombia, Peru, and may be even more potent than cocaine when it comes
Bolivia. The people who harvest these plants often take to addictive potential. It is also notorious for causing
the drug in its simplest form—they chew on the leaves
and experience a mild increase in energy. However, by the
time it reaches Canadian markets, it has been processed
into powder form. It is typically snorted and absorbed into
the bloodstream through the nasal passages or, if prepared
as crack cocaine, smoked in a pipe. Cocaine influences
the nervous system by blocking the reuptake of dopa-
mine in reward centres of the brain, although it can also
influence serotonin and norepinephrine levels as well (see
Figure 5.14). By preventing dopamine from being reab-
sorbed by the neuron that released it, cocaine increases the
amount of dopamine in the synapse between the cells, thus
making the postsynaptic cell more likely to fire. The result
is an increase in energy levels and a feeling of euphoria.
Amphetamines, another group of stimulants, come
in a variety of forms. Some are prescription drugs, such as
methylphenidate (Ritalin) and modafinil (Provigil), which
Multnomah County Sheriff/Splash/Newscom
are typically prescribed for attention-deficit/hyperactiv-
Theresa Baxter was 42 when the picture on the left was taken. The photo on the
ity disorder (ADHD) and narcolepsy, respectively. When right was taken 2½ years later; the effects of methamphetamine are obvious and
used as prescribed, these drugs can have beneficial effects; striking.

Drugs and Conscious Experience :: Module 5.3 :: 213

 BLUE GREEN YELLOW
Presynaptic
neuron
PINK RED ORANGE

GREY BLACK PURPLE

Methamphetamine

Increased
TAN WHITE BROWN
dopamine Cocaine
molecule
{fig. 5.15} The Stroop Test The Stroop test requires you to
release read aloud the colour of the letters of these sample words. The
blocking
dopamine task measures your ability to inhibit a natural tendency to read
Dopamine reuptake the word, rather than identify the colour. Chronic methamphet-
reuptake amine users have greater difficulty with this task than do non-
users. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.

Dopamine receptors Postsynaptic neuron

of its frequent appearance at nightclub and rave parties.
{fig. 5.14} Stimulant Effects on the Brain Like many addictive Ecstasy exerts its influence on the brain by stimulating
drugs, cocaine and amphetamines stimulate the reward centres of the
brain, including the nucleus accumbens and ventral tegmental area.
the release of massive amounts of the neurotransmitter
Cocaine works by blocking reuptake of dopamine, and methamphet- serotonin; it also blocks its reuptake, thereby ensuring
amine works by increasing the release of dopamine at presynaptic that neurons containing serotonin receptors will fire at
neurons. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.
levels much greater than normal. Ecstasy heightens phys-
ical sensations and is known to increase social bonding
Simulate significant neurological as well as external physical prob- and compassion among those who are under its influ-
Virtual Brain: Drug lems. For example, chronic methamphetamine abusers ence. Unfortunately, this drug has also been linked to a
Addiction and Brain often experience deterioration of their facial features, teeth, number of preventable deaths. Heat stroke and dehydra-
Reward Circuits and gums, owing to a combination of factors. First, meth- tion are major risks associated with ecstasy use, especially
amphetamine addiction can lead to neglect of basic dietary when the drug is taken in a rave where there is a high
and hygienic care. Second, the drug is often manufactured level of physical exertion from dancing in an overheated
from a potent cocktail of substances including hydrochlo- environment.
ric acid and farm fertilizer—it is probably not surprising The long-term effects of ecstasy use are difficult to
that these components can have serious side effects on identify because most users of this drug also abuse other
appearance and health. illegal substances. That said, studies using animals show
Long-term use of potent stimulants like metham- that MDMA damages some of the brain’s serotonin-
phetamines can actually alter the structure of the user’s producing cells (Lyles & Cadet, 2003). Additionally,
brain. Compared to non-users, people who have a his- recent neuroimaging data show that using ecstasy can
tory of abusing methamphetamine have been shown produce unique damage (independent of the effects
to have structural abnormalities of cells in the frontal of other drugs) in several areas of the cortex in the
lobes, which reduces the brain’s ability to inhibit irrel- left hemisphere (Cowan et al., 2003). Given that the
evant thoughts (Tobias et al., 2010). This ability can be left hemisphere is also critical for language abilities, it
measured through the Stroop task (Figure 5.15), which should come as no surprise that ecstasy users show slight
challenges a person’s ability to inhibit reading a word in impairments on language-based tests of memory (e.g.,
favour of identifying its colour. Methamphetamine abus- lists of words; Laws & Kokkalis, 2007).
ers had greater difficulty with this task than non-users,
and they also had reduced activity in the frontal lobes, HALLUCINOGENS Hallucinogenic drugs are sub-
likely because of the damage described previously (Salo stances that produce perceptual distortions. Depending on
et al., 2010). the type of hallucinogen consumed, these distortions
Changes in brain structure have also been noted may be visual, auditory, and sometimes tactile in nature,
in chronic users of ecstasy (3,4-methylenedioxy- such as the experience of crawling sensations against the
N-methylamphetamine or MDMA), a drug that is skin. Hallucinogens also alter how people perceive their
typically classified as a stimulant, but also has hallucinogenic own thinking. For example, deep significance may be
effects (Cowan et al., 2008). MDMA was developed in the attached to what are normally mundane objects, events,
early 1900s as a possible prescription drug. Many decades or thoughts. One commonly used hallucinogen is LSD
later, in the 1980s, it was labelled a “club drug” because (lysergic acid diethylamide), which is a laboratory-made

214 :: Module 5.3 : : Drugs and Conscious Experience

(synthetic) drug. Hallucinogenic substances also occur in some researchers have speculated that it plays a role
nature, such as psilocybin (a mushroom) and mescaline in sleep and dreaming, and even out-of-body experi-
(derived from the peyote cactus). Hallucinogens can have ences (Barbanoj et al., 2008; Strassman, 2001). DMT
very long-lasting effects—more than 12 hours for LSD, is used in Canada primarily for recreational purposes.
for example. These drugs may also elicit powerful emo- Users frequently report having intense “spiritual” expe-
tional experiences that range from extreme euphoria to riences, such as feeling connected to or communicat-
fear, panic, and paranoia. The two most common hallu- ing with divine beings (as well as aliens, plant spirits,
cinogens, LSD and psilocybin, both act on the transmis- and other beings that aren’t part of most modern peo-
sion of serotonin. ple’s version of reality). In fact, its ability to apparently
Short-acting hallucinogens have become increas- enhance spiritual experiences has been well known in
ingly popular for recreational use. The effects of two South American indigenous cultures. DMT is the pri-
of these hallucinogens, ketamine and DMT (dimeth- mary psychoactive ingredient in ayahuasca, which plays
yltryptamine), last for about an hour. Ketamine (street a central role in shamanistic rituals involving contact
names include “Special K” and “Vitamin K”) was origi- with the spirit world. An increasing number of Canadi-
nally developed as a surgical anesthetic to be used in ans have used another drug, salvia divinorum, for similar
cases where a gaseous anesthetic could not be applied, purposes.
such as on the battlefield. It has been gaining popular-
ity among university students as well as among people
who frequent dance clubs and raves. Ketamine induces
dream-like states, memory loss, dizziness, confusion,
and a distorted sense of body ownership (i.e., feeling BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
like your body and voice don’t belong to you; Fu et al.,
2005; Morgan et al., 2010). This synthetic drug blocks
PERSPECTIVES
receptors for glutamate, which is an excitatory neu- Recreational and Spiritual Uses
rotransmitter that is important for, among other things, of Salvia divinorum
memory. Salvia divinorum is an herb that grows in Central and South
The short-acting hallucinogen known as DMT America. When smoked or chewed, salvia induces highly
occurs naturally in such different places as the bark intense but short-lived hallucinations. Use of this drug also
from trees native to Central and South America and on leads to dissociative experiences—a detachment between self
the skin surface of certain toads. DMT is even found in and body (Sumnall et al., 2011).
very small, naturally produced amounts in the human Test what you know about this drug:
nervous system (Fontanilla et al., 2009). The func-
tion of DMT in the brain remains unclear, although True or False?
1. Sale, possession, and use of salvia are prohibited by the
Canadian government.
2. Very few young people in Canada who use drugs have
tried salvia.
3. Salvia has profound healing properties.

An exploration of salvia reveals a great deal about how cul-

tural views affect how drugs are perceived. A single drug
could be described as recreational, addictive, and a scourge
to society in one culture, yet highly valued and spiritually sig-
nificant to another.

Answers
1. True. It is illegal to sell salvia because it has not been
approved as a natural product by Health Canada. How-
The rubber hand illusion occurs when a volunteer places ever, enforcement of this regulation is under the control
a hand out of view behind a panel, with the rubber hand in of Health Canada’s Health Products and Food Branch
plain view. When a researcher brushes the hidden and rubber Inspectorate (which does relatively little to enforce it), not
hands at the same time, the rubber hand appears real to the
volunteer. Sober individuals experience this phenomenon, but
the RCMP. There are plans to place salvia on Schedule III of
people under the influence of ketamine have magnified illusory the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, a move that would
experiences (Morgan et al., 2010). criminalize the possession of all forms of the herb.

Drugs and Conscious Experience :: Module 5.3 :: 215

 2. False. The use of salvia is on the rise among North toward them. Although a given drug usually has standard,
Americans and Europeans, particularly among younger reliable effects on brain chemistry, the subjective experi-
people (Nyi et al., 2010). Approximately 7.3% of Cana- ence it provides, the purposes it is used for, and people’s
dians aged 15–24 have tried it (Canadian Alcohol and attitudes toward the drug may vary widely, depending on
Drug Use Survey, Health Canada, 2010). the cultural context.
3. False. There is no scientific evidence that salvia has healing
properties. Whether one agrees with this statement, how-
ever, depends on who is [Link] the Mazateca people
of Mexico, salvia is used in divine rituals in which an indi-
vidual communicates with the spiritual world. Shamans of MARIJUANA Thus far, we have discussed drugs
the Mazateca people use salvia for spiritual healing sessions. that stimulate the central nervous system and drugs
They believe the drug has profound medicinal properties. that lead to altered states of consciousness. However,
Drugs such as salvia and ayahuasca raise impor- not all drugs neatly fi t into these distinct categories.
tant questions about the effects of drugs and our view For instance, marijuana is a drug comprising the leaves
and buds of the Cannabis plant that produces a combina-
tion of hallucinogenic, stimulant, and relaxing (narcotic)
eff ects . These buds contain a high concentration of a
compound called tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). THC
mimics anandamide, a brain chemical that occurs natu-
rally in the brain and the peripheral nerves. Both anan-
damide and THC bind to cannabinoid receptors and
induce feelings of euphoria, relaxation, reduced pain,
and heightened and sometimes distorted sensory expe-
riences (Edwards et al., 2012; Ware et al., 2010). They
also stimulate one’s appetite (Kirkham, 2009). Although
“having the munchies” might seem like a funny side
effect for recreational users, it is an incredibly impor-
Ted Kinsman/Science Source tant benefit for cancer sufferers who use medicinal
Salvia divinorum is a type of sage plant that grows naturally in marijuana to counteract the nausea and lack of appetite
Central and South America. Users of the herb combine juices that occurs following chemotherapy (Machado Rocha
from the leaves with tea for drinking, or the leaves are chewed
or smoked. et al., 2008).
From the above list, it is clear that marijuana use can
affect a number of different behaviours. Missing from
this list, however, are the effects that this drug can have
on our cognitive abilities.

Don Ryan/AP Images JeremyNathan/Shutterstock

Head shops in Canada sell salvia in packets for immediate THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, has been shown
consumption, despite the fact that it is technically illegal to do to have a number of effects, including stimulating hunger,
so. This practice may not occur for much longer if the drug is reducing pain, altering sensory experiences, inducing
reclassified under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. euphoria, and altering memory and cognition.

216 :: Module 5.3 : : Drugs and Conscious Experience

 How can science
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC explain these
LITERACY MODEL effects?
Marijuana, Memory, and Cognition Neuroimaging results indi-
cate that the memory and
No one doubts that marijuana affects a person’s thinking cognitive difficulties experienced by people who smoke
and behaviour. That said, descriptions of the exact nature marijuana are likely related to changes in how these people’s
of these effects are often more anecdotal than scientific. brains function. Numerous studies have noted that reduced
The earliest reference to marijuana is found in the ancient performance on memory tests is related to decreases in
Hindu text Raja Nirghanta , which translates the drug as brain activity in the right frontal lobe (Block et al., 2002;
“ promoter of success,” “the cause of the reeling gait,” Jager et al., 2007). Interestingly, some researchers have found
and “the laughter moving” (see Chopra & Chopra, 1957). that even when marijuana users and healthy control par-
Indeed. More recent descriptions have noted that mari- ticipants produce the same results on a memory test, their
juana’s effects on your ability to think are both widespread brains generate different patterns of activity. For instance,
and testable. Kanayama and colleagues (2004) found that participants who
had recently smoked marijuana (< 24 hours ago) were able
to perform a spatial memory task; but doing so recruited a
What do we know much more widespread network of brain regions, including
about the effects of several that are not typically associated with memory. This
marijuana on memory suggests that the brains of marijuana users need to work
and cognition? harder to reach the same level of performance, oftentimes
relying on additional brain structures to help out (Jager
Studies of people under the
et al., 2006).
influence of marijuana have
demonstrated a number of dif- Problems with executive functions can also be explained, at
ferent impairments to memory least in part, by differing patterns of brain activity. The inabil-
processes (Crean et al., 2011). ity to inhibit responses on a Stroop task (which was dis-
Several researchers have con- cussed earlier in this module) was related to the fact that
firmed that marijuana disrupts short-term memory (Ran- marijuana users had less activity than healthy controls in a
ganathan & D’Souza, 2006). Studies of long-term memory number of frontal-lobe regions (Eldreth et al., 2004; Gruber
indicate that people under the influence of marijuana have & Yurgelun-Todd, 2005). These studies also demonstrated
difficulty recalling words from lists, but are still able to rec- that, similar to the memory studies, the brains of marijuana
ognize items that they have seen before (Miller & Cornett, users had additional activity in brain regions not typically
1978). They also show a reduced ability to recall information associated with the task they were performing. In other
from prose passages (Miller et al., 1977). Importantly, there words, these brains had to find alternative networks to allow
was a tendency for people who were “high” to commit intrusion them to compensate for the marijuana so that they could
errors—adding in words that were not actually on a list of still perform the task (Martín-Santos et al., 2010).
to-be-remembered items—and to inaccurately believe that
they recognized an item that was not previously presented
(i.e., a “false positive”; Hooker & Jones, 1987; Pfefferbaum Can we critically evaluate
et al., 1977). this information?
Marijuana also affects a number of cognitive abilities. Execu- When we look at these data, we have
tive functions, such as decision making and the control of to remember that fMRI activity is
attention, are critical for dealing with novel situations, and correlational. The orange and yellow
for changing or inhibiting responses to stimuli in the envi- “lights” in the brain pictures represent
ronment. Many executive functions are impaired by THC. areas that are activated at the same
For instance, marijuana slows the decision-making pro- time that a person is performing a task; but, it doesn’t mean
cess (Vadhan et al., 2007) and can also reduce its accuracy that those areas are causing the person’s behaviour. More
(Ramaekers et al., 2006). It also impairs people’s ability to importantly, we have to think of the participants in drug
problem solve and to change their strategies while perform- studies. Many of the people involved in these studies use
ing a task (Bolla et al., 2002; Pope et al., 2003). Addition- more than one drug (e.g., marijuana plus alcohol, tobacco,
ally, research suggests that recreational marijuana users and possibly other drugs). It is therefore difficult to isolate
have poorer attentional abilities (Hermann et al., 2007), the effects of marijuana by itself on cognition. In order to
although the evidence for this latter claim is mixed (Crean support the claims that marijuana does impair memory and
et al., 2011). executive functions, we can look at which areas of the brain

Drugs and Conscious Experience :: Module 5.3 :: 217

 recovering from their drug addiction; this difficulty makes
it more likely that they will relapse and begin using mari-
juana again (Crean et al., 2011). This is problematic given
that heavy long-term use of marijuana is related to a four-
point decline in IQ scores (a number that isn’t huge, but
is still something to think about; Fried et al., 2002). More
importantly, the data we’ve discussed indicate that the
frontal lobes, which are not fully developed until the late
teens, are sensitive to marijuana. This is a cause for con-
cern. The brain develops in a step-by-step fashion, with
higher-order cognitive areas (i.e., the frontal lobes) devel-
oping after other areas have fully matured (Gogtay et al.,
2004). Using marijuana during an earlier stage of develop-
ment can therefore have a much larger effect on a per-
son’s future than if the same dose were to be consumed
or smoked later in life (Squeglia et al., 2009). Unfortu-
National Institute of Drug Abuse nately for teenage pot smokers, data support this assertion.
Increasing evidence indicates that the effects of marijuana
The locations of the CB1 receptors, which bind to the active
ingredient in marijuana, help explain the diverse effects users on memory and executive functions are much larger in
often experience. CB1 receptors are found in the frontal lobes people who started taking the drug before the age of 17
(executive functions), hippocampus (memory), and cerebellum (Brook et al., 2008; Pope et al., 2003). These data therefore
(coordination of movement). They are also found in the suggest that prevention programs should specifically tar-
nucleus accumbens, an area related to the rewarding feeling
get teens to ensure that their cognitive abilities don’t go
associated with many drugs.
up in smoke.

are involved with these abilities and then see if marijuana

targets those areas. Memory involves the hippocampus and
the frontal lobes (among other areas). Executive functions
use the frontal lobes, particularly in the medial (middle)
regions of the brain. As it turns out, a receptor sensitive
to THC, the cannabinoid (CB1) receptor, is found through-
out the hippocampus (Heyser et al., 1993) and in the medial
region of the frontal lobes (Pertwee & Ross, 2002). Further
research has shown that stimulating the CB1 receptor influ-
ences dopamine levels in the frontal lobes (Chen et al., 1990;
Pistis et al., 2001), which results in impairments in short-
term memory and higher-level thinking (Ranganathan &
D’Souza, 2006). Thus, there is a cellular-level mechanism
that can explain (some of) the odd behaviours that you see
when people are smoking up.

Why is this relevant?

Individuals who have marijuana-
related problems with executive
functions have trouble learning
and using the skills necessary for JanMika/Fotolia

Currently, marijuana is the most commonly used which includes well-known narcotics such as heroin, as
illegal drug in Canada. Indeed, the prevalence of mari- well as many commonly abused prescription drugs.
juana use in the past year for people 15–24 was 21.6%
(Canadian Alcohol and Drug Use Monitoring Survey, Opiates Opiates ( also called narcotics ) are drugs such
Health Canada, 2012). This high usage rate reflects, in as heroin and morphine that reduce pain and induce
part, the fact that this drug is so readily available. A simi- extremely intense feelings of euphoria. These drugs bind to
lar issue is emerging for another class of drugs, opiates, endorphin receptors in the nervous system. Endorphins

218 :: Module 5.3 : : Drugs and Conscious Experience

(“endogenous morphine”) are neurotransmitters that 3 Which statement best illustrates the relationship

ANALYZE . . .
reduce pain and produce pleasurable sensations—effects between spiritual and recreational uses of drugs?
magnified by opiates. Naturally occurring opiates are A Drugs that are treated as illegal in Canada are
derived from certain species of poppy plants that are generally considered illegal everywhere.
primarily grown in Asia and the Middle East. Opiate B Drugs have different effects on brain chemistry
drugs are very common in medical and emergency depending on the culture.

room settings. For example, the drug fentanyl is used C Drugs can provide different subjective experiences
depending on the culture.
in emergency rooms to treat people in extreme pain. A
street version of fentanyl, known as “China White,” can D Drugs that are legal in Canada are usually illegal
and considered dangerous in other cultures.
be more than 20 times the strength of more commonly
sold doses of heroin. Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
Treating opiate addiction can be incredibly chal-
lenging. People who are addicted to opiates and other
highly addictive drugs enter a negative cycle of having Legal Drugs and Their Effects
to use these drugs simply to ward off withdrawal effects,
rather than to actually achieve the sense of euphoria they
on Consciousness
may have experienced when they started using them. So far we have covered drugs that are, for the most part,
Methadone is an opioid (a synthetic opiate) that binds produced and distributed illegally. Some prescription
to opiate receptors but does not give the same kind of drugs can also have profound effects on consciousness
high that heroin does. A regimen of daily methadone and, as a consequence, are targets for misuse.
treatment can help people who are addicted to opiates
SEDATIVES Sedative drugs, sometimes referred to as
avoid painful withdrawal symptoms as they learn to cope
“downers,” depress activity of the central nervous system. Bar-
without the drug. In recent years, newer alternatives to
biturates were an early form of medication used to treat
methadone have been found to be more effective and
anxiety and promote sleep. High doses of these drugs can
need to be taken only a few times per week.
shut down the brain stem regions that regulate breath-
Another opioid, oxycodone (OxyContin ®), has
ing, so their medical use has largely been discontinued in
helped many people reduce severe pain while having
favour of safer drugs. Barbiturates have a high potential
relatively few side effects. Unfortunately, this drug, along
for abuse, typically by people who want to lower inhibi-
with a similar product, Percocet®, has very high abuse
tions, relax, and try to improve their sleep. (Incidentally,
potential. It is often misused, especially by those who
these agents do not really improve sleep. Barbiturates
have obtained it through illegal means (i.e., without a
actually reduce the amount of REM sleep.)
prescription). Indeed, the abuse of prescription opiates is
Newer forms of sedative drugs, called benzodiaz-
a growing problem in Canada, particularly among high
epines, include prescription drugs such as Xanax, Ativan,
school students and the elderly (Sproule et al., 2009);
and Valium. These drugs increase the effects of gamma-
this topic will be discussed in more detail later in this
aminobutyric acid (GABA), an inhibitory neurotrans-
module.
mitter that helps reduce feelings of anxiety or panic. The
major advantage of benzodiazepine drugs over barbi-
turates is that they do not specifically target the brain
Quick Quiz 5.3b regions responsible for breathing and, even at high doses,
Commonly Abused Illegal Drugs are unlikely to be fatal. However, people under the influ-
1 ________ are drugs that increase nervous system activity. ence of any kind of sedative are at greater risk for injury
KNOW . . .

A Hallucinogens or death due to accidents caused by their diminished

B Narcotics attention, reaction time, and motor control.
C Psychoactive drugs
PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE Prescription drugs are
D Stimulants
commonly abused by illicit users; over 15% of Canadian
high school students have reported abusing prescription
2 Drugs that are best known for their ability to alter normal
drugs at some point in their lives (Hammond et al., 2010;
visual and auditory perceptions are called ________.
Figure 5.16). The prevalence of prescription drug abuse
A hallucinogens
becomes even more extreme when these students enter
B narcotics
university. Surveys have shown that as many as 31% of uni-
C psychoactive drugs
versity students sampled have abused Ritalin, the stimulant
D stimulants commonly prescribed as a treatment for ADHD (Bogle &

Drugs and Conscious Experience :: Module 5.3 :: 219

 Percentage of grade 12 students who have tried a drug at least once
100
90
80
70

Percentage
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
ol

ia

es

n
en

ug

as
an

oi
cc

lv
h

in
ai

er
co

Sa
st
og
iju

Dr
ba

am
oc

H
Ec
Al

ar

n
To

et
ci
M

tio
lu

ph
ip
al

Am
cr
H

es
Pr
{fig. 5.16} Frequency of Drug Use among Grade 12 Students The abuse of prescription and over-the-counter drugs is
becoming increasingly common in Canada. In a 2008 nationwide survey, over 15% of Grade 12 students admitted to illegally using
these drugs at least once. This figure illustrates how the prevalence of prescription drug abuse compares to that of other frequently
abused substances (adapted from Hammond et al., 2010).

Smith, 2009). A massive number of prescription drugs are tablet frees its opioid component oxycodone from the
available on the market, including stimulants, opiates, and slow-release mechanism; it can then be inhaled or dis-
sedatives. In 2011, 3.2% of Canadians (approximately 1.1 solved in liquid and injected to provide a rapid “high”
million people) used prescription drugs for nonmedical rea- (Carise et al., 2007). Almost 80% of people entering
sons within the year prior to the survey (Health Canada, treatment programs for OxyContin abuse admitted that
2012). Users typically opt for prescription drugs as their the drug was not prescribed to them, suggesting that
drugs of choice because they are legal (when used as pre- there is a flourishing trade in this drug. Indeed, a recent
scribed), pure (i.e., not contaminated or diluted), and rela- study of drug users in Vancouver found that OxyCon-
tively easy to get. Prescription drugs are typically taken at tin is quite easy to illegally purchase in Canada (Nosyk
large doses, and administered in such a way to get a quicker, et al., 2012); not surprisingly, the number of people
more intense effect—for example, by crushing and snort- entering drug rehabilitation programs for oxycodone
ing stimulants such as Ritalin (see Figure 5.17). abuse is also increasing (Sproule et al., 2009). In order to
Some of the most commonly abused prescription counteract this trend, Purdue Pharma Canada, the com-
drugs in Canada are painkillers such as OxyContin®. pany that makes the drug, has replaced it with a simi-
When used normally, OxyContin is a pain-reliever that lar substance, OxyNeo®, that is more difficult to grind
slowly releases an opioid over the course of approxi- up into a powder. However, this action will likely have
mately 12 hours, thus making it a relatively safe product little effect on addiction rates—in April 2013, the fed-
(Roth et al., 2000). However, crushing the OxyContin eral government allowed six pharmaceutical companies
to begin manufacturing generic (cheaper) versions of
the drug.
Curbing prescription drug abuse poses quite a chal-
100% lenge. Approaches to reducing this problem include
efforts to develop pain medications that do not act on
Cocaine pleasure and reward centres of the brain. For example,
11% pain can be reduced by the administration of compounds
that stimulate cannabinoid receptors in peripheral
regions of the nervous system, thereby avoiding the high
associated with stimulation of receptors within the brain.
Methylphenidate
Many communities offer prescription drug disposal
The National Institute on Drug Abuse
opportunities, which helps remove unused drugs from
{fig. 5.17} Ritalin and Cocaine Stimulants like methylphe-
nidate (Ritalin) affect the same areas of the brain as cocaine, actual or potential circulation. In addition, doctors and
albeit with different speed and intensity. other health care professionals are becoming increasingly

220 :: Module 5.3 : : Drugs and Conscious Experience

aware that some individuals seeking prescription drugs frontal lobes (which help inhibit behaviour) are not fully
are doing so because they are addicted to them. developed. Alcohol myopia is also more likely to occur
in people with low self-esteem; these individuals may
ALCOHOL Alcohol can be found in nearly every cul- focus on their fear of social rejection and will respond by Watch
ture, although some frown on its use more than others. engaging in risky behaviours that they feel will lead to Alcoholism
Alcohol use is a part of cherished social and spiritual rit- social acceptance (MacDonald & Martineau, 2002).
uals, but is also associated with violence and accidents. It
has the power to change societies, in some cases for the
worse. Several decades ago, “problem drinking” was not PSYCH @
an issue for the Carib people of Venezuela, for example.
During specific yearly festivals, alcohol was brewed and University Parties
consumed in limited amounts. In more recent years, the Researchers have determined that university
influence of Western civilization has led to the emergence students drink significantly more than their peers who do not
of problems with alcohol abuse and alcoholism in this attend university (Carter et al., 2010). In one study, nearly half
group of people (Seale et al., 2002). Most societies regard of the university student participants binge-drank, one-third
alcohol as an acceptable form of drug use, though they drove under the influence, 10% to 12% sustained an injury or
may attempt to limit and regulate its use through legal were assaulted while intoxicated, and 2% were victims of date
rape while drinking (Hingson et al., 2009). Alcohol abuse in
means. Customs and social expectations also affect usage.
our society is widespread, especially during times of celebra-
For example, drinking—especially heavy drinking—is
tion (Glindemann et al., 2007), so it might seem as if univer-
considered more socially acceptable for men than for sities have few options at their disposal to reduce reckless
women. drinking on campus. Psychologists Kent Glindemann, Scott
Alcohol has a number of effects on the brain. It ini- Geller, and their associates, however, have conducted some
tially targets GABA receptors, and subsequently affects interesting field studies in fraternity houses at their U.S. uni-
opiate and dopamine receptors. The stimulation of opi- versity. For example, in two separate studies, these research-
ate and dopamine receptors accounts for the euphoria ers measured the typical blood-alcohol level at fraternity
associated with lower doses as well its rewarding effects. parties. They then offered monetary awards or entry into
The release of GABA, an inhibitory neurotransmitter, a raffle for fraternities that could keep their average blood-
reduces the activity of the central nervous system, which alcohol level below 0.05 at their next party. The interventions
helps explain the impairments in balance and coordina- proved to be successful in both studies, with blood-alcohol
levels being significantly reduced from the baseline (Fournier
tion associated with consumption of alcohol. But if alco-
et al., 2004; Glindemann et al., 2007).
hol increases the release of an inhibitory brain chemical,
why do people become less inhibited when they drink?
The reason for this behaviour is that alcohol inhibits the
frontal lobes of the brain. One function of the frontal
lobes is to inhibit behaviour and impulses, and alcohol
appears to impair the frontal lobe’s ability to do so—in
other words, it inhibits an inhibitor.
The lowered inhibitions associated with alcohol may
help people muster the courage to perform a toast at a
wedding, but many socially unacceptable consequences
are also associated with alcohol use. Alcohol abuse has
been linked to health problems, sexual and physical assault,
automobile accidents, missing work or school, unplanned
pregnancies, and contracting sexually transmitted diseases
(Griffin et al., 2010). These effects are primarily associ-
ated with heavy consumption, which can often lead to
alcohol myopia (Steele & Josephs, 1990). When intoxicated,
people often pay more attention to cues related to their
desires and impulses (e.g., good-looking people) and less
attention to cues related to inhibiting those desires (e.g., Kzenon/[Link]
Holidays, birthdays, and other celebrations are associated with higher than normal
friends, condom machines). This tendency to focus on
levels of intoxication. For instance, researchers found that birthdays and St. Patrick’s
short-term rewards rather than long-term consequences Day were associated with a 0.02 increase in the average blood-alcohol level of U.S.
is particularly noticeable in underage drinkers whose fraternity members (Glindemann et al., 2007).

Drugs and Conscious Experience :: Module 5.3 :: 221

 WHY ARE SOME DRUGS LEGAL AND OTHERS marijuana’s most dangerous effects are to the lungs and
ILLEGAL? In the November 2012 U.S. election, Col- to short-term memory (and perhaps the waistline).Yet, it
orado and Washington (the state, not Washington, D.C.) is legal to buy alcohol in Canada (and even at gas stations
voted to legalize marijuana. Colorado Governor John in the U.S.!), while marijuana is bought and sold illegally,
Hickenlooper cautioned users by noting that, “[F]ederal with users risking criminal records every time they light
law still says marijuana is an illegal drug, so don’t break up. A counter-argument is that police can use a breatha-
out the Cheetos or Goldfish too quickly.” That caveat lyzer to test if people are drinking and driving whereas
aside, these votes do suggest that attitudes toward cer- no such test is available for marijuana, a drug known to
tain drugs are changing in the U.S., which has tradition- interfere with coordination. As you can see, the decision
ally been much more conservative than Canada. They to legalize or criminalize a drug is not a simple one.
also force us to more carefully examine why some drugs The purpose of this section is not to promote one
are labelled as being legal or illegal. drug or another! But, it is to promote critical thinking
It makes sense for drugs with intense effects such and the use of science when making [Link] gen-
as opium to be illegal but for chemically similar drugs eration will likely be asked to make legal decisions about
with weaker effects such as OxyContin to be legal (with a number of drugs ranging from marijuana to several
prescriptions). But, some distinctions are less clear. Nico- often-abused prescription drugs. Using rigorously con-
tine is more addictive than THC, the active ingredient trolled experiments to test the physiological and psycho-
in marijuana, yet the selling of tobacco products is legal logical effects of different drugs will allow you to make
and marijuana is not. As you read earlier in this module, informed decisions about whether or not that substance
alcohol can lead to violence and many risky behaviours; should be banned.

Quick Quiz 5.3c Legal Drugs and Their Effects on Consciousness

1 Drugs that depress the activity of the central nervous 3 Why are benzodiazepines believed to be safer than
ANALYZE . . .
KNOW . . .

system are known as __________. barbiturates?

A stimulants C hallucinogens A Barbiturates can inhibit the brain’s control of
breathing.
B sedatives D GABAs
B Benzodiazepines can be prescribed legally, but
barbiturates cannot.
2 Research shows that one effective way to decrease
APPLY . . .

C No one misuses benzodiazepines.

problem drinking on a college or university campus is to
A hold informative lectures that illustrate the dangers D Both benzodiazepines and barbiturates are viewed
of drinking. as equally dangerous.

B give up—there is little hope for reducing drinking Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
on campus.
C provide monetary incentives for student groups to
maintain a low average blood-alcohol level.
D threaten student groups with fines if they are
caught drinking.

222 :: Module 5.3 : : Drugs and Conscious Experience

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
5.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology related to different categories

of drugs and their effects on the nervous system and
behaviour : Benne Ochs/Glow Images
ecstasy (MDMA) (p. 214) psychological dependence
hallucinogenic drugs (p. 214) (p. 211) APPLY . . .
marijuana (p. 216) sedative drugs (p. 219)
stimulants (p. 213) ● Your knowledge to better understand your own beliefs
opiates (p. 218)
tolerance (p. 211)
about drug use. One tool that might help you in this
physical dependence (p. 211)
regard is the scale in Table 5.4. For each item on the left,
psychoactive drugs (p. 213)
circle the number in the column that represents your level
of agreement.
UNDERSTAND . . .
ANALYZE . . .
● Drug tolerance and dependence. Tolerance is a
physiological process in which repeated exposure to a ● The difference between spiritual and recreational
drug leads to a need for increasingly larger dosages to drug use. The difference, such as in the case of salvia, is
experience the intended effect. Physical dependence dependent upon cultural factors, the setting in which the
occurs when the user takes a drug to avoid withdrawal drug is used, and the expectations of the user.
symptoms. Psychological dependence occurs when people
● The short- and long-term effects of drug use. Review
feel addicted to a drug despite the absence of physical
Table 5.3 (page 212) for a summary of short-term effects
withdrawal symptoms; this form of dependence is often
of the major drug categories. Long-term effects of drug use
related to a person’s emotional reasons for using a drug
include tolerance, physical dependence, and psychological
(e.g., dealing with stress or negative emotions).
dependence. Additionally, long-term use of a number of drugs
can change the structure of the brain, leading to permanent
deficits in a number of different cognitive and physical abilities.

Table 5.4 :: What Are Your Beliefs About Drug Use?

After you have circled an answer for each item, add up all the circled numbers to find your final score.
STRONGLY STRONGLY
DISAGREE DISAGREE NEUTRAL AGREE AGREE
Marijuana should be legalized. 1 2 3 4 5

Marijuana use among teachers can be just healthy experimentation. 1 2 3 4 5

Personal use of drugs should be legal in the confines of one’s own home. 1 2 3 4 5

Daily use of one marijuana cigarette is not necessarily harmful. 1 2 3 4 5

Tobacco smoking should be allowed in high schools. 1 2 3 4 5

It can be normal for a teenager to experiment with drugs. 1 2 3 4 5

Persons convicted for the sale of illicit drugs should not be eligible for parole. 5 4 3 2 1

Lifelong abstinence is a necessary goal in the treatment of alcoholism. 5 4 3 2 1

Once a person becomes drug-free through treatment he can never 5 4 3 2 1

become a social user.

Parents should teach their children how to use alcohol. 5 4 3 2 1

Total

Source: Chappel,Veach, & Krug, 1985.

Note: This scale measures permissive attitudes toward substance use and abuse. Higher scores indicate more permissive attitudes.

Drugs and Conscious Experience :: Module 5.3 :: 223

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding the Rhythms of Sleep

1 What do we know about the stages of sleep?

As part of our circadian rhythm (see page 182 for a broad overview),
2 How can science help explain the
importance of sleep?
sleep follows a relatively predictable pattern. Review Figure 5.3 on page 184 Devices such as the electroencephalogram (EEG) have allowed
for a snapshot of the various sleep stages and the brain wavelength activity that modern sleep researchers to isolate sleep stages, differenti-
characterizes each stage. To get to know your brain waves, review the discus- ate between REM and non-REM sleep, and explore the con-
sion on page 184. As noted there, beta waves are characteristic of wakeful- sequences of sleep deprivation. New information like the
ness. Hint: Beta starts with a b for “busy”—the activity level of your brain while suggested link between stage 2 sleep spindles and memory for-
you are awake. Other wavelengths include alpha (characteristic of a relaxed mation is a result of research taking advantage of this kind of
state), theta (early stages of sleep), and delta (deep sleep). The first four stages technology. Research also shows that even minor sleep distur-
of sleep are collectively known as non-REM sleep. REM sleep occurs after the bances, such as turning the clock forward for Daylight Savings
last stage of non-REM sleep and is the stage in which we do most of our Time or experiencing jetlag, can affect natural sleep [Link]
dreaming. If you’re having trouble remembering the difference between non- negative effects of sleep deprivation are also well documented
REM and REM sleep, note that REM sleep is also called paradoxical sleep. During by research; page 187 describes a study reporting a correlation
the restorative REM sleep stage, brain activity increases to the point where it between teenagers’ lack of sleep and an increase in illness, fam-
resembles wakefulness (beta waves), but your body is paradoxically in a state of ily problems, and even substance abuse. Researchers have also
sleep and temporary loss of muscle tone. While our need for REM sleep might shown that driving while sleepy can be as dangerous as driv-
change from infancy to older adulthood, the stages of sleep we cycle through ing under the influence of alcohol, and that the long, demanding
remain constant. work shifts that deprive doctors and nurses of
needed rest can lead to job stress, burnout, and
potentially tragic errors in medical care.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video
excerpt on the rhythms of consciousness.
You can access the video at MyPsychLab or by Lava 4 images/Shutterstock
clicking the play button in the centre of your
eText. If your instructor assigns this video as a homework activity,
you will find additional content to help you in MyPsychLab. You 3 Can we critically evaluate claims about sleep?
Many people worry that they are not getting enough sleep. Con-
can also view the video by using your smart phone and the QR sider what you know about the available research. Do we all need a solid
code below, or you can go to the YouTube link provided. 8 hours of sleep nightly to be functioning members of society? Because
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, imagine we are all unique individuals, our bodies may require more or less sleep.
that your roommate has been coming back to the dorm at all A better rule of thumb than just counting your number of hours slept
hours of the night, disrupting your sleep. Describe a typical night’s is to think about how well rested you may feel during the day. When it
sleep cycle and then describe how your sleep is affected when comes to shift workers and schedules, adjusting the distribution of hours
you are woken up during each of the different stages of sleep. Be worked (see Figure 5.6 on page 188) has a positive effect on cognitive
sure to differentiate the impact in all the stages. functioning. Also, if you’re not feeling well rested, before turning to sleep-
aid drugs, consider improving your sleep hygiene by following some of
the methods in Table 5.1 on page 196.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]/wor
[Link]/workthemodel
workth
k hemod
kthemo
kth del
del
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

224 :: Chapter 5 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 6
Learning
6.1 Classical Conditioning: Learning
by Association
● Pavlov’s Dogs: Classical
Conditioning of Salivation p. 227
● Processes of Classical
Conditioning p. 230
● Applications of Classical
Conditioning p. 232
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Conditioning and Negative
Political Advertising p. 236
● Learning without Awareness p. 239
● Module Summary p. 242

6.2 Operant Conditioning: Learning

through Consequences
● Processes of Operant
Conditioning p. 244
● Applications of Operant
Conditioning p. 251
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Reinforcement and Superstition p. 253
● Module Summary p. 257

6.3 Cognitive and Observational

Learning
● Cognitive Perspectives
on Learning p. 259
● Observational Learning p. 260
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Linking Media Exposure
to Behaviour p. 263
● Module Summary p. 267 lculig/Shutterstock

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 268
 Brenda Carson/Fotolia

Module

6.1 Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology How responses learned through classical The concepts and terms Claims that artificially
After reading involved in classical conditioning can be acquired and lost of classical conditioning sweetened beverages
this module conditioning to new examples are a healthier choice
The role of biological and evolutionary
you should factors in classical conditioning

What do you think of when you smell freshly baked cookies? Chances Focus Questions
are you associate the smell of cookies with your mother or grandmother,
and immediately experience a flood of memories associated with them. 1 Which types of behaviours can be learned?
These associations form naturally. It is quite unlikely that your grand- 2 Do all instances of classical conditioning
mother shoved a chocolate chip cookie under your nose and screamed, go undetected by the individual?
“Remember me!” Instead, you linked these two stimuli together in your
mind; now, the smell of cookies is associated with the idea of grand-
mother. This ability to associate stimuli provides important evolution-
ary advantages: It means that you can use one stimulus to predict the
appearance of another, and that your body can initiate its response to the
second stimulus before it even appears. Although the link between your
Learning is a process by which behaviour or knowledge changes as a
grandmother and the smell of cookies does not seem related to your
result of experience. To many people, the term “learning” signifies the
survival, similar associations such as the smell of a food that made you
sick and a feeling of revulsion just might. Interestingly, we are not the only activities that students do—reading, listening, and taking tests in
species with this ability—even the simplest animals such as the earth- order to acquire new information. This process, which is known
worm can learn by association, suggesting that these associations are in as cognitive learning, is just one type of learning, however. Another
fact critical for survival. In this module, we will explore the different pro- way that we learn is by associative learning, which is the focus of this
cesses that influence how these associations form. module.

226 :: Module 6.1 : : Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association

Pavlov’s Dogs: Classical
Conditioning of Salivation
Research on associative learning has a long
history in psychology, dating back to Ivan
Pavlov (1849–1936), a Russian physiologist
and the 1904 Nobel laureate in medicine
(for work on digestion, not his now-famous
conditioning research). Pavlov studied diges-
tion, using dogs as a model species for his
experiments. As a part of his normal research
procedure, he collected saliva and other
gastric secretions from the dogs when they
were presented with meat powder. Pavlov
and his assistants noticed that as they pre-
pared dogs for procedures, even before any
meat powder was presented, the dogs would
start salivating. This curious observation led
Pavlov to consider the possibility that diges-
tive responses were more than just simple
reflexes in response to food. If dogs salivate
in anticipation of food, then perhaps the sal-
ivary response can also be learned (Pavlov’s
lab assistants refer red to them as “psy-
chic secretions”). Pavlov began conducting
experiments in which he first presented a
sound from a metronome, a device that pro-
duces ticking sounds at set intervals, and {fig. 6.1} Associative Learning Although much information may pass through the dog’s brain,
in Pavlov’s experiments on classical conditioning an association was made between the tone and
then presented meat powder to the dogs. the food. (Pavlov used a metronome as well as other devices for presenting sounds. In this mod-
After pairing the sound with the food sev- ule, the term “tone” represents the stimulus that was paired with food in his experiments.)
eral times, Pavlov discovered that the met-
ronome by itself could elicit salivation (see
Figure 6.1). contact, elicit different types of responses. An uncondi- Watch
Pavlov’s discovery began a long tradition of inquiry tioned stimulus (US) is a stimulus that elicits a reflex- The Big Picture: What
into what is now called classical conditioning—learning ive response without learning. In each context, the terms Does It Mean to Learn?
that occurs when a neutral stimulus elicits a response that was “conditioning” and “learning” are synonymous. Thus
originally caused by another stimulus. In Pavlov’s experi- the “unconditioned” part of the unconditioned stimu-
ments, the neutral stimulus was the sound of the tone, lus refers to the fact that it can elicit a response in the
which was paired with meat powder that could by itself absence of any learning. An unconditioned response
elicit salivation ( Figure 6.2 ). After repeated pairings, (UR) is a reflexive, unlearned reaction to an unconditioned
the dogs learned that the tone predicted meat powder. stimulus. In Pavlov’s experiment, meat powder elicited
Eventually, just hearing the tone alone could elicit sali- unconditioned salivation in his dogs (see the top panel Watch
vation. Classical conditioning, also referred to as Pavlov- of Figure 6.2). The link between the US and the UR is, Basics: Classical
ian conditioning, influences many other responses as well by definition, unlearned. The dog’s parents did not have Conditioning: An
and occurs in a variety of settings. Indeed, Pavlov’s work to teach it to salivate when food appeared; this response Involuntary Response
inspired thousands of future studies and served as one of occurs naturally. In addition to food eliciting salivation,
the foundations of behaviourism, a line of inquiry focused other unconditioned stimulus and response relationships
on observable behaviours rather than unobservable men- include flinching (a UR) in response to a loud sound
tal events (see Module 1.2). (US), and blinking (UR) in response to a puff of air to the
You can think about classical conditioning in eye (US).
mechanical terms—that is, one event causes another. A Recall that a defining characteristic of classical
stimulus is an external event or cue that elicits a response. conditioning is that a neutral stimulus comes to elicit
Stimuli (plural), such as food, water, pain, or sexual a response. It does so because the neutral stimulus is

Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association :: Module 6.1 :: 227

 Before conditioning Unconditioned response
(UR) salivation
Unconditioned stimulus
(US) food

Before conditioning
Neutral stimulus
(NS) metronome
No salivation

During conditioning
Neutral stimulus
(NS) metronome Unconditioned stimulus Unconditioned response
(US) food (UR) salivation

After conditioning
Conditioned stimulus Conditioned response
(CS) metronome (CR) salivation

Explore {fig. 6.2} Pavlov’s Salivary Conditioning Experiment Food elicits the unconditioned response of salivation. Before condition-
Three Stages of ing, the tone elicits no response by the dog. During conditioning, the tone repeatedly precedes the food. After conditioning, the
tone alone elicits salivation. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.
Classical Conditioning

paired with, and therefore predicts, an unconditioned stimulus. A conditioned response (CR) is the learned
stimulus. In Pavlov’s experiment, the tone was originally response that occurs to the conditioned stimulus . After
a neutral stimulus because it did not elicit a response, being repeatedly paired with the US, the once neu-
least of all salivation (see Figure 6.2 ); however, over tral tone in Pavlov’s experiment became a conditioned
time, the tone began to influence the dogs’ responses stimulus (CS) because it elicited the conditioned
because of its association with food. In this case, the response of salivation. To establish that conditioning
tone became a conditioned stimulus (CS) , a once- has taken place, the tone (CS) must elicit salivation
neutral stimulus that later elicits a conditioned response in the absence of food (US; see the bottom panel of
because it has a history of being paired with an unconditioned Figure 6.2).

228 :: Module 6.1 : : Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association

 A common point of confusion is the difference Neuron in
between a conditioned response and an unconditioned somatosensory
system
response—in Pavlov’s experiment, they are both saliva-
tion. What distinguishes the UR from the CR is the Synapse P
stimulus that elicits them. Salivation is a UR if it occurs (strong)
Puff of
in response to a US (food). Salivation is a CR if it occurs air to
in response to a CS (the tone). A CS can have this effect the eye
only if it becomes associated with a US. In other words,
UR is a naturally occurring response whereas a CR Blink
must be learned.
1000-Hz
tone
CLASSICAL CONDITIONING AND THE BRAIN As
Synapse T
noted above, classical conditioning can occur in
(weak)
extremely simple organisms such as Aplysia, a type of sea
Neuron in
slug (Hawkins, 1984; Pinsker et al., 1970). Of course, the auditory
number of possible conditioned responses is more lim- system
ited in the sea slug than in humans. But, the fact that {fig. 6.3} Conditioning and Synapses During conditioning, weak synapses fire at
both of these species can be classically conditioned sug- the same time as related strong synapses. The simultaneous activity strengthens the
gests that at its heart, classical conditioning is a simple connections in the weaker synapse.
biological process. The connections between specific
groups of neurons (or specific axon terminals and recep-
tors sites on neurons) become strengthened during each do you think the US, UR, CS, and CR would be in
instance of classical conditioning (Murphy & Glanzman, this situation? The shriek-inducing hot water would be
1997). the US and your response—jumping back out of the
In most conditioning experiments, the US reliably water—would be the UR. Over time, the sound of the
triggers the UR; this relationship is thought to be rep- toilet flushing would be the CS, because it would trig-
resented by strong neural connections between groups ger CR, which would again be the jumping response.
of neurons in the temporal lobes of the brain. But, what Importantly, as you will read in the next section of
happens when the CS is presented at approximately this module, the strength of these networks—and thus
the same time as the US? According to the Hebb Rule of the conditioning—will vary depending upon how
(named after Canadian neurologist Donald Hebb; see often and how consistently the CS and the US appear
Module 7.1), when a weak connection between neu- together.
rons is stimulated at the same time as a strong con-
nection, the weak connection becomes strengthened.
So, before conditioning, there may be a strong con-
nection between a puff of air and a blinking response
and a weak connection between a tone and the blink-
ing response. But, if both networks are stimulated at the
same time, the link between the tone and the blinking
response would be strengthened. Over repeated con-
ditioning trials, this connection would become strong
enough that the tone itself would trigger an eyeblink
(see Figure 6.3).
When reading these examples, it’s quite easy to
think of conditioning as something unrelated to your
life. Not many of us undergo eyeblink conditioning.
But these principles still apply to your everyday exis-
tence. For instance, some of you may live in an old
house; if someone flushes the toilet while you’re in the
shower, the water turns scalding hot for a few seconds.
Over time, the sound of the toilet flushing in your Elliotte Rusty Harold/Shutterstock
house would likely make you jump back slightly. What Even neurologically simple organisms like the Aplysia can be classically conditioned.

Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association :: Module 6.1 :: 229

 Quick Quiz 6.1a
Pavlov’s Dogs: Classical Conditioning of Salivation
1 The learned response that occurs to the conditioned 3 A dental drill can become an unpleasant stimulus,

KNOW . . .

APPLY . . .
stimulus is known as the __________. especially for people who may have experienced pain
A unconditioned stimulus while one was used on their teeth. In this case, the
B conditioned stimulus pain elicited by the drill is a(n) __________.
A conditioned response
C conditioned response
B unconditioned stimulus
D unconditioned response
C conditioned stimulus
D unconditioned response
2 A once neutral stimulus that elicits a conditioned
response because it has a history of being paired with
an unconditioned stimulus is known as a(n) __________. 4 Sylvia used to play with balloons. When she tried to
A unconditioned stimulus blow up a balloon last week, it popped in her face and
B conditioned stimulus gave her quite a scare. Now, blowing up a balloon is so
scary that Sylvia will not try it. In this example, the pop
C conditioned response
is a(n) __________ and the balloon is a(n) __________.
D unconditioned response A conditioned stimulus; unconditioned stimulus
B unconditioned stimulus; conditioned stimulus
C unconditioned response; conditioned response
D conditioned response, unconditioned response

Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

Processes of Classical Conditioning reliable, which is likely if the CS and the US have a long
history of being paired together. Conditioned respond-
Although classically conditioned responses typically ing may diminish over time, or it may occur with new
involve reflexive actions, there is still a great deal of flex- stimuli with which the response has never been paired.
ibility in how long they will last and how specific they We now turn to some processes that account for the
will be. Conditioned responses may be very strong and flexibility of classically conditioned responses.
ACQUISITION, EXTINCTION, AND
SPONTANEOUS RECOVERY Learn-
Acquisition Extinction Spontaneous
CS + US CS alone recovery ing involves a change in behaviour due
to experience, which can include acquir-
ing a new response. Acquisition is the
Salivation to CS

initial phase of learning in which a response

is established ; thus, in classical condition-
ing, acquisition is the phase in which a
Amount of
spontaneous neutral stimulus is repeatedly paired with
recovery the US. In Pavlov’s experiment, the con-
(CS alone)
ditioned salivary response was acquired
with numerous tone–food pairings (see
Figure 6.4). A critical part of acquisition is
the predictability with which the CS and
the US occur together. In Pavlov’s experi-
2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 24-Hour 22 24 26 28 ment, conditioning either would not occur
Rest
or would be very weak if food was deliv-
Trials
ered only sometimes (i.e., inconsistently)
{fig. 6.4} Acquisition, Extinction, and Spontaneous Recovery Acquisition of a conditioned when the tone was sounded. There may be
response occurs over repeated pairings of the CS and the US. If the US no longer occurs, con- a neural explanation for this phenomenon;
ditioned responding diminishes—a process called extinction. Often, following a time interval
in which the CS does not occur, conditioned responding rebounds when the CS is presented synapses are strengthened when neurons (or
again—a phenomenon called spontaneous recovery. groups of neurons) fire at the same time, as

230 :: Module 6.1 : : Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association

in conditioning. For instance, the activity of cells in the conditioned response, typically after some time has passed since
amygdala steadily increases as animals are conditioned extinction. Pavlov and his assistants noticed that salivation
with either an electrical shock (Quirk et al., 1995) or would reappear when the dogs were later returned to
food (Gallagher et al., 1990) serving as the US. But, this the experimental testing room where acquisition and
simultaneous firing would be less frequent if the CS and extinction trials had been conducted. The dogs would
US were not always paired together; and, the synapses also salivate again in response to a tone, albeit less so than
that are related to this conditioning would therefore be at the end of acquisition (Figure 6.4). Why would saliva-
weaker than if the pairing occurred more frequently. tion spontaneously return after the response had suppos-
Of course, even if a conditioned response is fully edly extinguished? One possibility is that extinction also
acquired, there is no guarantee it will persist forever. involves learning something new (Bouton, 1994). In this
Extinction is the loss or weakening of a conditioned response case, Pavlov’s dogs would be learning that a tone indi-
when a conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus no cates that food will not appear. It is possible that spon-
longer occur together. For the dogs in Pavlov’s experiment, taneous recovery is a case of the animal not being able
if a tone is presented repeatedly and no food follows, to retrieve the memory of extinction and thus reverting Explore

then salivation should occur less and less, until eventu- back to the original memory, the classically conditioned Extinction and
Spontaneous Recovery
ally it may not occur at all (Figure 6.4). This trend prob- response (Bouton, 2002; Brooks et al., 1999).
ably makes sense from a biological perspective: If the Extinction and spontaneous recovery are evidence
tone is no longer a reliable predictor of food, then saliva- that classically conditioned responses can change once
tion becomes unnecessary. At the neural level, the rate they are acquired. Further evidence of flexibility of con-
of firing in brain areas related to the learned association ditioned responding can be seen in some other processes
decreases over the course of extinction (Robleto et al., of classical conditioning, including generalization and
2004). However, even after extinction occurs, a previ- discrimination learning.
ously established conditioned response can return.
A number of studies have shown that classically con- STIMULUS GENERALIZATION AND DISCRIMINA-
ditioned behaviours that had disappeared due to extinc- TION Stimulus generalization is a process in which a
tion could quickly reappear if the CS was paired with response that originally occurs to a specific stimulus also occurs
the US again. This tendency suggests that the networks to different, though similar, stimuli. In Pavlov’s experiment,
of brain areas related to conditioning were preserved in dogs salivated not just to the original tone (CS), but also
some form (Schreurs, 1993; Schreurs et al., 1998). Addi- to very similar tones (see Figure 6.5). At the cellular
tionally, some animals (and humans) show spontaneous level, generalization may be explained, at least in part,
recovery, or the reoccurrence of a previously extinguished by the Hebb rule discussed above. When we perceive a

Generalization Discrimination
15
Response (drops of saliva)

10

0
400 800 1200 1600 2000 400 800 1200 1600 2000
Stimulus tone (hertz)

{fig. 6.5} Stimulus Generalization and Discrimination A conditioned response may generalize to other similar stimuli. In this
case, salivation occurs not just to the 1200-Hz tone used during conditioning, but to other tones as well. Discrimination learning
has occurred when responding is elicited by the original training stimulus, but much less so, if at all, to other stimuli.

Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association :: Module 6.1 :: 231

 stimulus, it activates not only our brain’s representation Applications of Classical
of that item, but also our representations of related items.
Some of these additional representations (e.g., a tone that Conditioning
has a slightly higher or lower pitch than the conditioned Now that you are familiar with the basic processes of
stimulus) may become activated at the same time as the classical conditioning, we can begin to explore its many
synapses involved in conditioned responses. If this did applications. Classical conditioning is a common phe-
occur, according to the Hebb rule, the additional syn- nomenon that applies to many different situations,
apse would become strengthened and would therefore including emotional learning, aversions to certain foods,
be more likely to fire along with the other cells in the advertising, and sexual responses.
future.
Generalization allows for flexibility in learned CONDITIONED EMOTIONAL RESPONSES Psy-
behaviours, although it is certainly possible for behav- chologists dating back to John Watson in the 1920s
iour to be too flexible. Salivating in response to any recognized that our emotional responses could be influ-
sound would be wasteful because not every sound cor- enced by classical conditioning (Paul & Blumenthal,
rectly predicts food. Thus Pavlov’s dogs also showed 1989; Watson & Rayner, 1920). These conditioned
discrimination, which occurs when an organism learns to emotional responses consist of emotional and physi-
respond to one original stimulus but not to new stimuli that ological responses that develop to a specific object or situation.
may be similar to the original stimulus. In salivary condi- In one of the earliest, and most diabolical, studies of
tioning, the CS might be a 1200-hertz tone, which is the conditioned emotional responses, Watson and Rayner
only sound that is paired with food. The experimenter conditioned an 11-month-old child known as Albert
Explore might produce tones of 1100 or 1300 hertz as well, but B. (also referred to as “Little Albert”) to fear white
Stimulus Generalization not pair these with food. This point is critical: If stimuli rats. When they presented Albert with a white rat,
and Stimulus that are similar to the CS are presented without a US, he showed no fear at first, and even reached out for
Discrimination in then it becomes less likely that these stimuli will lead to the animal. Then, while Albert was in the vicinity of
Classical Conditioning
stimulus generalization. Instead, these other tones would the rat, they startled him by striking a steel bar with
have their own memory representation in the brain—in a hammer. Watson and Rayner reported that Albert
Explore
Stimulus Generalization
which they did not receive food. So, stimulus discrimina- quickly associated the rat with the startling sound; the
and Stimulus tion would occur if salivation was triggered by the target child soon showed a conditioned emotional response
Discrimination in 1200-hertz tone, but much less so, if at all, by other tones just to the rat. In this situation, the loud noise would
Operant Conditioning (Figure 6.5). be the US and fear would be the UR; over time, the
white rat became the CS with fear being the CR. Little
Albert not only developed a fear of rats, the emotional
Quick Quiz 6.1b conditioning generalized to other white furry objects
Processes of Classical Conditioning including a rabbit and a Santa Claus mask. It should
be pointed out that ethical standards in modern-day
1 What is the reoccurrence of a previously extinguished
KNOW . . .

conditioned response, typically after some time has

psychological research would not allow this type of
passed since extinction? experiment to take place. Ironically, in 1928, Watson
Explore A Extinction C Acquisition published a book entitled Psychological Care of Infant
Classical Conditioning
B Spontaneous recovery D Discrimination and Child.
of Little Albert The Watson and Rayner procedure may seem arti-
ficial because it took place in a laboratory, but here is a
2 In classical conditioning, the process during which a
UNDERSTAND . . .

neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus is more naturalistic example. Consider a boy who sees his
known as __________. neighbour’s cat. Not having a cat of his own, the child
A extinction C acquisition is very eager to pet the animal—perhaps a little too
B spontaneous recovery D discrimination eager, because the cat reacts defensively and scratches
his hand. The cat may become a CS for the boy, which
3 Your dog barks every time a stranger’s car pulls into elicits a fear response. Further, if generalization occurs,
APPLY . . .

the driveway, but not when you come home. Reacting the boy might be afraid of all cats. Now imagine if
to your car differently is a sign of __________. this reaction becomes a very intense fear: Conditioned
A discrimination C spontaneous recovery emotional responses like these offer a possible explana-
Watch
Special Topics:
B generalization D acquisition tion for many phobias, which are intense, irrational fears
Learning to Overcome Answers can be found on page ANS-2. of specific objects or situations (discussed in detail in
Phobias Module 15.2).

232 :: Module 6.1 : : Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association

Archives of the History of American Psychology, The Center for the History of Psychology-The University of Akron
Watson and Rayner generalized Albert’s fear of white rats to other furry, white objects. Shown here, Watson tests Albert’s reaction
to a Santa Claus mask. For those interested, Little Albert passed away as a result of a brain illness (i.e., for reasons unrelated to
this study) at the age of 5 (Beck et al., 2009; Fridlund et al., 2012). Click on this image in your eText to see video footage of
Little Albert.

During the past two decades, researchers have made of clinical populations. Often, these procedures are com-
great strides in identifying the brain regions responsible bined with neuroimaging techniques (see Module 3.4)
for such conditioned emotional responses. When an to examine both the cognitive and the biological com-
organism learns a fear-related association such as a tone ponents of these behaviours. For example, scientists have
predicting the onset of a startling noise, activity occurs in conducted some fascinating experiments on people
the amygdala, a brain area related to fear (LeDoux, 1995; diagnosed with psychopathy (the diagnosis of “psychop-
Maren, 2001; see Modules 3.3 and 11.4). If an organism athy” is very similar to antisocial personality disorder,
learns to fear a particular location, such as learning that a topic we discuss later in other chapters of this text-
a certain cage is associated with an electrical shock, then book). People with this disorder are notorious for disre-
context-related activity in the hippocampus will interact garding the feelings of others. In one study, a sample of
with fear-related activity in the amygdala to produce con- people diagnosed with psychopathy looked at brief pre-
textual fear conditioning (Kim & Fanselow, 1992; Phillips & sentations of human faces (the CS) followed by a pain-
LeDoux, 1992). ful stimulus (the US). The painful stimulus would then
Fear conditioning procedures have also been used to trigger a negative emotional response (the UR). What
examine learning and emotional processes in a number should have happened is that, over repeated pairings,

Left: Özgür Donmaz/[Link]; centre: Silvia Boratti/[Link]; right: Mark Kostich/[Link]

Some commonly feared objects and situations. Psychologists are finding that we are predisposed to fear specific objects that have posed threats over our
evolutionary history.

Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association :: Module 6.1 :: 233

 with pain (see Figure 6.6; Birbaumer et al., 2005). People
who showed no signs of psychopathy did not enjoy this
experience. In fact, following several pairings between
CS and US, the control group showed increased physio-
logical arousal and activity of the emotion centres of the
brain, and understandably reported disliking the experi-
Healthy control Individual with ence of the experiment.
Courtesy of Dr. Herta Flor psychopathy

Before conditioning EVOLUTIONARY ROLE FOR FEAR CONDITION-

Neutral stimulus
ING A healthy fear response is important for survival,
but not all situations or objects are equally dangerous.
Tone Snakes and heights probably elicit more fear and cau-
tion than butterflies or freshly mown grass. In fact, fear-
ing snakes is very common, which makes it tempting to
conclude that we have an instinct to fear them. In reality,
young primates (both human children and young mon-
Shock keys, for example) tend to be quite curious about, or at
least indifferent to, snakes, so this fear is most likely the
product of learning rather than instinct.
Psychologists have conducted some ingenious exper-
iments to address how learning is involved in snake fear.
During conditioning For instance, photographs of snakes (the CS) were paired
Unconditioned stimulus (US) Unconditioned with a mild electric shock (the US). One unconditioned
response (UR)
response that a shock elicits is increased palm sweat—
Shock Fear known as the skin conductance response. This reaction,
Tone part of the fight-or-flight response generated by the auto-
nomic nervous system (Module 3.3), occurs when our
bodies are aroused by a threatening or uncomfortable
stimulus. Following several pairings between snake photos
After conditioning and shock in an experimental setting, the snake photos
Conditioned
Conditioned stimulus (CS) alone (the CS) elicited a strong increase in skin conduc-
response (CR)
tance response (the CR). For comparison, participants
Fear were also shown nonthreatening pictures of flowers, paired
Tone with the shock. Much less intense conditioned responding
developed in response to pictures of flowers, even though
the pictures had been paired with the shock just as many
times as the snake pictures had been paired with the shock
{fig. 6.6} Fear Conditioning and the Brain During fear
conditioning, a neutral stimulus (NS) such as a tone or a picture (Figure 6.7; Öhman & Mineka, 2001). Thus, it appears we
of a human face is briefly presented followed by an uncondi- are predisposed to acquire a fear of snakes, but not flowers.
tioned stimulus (US), such as a mild electric shock. The result This finding may not be too surprising, but what
is a conditioned fear response to the CS. A procedure like this
has been used to compare fear responses in people diagnosed about other potentially dangerous objects such as guns?
with psychopathy with control participants. The brain images In modern times, guns are far more often associated with
above show that those with psychopathy (right image) show death or injury than snakes, and certainly flowers. When
very little responding in their emotional brain circuitry when
presented with the CS. In contrast, control participants show
the researchers paired pictures of guns (the CS) with the
strong activation in their emotional brain centres (left image) shock (US), they found that conditioned arousal to guns
(Birbaumer et al., 2005). among participants was less than that to snake photos, and
comparable to that of harmless flowers. In addition, the
participants would acquire a negative emotional reaction conditioned arousal to snake photos proved longer lasting
(the CR) to the faces (the CS); but, this particular sample and slower to extinguish than the conditioned responding
did not react this way. Instead, these individuals showed to pictures of guns or flowers (Öhman & Mineka, 2001).
very little physiological arousal, their emotional brain However, before completely accepting this finding, it is
centres remained quiet, and overall they did not seem to important to point out that the participants in this study
mind looking at pictures of faces that had been paired were from Stockholm, Sweden, a city that has relatively

234 :: Module 6.1 : : Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association

little gun violence. It is unclear whether similar
results would be found in participants who lived in Experimental Conditioned Unconditioned
Result
a location where gun violence was more prevalent. condition stimulus stimulus (shock)
This caveat aside, given that guns and snakes
both have the potential to be dangerous, why is
Low
it so much easier to learn a fear of snakes than Nonthreatening
conditioned fear
a fear of guns? One possibility is that over time,
humans have evolved a strong predisposition to
fear an animal that has a long history of caus- Moderate
Acquired threat
ing severe injury or death (Cook et al., 1986; conditioned fear
Öhman & Mineka, 2001).The survival advantage
has gone to those who quickly learned to avoid
animals such as snakes. The same is not true for High
Biological threat
conditioned fear
flowers (which do not attack humans) or guns
(which are relatively new in our species’ history).
This explanation is known as preparedness, the
{fig. 6.7} Biologically Prepared Fear Physiological measures of fear are highest in
biological predisposition to rapidly learn a response to response to photos of snakes after the photos are paired with an electric shock—even higher
a particular class of stimuli (Seligman, 1971). Pre- than the responses to photos of guns. Flowers—something that humans generally do not
paredness helps make sense of these research need to fear in nature—are least effective when it comes to conditioning fear responses.
findings from an evolutionary perspective.
Neuroimaging studies provide us with additional
CONDITIONED TASTE AVERSIONS Another insights into conditioned taste aversions. These stud-
example of an evolutionarily useful conditioned fear ies show responses in brain areas related to disgust and
response comes from food aversions. Chances are there emotional arousal (Yamamoto, 2007) as well as in brain
is a food that you cannot stand to even look at because it stem regions related to vomiting (Reilly & Bornovalova,
once made you ill. This new aversion isn’t due to chance; 2005; Yamamoto & Fujimoto, 1991). Additionally, neu-
rather, your brain and body have linked the taste, sight, rons in reward centres in the brain show altered patterns
and smell of that food to the feeling of nausea. In this of activity to the food associated with illness (Yamamoto
situation, the taste (and often the sight and smell) of the et al., 1989). These different brain responses suggest that
food or fluid serves as the CS. The US is the experience
of feeling sick; this, in turn, leads to behavioural responses
Before conditioning
related to aversion (the UR). Aversion is not simply a
case of “feeling gross.” Instead, it involves both a feeling
(and in some species, a facial expression) of disgust and a
Clams (NS)
withdrawal or avoidance response. When the CS and US
are linked, the taste of the food or fluid soon produces No response
aversion responses, even in the absence of physical illness. During conditioning
(the CR; see Figure 6.8). This acquired dislike or disgust of
a food or drink because it was paired with illness is known as
conditioned taste aversion (Garcia et al., 1966).
Explore
Conditioned taste aversions may develop in a vari- Clams (NS)
Taste Aversion
ety of ways, such as through illness associated with food
Aversion (UR)
poisoning, the flu, medical procedures, or excessive Sickness (US)
intoxication. Importantly, these conditioned aversions After conditioning
only occur for the flavour of a particular food rather
than to other stimuli that may have been present when
you became ill. For example, if you were listening to a
Clams (CS)
particular song while you got sick from eating tainted
Aversion (CR)
spinach or a two-week-old tuna sandwich, your aversion
would develop to the taste of spinach, but not to the {fig. 6.8} Conditioned Taste Aversions Classical condi-
song that was playing. Thus, humans (and many other tioning can account for the development of taste aversions.
Falling ill after eating a particular food can result in conditioned
animals) are biologically prepared to associate food, but feelings of disgust as well as withdrawal responses when you
not sound, with illness (Garcia et al., 1966). are later re-exposed to the taste, smell, or texture of the food.

Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association :: Module 6.1 :: 235

 illness triggers a strong emotional response that causes ingested that has an unfamiliar flavour. If you have eaten
the reward centres to update their representation of the the same ham and Swiss cheese sandwich at lunch for
illness-causing food, thus making that food less reward- years, and you become ill one afternoon after eating it,
ing. Importantly, many parts of this network are activated you will be less prone to develop a conditioned taste
when the animal (or person) is later exposed to the CS aversion. This scenario can be explained by latent inhi-
(Yasoshima et al., 2006). bition, which occurs when frequent experience with a
Although these studies may explain how some stimulus before it is paired with a US makes it less likely
aspects of conditioned taste aversions are maintained, that conditioning will occur after a single episode of ill-
there are still some riddles associated with this phenom- ness (Lubow & Moore, 1959). Latent inhibition applies
enon. For instance, the onset of symptoms from food to many instances in which classical conditioning can
poisoning may not occur until several hours have passed occur—not just to conditioned taste aversions. For
after the tainted food or beverage was consumed. As a example, a child who is clawed by the family cat after
consequence, the interval between tasting the food (CS) years of otherwise friendly interactions is less likely to
and feeling sick (US) may be a matter of hours, whereas develop a fear of cats than a child who is scratched dur-
most conditioning happens only if the CS and the US ing her very first encounter with a cat. The unfamiliar-
occur very closely to each other in time. Another pecu- ity of foods that trigger conditioned taste aversions likely
liarity is that taste aversions are learned very quickly—a makes it easier for these conditioned responses to occur.
single CS-US pairing is typically sufficient. These special Such foods stick out when they are experienced for the
characteristics of taste aversions are extremely important first time and are therefore much easier to remember,
for survival. The flexibility offered by a long window of even after considerable time has passed.
time separating CS and US, as well as the requirement Conditioned taste aversions are a naturally occur-
for only a single exposure, raises the chances of acquiring ring experience. However, conditioned emotional
an important aversion to the offending substance. responses are also being created by advertisers to influ-
One potential explanation for these characteristics ence our responses. As you will read in the next sec-
involves the food stimuli themselves. Usually, a condi- tion, food is not the only stimulus that can make you
tioned taste aversion develops to something we have feel sick.

principles of classical conditioning and, in the process, treat

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC you, the voter, like one of Pavlov’s dogs.
LITERACY MODEL
Conditioning and Negative Political What do we know
Advertising about classical
conditioning in negative
political advertising?
Some politicians have charisma; you want to like them and
believe what they say. Examples fall on both sides of the politi- Negative political advertisements
cal spectrum. U.S. President Ronald Reagan (1980–1988) was routinely include unflattering
so beloved that some journalists were instructed not to say images. In the next federal or pro-
negative things about him on camera. Bill Clinton (1992–2000) vincial election, pay attention to the commercials that are
and Barack Obama (2009–present) are treated like rock sponsored by each [Link] will see a few tricks. First, many
stars when they travel internationally. We have also had fairly images of opponents will be black-and-white and of a grainy
charismatic Canadian politicians. Both Liberal Pierre Trudeau quality; this trick is designed to make viewers feel mildly frus-
(1968–1979, 1980–1984) and Progressive Conservative Brian trated when viewing the slightly unclear photographs. Sec-
Mulroney (1984–1993) seemed quite likeable for most of their ond, the images of the attacked politicians will include them
time as Prime Minister. Not everyone has this type of cha- expressing a negative emotion. In some, they will be yelling
risma, however. In these cases, politicians need to use advertis- (angry faces trigger a physiological response in people). In
ing and carefully constructed “photo ops” in order to create others, they will have facial expressions that appear smug, or
emotional responses that might influence voting behaviours. that make it seem as though they feel contempt toward the
In an ideal world, these advertisements would focus on issues person they’re looking at (which, in this case, would appear
and would highlight the candidates’ positive qualities. Unfor- to be you). The assumption underlying these attack ads is
tunately, the last few decades have seen a dramatic upsurge that if you pair a party leader with imagery that generates
in a different form of advertising: negative attack ads. As you unpleasant emotions, then viewers will associate that leader
will see, many aspects of these advertisements rely on the with negative feelings and be less likely to vote for that party.

236 :: Module 6.1 : : Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association

Left: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick;
right: Fred Chartrand/CP PHOTO
Most attack ads use grainy, black-and-white images of the opponent in
the hope that the frustration associated with seeing an unclear image will
become associated with the person depicted in that photograph.

In this case, the CS would be the attacked politician. The US A number of studies have specifically attempted to use con-
would be the negative imagery. The UR would be the nega- ditioning to create negative attitudes toward products or
tive emotional response to the imagery (or unflattering pho- behaviours (Moore et al., 1982; Zanna et al., 1970), a goal
tograph). Eventually, the individuals who constructed the ad similar to the attack ads you see each election. For instance,
would hope that simply seeing the attacked person would Stuart and colleagues (1990) found that associating a new
produce a negative emotional response (CS) along with the brand of toothpaste with negative pictures decreased evalu-
thought, “I will not vote for him or her.” ations of that product. Other research has shown that unde-
sirable music has similar effects. In research conducted at the
The question, then, is “Does this work?”
University of British Columbia, Gerald Gorn (1982) paired
a CS, a pen, with either positively evaluated music (from the
How can science film Grease) or undesirable music (in this case, classical East
help explain the Indian music). Participants were later given a choice of one
role of classical of two pens, one of which was from their earlier positive
conditioning in or negative conditioning experience. Only 30% of the par-
ticipants who had associated a particular pen with the unde-
negative political sirable music selected that pen, suggesting that the pen had
advertising? become a CS. Although these studies aren’t directly testing
An attempt to use negative emotions to alter people’s opin- ways to manipulate your like or dislike of particular lead-
ions of political candidates is similar to a psychology research ers, they are demonstrating that conditioning can be used to
technique known as evaluative conditioning. In an evaluative influence attitudes and behaviours.
conditioning study, experimenters pair a stimulus (e.g., a
shape) with either positive or negative stimuli (e.g., an angry Can we critically
face). The repeated association of a stimulus with an emotion evaluate this
leads participants to develop a positive or negative feeling
toward that stimulus (depending upon the emotional pair-
information?
ing). This is precisely what political strategists are attempting A major question, both with nega-
to do when they show unpleasant pictures of an opponent tive political advertising and with
and pair it with angry narrators and emotional labels. And, in the Gorn (1982) study, is whether
the laboratory, evaluative conditioning works. This phenom- producing a negative opinion of
enon has been found with visual, auditory, olfactory (smell), one option (be it a pen or a candidate) automatically means
taste, and tactile (touch) stimuli. It has been used to alter feel- that you are producing a positive opinion of the other
ings toward objects ranging from snack foods (Lebens et al., option. In the Gorn study, there were only two options, so
2011) to consumer brands (Walther & Grigoriadis, 2004) to we can’t tell if the results are due to liking one option or dis-
novel shapes (Olson & Fazio, 2001). liking the other option. The same issue arises with regard to

Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association :: Module 6.1 :: 237

 studies of U.S. politics—there are only two parties. However, commercials was not to attack Chrétien’s political creden-
with five political parties running in the next federal election tials or experience, which far surpassed those of the other
in Canada, there is a danger that attack ads might produce party leaders (who were relatively inexperienced). Instead,
negative opinions of the target, but still not boost opinions the ads were designed to link the negative emotion associ-
of the party running the ads. ated with physical deformities, and any stigma associated with
those injuries, to the Liberal party so that people would feel
We also need to consider the fact that Canada is a vastly
uneasy about voting for this party. It didn’t work. The public
multicultural country, particularly in large urban centres like
outcry in response to the commercials caused the Conser-
Toronto and Vancouver. Research has shown that different
vatives to withdraw the ads after a day; indeed, people who
cultures will respond to negative advertising in different ways
saw the ads were likely to sympathize with Chrétien and feel
(Chuang, 2006). Additionally, people with different education
anger toward Conservative leader Kim Campbell (Haddock
levels or who differ in terms of socioeconomic status might
& Zanna, 1997). The Liberals won the election handily, with
also vary in how they respond to these types of ads (Chou &
the Conservatives being reduced to three seats in the House
Lien, 2011). These concerns are not lost on politicians, how-
of Commons.
ever. In fact, many of the ads that you are exposed to are
not targeted at you. Instead, they have been carefully crafted
to influence the opinions of specific groups, such as unde- Why is this relevant?
cided voters, students, and so on (Pinkleton, 1997). Doing so Dozens of studies indicate that
increases the likelihood that viewers will have the emotional people are prone to a third-
reaction that makes up the US and CR in the conditioned person effect whereby they
emotional response. assume that other people are
Of course, politicians also need to be careful not to overstep more affected by advertising and mass media messages than
certain boundaries that might create sympathy for the target they themselves are (Cheng & Riffe, 2008; Perloff, 2002).
of the negative ads. In October 1993, the ruling Progressive Thus, there appears to be a disconnect between the power
Conservative Party broadcast two television commercials of negative advertising and people’s awareness of its effects.
that highlighted the partial facial paralysis of Liberal leader It is important to realize that conditioning often occurs
(and future Prime Minister) Jean Chrétien. One ad asked, without our conscious awareness. Our brains are designed
“Is this a Prime Minister?” Another had a female narra- to make associations; it’s how we learn. So, by becoming
tor stating, “I personally would be embarrassed if he were aware of how marketing companies and politicians are using
to become the Prime Minister of Canada.” The goal of the classical conditioning to influence how you vote, you can try
to reduce the effect of their manipulation. That way, when
you cast your vote, it will hopefully be because of issues
you care about and not because of conditioned emotional
responses.

Allstar Picture Library/Alamy

Negative ads can backfire if the public views them as overly
personal or insensitive. Mocking Jean Chrétien’s facial
paralysis led to a disastrous outcome for the Progressive
Conservative party in the 1993 election. Christian Schwier/Fotolia

238 :: Module 6.1 : : Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association

Quick Quiz 6.1c
Applications of Classical Conditioning
1 Conditioning a response can take longer if the
KNOW . . .

subject experiences the conditioned stimulus

repeatedly before it is actually paired with a US. This
phenomenon is known as ___________.
A preparedness C latent inhibition
B extinction D acquisition

2 Why are humans biologically prepared to fear snakes

UNDERSTAND . . .

and not guns?

A Guns kill fewer people than do snakes.
B Guns are a more recent addition to our
evolutionary history. Lee O’Dell/[Link]
C Snakes are more predictable than guns. Physiological reactions to drugs are influenced by stimuli that
are associated with administration of the drug.
D Guns are not a natural phenomenon, whereas
snakes do occur in nature.

as cravings and tolerance (see Module 5.3). Cues that

3 A television advertisement for beer shows young people accompany drug use can become conditioned stimuli
APPLY . . .

at the beach drinking and having fun. Based on classical that elicit cravings (Sinha, 2009). For example, a cigarette
conditioning principles, the advertisers are hoping you
lighter, the smell of tobacco smoke, or the presence of
will buy the beer because the commercial elicits
A a conditioned emotional response of pleasure. another smoker can elicit cravings in people who smoke.
Conditioning can also influence drug tolerance, or a
B a conditioned emotional response of fear.
decreased reaction that occurs with repeated use of the
C humans’ natural preparedness toward alcohol
consumption.
drug (Siegel et al., 2000). When a person takes a drug,
his or her body attempts to metabolize that substance.
D a taste aversion to other companies’ beers.
Over time, the setting and paraphernalia associated
Answers can be found on page ANS-2. with the drug-taking begin to serve as cues (a CS) that
a drug (US) will soon be processed by the body (UR).
As a result of this association, the physiological processes
involved with metabolizing the drug will begin with
Learning without Awareness the appearance of the CS rather than when the drug is
Many forms of learning involve a person or animal actually consumed. In other words, because of condi-
actively responding to a stimulus. However, as you have tioning, the body is already braced for the drug before
read in this module, many instances of classical condition- the drug has been snorted, smoked, or injected. This
ing can occur without any effort—or even awareness— response means that, over time, more of the drug will be
on the part of the individual. The final section of this needed to override these preparatory responses so that
module provides some real-world examples of how the desired effect can be obtained; this change is referred
classical conditioning can affect a person’s behaviour to as conditioned drug tolerance.
without he or she being aware of this influence. Spe- This phenomenon can have fatal consequences for
cifically, you will read about how classical conditioning drug abusers. Shepard Siegel (1984), a psychologist at
is involved in physiological reactions that occur during McMaster University, conducted interviews with patients
drug taking, sexual arousal, and the consumption of diet who were hospitalized for overdosing on heroin. Over
beverages. Of course, this list isn’t exhaustive; there are the course of his interviews, a pattern among the patients
many other examples of classical conditioning affecting emerged. Several individuals reported that they were in
behaviour (Domjan, 2004). But, by seeing the breadth of situations unlike those that typically preceded their her-
activities that are influenced by conditioning, you may be oin injections—for example, in a different environment
inspired to examine whether these processes are influ- or even using an injection site (i.e., part of the body) that
encing other areas of your life. differed from the usual ritual. As a result of these differ-
ences, the CSs that were normally paired with delivery
DRUG USE AND TOLERANCE Classical condition- of the drug changed, leaving their bodies unprepared for
ing accounts for some drug-related phenomena, such delivery of the drug. Without a conditioned preparatory

Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association :: Module 6.1 :: 239

 response bracing the body for the drug’s effects, deliv-
ery of even a normal dose of the drug can be lethal. This
finding has been confirmed in animal studies: Siegel and
his associates (1982) found that conditioned drug toler-
ance and overdosing can also occur with rats. When rats
received heroin in an environment different from where
they experienced the drug previously, mortality was
double that in control rats that received the same dose of
heroin in their normal surroundings (64% versus 32%).

SEXUAL AROUSAL Sexual arousal and reproductive

physiology can also be influenced by classical conditioning.
For example, Domjan and colleagues (2004) have studied
Michael Domijan, University of Texas at Austin
conditioned sexual responses in Japanese quail. Males of
Classically conditioned sexual behaviour in a male quail. After
this species will vigorously copulate with an artificial model this object (the CS) is paired with a live female quail (the US),
(the CS) that has a history of being paired with a female the male quail will direct its sexual responses to the CS alone.
quail (the US). These birds become highly persistent when
it comes to copulating with these models—they continue
to do so even when actual sexual opportunities have long phenomenon is not often studied in the laboratory. In
since vanished. That is, the responses resist the process of one rare study, however, male volunteers were condi-
extinction described previously. Some have argued that this tioned to experience sexual arousal when shown pho-
persistent copulation with an inanimate object mirrors the tos of shoes alone after such photos had been paired
sexual fetishism found in some humans (Köksal et al., 2004), with sexually explicit photos (Rachman, 1966). Several
a comparison that may ruffle some feathers. explanations have been proposed for how sexual fetishes
A fetish involves sexual attraction and fixation on might develop, and classical conditioning certainly
an object. Some common fetishes involve leather, lace, appears to play a role (Lowenstein, 2002). Nevertheless,
shoes, boots, and undergarments, none of which elicit in the case of sexual fetishism (and unlike the case of
unconditioned sexual responses (Lalumière & Quinsey, the Japanese quail), the conditioning does not seem to
1998). A conditioned sexual fetish can form if there is function in a way that is conducive to actual reproduc-
an association between the object (the CS) and sexual tive success, given that the fixation on the desired object
encounters (the US). As you can probably imagine, this detracts many affected individuals from normal sexual
functioning.

160 Non-diet soft drinks

THE PARADOX OF “DIET” BEVERAGES Finally,
Diet soft drinks
classical conditioning may help explain why diet drinks
Per capita soft drink consumption (litres)

Obesity prevalence
and obesity prevalence (percentage)

are seemingly ineffective in helping people lose weight

(Swithers et al., 2009; Swithers & Davidson, 2005). As
120
you can see in Figure 6.9, the consumption of diet bev-
erages has risen over the last several decades. Given that
these drinks contain no calories, one would expect that
80 obesity levels should have decreased over this time. In
fact, the opposite has occurred, and this counterintuitive
trend can be explained with classical conditioning.
Through neural mechanisms linking the brain and
40 digestive system, humans actually become conditioned
to the foods and drinks that they consume, including
those that contain real sugar. Sweet tastes send a message
to the body that a high dose of calories is on the way.
0 For example, the taste of a candy bar is a conditioned
1970 1980 1990 2000 stimulus (CS) that tells the body that a large amount of
Year calories (the US) is soon to arrive in the gut. This rela-
{fig. 6.9} Diet Soda Consumption’s Association with Increased tionship is an important one for the body to learn, as it
(Not Decreased) Prevalence of Obesity helps maintain an energy balance—eventually your body

240 :: Module 6.1 : : Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association

tells you it is time to stop eating sweets and switch to messages: Your gut “tells” you to make up for the calo-
something else, perhaps with fewer calories. Artificially ries by opening up a bag of cookies or potato chips. This
sweetened beverages disrupt this relationship between linkage may very well help explain why, overall, artifi-
the sugary sweet CS and high-calorie food US. The arti- cially sweetened beverages do not promote weight loss.
ficially sweetened taste of a diet soda is not followed by It also shows us how far-reaching the concepts of clas-
a high dose of calories that your body “expects.” So how sical conditioning have become. Pavlov’s observations of
does the body respond? It continues to send out hunger his salivating dogs were really just a drop in the bucket.

Quick Quiz 6.1d Learning without Awareness

1 When a heroin user develops a routine, the needle 2 Which is the best explanation for why diet beverages

ANALYZE . . .
KNOW . . .

can become the ______, whereas the body’s do not prevent people from gaining weight?
preparation for the drug in response to the presence A Diet beverages actually have more calories than
of the needle is the ______. regular beverages.
A CS; CR C US; CR B The artificially sweetened beverages seem to
B US; UR D CS; US stimulate hunger for high-calorie foods.
C People who drink diet beverages typically eat more
food than those who drink only water.
D Diet drinks elicit conditioned emotional reactions
that lead people to overeat.

Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association :: Module 6.1 :: 241

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
6.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology involved in classical conditioning:

acquisition (p. 230) extinction (p. 231)
classical conditioning (p. 227) generalization (p. 231)
Brenda Carson/Fotolia
conditioned emotional response learning (p. 226)
(p. 232) preparedness (p. 235)
conditioned response (CR) spontaneous recovery (p. 231)
(p. 228) unconditioned response (UR) is to identify whether something is a stimulus (something
conditioned stimulus (CS) (p. 228) (p. 227) that elicits) or a response (a behaviour). Next, identify
conditioned taste aversion unconditioned stimulus (US) whether the stimulus automatically elicits a response (the
(p. 235) (p. 227) US) or does so only after being paired with a US (a CS).
discrimination (p. 232) Finally, identify whether the response occurs in response
to the US alone (the UR) or the CS alone (the CR).]
Check your answers on page ANS-2.

UNDERSTAND . . . 1. Cameron and Tia went to the prom together, and

during their last slow dance the DJ played the theme
● How responses learned through classical conditioning song for the event. During the song, the couple kissed.
can be acquired and lost. Acquisition of a conditioned Now, several years later, whenever Cameron and Tia
response occurs with repeated pairings of the CS and the hear the song, they feel a rush of excitement.
US. Once a response is acquired, it can be extinguished 2. Harry has visited his eye doctor several times due to
if the CS and the US no longer occur together. During problems with his vision. One test involves blowing a
extinction, the CR diminishes, although it may reappear puff of air into his eye. After repeated visits to the eye
under some circumstances. For example, if enough time doctor, Harry starts blinking as soon as the instrument
passes following extinction, the CR may spontaneously is being applied.
recover when the organism encounters the CS again.
3. Sarah went to a new restaurant and experienced the
● The role of biological and evolutionary factors most delicious meal she has ever tasted. The restaurant
in classical conditioning. Not all stimuli have the starts advertising on the radio, and now every time an
same potential to become a strong CS. Responses to ad comes on, Sarah finds herself craving the meal she
biologically relevant stimuli, such as snakes, are more easily had enjoyed so much.
conditioned than are responses to stimuli such as flowers
or guns, for example. Similarly, avoidance of potentially
harmful foods is critical to survival, so organisms can ANALYZE . . .
develop a conditioned taste aversion quickly (in a single
trial) and even when ingestion and illness are separated by ● Claims that artificially sweetened beverages are a
a relatively long time interval. healthier choice. Because of classical conditioning, the
digestive system responds to the flavour of the artificially
APPLY . . . sweetened (CS) beverage as though a high-calorie food
source (the US) is on the way. When the low-calorie
● The concepts and terms of classical conditioning to beverage reaches the digestive system, the gut has already
new examples. Read the three scenarios that follow and prepared itself for something high in calories (the CR). As
identify the conditioned stimulus (CS), the unconditioned a consequence, hunger messages continue to be sent to
stimulus (US), the conditioned response (CR), and the the brain. Because the “diet” beverage does not deliver on
unconditioned response (UR) in each case. [Hint: When the promise of high calories, the person experiences an
you apply the terms CS, US, CR, and UR, a good strategy increased level of hunger.

242 :: Module 6.1 : : Classical Conditioning: Learning by Association

 Mike Mergen/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Module

6.2 Operant Conditioning:

Learning through Consequences

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology The role that consequences play in Your knowledge of operant The effectiveness of punishment
After reading associated with increasing or decreasing behaviour conditioning to examples on changing behaviour
this module operant conditioning How schedules of reinforcement
you should affect behaviour

Gambling is a multibillion-dollar industry in Canada. According to Sta- when someone wins money after pressing the button on a VLT—makes
tistics Canada, the net revenue from lotteries, video-lottery terminals that behaviour more likely to occur again in the future. These effects are
(VLTs), and casinos was $13.74 billion in 2011. That’s an average of $515 larger when the reward doesn’t happen every time and isn’t predictable—
per person. Given these huge sums, it is clear that some individuals are qualities that perfectly describe gambling. The machines aren’t the only
spending more than they should on this habit. Psychologists and govern- ones having their buttons pushed.
ment officials have invested a considerable amount of time into the devel-
opment of prevention and treatment programs for gambling addictions.
Focus Questions
Although these programs have led to addiction rates levelling off in recent
years, compulsive gambling is still a problem in Canada. So, what compels 1 How do the consequences of our actions—such as
people to keep pulling the lever on a slot machine or pressing buttons on winning or losing a bet—affect subsequent behaviour?
a VLT screen when logic would tell them to stop and go home?
2 Many behaviours, including gambling, are reinforced
Although the answer to this question is complicated (Hodgins et al., only part of the time. How do the odds of being
2011), it is clear that reinforcement plays a role in these behaviours. As reinforced affect how often a behaviour occurs?
you will read in this module, rewarding a behaviour—which happens

Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences :: Module 6.2 :: 243

 Table 6.1 :: Major Differences between Classical and Operant Conditioning
CLASSICAL CONDITIONING OPERANT CONDITIONING
Target response is . . . Automatic Voluntary
Reinforcement is . . . Present regardless of whether a response occurs A consequence of the behaviour
Behaviour mostly depends on . . . Reflexive and physiological responses Skeletal muscles

Very few of our behaviours are random. Instead, peo- meat powder is presented regardless of whether saliva-
ple tend to repeat actions that previously led to posi- tion occurs. Learning has taken place if a conditioned
tive or rewarding outcomes. If you try a new food and response develops following pairings between the condi-
like it, you will eat that food again. Conversely, if a tioned stimulus and the unconditioned stimulus. In other
behaviour previously led to a negative outcome, people words, the dogs learned the association between a tone
are less likely to perform that action again. If you try and food (as shown by their salivation), but they didn’t
a new food and gag, then you will likely not eat that have to actually do anything. In operant conditioning, a
food again. These types of stimulus-response relation- response and a consequence are required for learning to
ships are known as operant conditioning , a type of take place. Without a response of some kind, there can
learning in which behaviour is influenced by consequences . be no consequences (see Table 6.1 for a summary of dif-
The term operant is used because the individual operates ferences between operant and classical conditioning).
on the environment before consequences can occur. In
contrast to classical conditioning, which typically affects
reflexive responses, operant conditioning involves volun- Processes of Operant Conditioning
tary actions such as speaking or listening, starting and The concept of contingency is important to understand-
stopping an activity, and moving toward or away from ing operant conditioning; it simply means that a conse-
something. Whether and when we engage in these types quence depends upon an action. Earning good grades is
of behaviours depend on how our unique collection of generally contingent upon studying effectively. Excelling
previous experiences has influenced what we do, and do at athletics is contingent upon training and practice. The
not, find rewarding. consequences of a particular behaviour can be either
Initially the difference between classical and oper- reinforcing or punishing (see Figure 6.10).
ant conditioning may seem unclear. One useful way of
telling the difference is that in classical conditioning a REINFORCEMENT AND PUNISHMENT Rein-
response is not required for a reward (or unconditioned forcement is a process in which an event or reward that fol-
Watch
Skinner Biography stimulus) to be presented; to return to Pavlov’s dogs, lows a response increases the likelihood of that response occurring
again. We can trace the scientific study of reinforcement’s
effects on behaviour back to Edward Thorndike,
who conducted experiments in which he measured
the time it took cats to learn how to escape from
puzzle boxes (see Figure 6.11).Thorndike (1905)
Reinforcement increases behaviour. Punishment decreases behaviour. observed that over repeated trials, cats were able to
Behaviour: Try the new café on Behaviour: Try listening to the new escape more rapidly because they learned which
2nd Avenue. radio station in town. responses worked (such as pressing a pedal on the
Consequence: The meal and Consequence: The music is terrible! floor of the box). From his experiments, Thorndike
service were fantastic! proposed the law of effect—the idea that responses
Effect: The behaviour is reinforced. Effect: You won’t listen to that followed by satisfaction will occur again and those
You’ll go there again. station again. that are not followed by satisfaction become less
likely. In this definition, “satisfaction” implies either
that the animal’s desired goal was achieved (e.g.,
escaping the puzzle box) or it received some form
of reward for the behaviour (e.g., food).
{fig. 6.10} Reinforcement and Punishment The key distinction between reinforcement Within a few decades of the publication of
and punishment is that reinforcers, no matter what they are, increase behaviour. Punishment Thorndike’s work, the famous behaviourist B. F.
involves a decrease in behaviour, regardless of what the specific punisher may be. Thus both
reinforcement and punishment are defined based on their effects on behaviour. Click on this Skinner began conducting his own studies on the
figure in your eText to see more details. systematic relationship between reinforcement and

244 :: Module 6.2 : : Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences

 Pull string that These operant chambers , sometimes referred to as Watch
opens trap door
Skinner boxes, include a lever or key that the sub- Pigeon in Skinner Box
ject can manipulate. Pushing the lever may result in
the delivery of a reinforcer such as food. In operant
conditioning terms, a reinforcer is a stimulus that is
Cat
Trap door contingent upon a response, and that increases the prob-
ability of that response occurring again. (So, a reinforcer
would be a stimulus like food, whereas reinforcement
would be the changes in the frequency of a behav-
iour like lever-pressing that occur as a result of the
Cat food
Box food reward.) Using operant chambers, research-
(a) ers record the animal’s rate of responding over time
(a measure of learning), and typically set a criterion
for the number of responses that must be made before
a reinforcer becomes available. As you will read later
150 in this module, animals and humans are quite sensitive
Time to escape (in seconds)

to how many responses they must make, or how long

they must wait, before they will receive a reward.
100 After studying Figure 6.12, you might wonder Watch
whether observations made with this apparatus could Classic Footage

possibly apply to real-world situations. In fact, simi- of Skinner on

lar machinery can be found in all sorts of real-world Reinforcement

50
settings. People pull levers on slot machines, press
buttons on vending machines, and click on Internet
0 links. Researchers use machinery such as operant
0 5 10 15 20 25 chambers to help them control and quantify learning,
Number of trials but the general principles of operant conditioning
(b) apply to life outside and away from such machines.
{fig. 6.11} Thorndike’s Puzzle Box and the Law of Effect The discussion thus far has focused on how
Thorndike conducted experiments in which cats learned an operant reinforcement can lead to increased responding;
response that was reinforced with escape from the box and access
but, decreased responding is also a possible outcome
to a food reward (a). Over repeated trials, the cats took progres-
sively less time to escape, as shown in this learning curve (b). of an encounter with a stimulus. Punishment is a
process that decreases the future probability of a response.
behaviour. Although operant conditioning can explain Thus, a punisher is a stimulus that is contingent upon a
many human behaviours, most of its basic principles response, and that results in a decrease in behaviour. Like rein-
stem from laboratory studies conducted on nonhu- forcers, punishers are defined not based on the stimuli
man species such as pigeons or rats, which were placed themselves, but rather on their effects on behaviour.
in an apparatus such as the one pictured in Figure 6.12. In all cases, a punisher—be it yelling, losing money, or

Wire
Recording device
Water
dispenser
Lights

Lever
Food
tray

{fig. 6.12} An Operant Chamber The operant chamber is a standard laboratory apparatus for studying operant conditioning.
The rat can press the lever to receive a reinforcer such as food or water. The lights can be used to indicate when lever pressing will
be rewarded. The recording device measures cumulative responses (lever presses) over time.

Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences :: Module 6.2 :: 245

 going to jail—will make it less likely that a particular Behaviour can also be reinforced by the removal
response will occur again. of something that is unpleasant. This form of reinforce-
ment, negative reinforcement, involves the strengthen-
Watch POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT ing of a behaviour because it removes or diminishes a stimulus
What’s in It for Me? AND PUNISHMENT Thus far, we have differentiated ( Table 6.2 ). For instance, taking aspirin is negatively
How to Make Healthier between reinforcement (when a response increases the reinforced because doing so removes a painful headache.
Choices likelihood that a behaviour will occur again) and pun- Similarly, studying in order to prevent nagging from
ishment (when a response decreases the likelihood that a your parents is also a form of reinforcement as your
behaviour will occur again). In both of these cases, it is nat- behaviour, studying, will increase.
ural to think of the responses as something that is added to Negative reinforcement is a concept that students
the situation. For instance, a behaviour could be reinforced frequently find confusing because it seems unusual that
by giving the animal food. Or, it could be punished by something aversive could be involved in the context
shocking the animal. But, both reinforcement and punish- of reinforcement. Recall that reinforcement (whether
ment can be accomplished by removing a stimulus as well. positive or negative) always involves an increase in the
In the descriptions that follow, try to remember the fol- strength or frequency of responding. Also remember that
lowing four terms as they are used in operant conditioning: the term “positive” in this context simply means that a
stimulus is introduced or increased, whereas the term
• Reinforcement: this increases the chances of a behav-
“negative” means that a stimulus has been reduced or
iour occurring again
avoided.
• Punishment: this decreases the chances of a behaviour
But, not all types of negative reinforcement are the
occurring again
same; in fact, negative reinforcement can be further clas-
• Positive: this means that a stimulus is added to a
sified into two subcategories. Avoidance learning is a
situation; positive can refer to reinforcement or
specific type of negative reinforcement that removes the possibil-
punishment
ity that a stimulus will occur. Examples of avoidance learn-
• Negative: this means that a stimulus is removed from
ing include taking a detour to avoid traffic congestion on
a situation; negative can refer to reinforcement or
a particular road, and paying bills on time to avoid late
punishment
fees. In these cases, negative situations are avoided. Inter-
These terms can be combined to produce four dif- estingly, scientists have used brain-imaging techniques to
ferent subtypes of operant conditioning. For instance, a show that a region of the frontal lobes, the orbitofrontal
response can be strengthened because it brings a reward. cortex (just above your eyes), shows increased activity
This form of reinforcement, positive reinforcement, when people successfully avoid a negative outcome (in
is the strengthening of behaviour after potential reinforcers such this case, losing money). This same area was active when
as praise, money, or nourishment follow that behaviour (see participants received a monetary reward, thus suggesting
Table 6.2). For example, if you laugh at your professor’s that avoidance learning (negative reinforcement) uses
jokes, the praise will serve as a reward; this will increase some of the same brain networks as positive reinforce-
the likelihood that he will tell more jokes. (Remember: ment (Kim et al., 2006).
the “positive” in positive reinforcement indicates the Another form of negative reinforcement, escape
addition of a reward.) Positive reinforcement can be a learning , occurs if a response removes a stimulus that is
highly effective method of rewarding desired behaviours already present. Covering your ears upon hearing over-
among humans and other species. whelmingly loud music is one example. You cannot

Table 6.2 :: Distinguishing Types of Reinforcement and Punishment

CONSEQUENCE EFFECT ON BEHAVIOUR EXAMPLE
Positive reinforcement Stimulus is added or Increases the response A child gets an allowance for making her bed, so she is
increased. likely to do it again in the future.
Negative reinforcement Stimulus is removed or Increases the response The rain no longer falls on you after opening your
decreased. umbrella, so you are likely to do it again in the future.
Positive punishment Stimulus is added or Decreases the response A pet owner scolds his dog for jumping up on a house
increased. guest, and now the dog is less likely to do it again.
Negative punishment Stimulus is removed or Decreases the response A parent takes away TV privileges to stop the children
decreased. from fighting.

246 :: Module 6.2 : : Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences

 child. If effective, the outcome of the grounding will be
to decrease the behaviour that got the child into trouble.
Based on this section, you can see how the fre-
quency of a behaviour can be increased (reinforcement)
or decreased (punishment) by a number of different
stimuli or responses. The obvious question, then, is why
do some stimuli affect behaviour while others have no
influence whatsoever? Is there a biological explanation
for this difference?

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY REINFORCERS

Reinforcers can come in two main forms. Primary
Mike Clarke/[Link] reinforcers consist of reinforcing stimuli that satisfy basic
Avoidance and escape learning. Getting caught in road motivational needs—needs that affect an individual’s ability to
construction is typically an aversive event. Avoidance learning
might involve taking precautionary measures, such as starting survive (and, if possible, reproduce). Examples of these inher-
the trip on an alternative route so you do not encounter the ently reinforcing stimuli include food, water, shelter,
construction at all. Escape responses, such as pulling out of and sexual contact. In contrast, secondary reinforc-
the traffic jam to take a shortcut, occur after the stimulus is
already encountered. Either response would be negatively
ers consist of stimuli that acquire their reinforcing effects only
reinforced, as it removes the aversive stimulus of being stuck. after we learn that they have value. Money and praise are
both examples of secondary reinforcers. They are more
abstract and do not directly influence survival-related
avoid the music, because it is already present, so you behaviours.
escape the aversive stimulus instead. The responses of
taking a detour and covering your ears both increase
in frequency because they have effectively removed the
offending stimuli. In the laboratory, operant chambers
such as the one pictured in Figure 6.12 (p. 245) often
come equipped with a grid metal floor that can be used
to deliver a mild electric shock; responses that remove
(escape learning) or prevent (avoidance learning) the
shock are negatively reinforced. This highly controlled
environment allows researchers to carefully monitor all
aspects of an animal’s environment while investigating
the different contingencies that will cause a behaviour to
increase or decrease in frequency.
As with reinforcement, various types of punish-
ment are possible. Positive punishment is a process in
which a behaviour decreases in frequency because it was fol-
lowed by a particular, usually unpleasant, stimulus (Table 6.2).
For example, some cat owners use a spray bottle to squirt
water when the cat hops on the kitchen counter or
scratches the furniture. Remember that the term “posi-
tive” simply means that a stimulus is added to the situ-
ation (i.e., no one is claiming that spraying a cat with
water is an emotionally positive experience). In these
cases, the stimuli are punishers because they decrease the
frequency of a behaviour.
Finally, negative punishment occurs when a behav-
iour decreases because it removes or diminishes a particular stim- Top: Lana Sundman/Alamy; bottom: Richard Goldberg/
ulus (Table 6.2). Withholding someone’s privileges as a [Link]
result of an undesirable behaviour is an example of nega- Animals pressing levers in operant chambers to receive
rewards may seem artificial. However, if you look around you
tive punishment. A parent who “grounds” a child does will see that our environment is full of devices that influence
so because this action removes something of value to the our operant responses.

Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences :: Module 6.2 :: 247

 reward-based chemicals of the brain (Comings & Blum,
2000). Researchers have also found that individuals
who are impulsive, and therefore vulnerable to gam-
bling and drug abuse, release more dopamine in brain
areas related to reward; dopamine is also not efficiently
removed from the synapses in these areas (Buckholtz
et al., 2010).
Secondary reinforcers also trigger the release of
Nucleus dopamine in reward areas of the brain. A number of
accumbens
neuroimaging experiments have shown that monetary
rewards cause dopamine to be released in parts of the
basal ganglia (Elliott et al., 2000) as well as in the medial
regions of the frontal lobes (Knutson et al., 2003). Some
of these areas directly overlap with those involved with
primary reinforcers (Valentin & O’Doherty, 2009).
{fig. 6.13} Reward Processing in the Brain The nucleus
How can dopamine be related to operant condi-
accumbens is one of the brain’s primary reward centres.
tioning? When a behaviour is rewarded for the first time,
dopamine is released (Schultz & Dickinson, 2000); this
Both pr imary and secondary reinforcers sat- reinforces these new, reward-producing behaviours so
isfy our drives, but what underlies the motivation to that they will be performed again (Morris et al., 2006;
seek out these reinforcers? The answer is complex, but Schultz, 1998). These dopamine-releasing neurons in the
research points to a specific brain circuit including a nucleus accumbens and surrounding areas help maintain
structure called the nucleus accumbens (see Figure 6.13). a record of which behaviours are, and are not, associated
The nucleus accumbens becomes activated during the with a reward. Interestingly, these neurons increase their
processing of all kinds of rewards, including primary rate of firing when you have to update your understand-
ones such as eating and having sex (see Modules 11.1 ing of which actions lead to rewards; so, they are involved
and 11.2), as well as “artificial” rewards such as using with learning new behaviour-reward associations as well
cocaine and smoking a cigarette (see Module 5.3). as with reinforcement itself.
Variations in this area might also account for why indi- Once a response has been learned, the individual
viduals differ so much in their drive for reinforcers. For may soon learn that reinforcement or punishment will
example, scientists have discovered that people who are occur under only certain conditions and circumstances.
prone to risky behaviours such as gambling and alco- A pigeon in an operant chamber may learn that pecking
hol abuse are more likely to have inherited particu- is reinforced only when the chamber’s light is switched
lar copies of genes that code for dopamine and other on, so there is no need to continue pecking when the
light is turned off. This illustrates
the concept of a discriminative
stimulus—a cue or event that indi-
cates that a response, if made, will be
reinforced. Our lives are filled with
discriminative stimuli. Before we
pour a cup of coffee, we might
check whether the light on the
coffee pot is on—a discriminative
stimulus that tells us the beverage
will be hot and, presumably, rein-
forcing. There are also numerous
social examples of discriminative
stimuli. For instance, you might
Left: Iurii Konoval/[Link]; only ask to borrow your parents’ car
right: Morgan Lane Photography/[Link] when they show signs of being in a
Primary reinforcers satisfy basic biological needs, such as good mood. In this case, your par-
hunger or thirst. Secondary reinforcers, such as money,
acquire their value and are typically associated with access ents’ mood (smiling, laughing, etc.)
to primary reinforcers. will dictate whether you perform

248 :: Module 6.2 : : Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences

a behaviour (asking to borrow the car). Discriminative punishment. In most of these studies, the reward or pun-
stimuli demonstrate that we (and animal subjects) can use ishment occurred immediately following the behav-
cues from our environment to help us decide whether to iour. This allows individuals to predict when a reward
perform a conditioned behaviour. will occur (Schultz & Dickinson, 2000). But, you know
from your own life that rewards are not always immedi-
DISCRIMINATION AND GENERALIZATION The ate. What happens if the reward is delayed, or doesn’t
idea of a discriminative stimulus should not be confused occur at all? As early as 1911, Thorndike noted that
with the concept of discrimination. Discrimination occurs reinforcement was more effective if there was very little
when an operant response is made to one stimulus but time between the action and the consequence. Indeed,
not to another, even if they are similar. For example, a in a study with pigeons, researchers found that the fre-
pigeon may learn that he will receive a reward if he pecks quency of responses (pecking a button) decreased as the
at a key after a 1000-Hz tone, but not if he performs amount of time between the pecking and the reward
the same action following a 2000-Hz tone. As a result, (a food pellet) increased (Chung & Herrnstein, 1967).
he won’t peck at the key after a 2000-Hz tone. Or, to Interestingly, neuroscientists have found that neural
extend our earlier example, you may quickly learn that activity decreases during this time as well. In fact, delays
your father will lend you the car whereas your mother of as little as half a second decrease the amount of neu-
will not. In this case, the process of discrimination would ral activity in dopamine-releasing neurons (Hollerman
lead you to perform a behaviour (asking to borrow the & Schultz, 1996).
car) when you are with your father but not when you This effect of delayed reinforcement influences a num-
are with your mother. ber of human behaviours as well. For instance, drugs that
In contrast to discrimination, generalization occurs have their effect (i.e., produce their rewarding feeling)
when an operant response takes place to a new stimu- soon after they are taken are generally more addictive
lus that is similar to the stimulus present during original than drugs whose effects occur several minutes or hours
learning. In this case, a pigeon who learned to peck a key after being taken (see Module 5.3).This difference is due,
after hearing a 1000-Hz tone may attempt to peck the in part, to the greater difficulty in mentally associating
key whenever any tone is presented. If petting a neigh- the reinforcement from the drug (the consequence) with
bour’s border collie (a type of dog) led to a child laugh- drug-taking (the action).
ing and playing with the animal, then he might be more Sometimes, however, a reinforcer is not just delayed;
likely to pet other dogs or even other furry animals. In it doesn’t occur at all. A pigeon may find that pressing
this instance, a specific reinforcement related to an action a key in its operant chamber no longer leads to a food
(petting a specific dog) led to a similar behaviour (petting) [Link] may find that your parents no longer let you
occurring in other instances (petting other dogs). borrow the car no matter how nicely you ask. Although
If you’ve noticed similarities between discrimina- both you and the pigeon may persist in your behaviour
tion and generalization in operant conditioning and the for a while, eventually you’ll stop. This change is known
same processes in classical conditioning, you are not mis- as extinction, the weakening of an operant response when
taken. The same general logic underlies these concepts reinforcement is no longer available. If you lose your Internet
in both types of conditioning. However, while discrimi- connection, for example, you will probably stop trying
nation and generalization in classical conditioning were to refresh your web browser because there is no rein-
due to the strengthening of synapses as a result of simul- forcement for doing so—the behaviour will no longer
taneous firing, in operant conditioning, the mechanism be performed. Extinction, like most of the observable
appears to be dopamine-secreting neurons. Research has behaviours you’ve read about in this module, is related
shown that dopamine neurons can discriminate between to dopamine. If you expect a reward for your behaviour
rewarding and neutral stimuli as long as the two stimuli and none comes, the amount of dopamine being released
are visually or auditorily distinct (Ljungberg et al., 1992). decreases (Schultz, 1998). Dopamine release will increase
However, if stimuli closely resemble reward-predicting again when there is a new behaviour-reward relationship
items, dopamine neurons will fire (Schultz, 1998), to learn.
although the amount of activity is smaller than it is fol- Table 6.3 differentiates among the processes of
lowing the expected reward-predicting item (Schultz & extinction, generalization, and discrimination in classical
Romo, 1987, 1990). and operant conditioning.

DELAYED REINFORCEMENT AND EXTINCTION REWARD DEVALUATION In all of these examples

The focus of this module thus far has been on behav- of operant conditioning, the value of the reinforcement
ioural and biological responses to reinforcement and remained the same. But, if you think about your own

Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences :: Module 6.2 :: 249

 Table 6.3 :: Comparing Discrimination, Generalization, and Extinction in Classical and Operant Conditioning
PROCESS CLASSICAL CONDITIONING OPERANT CONDITIONING
Discrimination A CR does not occur in response to a different CS that There is no response to a stimulus that resembles the original
resembles the original CS. discriminative stimulus used during learning.
Generalization A different CS that resembles the original CS used during Responding occurs to a stimulus that resembles the original
acquisition elicits a CR. discriminative stimulus used during learning.
Extinction A CS is presented without a US until the CR no longer Responding gradually ceases if reinforcement is no longer
occurs. available.

life it quickly becomes apparent that this is not always this assumption—when participants were given several
the case. Food is incredibly rewarding when you are pieces of a chocolate, it became less appealing than it had
hungry but becomes less so after you have eaten a large been when they received their first piece. This change in
meal (see Module 11.1). Similarly, $100 seems like a reported value was related to decreased activation in the
lot of money when you are a starving student, but will brain’s reward centres (Small et al., 2001).
seem less important when you are a doctor with a high
income. If a behaviour is more likely to occur because
of reward, what happens when the reward becomes less Quick Quiz 6.2a
rewarding?
Processes of Operant Conditioning
Scientists have found that behaviours do change
when the reinforcer loses some of its appeal (Colwill & 1 ________ removes the immediate effects of an aversive

KNOW . . .
stimulus, whereas ________ removes the possibility of
Rescorla, 1985, 1990). In a typical experiment, rats are
an aversive stimulus from occurring in the first place.
trained to press two different levers, each associated with
A Avoidance learning; escape learning
a different reward (e.g., two different rewarding tastes).
B Positive reinforcement; positive punishment
If the experimenters pre-feed the animal with one of
C Negative reinforcement; negative punishment
these two tastes, they will crave it less than the other; in
other words, its reward will be devalued compared to the D Escape learning; avoidance learning
other taste. Researchers consistently find a decrease in
the response rate for the “devalued” reward, whereas the 2 A basic need such as food may be used as a ________
reinforcer, whereas a stimulus whose value must be
other reward remains largely unaffected. learned is a ________ reinforcer.
Reward devaluation can also occur by making one A primary; continuous
of the rewards less appealing. In this version of reward B secondary; shaping
devaluation, one of the reinforcing tastes is paired with C primary; secondary
a toxin that made the rats feel ill; this obviously reduces D continuous; secondary
its value! (Ideally, this pairing would occur outside of the
operant chamber so that the toxin didn’t serve as a posi-
3 As a consequence for misbehaving, many teachers
UNDERSTAND . . .

tive punishment.) The rats would then have the choice use “time out.” How does this consequence affect
of two levers to press, one associated with a rewarding students’ behaviour?
taste and the other associated with the taste that is now A It adds a stimulus to decrease bad behaviour.
less rewarding than before. When these rats were later B It takes away a stimulus to decrease bad behaviour.
given the opportunity to choose between the two oper- C It adds a stimulus to increase bad behaviour.
ant learning tasks, they showed a strong preference for D It takes away a stimulus to increase bad behaviour.
the task whose reward had not been devalued (Colwill &
Rescorla, 1985, 1990). 4 Lucy hands all of her homework in to her psychology
APPLY . . .

How would this phenomenon apply to your professor on time because she does not want to lose
behaviour? One example is eating behaviour. If you points for late work. This is an example of ________.
A avoidance learning
are really hungry, then food will be very rewarding.
In fact, you’d likely walk across campus to get some B positive reinforcement

pizza, even in the dead of winter. But, if you’ve already C escape learning
eaten pizza today, you would be significantly less moti- D positive punishment
vated to take that same walk because the pizza seems Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
less rewarding. Neuroimaging studies have confirmed

250 :: Module 6.2 : : Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences

Applications of Operant
Conditioning PSYCH @
The Special Needs Classroom
Now that you have learned the basic processes of oper-
ant conditioning, you should have a sense of how much Operant conditioning is the basis for an edu-
our behaviour is influenced by rewards and punishments. cational method called applied behaviour analysis (ABA),
In this section, the focus is on some specific applications which involves using close observation, prompting, and rein-
of operant conditioning. forcement to teach behaviours, often to people who expe-
rience difficulties and challenges owing to a developmental
SHAPING Rats placed in operant chambers do not condition such as autism (Granpeesheh et al., 2009). People
automatically go straight for the lever and begin pressing with autism are typically nonresponsive to normal social
it to obtain food rewards. Instead, they must first learn cues from a very early age. This impairment can lead to a
that lever pressing accomplishes something. Getting a deficit in developing many skills, ranging from basic, every-
day ones to complex skills such as language. For example,
rat to press a lever can be done by reinforcing behav-
explaining how to clear dishes from the dinner table to a
iours that approximate lever pressing, such as standing up,
child with autism could prove difficult. Psychologists who
facing the lever, standing while facing the lever, placing specialize in ABA often shape the desired behaviour using
paws upon the lever, and pressing downward. Shaping prompts (such as asking the child to stand up, gather silver-
is a procedure in which a specific operant response is created by ware, stack plates, and so on) and verbal rewards as each
reinforcing successive approximations of that response. Shap- step is completed. These and more elaborate ABA tech-
ing is done in a step-by-step fashion until the desired niques can be used to shape a remarkable variety of behav- Explore
response—in this case, lever pressing—is learned. These iours to improve the independence and quality of life for The Shaping Process
techniques can also be used to help people develop people with autism.
Explore
specific skill sets (e.g., toilet training). A similar process, Shaping
chaining, involves linking together two or more shaped
behaviours into a more complex action or sequence of Explore
Dolphins at Sea World
actions. When you see an animal “acting” in a movie, SCHEDULES OF REINFORCEMENT Operant
its behaviours were almost certainly learned through conditioning is used, intentionally or unintentionally,
lengthy shaping and chaining procedures. in many different areas of our lives. However, the exact
timing of the action and reinforcement (or punishment)
differs across situations. Typically, a given behaviour is
rewarded according to some kind of schedule. These
schedules of reinforcement—rules that determine when
reinforcement is available—can have a dramatic effect on
both the learning and unlearning of responses (Ferster
& Skinner, 1957). Reinforcement may be available at
highly predictable or very irregular times. Also, rein- Simulate
forcement may be based on how often someone engages Schedules of
in a behaviour, or on the passage of time. Reinforcement
During continuous reinforcement, every response
made results in reinforcement, and learning initially occurs
rapidly. For example, vending machines (should) deliver
a snack every time the correct amount of money is
deposited. In other situations, not every action will lead
to reinforcement; we also encounter situations where
reinforcement is available only some of the time. For
example, telephoning a friend may not always get you
an actual person on the other end of the call. In this
kind of partial (intermittent) reinforcement, only a
certain number of responses are rewarded, or a certain amount
of time must pass before reinforcement is available. Four types
Bork/[Link]
of partial reinforcement schedules are possible (see
Applications of shaping. Reinforcement can be used to shape
complex chains of behaviour in animals and humans. (Later Figure 6.14). These schedules have different effects on
attempts to teach the cat to use a bidet were less successful.) rates of responding.

Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences :: Module 6.2 :: 251

 Fixed ratio Variable ratio Fixed interval Variable interval

Reinforcement
Response Response Time Time
(a)

Fixed ratio Variable ratio Fixed interval Variable interval

Responses

Reinforcers

Reinforcers Reinforcers Reinforcers

Time Time Time Time

(b)

(c)
Bottom, left: Imaginechina via AP Images; bottom, centre left: LIGHTREIGN/Alamy; bottom,
centre right: Andresr/Shutterstock; bottom, right: Bill Fehr/[Link]
{fig. 6.14} Schedules of Reinforcement (a) Four types of reinforcement schedule are shown here: fixed ratio, variable ratio,
fixed interval, and variable interval. Notice how each schedule differs based on when reinforcement is available (interval schedules)
and on how many responses are required for reinforcement (ratio schedules). (b) These schedules of reinforcement affect respond-
ing in different ways. For example, notice the vigorous responding that is characteristic of the variable ratio schedule, as indicated
by the steep upward trajectory of responding. (c) Real-world examples of the four types of reinforcement schedules. Click on this
figure in your eText to see more details.

An important distinction for these schedules of (e.g., receiving $1 for every five items produced). In both
reinforcement is the difference between ratio and inter- cases, a certain number of responses are required before
val schedules. Ratio schedules mean that the reinforce- a reward is given.
ments are based on the amount of responding. In contrast, In a variable-ratio schedule, the number of responses
interval schedules are based on the amount of time between required to receive reinforcement varies according to an aver-
reinforcements, not the number of responses an animal (or age. A VR5 (variable ratio with an average of five trials
human) makes. A second distinction is between fixed and between reinforcements) could include trials that require
variable schedules. A fixed schedule means that the sched- seven lever presses for a reward to occur, followed by four,
ule of reinforcement remains the same over time. A vari- then six, then three, and so on. But, the average at the
able schedule means that the schedule of reinforcement, end of the experiment would be five. Slot machines at
although linked to an average (e.g., 10 lever presses), varies casinos operate on variable-ratio reinforcement schedules.
from reinforcement to reinforcement. Keeping these two The odds are that the slot machine will not give any-
distinctions in mind should help you make sense of the thing back, but sometimes a player will get a modest win-
four different reinforcement schedules discussed below. ning. Of course, hitting the jackpot is very infrequent.
In a fixed-ratio schedule , reinforcement is deliv- The variable nature of the reward structure for play-
ered after a specific number of responses have been completed. ing slot machines helps explain why responding on this
For example, a rat may be required to press a lever schedule can be vigorous and persistent. Slot machines
10 times to receive food. Similarly, a worker in a factory and other games of chance hold out the possibility that at
may get paid based on how many items he worked on some point players will be rewarded, but it is unclear how

252 :: Module 6.2 : : Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences

many responses will be required before the reward occurs. This outcome makes sense in light of the fact that in
The fact that the reinforcement is due to the number of ratio schedules, reinforcement is based on how often
times a player responds promotes strong response levels you engage in the behaviour (something you have some
(i.e., more money spent on gambling). In animal stud- control over) versus how much time has passed (some-
ies, variable-ratio schedules lead to the highest rate of thing you do not control). For example, looking up with
responding of the four types of reinforcement schedules. greater frequency does not cause more meteor activity
In contrast to ratio schedules, interval schedules because a variable-interval schedule is in effect. In con-
are based on the passage of time, not the number of trast, a salesperson is on a variable-ratio schedule because
responses. A fixed-interval schedule reinforces the first approaching more customers increases the chances of
response occurring after a set amount of time passes. If your making a sale.
charming psychology professor gives you an exam every One general characteristic of schedules of rein-
three weeks, your reinforcement for studying is on a forcement is that partially reinforced responses tend to
fixed-interval schedule. In Figure 6.14, notice how the be very persistent. For example, although people are
fixed-interval schedule shows that responding drops off only intermittently reinforced for putting money into
after each reinforcement is delivered (as indicated by a slot machine, a high rate of responding is maintained
the tick marks). However, responding increases because and may not decrease until after a great many losses in a
reinforcement is soon available again. This schedule may row (or the individual runs out of money). The effect of
reflect how you devote time to studying for your next partial reinforcement on responding is especially evident
exam—studying time tends to decrease after an exam, during extinction. The partial reinforcement effect
and then builds up again as another test looms. refers to a phenomenon in which organisms that have been con-
The final reinforcement schedule is the variable- ditioned under partial reinforcement resist extinction longer than
interval schedule, in which the first response is reinforced those conditioned under continuous reinforcement. This effect
following a variable amount of time. The time interval var- is likely due to the fact that the individual is accustomed
ies around an average. For example, if you were watching to not receiving reinforcement for every response; there-
the nighttime sky during a meteor shower, you would be fore, a lack of reinforcement is not surprising and does
rewarded for looking upward at irregular times. A meteor not alter the motivation to produce the response, even if
may fall on average every 5 minutes, but there will be times reinforcement is no longer available. We see this effect in
of inactivity for a minute, 10 minutes, 8 minutes, and so on. many situations ranging from gambling to cheesy pick-
As you can see from Figure 6.14, ratio schedules up lines in bars to the numerous superstitions developed
tend to generate relatively high rates of responding. by professional and amateur athletes.

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC In some cases, however, it is not perfectly clear what brings
about the reinforcement. Imagine a baseball player who tries
LITERACY MODEL to be consistent in how he pitches. After a short losing streak,
Reinforcement and Superstition the pitcher suddenly wins a big game. If he is playing the same
way, then what happened to change his luck? Did an alteration
in his pre-game ritual lead to the victory? Humans the world
It is clear that reinforcement can appear in multiple forms over are prone to believing that some ritual or lucky charm
and according to various schedules. What all forms have in will somehow improve their chances of success or survival.
common is the notion that the behaviour that brought about Psychologists believe these superstitions can be explained by
the reinforcement will be strengthened. But what happens if operant conditioning.
the organism is mistaken about what caused the reinforce-
ment to occur—will it experience reinforcement anyway?
This raises the topic of superstition.
How can
science explain
superstition?
What do we know
about superstition Decades ago, B. F. Skinner
(1948) attempted to create
and reinforcement? superstitious behaviour in pigeons. Food was delivered every
Reinforcement is often systematic 15 seconds, regardless of what the pigeons were doing. Over
and predictable. If it is not, then time, the birds started engaging in “superstitious” behaviours.
behaviour is eventually extinguished. The pigeons repeated the behaviour occurring just before

Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences :: Module 6.2 :: 253

 reinforcement, even if the behaviour was scratching, head-
bobbing, or standing on one foot. A pigeon that happened
to be turning in a counterclockwise direction when rein-
forcement was delivered repeated this seemingly senseless
behaviour.

Humans are similarly superstitious. For example, in a labo-

ratory study involving humans, psychologists constructed a
doll that could spit marbles (Wagner & Morris, 1987). Chil-
dren were told that the doll would sometimes spit marbles
at them and that these marbles could be collected and traded
for toys. The marbles were ejected at random intervals, lead-
ing several of the children to develop superstitious behav-
iours such as sucking their thumbs or kissing the doll on the
nose.

Psychologists have conducted controlled studies to see

whether superstitious behaviours have any effect on perfor-
mance outcomes. In one investigation, college students, 80%
of whom believed in the idea of “good luck,” were asked to
participate in a golf putting contest in which members of
one group were told they were playing with “the lucky ball,”
and others were told they would be using “the ball every-
one has used so far.” Those who were told they were using
the lucky ball performed significantly better than those who
used the ball that was not blessed with good luck (Damisch
et al., 2010). These effects also occurred in other tasks, such
as memory and anagram games, and participants also showed
better performance at tasks if allowed to bring a good luck
charm. Robert Beck/Newscom
Former NHL goaltender Patrick Roy appears on almost every
Can we critically sports magazine’s list of “most superstitious athletes.” Some
of these behaviours are likely due to the partial reinforcement
evaluate these findings? effect.
Superstitious beliefs, though irra-
tional on the surface, may enhance
individuals’ belief that they can is not reinforced. Given what you’ve read about the partial
perform successfully at a task. reinforcement effect, it is easy to see how a superstitious
Sometimes these beliefs can behaviour could be difficult to change. For instance, former
even enhance performance, as the golf putting experiment NHL goaltender Patrick Roy was as famous for his many
revealed. These findings, however, are best applied to situa- superstitions as he was for his playoff heroics. During every
tions where the participant has some control over an out- game he would (1) skate backwards toward his net before
come, such as taking an exam or playing a sport. People who spinning around at the last minute (which made it appear
spend a lot of time and money gambling are known to be smaller), (2) talk to his goalposts, (3) thank his goalposts
quite superstitious, but it is important to distinguish between when the puck hit one of them, and (4) avoid touching
games of chance versus skill in this setting. “Success” at most the blue line and red line when skating off the ice. Roy has
gambling games is due entirely, or predominantly, to chance. the second-highest total of wins for NHL goalies and the
Thus, the outcomes are immune to the superstitious beliefs most playoff wins in history (151). But, in addition to his
of the players. 702 reinforcers, he also lost over 400 games in his impres-
sive career.
Superstitions are also prone to the confirmation bias, the
tendency to seek out evidence in favour of your existing
views and ignore inconsistent information, and the par-
Why is this relevant?
tial reinforcement effect discussed above. If an athlete Between Skinner’s original
believes that a superstitious behaviour leads to success, work with pigeons, and more
then he or she will notice when the behaviour does lead contemporary experiments
to success. However, given that losing is generally part of with people, it appears that operant conditioning plays a role
being an athlete, there will be times when the behaviour in the development of some superstitions. Perhaps you have

254 :: Module 6.2 : : Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences

a good-luck charm or a ritual you must complete before a
game or even before taking a test. Think about what brings
you luck, and then try to identify why you believe in this
relationship. Can you identify a specific instance when you
were first reinforced for this behaviour? Then remember
that the superstition is a form of reinforcement, a linking
of a behaviour and a response that is formed in your mind.
Whether a superstition affects your performance is based
on whether or not you allow it to.

G Tipene/Shutterstock

APPLYING PUNISHMENT People tend to be more Canada (Attorney General), 2004). Some parents use this
sensitive to the unpleasantness of punishment than they are tactic because it works: Spanking is generally a very effec-
to the pleasures of reward. Psychologists have demonstrated tive punisher when it is used for immediately stopping a
this asymmetry in laboratory studies with university stu- behaviour (Gershoff , 2002). However, one reason so few
dents who play a computerized game in which they can psychologists advocate spanking is because it is associated
choose a response that can bring either a monetary reward with some major side effects (Gershoff, 2002; Gershoff &
or a monetary loss. It turns out that the participants found Bitensky, 2007). In a recent review of this research pub-
losing money to be about three times as punishing as being lished in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, investi-
rewarded with money was pleasurable. In other words, los- gators at the University of Manitoba noted that spanking
ing $100 is three times more punishing than gaining $100 has been associated with poorer parent–child relation-
is reinforcing (Rasmussen & Newland, 2008). ships, poorer mental health for both adults and children,
The use of punishment raises some ethical delinquency in children, and increased chances of chil- Watch
concerns—especially when it comes to physical means. dren becoming victims or perpetrators of physical abuse Thinking Like a
A major issue that is debated all over the world is in adulthood (Durrant & Ensom, 2012). Psychologist: Physical

whether corporal punishment (e.g., spanking) is accept- It is also important to note that, while punishment Punishment—You
Decide!
able to use with children. In fact, more than 20 coun- may suppress an unwanted behaviour temporarily, by
tries, including Sweden, Austria, Finland, Denmark, and itself it does not teach which behaviours are appropriate.
Israel, have banned the practice. It is technically legal As a general rule, punishment of any kind is most effec-
to spank a child aged 2–12 in Canada; in a contentious tive when combined with reinforcement of an alter-
decision, the Supreme Court of Canada (in a 6–3 vote) native, suitable response. Table 6.4 offers some general
upheld Section 43 of the Criminal Code allowing spank- guidelines for maximizing the effects of punishment and
ing (Canadian Foundation for Children,Youth and the Law v. minimizing negative side effects.

Table 6.4 :: Punishment Tends to Be Most Effective when Certain Principles Are Followed
PRINCIPLE DESCRIPTION AND EXPLANATION
Severity Should be proportional to offence. A small fine is suitable for parking illegally or littering, but inappropriate for someone
who commits assault.
Initial punishment level The initial level of punishment needs to be sufficiently strong to reduce the likelihood of the offence occurring again.
Contiguity Punishment is most effective when it occurs immediately after the behaviour. Many convicted criminals are not
sentenced until many months after they have committed an offence. Children are given detention that may not begin
until hours later. Long delays in punishment are known to reduce its effectiveness.
Consistency Punishment should be administered consistently. A parent who only occasionally punishes a teenager for breaking her
curfew will probably have less success in curbing the behaviour than a parent who uses punishment consistently.
Show alternatives Punishment is more successful, and side effects are reduced, if the individual is clear on how reinforcement can be
obtained by engaging in appropriate behaviours.

Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences :: Module 6.2 :: 255

 ARE CLASSICAL AND OPERANT LEARNING DIS- operant conditioning that leads to a high response rate.
TINCT EVENTS? It is tempting to think of behaviour But, the flashy lights, the dinging sounds coming from
as being due to either classical conditioning or oper- the machine, and even the chair all serve as conditioned
ant conditioning. However, it is possible, even likely, stimuli for the unconditioned response of excitement
that a complex behaviour is influenced by both types associated with gambling. So, classical conditioning pro-
of learning, each influencing behaviour in slightly dif- duces an emotional response and operant conditioning
ferent ways. Consider gambling with video lottery ter- maintains the behaviour. Given these forces, should we
minals (VLTs), the topic of the opening story in this really be surprised that VLTs are so alluring to people,
module. As discussed above, slot machines and VLTs particular those prone to problem gambling (Clarke
use a variable-ratio schedule of reinforcement, a type of et al., 2012; Nicki et al., 2007)?

Quick Quiz 6.2b Applications of Operant Conditioning

1 Shaping is the process of 3 Frederick trained his parrot to open the door to his

APPLY . . .
KNOW . . .

A reinforcing a series of responses that approximate cage by pecking at a lever three times. Frederick used
the desired behaviour. a _________ schedule of reinforcement to encourage
the desired behaviour.
B decreasing the likelihood of a behaviour.
A variable-interval
C reinforcing the basic motivational needs of a
subject. B variable-ratio

D punishing a series of responses that you want to C fixed-interval

increase. D fixed-ratio

2 Pete cannot seem to stop checking the change slots 4 A friend regularly spanks his children to decrease their
UNDERSTAND . . .

ANALYZE . . .
of vending machines. Although he usually does not find misbehaviour. Which statement is most accurate in
any money, occasionally he finds a quarter. Despite the regard to this type of corporal punishment?
low levels of reinforcement, this behaviour is likely to A Spanking is an effective method of punishment and
persist due to __________. should always be used.
A escape learning B Spanking can be an effective method of punishment
B the partial reinforcement effect but carries risks of additional negative outcomes.
C positive punishment C Spanking is not an effective method of punishment,
D generalization so it should never be used.
D The effects of spanking have not been well
researched, so it should not be used.

Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

256 :: Module 6.2 : : Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences

 Module Summary
Module

6.2 Now that you have read this module you should

KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with operant

conditioning :
avoidance learning (p. 246) positive punishment (p. 247)
Mike Mergen/Bloomberg via Getty Images
continuous reinforcement positive reinforcement (p. 246)
(p. 251) primary reinforcer (p. 247)
discriminative stimulus (p. 248) punisher (p. 245) 1. Bill is caught for cheating on multiple examinations. As
escape learning (p. 246) punishment (p. 245) a consequence, the school principal suspends him for
extinction (p. 249) reinforcement (p. 244) a three-day period. Bill likes being at school and, when
fixed-interval schedule (p. 253) reinforcer (p. 245) he returns from his suspension, he no longer cheats
fixed-ratio schedule (p. 252) schedules of reinforcement on exams. Which process explains the change in Bill’s
negative punishment (p. 247) (p. 251) behaviour? Why?
negative reinforcement (p. 246) secondary reinforcer (p. 247) 2. Ericka earns As in all of her math classes. Throughout
operant conditioning (p. 244) shaping (p. 251) her schooling, she finds that the personal and social
partial (intermittent) variable-interval schedule rewards for excelling at math continue to motivate
reinforcement (p. 251) (p. 253)
her. She eventually completes a graduate degree and
partial reinforcement effect variable-ratio schedule (p. 252) teaches math. Which process explains her passion for
(p. 253)
math? Why?
3. Automobile makers install sound equipment that
UNDERSTAND . . . produces annoying sounds when a door is not shut
properly, lights are left on, or a seat belt is not fastened.
● The role that consequences play in increasing or The purpose is to increase proper door shutting,
decreasing behaviour. Positive and negative reinforcement turning off of lights, and seat belt fastening behaviour.
increase the likelihood of a behaviour, whereas positive Which process explains the behavioural change these
and negative punishment decrease the likelihood of a sounds are attempting to make?
behaviour. Positive reinforcement and punishment involve 4. Hernan bites his fingernails and cuticles to the point of
adding a stimulus to the situation, whereas negative bleeding and discomfort. To reduce this behaviour, he
reinforcement and punishment involve removal of applies a terrible-tasting topical lotion to his fingertips;
a stimulus. the behaviour stops. Which process explains Hernan’s
● How schedules of reinforcement affect behaviour. behavioural change?
Schedules of reinforcement can be fixed or variable, and
can be based on intervals (time) or ratios (the number
of responses). In contrast to continuous reinforcement, ANALYZE . . .
intermittent schedules tend to elicit vigorous responding.
Our tendency to link our behaviour to reinforcement ● The effectiveness of punishment on changing behaviour.
is particularly evident when it comes to superstition— Many psychologists recommend that people rely on
where a ritual is believed to bring about reinforcement, reinforcement to teach new or appropriate behaviours. The
regardless of whether it actually does. issue here is not that punishment does not work, but rather
that there are some notable drawbacks to using punishment
as a means to change behaviour. For example, punishment
APPLY . . . may teach individuals to engage in avoidance or aggression,
rather than developing an appropriate alternative behaviour
● Your knowledge of operant conditioning to examples. that can be reinforced.
The concepts of positive and negative reinforcement
and punishment are often the most challenging when it
comes to this material. Read the following scenarios
and determine whether positive reinforcement, negative
reinforcement, positive punishment, or negative
punishment explains the change in behaviour. Check your
answers on page ANS-2.

Operant Conditioning: Learning through Consequences :: Module 6.2 :: 257

 Courtesy of Victoria Horner and the Chimpanzee Sanctuary and Wildlife Conservation Trust, Ngamba Island, Uganda

Module

6.3 Cognitive and Observational Learning

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology The concept of latent learning Principles of observational The claim that viewing violent
After reading associated with cognitive and its relevance to cognitive learning outside of media increases violent behaviour
this module and observational learning aspects of learning the laboratory
you should

Are you smarter than a chimpanzee? For years psychologists have asked What can we conclude from these results? Maybe it is true that both
this question, but in a more nuanced way. More specifically, they have humans and chimps are excellent imitators, although it appears the chil-
tested the problem-solving and imitative abilities of chimpanzees and dren imitated a little too well, while the chimps imitated in a smarter
humans to help us better understand what sets us apart from, and what manner. Clearly, we both share a motivation to imitate—which is a com-
makes us similar to, other animals. Chimps and humans both acquire plex cognitive ability and one of the keys to learning new skills.
many behaviours from observing others, but imagine if you pitted a typi-
cal human preschooler against a chimpanzee. Who do you think would be
Focus Questions
the best at learning a new skill just by watching someone else perform it?
Researchers Victoria Horner and Andrew Whiten asked this question by 1 What role do cognitive factors play in learning?
showing 3- and 4-year-old children how to retrieve a treat by opening a
2 Which processes are required for imitation to occur?
puzzle box, and then they demonstrated the task to chimpanzees as well.
But there was one trick thrown in: As they demonstrated the process,
the researchers added in some steps that were unnecessary to opening
the [Link] children and chimps both figured out how to open it, but the
children imitated all the steps—even the unnecessary ones—while the The first two modules of this chapter focused on relatively basic
chimps skipped the useless steps and went straight for the treat (Horner ways of learning. Classical conditioning occurs through the forma-
& Whiten, 2005). tion of associations (Module 6.1), and operant conditioning involves

258 :: Module 6.3 : : Cognitive and Observational Learning

changes in behaviour due to rewarding or punishing One-way door
consequences (Module 6.2). Both types of learning Curtain
emphasize relationships between stimuli and responses
and avoid making reference to an organism that does the
thinking part of the learning process. However, since the
1950s, psychologists have recognized that cognitive pro-
cesses such as thinking and remembering are useful to
theories and explanations of how we learn.

Cognitive Perspectives on Learning

Cognitive psychologists have contributed a great deal to
psychology’s understanding of learning. In some cases,
they have presented a very different view from behav-
iourism by addressing unobservable mental phenomena.
In other cases, their work has simply complemented
behaviourism by integrating cognitive accounts into
Start End
even the seemingly simplest of learned behaviours, such box box
as classical and operant conditioning. (a)

LATENT LEARNING Much of human learning

involves absorbing information and then demonstrat-
ing what we have learned by performing a task, such as 32
taking a quiz or exam. Learning, and reinforcement for 30
28
learning, may not be expressed until there is an opportu- 26
Average number of errors

nity to do so. In other words, learning may be occurring Never

24
reinforced
even if there is no behavioural evidence of it taking place. 22
20
Psychologist Edward Tolman proposed that humans,
18
and even rats, express latent learning—learning that is 16 Latent learning evident
not immediately expressed by a response until the organism is 14 Always once reinforcement
reinforced for doing so. Tolman and Honzik (1930) dem- 12 reinforced begins, on day 11
10
onstrated latent learning in rats running a maze (see 8
Figure 6.15). The first group of rats could obtain food 6
if they navigated the correct route through the maze. 4
2
They were given 10 trials to figure out an efficient route
0
to the end of the maze, where food was always waiting. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
A second group was allowed to explore the maze, but Days of experience in maze
did not have food available at the other end until the (b)
11th trial. A third group (a control) never received food
{fig. 6.15} Learning without Reinforcement Tolman and Honzik (1930)
while in the maze. It might seem that only the first placed rats in the start box and measured the number of errors they made en
group—the one that was reinforced on all trials—would route to the end box. Rats that were reinforced during the first 10 days of the
learn how to best shuttle from the start of the maze to experiment made fewer errors. Rats that were reinforced on day 11 immedi-
ately made far fewer errors, which indicated that they had learned some spatial
the end. After all, it was the only group that was consis-
details of the maze even though food reinforcement was not available during
tently reinforced. This is, in fact, what happened—at least the first 10 trials for this group.
for the first 10 trials. Tolman and Honzik discovered that
rats that were finally rewarded on the 11th trial quickly
performed as well as the rats that were rewarded on every humans experience latent learning as well. Consider a Simulate
trial (see Figure 6.15). It appears that this second group familiar path you take to work or school. There is prob- What Learning
of rats was learning after all, but only demonstrated their ably a spot along that route that you have never stopped Techniques Do You

knowledge when they received reinforcement worthy of at, simply because there is no reason to—perhaps it is a Use?

quickly running through the maze. vacant storefront. But imagine you discover one day that
If you put yourself in the rat’s shoes—or perhaps a fantastic and inexpensive new restaurant opened up in Simulate

paws would be more appropriate—you will realize that that spot. You would have no trouble finding it in the Latent Learning

Cognitive and Observational Learning :: Module 6.3 :: 259

 future because you have an understanding of the general organisms, and so on. For example, the same comment
area. Tolman and Honzik assumed that this process held to two coworkers might lead to an angry response from
true for their rats, and they further hypothesized that rats one person and laughter from another. The explanation
possess a cognitive map of their environment, much like for these differences is the O in the S–O–R theory; each
our own cognitive map of our surroundings. This clas- person or organism will think about or interpret a situa-
sic study is important because it illustrates that humans tion in a slightly different way.
(and rats) acquire information in the absence of immedi-
ate reinforcement and that we can use that information
when circumstances allow. Quick Quiz 6.3a
It is important to point out that latent learning did Cognitive Perspectives on Learning
not disprove the operant learning research that high-
1 A theory of learning that highlights the role played by

KNOW . . .
lighted the importance of reinforcement (Module 6.2).
an individual’s interpretation of a situation is (the)
Instead, most of the controversy centred on the idea of A classical conditioning theory.
cognitive maps and the statement that no reinforcement
B operant conditioning theory.
had occurred during the first 10 trials. Later research
C stimulus-organism-response theory.
suggested that the rats may have been learning where
D individualist theory.
different parts of the maze were located in relation to
each other rather than forming a complete map of the
2 Contrary to some early behaviourist views, ________

UNDERSTAND . . .
environment (Whishaw, 1991). Additionally, there is no
suggests that learning can occur without any
guarantee that the rats didn’t find exploring the maze
immediate behavioural evidence.
on the first 10 trials to be rewarding in some way, as rats A latent learning
are naturally curious about their environment. Because
B operant conditioning
it is experimentally difficult, if not impossible, to answer
C classical conditioning
some of these questions, much of the debate about the
D desirable difficulties
mechanisms underlying latent learning remains unre-
solved (Jensen, 2006). Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

S-O-R THEORY OF LEARNING Latent learning sug-

gests that individuals engage in more “thinking” than
is shown by operant conditioning studies, which focus
Observational Learning
on the relationship between a stimulus and a response The first two modules in this chapter focused on aspects
(S–R). Instead, cognitive theories of learning suggest that of learning that require direct experience. Pavlov’s dogs
the individual is actively processing and analyzing infor- experienced the tone and the food one right after the
mation; this activity influences observable behaviours as other, and learning occurred. Rats in an operant cham-
well as our internal mental lives. Because of the essential ber experienced the reinforcing consequences of pressing
role played by the individual, this early view of cognitive a lever, and learning occurred. However, not all learning
learning was referred to as the S-O-R theory (stimulus- requires direct experience, and this is a good thing. Can
organism-response theory; Woodworth, 1929). you imagine if surgeons had to learn by trial and error?
S–R and S–O–R theorists both agreed that thinking Who on earth would volunteer to be the first patient?
Simulate took place; however, they disagreed about the contents Luckily, many species, including humans, are able
The Experiment: and causes of the thoughts. S–R psychologists assumed to learn new skills and new associations without directly
Learning that thoughts were based on the S–R contingencies that experiencing them. Observational learning involves
an organism had learned throughout its life; in other changes in behaviour and knowledge that result from watching
words, thinking was a form of behaviour. Individual dif- others. Humans have elaborate cultural customs and rituals
ferences in responding would therefore be explained by that spread through observation. The cultural differences
the different learning histories of the individuals. S–O–R we find in dietary preferences, clothing styles, athletic
psychologists, on the other hand, assumed that individual events, holiday rituals, music tastes, and so many other
differences were based on people’s (or animals’) cogni- customs exist because of observational learning. Socially
tive interpretation of that situation—in other words, what transmitting behaviour is an efficient approach. Indeed, it is
that stimulus meant to them. In this view, the same stim- the primary way that adaptive behaviour spreads so rapidly
ulus in the same situation could theoretically produce within a population, even in nonhuman species (Heyes
different responses based on a variety of factors includ- & Galef, 1996). For example, cats that observe others
ing an individual’s mood, fatigue, the presence of other being trained to leap over a hurdle to avoid a foot shock

260 :: Module 6.3 : : Cognitive and Observational Learning

 Attention

Memory
Observational
Motor reproduction learning
of behaviour

Motivation

Cathy Keifer/[Link]
Even rats have a special way of socially transmitting
information. Without directly observing what other rats have
eaten, rats will smell the food on the breath of other rats and
then preferentially search for this food. {fig. 6.16} Processes Involved in Observational Learning
For observational learning to occur, several processes are
required: attention, memory, the ability to reproduce the
behaviour, and the motivation to do so.
learn the same trick faster than cats who did not observe
this training (John et al., 1968). A less shocking example
involves rats’ foraging behaviour. Before setting off in First, consider the importance of attention. Seeing
search of food, rats smell the breath of other [Link] will someone react with a classically conditioned fear to snakes
then search preferentially for food that matches the odour or spiders can result in acquiring a similar fear—even in
of their fellow rats’ breath. To humans, this practice may the absence of any direct experience with snakes or spi-
not seem very appealing—but for rats, using breath as a ders (LoBue et al., 2010). As an example, are you afraid of
source of information about food may help them survive. sharks? It is likely that many of you have this fear, even if
By definition, a breathing rat is a living rat, so clearly the you live thousands of kilometres away from shark-infested
food the animal ate did not kill it. Living rats are worth waters. The fear you see on the faces of people in horror
copying. Human children are also very sensitive to social movies and in “Shark Week” documentaries is enough for
cues about what they should avoid. Curious as they may you to learn this experience. Observational learning can
be, even young children will avoid food if they witness extend to operant conditioning as well. Observing some-
their parents reacting with disgust toward it (Stevenson one being rewarded for a behaviour facilitates imitation of
et al., 2010). However, for observational learning to occur, the same behaviours that bring about rewards.
some key processes need to be in place if the behaviour is Second, memory is an important facet of observa-
to be successfully transmitted from one person to the next. tional learning. When we learn a new behaviour, there is
often a delay before the opportunity to perform it arises.
PROCESSES SUPPORTING OBSERVATIONAL If you tuned in to a cooking show, for example, you
LEARNING Albert Bandura (Bandura, 1973; Bandura would need to recreate the steps and processes required
& Walters, 1973) identified four processes involved in to prepare the dish at a later time. Recent brain-imaging
observational learning: attention to the act or behaviour, research also indicates that memory is a key compo-
memory for it, the ability to reproduce it, and the motivation nent of observational learning. Using fMRI, scientists
to do so (see Figure 6.16). Without any one of these pro- found that receiving money is associated with activity
cesses, observational learning would be unlikely—or at in parts of the basal ganglia and the orbitofrontal cor-
least would result in a poor rendition. tex, areas related to processing rewards (see Module 6.2).

Cognitive and Observational Learning :: Module 6.3 :: 261

 In contrast, observing someone else receive money leads we first observe, practise immediately, and continue prac-
to activity in the hippocampus, an area related to memory tising soon after acquiring the response. For example, one
formation (Bellebaum et al., 2012). Interestingly, memory study found that the optimal way to develop and maintain
for how to reproduce a behaviour or skill can be found at motor skills is by repeated observation before and during
a very early age (Huang, 2012). Infants just nine months the initial stages of practising (Weeks & Anderson, 2000).
of age can reproduce a new behaviour, even if there is up It appears that watching someone else helps us practise
to a one-week delay between observing the act and hav- effectively, and allows us to see how errors are made.
ing the opportunity to do so (Meltzoff, 1988). When we see a model making a mistake, we know to
Third, observational learning requires that the examine our own behaviour for similar mistakes (Blandin
observer can actually reproduce the behaviour. This can & Proteau, 2000; Hodges et al., 2007).
be very challenging, depending on the task. Unless an Finally, motivation is clearly an important compo-
individual has a physical impairment, learning an everyday nent of observational learning. On the one hand, being
task—such as operating a can opener—is not difficult. By hungry or thirsty will motivate an individual to find out
comparison, hitting a baseball thrown by a Toronto Blue where others are going to find food and drink. On the
Jays pitcher requires a very specialized skill set. Research other hand, a child who has no aspirations to ever play
indicates that observational learning is most effective when the piano will be less motivated to observe his teacher

MYTHS IN MIND
Teaching Is Uniquely Human

Teaching is a significant component of human culture and a

primary means by which information is learned in classrooms,
at home, and many other settings. But are humans the only
species with the ability to teach others? Some intriguing
examples of teaching-like behaviour have been observed in
nonhuman species (Thornton & Raihani, 2010). Prepare to be
humbled.
Teaching behaviour was recently discovered in ants
(Franks & Richardson, 2006)—probably the last species we
Miles Barton/[Link]
might suspect would demonstrate this complex ability. For
Primate researchers have documented the spread of potato
example, a “teacher” ant gives a “pupil” ant feedback on how washing in Japanese macaque monkeys across multiple
to locate a source of food. generations. Monkeys appear to learn how to do this by
Field researchers studying primates discovered the rapid observing experienced monkeys from their troop.
spread of potato-washing behaviour in Japanese macaque
monkeys (Kawai, 1965). Imo—perhaps one of the more inge-
nious monkeys of the troop—discovered that potatoes could
be washed in salt water, which also may have given them a
more appealing taste. Potato-washing behaviour subsequently
spread through the population, especially among the monkeys
that observed the behaviour in Imo and her followers.
Transmission of new and unique behaviours typically
occurs between mothers and their young (Huffman, 1996).
Chimpanzee mothers, for example, actively demonstrate to
their young the special skills required to crack nuts open
(Boesch, 1991). Also, mother killer whales appear to show
their offspring how to beach themselves (Rendell & White-
head, 2001), a behaviour that is needed for the type of killer
whale that feeds on seals that congregate along the shoreline.
In each of these examples, it is possible that the observer Danita Delimont Creative/Alamy
animals are imitating the individual who is demonstrating a Is this killer whale teaching her offspring to hunt for seals?
behaviour. These observations raise the possibility that teach- Researchers have found evidence of teaching in killer whales
ing may not be a uniquely human endeavour. and a variety of other nonhuman species.

262 :: Module 6.3 : : Cognitive and Observational Learning

during lessons. He will also be less likely to practise the 1987). Finally, imitation might
observed behaviour that he is trying to learn. involve a more cognitive repre-
Observational punishment is also possible, but sentation of one’s own actions
appears to be less effective at changing behaviour than as well as the observed actions
reinforcement. Witnessing others experience negative of someone else (Whiten, 2000).
consequences may decrease your chances of copying It is likely that all three pro-
someone else’s behaviour. Even so, we are sometimes cesses are involved with imita-
surprisingly bad at learning from observational punish- tion at different points in human
ment. Seeing the consequences of smoking, drug abuse, (and some animal) development
and other risky behaviours does not seem to prevent (Zentall, 2012).
many people from engaging in the same activities. At the beginning of this
module, we raised the topic of
IMITATION AND OBSERVATIONAL LEARNING human imitation—namely, how
One of the primary mechanisms that allows observa- children, in contrast to chim-
tional learning to take place is imitation —recreating panzees, may imitate beyond what
someone else’s motor behaviour or expression, often to accom- is necessary. Psychologists have
plish a specific goal. From a very young age, infants imi- found that both children from
tate the facial expressions of adults (Meltzoff & Moore, industrialized regions of Australia
1977). Later, as they mature physically, children readily and children from remote non-
imitate motor acts produced by a model, such as a par- industrialized communities in JGI/Jamie Grill/Blend Images/Getty Images
ent, teacher, or friend. This ability seems to be some- Africa over-imitate the actions of Infants and children actively imitate others,
thing very common among humans. However, it is adults who model how to open particularly adults.

currently unclear what imitation actually is, although a contraption using a variety of
a number of theories exist. Some researchers suggest sticks, switches, and knobs. The adult demonstrating the
that children receive positive reinforcement when they actions involved in opening the box added irrelevant
properly imitate the behaviour of an adult and that imi- steps to the process—many of which the children were
tation is a form of operant learning (Horne & Erjavec, compelled to imitate (Nielsen & Tomaselli, 2010). Per-
2007). Others suggest that imitation allows children to haps humans are so wired and motivated to learn from
gain a better understanding of their own body parts others that evolution has given us, but not nonhumans,
versus the “observed” body parts of others (Mitchell, the tendency to over-imitate.

acceptable behaviour. Either way, the actions people observe

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC in the media can raise concerns, especially when children are
LITERACY MODEL watching. Given that North American children now spend
an average of five hours per day interacting with electronic
Linking Media Exposure to Behaviour media, it is no wonder that one of the most discussed and
researched topics in observational learning is the role of
media violence in developing aggressive behaviours and
Over-imitating behaviours such as opening contraptions with
desensitizing individuals to the effects of violence (Anderson
sticks is fairly harmless. However, not all of the behaviours chil-
et al., 2003; Huesmann, 2007). So how have researchers tack-
dren see are this innocent. Children (and adults) are exposed
led the issue?
to dozens of violent actions in the media, on the Internet, and
in computer games every day. If kids are imitating the behav-
iours they see in other contexts, does this mean that the How can science Simulate
media are creating a generation of potentially violent people? explain the effect Media Violence and
of media exposure Societal Aggression

What do we know on children’s

about media effects behaviour?
on behaviour? One of the first experimental attempts to test whether
In some cases, learning from the exposure to violence begets violent behaviour in children Simulate
media involves direct imitation; was made by Albert Bandura and colleagues (1961, 1963). In a Bandura’s Study on
in other cases, what we observe series of studies, groups of children watched an adult or car- Observation Learning
shapes what we view as normal or toon character attack a “Bobo” doll, while another group of

Cognitive and Observational Learning :: Module 6.3 :: 263

 children watched adults who did not attack the doll. Children sexually aggressive lyrics that were degrading to women. After
who watched adults attack the doll did likewise when given listening to this music, the participants were asked to help
the opportunity, in some cases even imitating the specific out with a (staged) taste-preference study by pouring hot
attack methods used by the adults. The other children did chili sauce into a plastic cup for another participant (who was
not attack the doll. This provided initial evidence that viewing actually a confederate of the experimenters). The researchers
aggression makes children at least temporarily more prone to found that after listening to aggressive music that degraded
committing aggressive acts toward an inanimate object. women, males poured more hot sauce for a female than for a
male confederate; this difference did not occur after listening
Decades of research has since confirmed that viewing aggres-
to neutral music. Female participants did not show this effect.
sion is associated with increased aggression and desensitization
Male participants also recalled more negative and aggressive
to violence (Bushman & Anderson, 2007). In one beautifully
thoughts. Interestingly, when women listened to lyrics that
Canadian study, Wendy Josephson (1987) had children aged
were demeaning to men, they too recalled more negative and
7–9 view a violent or nonviolent film before playing a game of
hostile information (Fischer & Greitmeyer, 2006). Thus, the
floor hockey. Not surprisingly, children who viewed the violent
effects of media violence are not limited to the visual domain
film were more likely to act aggressively (i.e., to commit an act
and can affect both males and females.
that would be penalized in a real hockey game). As an added
twist, in some of the floor hockey games, a referee carried a
walkie-talkie that had appeared in the violent film and thus Can we critically evaluate
served as a reminder of the violence. This movie-associated this research?
cue stimulated more violence, particularly in children who the
Exposure to violent media and
teachers had indicated were prone to aggression.
aggressive behaviour and thinking
Visual images are not the only source of media violence, how- are certainly related to each other.
ever. Music, particularly hip hop and rap music (Herd, 2009), However, at least two very impor-
has become increasingly graphic in its depictions of violence tant questions remain. First, does
over the last few decades. Psychologists have found that exposure to violence cause violent behaviour or desensitiza-
songs with violent lyrics can lead to an increase in aggres- tion to violence? Second, does early exposure to violence
sive and hostile thoughts in a manner similar to violent mov- turn children into violent adolescents or adults? Unfortu-
ies (Anderson et al., 2003). In one study, German researchers nately, there are no simple answers to either question, due in
asked male and female participants to listen to songs with large part to investigators’ reliance on correlational designs,

Watch Albert Bandura

Classic Footage of
In Albert Bandura’s experiment, children who watched adults behave violently toward the Bobo doll were aggressive toward the
Bandura’s Bobo Doll same doll when given the chance—often imitating specific acts that they viewed. Click on this image in your eText to watch
Experiment video footage of this experiment.

264 :: Module 6.3 : : Cognitive and Observational Learning

which are typically used for studying long-term effects. Recall to help parents make decisions about which type of media
that correlational studies can establish only that variables their children will be exposed to. The Motion Picture Asso-
are related, but cannot determine that one variable (media) ciation of America has been rating movies, with violence as a
causes another one (violent behaviour). What is very clear criterion, since 1968. (Canada does not have a national ratings
from decades of research is that a positive correlation exists system; individual provinces each rate movies.) Violence on
between exposure to violent media and aggressive behaviour television was being monitored and debated even before the
in individuals, and that this correlation is stronger than those film industry took this step. Since the 1980s, parental advisory
between aggression and peer influence, abusive parenting, or stickers have been appearing on music with lyrics that are
intelligence (Bushman & Anderson, 2007). sexually explicit, reference drug use, or depict violence. Even
more recently, due to a drastic upsurge in their popularity and
Another concern with these studies is that they aren’t really
sophistication, video games have been labelled with parental
examining why people respond aggressively when they see
advisory stickers. Of course, as you know, these precautions
violent imagery. Although there is clearly a role for observa-
have little effect on what children watch, listen to, and play.
tional learning, a number of researchers have also suggested
Kids will always find a way to access this type of material.
that people become desensitized to the violence and thus
But, providing parents with more information about how
less likely to inhibit their own violent impulses. Recent brain-
these depictions of violence can affect children will hopefully
imaging studies support this view. In one study, activity in
highlight some of the dangers of these images and lyrics, and
parts of the frontal and parietal lobes showed reductions in
may inspire them to talk to their kids about how violence can
activity as people became less sensitive to aggression shown
be real. Doing so might teach children and adolescents to be Watch
in videos (Strenziok et al., 2011). In another experiment, par-
better at examining how media violence could be affecting In the Real World:
ticipants with a low history of exposure to media violence
their own behaviour. Learning Aggression
showed more activity in frontal-lobe regions related to inhib-
iting responses than did participants who had more expo-
sure to media violence and who had a history of aggressive
behaviour. These differences were particularly strong when
participants had to inhibit responses related to aggression-
related words (Kalnin et al., 2011). Although these studies
don’t definitively explain why media violence affects behav-
iour, they do point to at least one potential cause.

Why is this relevant?

Clearly then, media violence
is a significant risk factor for
future aggressiveness. Many
organizations have stepped in Christopher T Stein/Digital Vision/Getty Images

Watch
Violence and Video
Dwayne Newton/PhotoEdit Games: Douglas
Graphic violence in video games has become commonplace. Gentile

Cognitive and Observational Learning :: Module 6.3 :: 265

 MIRROR NEURONS Neuroscientists have provided True or False?
additional insight into the functions of imitation. In the 1. A regular pattern of playing violent video games causes
1990s, Italian researchers discovered that groups of neu- violent behaviour.
rons in parts of the frontal lobes associated with planning
2. Gamers who play violent video games are less likely to
movements became active both when a monkey per-
behave aggressively if they are able to personalize their
formed an action and when it observed another monkey own character.
perform an action (di Pellegrino et al., 1992). These cells,
now known as mirror neurons, are also found in several areas 3. Playing violent video games reduces a person’s sensitivity
to others’ suffering and need for help.
in the human brain and have been linked to many different
functions ranging from understanding other people’s 4. Gamers from Eastern cultures, who play violent video
emotional states to observational learning (Rizzolatti games as much as Westerners, are less prone to video
et al., 1996; Rizzolatti & Craighero, 2004). Additionally, game–induced aggression.
groups of neurons appear to be sensitive to the context 5. Physiological arousal is not affected by violent video
of an action. In one study, participants viewed a scene of games.
a table covered in a plate of cookies, a teapot, and a cup.
6. Male gamers are more likely to become aggressive by
In one photo of these items, the setting is untouched. In
playing video games than female gamers.
this case, reaching for the cup of tea would indicate that
the person intended to have a sip. In another photo, many Answers
of the cookies are gone and the milk container has been 1. True. Playing violent video games has both short- and
knocked over. In this case, reaching for the cup of tea—the long-term effects on violent thinking and behaviour.
identical action as in the previous photo—would indicate 2. False. Personalizing a character seems to increase aggres-
that the person was cleaning up the mess. Incredibly, dif- sive behaviour.
ferent groups of mirror neurons fired in response to the
3. True. People who play violent video games often become
two images, despite the fact that the identical movement
less sensitive to the feelings and well-being of others.
was being viewed (Iacoboni et al., 2005).
It remains unclear whether mirror neurons are 4. False. Gamers from both Eastern and Western cultures
related to media depictions of violence. However, given show the same effects.
that goal-directed movements are the focus of attention 5. False. Players of violent video games show increased
in violent movies and video games, it is reasonable to physiological arousal during play.
expect that mirror neurons will be responding as well.
6. False. There are no overall gender differences in aggres-
sion displayed by gamers.

(These data are from Anderson et al., 2010; Carnagey et al.,

BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL 2007; and Fischer et al., 2010.)

PERSPECTIVES
Violence,Video Games, and Culture
Of course, these data don’t mean that you should
Can pixilated, fictional characters controlled by your own never watch a violent movie or violent video game. And,
hands make you more aggressive or even violent? Adoles- you don’t need to delete your gangsta rap songs and
cents, university students, and even a lot of adults in their
replace them with a steady diet of Taylor Swift. Rather,
thirties and forties play hours of video games each day, many
these data show you that the media can influence your
of which are very violent. Also, because video games are
behavior. As you read in Modules 6.1 and 6.2, we can
becoming so widespread, concerns have been raised about
whether the correlations between media violence and ag- learn associations even without conscious awareness.
gression are found across different cultures. What do you It’s up to you to become aware of how media violence
think: Do these games increase aggression and violent acts by can lead to (unintentional) observational learning.
players? First, test your knowledge and assumptions and then Doing so will help ensure that your actions are, in fact,
see what research tells us. your own.

266 :: Module 6.3 : : Cognitive and Observational Learning

Quick Quiz 6.3b Observational Learning
1 Observational learning 3 Nancy is trying to learn a new yoga pose. To obtain

APPLY . . .
KNOW . . .
A is the same thing as teaching. the optimal results, research indicates she should
B involves a change in behaviour as a result of A observe, practise immediately, and continue to practise.
watching others. B observe and practise one time.
C is limited to humans. C just closely observe the behaviour.
D is not effective for long-term retention. D observe the behaviour just one time and then
practise on her own.
2 ________ is the replication of a motor behaviour or
4 Which is the most accurate conclusion from the large

ANALYZE . . .
expression, often to accomplish a specific goal.
A Observational learning body of research that exists on the effects of viewing
media violence?
B Latent learning
A Viewing aggression directly causes increased
C Imitation aggression and desensitization to violence.
D Cognitive mapping B Viewing aggression does not cause increased
aggression and desensitization to violence.
C Viewing aggression is related to increased
aggression and desensitization to violence.
D Viewing aggression is not related to increased
aggression and desensitization to violence.

Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
6.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with cognitive and

observational learning :

imitation (p. 263) observational learning (p. 260)

latent learning (p. 259)
Courtesy of Victoria Horner and the Chimpanzee Sanctu-
ary and Wildlife Conservation Trust, Ngamba Island, Uganda
UNDERSTAND . . .
3. Improving environmental sustainability in your
● The concept of latent learning and its relevance to university
cognitive aspects of learning. Without being able to
observe learning directly, it might seem as if no learning Are you simply letting people observe your behaviour, or
occurs. However, Tolman and Honzik showed that rats can does your plan involve elements learned in other modules
form “cognitive maps” of their environment. They found in this chapter (e.g., shaping)?
that, even when no immediate reward was available, rats
still learned about their environment. ANALYZE . . .

APPLY . . .
● The claim that viewing violent media increases
violent behaviour. Psychologists agree that observational
● Principles of observational learning outside of the learning occurs and that media can influence behaviour.
laborator y. Based on what you read about in this Many studies show a correlational (noncausal) relationship
module, how would you use observational learning in each between violent media exposure and aggressive behaviour.
of these settings? Check your answers on page ANS-2. Also, experimental studies, going all the way back to
Albert Bandura’s work of several decades ago, indicate
1. Teaching children how to kick a soccer ball that exposure to violent media can at least temporarily
2. Improving efficiency in a busy office increase aggressive behaviour.

Cognitive and Observational Learning :: Module 6.3 :: 267

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Reinforcement
and Punishment

1 What do we know about reinforcement

and punishment? 2 How can science help explain how
reinforcement and punishment work?
Review Figure 6.10 on page 244 and Table 6.2 on page 246 for help Page 244 included a discussion of how early research with ani-
distinguishing between reinforcement and punishment. As you review this mal subjects proved that systematic reinforcement can shape
material, think about how you could mentally organize these concepts. If behaviours in both animals and humans. Also, on page 248,
you are positively reinforced, then some external incentive is given to you. If we mentioned how modern researchers have identified a spe-
you are negatively reinforced, then your behaviour has resulted in something cific region of the brain, the nucleus accumbens, that becomes
aversive being removed. For example, the child in line at the grocery store activated during the processing of rewarding activities such
who whines until his dad gives him candy is positively reinforced for whining: as eating (see Figure 6.13). Individual differences in this area
He receives something he wants (candy), so the next time the child is at the of the brain might account for why some people can easily
store, his behaviour (whining) is likely to increase. The father is negatively rein- modify their behaviour through reinforcement or punishment,
forced, because he gives his son the candy and the whining (something he finds whereas others struggle to do so. Research has also revealed
aversive) stops. Both father and son were reinforced because each is likely to that people tend to react more strongly to the unpleasantness
repeat the behaviour that got them what they wanted. of punishment than they do to the pleasures of reward, which
While the father was negatively reinforced in this scenario, no one was pun- raises questions about the effectiveness of punishment versus
ished. If you are confused about the difference between negative reinforcement reinforcement. For example, parents who spank their children
and punishment, consider this: Most people find often see short-term results when a child stops her undesir-
the outcome of negative reinforcement to be able behaviour, but studies have found that spank-
desirable but are upset about being punished. ing has several negative side effects. Research also
suggests that the negative side effects increase or
decrease depending on the severity of the physical
punishment.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video
excerpt on operant conditioning. You can
access the video at MyPsychLab or by clicking
the play button in the centre of your eText. If lculig/Shutterstock
your instructor assigns this video as a home-
work activity, you will find additional content to help you in 3 Can we critically evaluate claims about
reinforcement and punishment?
MyPsychLab. You can also view the video by using your smart
Do these findings suggest that all punishment is ineffective and that
phone and the QR code below, or you can go to the YouTube
reinforcement is the only way to successfully modify behaviour? The dis-
link provided.
cussion of punishment on page 255 explained that while punishment
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, imagine may temporarily stop an unwanted behaviour, it does not teach appro-
that you are asked by a roommate to help him devise a weight- priate behaviours. For example, if the latest fad diet severely restricts
loss program to increase his chances of making the football team. the amount and kind of food you can eat, you may lose pounds in the
Create a one-month behaviour modification program based on short term, but once the diet is over, you will probably go back to your
the principles of operant conditioning which will help him get unhealthy ways and gain back the weight. Generally, punishment of any
started toward his goal. kind is most effective when it is combined with reinforcing alternative
responses. See the guidelines in Table 6.4 on page 255 for tips on
using punishment and minimizing its negative side effects.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]//wor
[Link]/workthemodel
work
kthemo
kth
hemod
de
del
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

268 :: Chapter 6 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 7
Memory
7.1 Memory Systems
● The Atkinson-Shiffrin Model p. 271
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Distinguishing Short-Term from
Long-Term Memory Stores p. 275
● The Working Memory Model:
An Active STM System p. 278
● Long-Term Memory Systems:
Declarative and Nondeclarative
Memories p. 280
● The Cognitive Neuroscience
of Memory p. 282
● Module Summary p. 286

7.2 Encoding and Retrieving Memories

● Encoding and Retrieval p. 288
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Context-Dependent Memory p. 290
● Emotional Memories p. 293
● Forgetting and
Remembering p. 296
● Module Summary p. 300

7.3 Constructing and Reconstructing

Memories
● How Memories Are Organized
and Constructed p. 302
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
How Schemas Influence Memory p. 302
● Memory Reconstruction p. 305
● Module Summary p. 311
Andreka/Shutterstock

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 312
 Jsemeniuk/E+/Getty Images

Module

7.1 Memory Systems

Learning KNOW… UNDERSTAND… APPLY… ANALYZE…

Objectives The key terminology Which structures of the brain Your knowledge of the brain basis The claim that humans have
After reading of memory systems are associated with specific of memory to predict what types multiple memory systems
this module memory tasks and how the brain of damage or disease would result
you should changes as new memories form in which types of memory loss

In October 1981, an Ontario man lost control of his motorcycle and flew areas (Rosenbaum et al., 2005). His case also hearkens back to a philo-
off an exit ramp west of Toronto. He suffered a severe head injury and sophical question posed by William James (1890/1950) over a century
required immediate brain surgery in order to treat the swelling caused ago: If an individual were to awaken one day with his or her personal
by the impact. Brain scans conducted after the accident showed extensive memories erased, would he or she still be the same person?
damage to the medial temporal lobes (including the hippocampus) as well
as to both frontal lobes and the left occipital lobe. When the man, now
known as patient K.C., recovered consciousness, doctors quickly noted
Focus Questions
that he had severe memory impairments. However, when psycholo- 1 How is it possible to remember just long enough
gists from the University of Toronto dug deeper into K.C.’s condition, it to have normal conversations and activities but
became clear that he had retained some memory for general knowledge, then to forget them almost immediately?
but that he had lost his episodic memory, the memory of his specific expe-
2 How would damage to different brain areas
riences (Tulving et al., 1988). Strikingly, K.C. could recall the facts about
affect different types of memory?
his life (e.g., where he lived) but could not recall his personal experiences
or feelings relating to those facts (e.g., sitting on the steps with friends).

K.C.’s devastating experience helped researchers prove that we have sev-

eral different types of memory, each involving different networks of brain

270 :: Module 7.1 : : Memory Systems

You have probably heard people talk about memory as if The Atkinson-Shiffrin Model
it were a single ability:
In the 1960s, Richard Atkinson and Richard Shiffrin
• I have a terrible memory! reviewed what psychologists knew about memory at
• Isn’t there some way I could improve my memory? that time and constructed the memory model that bears
But have you ever heard people talk about memory as if their name (see Figure 7.1). The first thing to notice
it were several abilities? about the Atkinson-Shiffrin model is that it includes
three memory stores (Atkinson & Shiffrin, 1968). Stores
• One of my memories works well, but the other is not retain information in memory without using it for any specific
so hot. purpose; they essentially serve the same purpose as hard
Probably not. However, as you will learn in this drives serve for a computer. The three stores include
module, memory is actually a collection of several systems sensory memory, short-term memory (STM), and long-
that store information in different forms for differing term memory (LTM), which we will investigate in more
amounts of time (Atkinson & Shiffrin, 1968). The path detail later. In addition, control processes shift informa-
that information takes as it is stored in memory can be tion from one memory store to another; they are represented
seen in Figure 7.1. by the arrows in the model. Information enters the

Stimulus

Sensory Organs
Sensation: Eyes, ears, etc.

Transduction from physical

energy (sensation) into neural
impulses (perception)

Sensory Memory
Forgetting
Limitless, but short-lived

Attention helps select a portion

of the sensory memory for
further processing

Short-Term Memory
Information is rehearsed Forgetting
7 ± 2 items; lasts 30 seconds

Some information is encoded Later, some information can be

into long-term memory retrieved

Long-Term Memory
Unlimited, but not always Forgetting
accessible

{fig. 7.1} The Atkinson-Shiffrin Model Memory is a multistage process. Information flows through a brief sensory memory
store into short-term memory, where rehearsal encodes it into long-term memory for permanent storage. Memories are retrieved
from long-term memory and brought into short-term storage for further processing. Click on this figure in your eText to see
more details.

Memory Systems :: Module 7.1 :: 271

 (a) The whole report task answer, because sensory memories disappear faster than
an individual can report them. George Sperling devised a
G W D N brilliant method for testing the storage capacity of iconic
memory. In his experiment, researchers flashed a grid of
F H P V “G, W, D, N, …” letters on a screen for a split second (Figure 7.2a), and
participants had to report what they saw. In the whole
S J W X
report condition, participants attempted to recall as many
of the letters as possible—the whole screen. Participants
1. The grid of letters 2. and then the participant were generally able to report only three or four of the
flashes on the screen… recites as many letters as
she can. letters, and these would all be in the same line. But does
this mean that the iconic sensory memory system can
(b) The partial report task
only store three or four bits of information at a time?
Sperling thought that it likely had a larger capacity,
G W D N
High but hypothesized that the memory of the letters actu-
F H P V
ally faded faster than participants could report them. To
Medium test this, in the partial report condition, participants were
S J W X again flashed a set of letters on the screen, but the display
Low “S, J, W, X, …” was followed immediately by a tone that was randomly
1. The grid of letters 2. one of three 3. and then the
chosen to be low, medium, or high (Figure 7.2b). After
flashes on the screen… tones plays… participant recites hearing the tone, participants were to report the corre-
as many letters as sponding line of letters—bottom, middle, or top. Under
she can recall.
these conditions, participants still reported only three or
{fig. 7.2} A Test of Iconic Sensory Memory Sperling’s par- four of the letters, but they could report them from any
ticipants viewed a grid of letters flashed on a screen for a split
second, then attempted to recall as many of the letters as pos-
randomly selected line. Because the tone came after the
sible. In the whole report condition (a), they averaged approxi- screen went blank, the only way the participants could
mately four items, usually from a single row. By comparison, as get the letters right is if they recalled them from mem-
Sperling demonstrated, they could remember more than four
ory. Thus Sperling argued that iconic memory could
items in the partial report condition (b). In these trials, partici-
pants could usually name any row of four items, depending on hold all 12 letters as a mental image, but that they would
the row they were cued to recite. only remain in sensory memory long enough for a few
letters to be reported.
sensory memory store through vision, hearing, and other But if information in our sensory memory disap-
senses, and the control process we call attention selects pears after half a second, then how can we have any
which information will be passed on to STM. Some (but not continuous perceptions? How can you stare meaning-
all) information in STM goes through encoding, the fully into someone’s eyes without that person fading
process of storing information in the LTM system. Retrieval away from memory half a second later? Or, how can
brings information from LTM back into STM; this happens you follow the spider crawling across your wall without
when you become aware of existing memories, such as it continually disappearing like the letters in Sperling’s
remembering the movie you saw last week. In this mod- experiment? The answer is attention. Attention allows
ule, we are primarily concerned with the various types us to move a small amount of the information from
Explore our sensory memory into STM for further processing.
of memory stores, so next we will examine each one
Key Processes in
in detail. This information is often referred to as being within
Stages of Memory
the “spotlight of attention” (Pashler, 1999). Infor-
Explore SENSORY MEMORY Sensory memory is a mem- mation that is outside of this spotlight of attention is
Encoding, Storage, ory store that accurately holds perceptual information for a not transferred into STM and is quite unlikely to be
and Retrieval in very brief amount of time—how brief depends on which remembered.
Memory sensory system we talk about. Iconic memory, the visual The relationship between sensory memory and
form of sensory memory, is held for about one-half to attention is beautifully illustrated by a phenomenon
one second. Echoic memory, the auditory form of sensory known as change blindness (Rensink et al., 1997, 2000;
memory, is held for considerably longer, but still only for Simons & Levin, 1997). In a typical change blindness
about five seconds (Cowan et al., 1990). experiment, participants view two nearly identical ver-
How much information can be held in sensory sions of a photograph (or some other stimulus); these
memory? This important question was very difficult to stimuli will have only one difference between them

272 :: Module 7.1 : : Memory Systems

 B

This cycle repeats for 60 seconds

or until the participant
responds
A

80ms

240ms
{fig. 7.3} Change Blindness, Attention, and Sensory Memory In change blindness, the sensory memory of photograph
A disappears before the onset of photograph B, making it difficult to identify the difference between the two pictures. However, if
a person is paying attention to the area that differs between the two photographs, then the representation of that part of the first
photograph will still be in short-term memory when the second photograph appears, thus making it relatively easy to spot the
change. In this example, part of a tree branch disappears in photograph B.

(e.g., a car is different colours in the two photographs). SHORT-TERM MEMORY AND THE MAGICAL
The goal on each trial of the experiment is to locate the NUMBER 7 Although transferring information from
difference. However, the way in which the images are sensory into short-term memory increases the chances
displayed presents quite a challenge. The two versions that this information will be remembered later, it is
of the photograph are alternately presented for 240 ms not guaranteed. This is because short-term memory
each, with a blank screen in between them. So, a partici- (STM) is a memory store with limited capacity and duration
pant would see Photograph 1, blank screen, Photograph 2, (less than a minute). The capacity of STM was summed
blank screen, Photograph 1, blank screen, and so on. If up by one psychologist as The Magical Number 7 ± 2
the difference item within the two photographs (e.g., (Miller, 1956). In his review, Miller found study after
the car) is not the focus of attention, people generally study in which participants were able to remember
fail to notice the change (hence the term change blind- seven units of information, give or take a couple. One
ness). This is because one version of the changing item researcher made the analogy between STM and a jug-
fades from sensory memory just as the next version gler who can keep seven balls in the air before dropping
appears (see Figure 7.3). However, if the participant is any of them. Similarly, STM can rehearse only seven
paying attention to that changing element, the image units of information at once before forgetting some-
of the first version of that item will be transferred into thing (Nairne, 1996).
STM when the second, changed version appears on the This point leads to an important question: What,
screen. The difference between the two photographs exactly, is “a unit of information”? The answer varies from
then becomes apparent. situation to situation. It turns out that, whenever possible,
An obvious question that arises is: Why don’t people we expand our memory capacity with chunking, orga-
quickly move their spotlight of attention around so that nizing smaller units of information into larger, more meaningful
they can transfer all of their sensory memory into short- units. Consider these examples:
term memory? Unfortunately, there is a limit to how
much information can be transferred at once (Marois & 1. O B T N C H C V N T C N S N C
Ivanoff, 2005). 2. C B C H B O C T V T S N C N N

Memory Systems :: Module 7.1 :: 273

 (a) The ability to chunk material varies from situa-
Structured Display
(white checkmate in four moves) Random Display tion to situation. If you had never watched television,
then the five chunks of information in the example
above wouldn’t be very meaningful to you. This sug-
gests that experience or expertise plays a role in our
ability to chunk large amounts of information so that
it fits into our STM. Studies of chess experts have con-
firmed that this is the case. Whereas most people would
memorize the positions of chess pieces on a board indi-
vidually, chess masters perceive it as a single unit, like a
photograph of a scene (Chase & Simon, 1973; Gobet &
(b)
Chunking as a Function of Simon, 1998). Therefore, they are able to remember the
Chess Expertise
25 positions of significantly more chess pieces than could
Structured
novices. Of course, chunking only works when the chess
20
Pieces Recalled

Random pieces are aligned in meaningful chess positions; when

15 they are randomly placed on the board, the experts’
memory advantage disappears (see Figure 7.4). Chunk-
10
ing also allows the chess masters to envision what the
5 board will look like after future moves, again providing
them an edge over novices.
0
Non-Experts Experts Importantly, this expertise is not necessarily based
Players' Skill Level on some innate talent; it can be learned through inten-
sive practice. The most stunning confirmation of this
{fig. 7.4} Chunking in Chess Experts Chess experts have superior STM
for the locations of pieces on a chess board due to their ability to create STM
view comes from the Polgár sisters of Budapest, Hun-
chunks. This advantage only occurs when the pieces are placed in a meaningful gary (Flora, 2005). Their father, Lázló Polgár, decided
way, as they would appear in a game. (a) A depiction of a board with the pieces before they were born that he was going to raise them
placed as they would appear in a game (left) and pieces placed in random loca-
to become chess grandmasters. Doing so would con-
tions (right). (b) The difference in STM for meaningful vs. randomly placed pieces
increased as a function of the test subject’s chess experience. firm his belief that anyone could be trained to become
a world-class expert in any field if he or she worked
hard enough (he was not a grandmaster himself). Pol-
gár trained his daughters in the basics of chess, and had
If we randomly assigned one group of volunteers to
them memorize games so that they could visualize each
remember the first list, and another group to remember
move on the board. After thousands of hours of what
the second list, how would you expect the two groups to
amounts to “chunking training,” the girls (who, luck-
compare? Look carefully at both lists. List 2 is easier to
ily, enjoyed chess) rose to the top of the chess world.
remember than list 1. Volunteers reading list 2 have the
The eldest daughter, Susan, became the first female
advantage of being able to apply patterns that fit their
to earn the title of Grandmaster through tournament
background knowledge; specifically, they can chunk
play. The youngest daughter, Sofia, is an International
these letters into five groups based on popular television
Master. The middle daughter, Judit, is generally thought
networks:
of as the best female chess player in history.
CBC HBO CTV TSN CNN
LONG-TERM MEMORY Not all of the information
In this case, chunking reduces 15 bits of informa- that enters STM is retained. A large proportion of it is
tion to a mere five. We do the same thing with phone lost forever. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, however.
numbers. We turn the area code (403) into one chunk, Imagine if every piece of information you thought
the first three numbers (555) into another chunk, and about remained accessible in your memory. Your mind
then the final four numbers into one or two chunks would be filled with phone numbers, details from text
depending upon the numbers (e.g., 1867 might be one messages, images from billboards and ads on buses,
chunk because it can be remembered as the year Canada as well as an incredible amount of trivial informa-
became a country, while 8761 could be remembered as tion from other people (e.g., overhearing the coff ee
two chunks representing the jersey numbers for hockey order of the person in front of you). Instead, only a
players Sidney Crosby and Rick Nash or, if you’re not a small amount of information from STM is encoded
hockey addict, some other meaningful pattern). or transformed into memory traces. Encoding allows

274 :: Module 7.1 : : Memory Systems

information to enter the final memory store in the could name photographs of other items quite well (Hart
Atkinson-Shiffr in model. This store, long-ter m et al., 1985).
memory (LTM), holds information for extended periods LTM is also organized based on the sounds of the
of time, if not permanently. Unlike short-term memory, word and on how the word looks. This explains part of
long-term memory has no capacity limitations. All the tip of the tongue (TOT) phenomenon, when you are
of the information that undergoes encoding will be able to retrieve similar sounding words or words that
entered into LTM. start with the same letter but can’t quite retrieve the
Once entered into LTM, the information needs to word you actually want (Brown & McNeill, 1966).
be organized. Researchers have identified at least two What appears to be happening in these situations is
ways in which this organization occurs. One way is that nearby items, or nodes, in your neural network are
based on the semantic categories that the items belong activated.
to (Collins & Loftus, 1975). The mental representation Of course, having the information in LTM doesn’t
of cat would be connected to and stored near the mental necessarily mean that you can access it when you want
representation of other animals such as dog and mouse. to. If that were the case, then everyone would have a per-
This tendency was nicely illustrated in an experiment fect grade-point average and no one would be impressed
from the 1950s. Participants were asked to remember a by your knowledge of trivial information, such as the last
list of 60 words that were drawn from four different cat- name of The Count from the children’s program Sesame
egories. Although the words were randomly presented, Street (Answer: von Count). Instead, the likelihood that
participants recalled them in semantically related groups a given piece of information will undergo retrieval—
(e.g., lion, tiger, cheetah . . . guitar, violin, cello, etc.). the process of accessing memorized information and
This tendency suggests that semantically related items returning it to short-term memory—is influenced by a
are stored near each other in LTM (see Module 8.1). number of different factors including the quality of the
Additional support for this view comes from a unique original encoding and the strategies used to retrieve the
patient with brain damage. Patient M.D. had a selec- information. These important processes are described in
tive impairment for naming fruits and vegetables; he depth later in this chapter.

30–60 seconds and usually contains 7 ± 2 units of informa- Simulate

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC tion; LTM has no fixed time limits or capacity. The distinction The Serial Position

LITERACY MODEL between STM and LTM can be revealed with a simple experi- Curve
ment. Imagine everyone in your psychology class studied
Distinguishing Short-Term a list of 15 words and then immediately tried to recall the
from Long-Term Memory Stores words in the list. The serial position curve—the U-shaped
graph in Figure 7.5 —shows what the results would look
The Atkinson-Shiffrin model of memory is very neat and like according to the serial position effect: In general, most
tidy, with different memory stores contained in separate
boxes. The problem is that the real world rarely involves
30-second blocks of time filled with 7 ± 2 pieces of informa- 80
tion followed by a short break to encode them. Instead, we 70
Recency
Percent correct

are often required to use both STM and LTM at the same effect
60
time. Without this ability, we wouldn’t be able to have con-
versations nor would we be able to understand paragraphs 50
of text like this one. So, if both STM and LTM are constantly 40
Primacy
working together, how do we isolate the functions of each 30 effect
memory store?
20
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
What do we know Position in list
about short-term and
{fig. 7.5} The Serial Position Effect Memory for the order
long-term memory of events is often superior for original items (the primacy effect)
stores? and later items (the recency effect). The serial position effect
provides evidence of distinct short-term and long-term mem-
As you’ll recall (thanks to your ory stores. Click on this figure in your eText to see more Simulate
LTM), STM lasts for approximately details. Serial Position Effect

Memory Systems :: Module 7.1 :: 275

 people will recall the first few items from a list and the last few In addition to demonstrating behavioural differences
items, but only an item or two from the middle (Ebbinghaus, between STM and LTM, scientists have also used neuro-
1885/1913). This finding holds true for many types of infor- imaging to attempt to identify the different brain regions
mation, ranging from simple strings of letters to the ads you responsible for each form of memory. Deborah Talmi and
might recall after watching the Super Bowl (Laming, 2010; Li, colleagues (2005) performed an fMRI experiment in which
2010). they asked ten volunteers to study a list of 12 words pre-
sented one at a time on a computer screen. Next, the
The first few items are remembered relatively easily (known
computer screen flashed a word and the participants had
as the primacy effect) because they have begun the process of
to determine whether the word was from their study list.
entering LTM. The last few items are also remembered well
The researchers were mostly concerned about the brain
(known as the recency effect); however, this is because those
activity that occurred when the volunteers correctly rec-
items are still within our STM (Deese & Kaufman, 1957). The
ognized words. When volunteers remembered information
fate of the items in the middle of the test is more difficult to
from early in the serial position curve, the hippocampus was
determine, as they would be in the process of being encoded
active (this area is associated with the formation of LTM, as
into LTM. As you have already read, some information is lost
you will read about later). By comparison, the brain areas
during this stage.
associated with sensory information—hearing or seeing the
words—were more active when people recalled items at
How can science the end of the serial position curve. Thus, the researchers
explain the believed they had isolated the effects of two different neural
systems which, working simultaneously, produce the serial
difference between position curve.
STM and LTM
stores? Can we critically
The shape of the serial position effect (see Figure 7.5) sug- evaluate the distinction
gests that there are two different processes at work. But, how between STM and LTM?
do we explain the dip in the middle of the curve? Memory
researchers suggest that this dip in performance is caused In order to evaluate the idea that
by two different mechanisms. First, the items that were at the serial-position effect is caused
the beginning of the list produce proactive interference, by two interacting memory sys-
a process in which the first information learned (e.g., in a list of tems, we need at least two types
words) occupies memory, leaving fewer resources left to remem- of tests. First, we need to find evidence that it is possible
ber the newer information. The last few items on the list create to change the performance on one test but not the other.
retroactive interference—that is, the most recently learned Then we need to find medical cases in which brain damage
information overshadows some older memories that have not yet affected one system, but not the other. Together, these find-
made it into long-term memory (see Figure 7.6). Together, these ings would support the view that STM and LTM stores can
two types of interference would result in poorer memory be distinguished from each other.
performance for items in the middle of a list. The fact that it is possible to separately affect the primacy
and recency effects was demonstrated in the 1950s and
Sam was asked to remember a list of 10 words: 1960s. When items on a list are presented quickly, it becomes
happy, train, carrot, water, bus, sky, cat, candy, hike, telephone. more difficult to completely encode those items into long-
term memory. The result is a reduction in the primacy effect;
however, STM will still contain the most recently presented
Happy, Train, Bus, Sky, Candy, Hike,
Carrot, Water Cat Telephone items, thus leaving the recency effect unchanged (Murdock,
1962). The recency effect can be reduced by inserting a delay
between the presentation of the list and the test. This delay
After hearing the first four After hearing the last three will allow other information to fill up STM; LTM, as shown
words on the list, proactive words, retroactive
interference made it difficult interference made it difficult by the primacy effect, will be unaffected (Bjork & Whitten,
to remember additional to remember the preceding 1974).
information. words.
Evidence from neurological patients also supports the dis-
tinction between STM and LTM. STM deficits can occur after
As a result, Sam could not recall the words in the middle of the list. damage to the lower portions of the temporal and parietal
lobes, as well as to lateral (outside) areas of the frontal lobes
{fig. 7.6} Proactive and Retroactive Interference Contribute to (Müller & Knight, 2006). In contrast, damage to the hippo-
the Serial Position Effect campus will prevent the transfer of memories from STM to

276 :: Module 7.1 : : Memory Systems

LTM (Scoville & Milner, 1957). These patients will have rela- uncovered by these initial assessment tests can be used by
tively preserved memories of their past, but will be unable emergency room physicians and neurologists to assist with
to add to them with new information from short-term their diagnosis and may lead them to request a brain scan
memory. for a patient (to look for damage) when they might not
otherwise have done so.
Why is this relevant?
The idea of multiple mem-
ory stores is theoretically
interesting and can explain
some of the minor mem-
ory problems we all experience (e.g., forgetting parts of
a phone number). But, being able to distinguish between
STM and LTM has more wide-reaching implications. The
fact that it is possible to separate STM and LTM—and
that these stores are driven by different brain systems—
suggests that you could use simple tests like the serial-
position effect to predict where a neurological patient’s
brain damage had occurred. Many common assessment
tools such as the Wechsler Memory Scales include tests
of both types of memory in order to do just that. Clues Clayton Hansen/iStockphoto

The Atkinson-Shiffrin Model provides a very good 3 Chris forgot about his quiz, so he had only 5 minutes
APPLY…

introduction to the different stages of memory for- to learn 20 vocabulary words. He went through the
mation. However, as we will see later in this module, list once, waited a minute, and then went through the
memory is much more complex than is implied by this list again in the same order. Although he was confident,
his grade indicated that he missed approximately half
box-and-arrow diagram. In the next section, we will dis-
of the words. Which words on the list did he most
cuss working memory, a form of STM that involves a likely miss, and why?
number of different, complementary, pieces.
A According to the primacy effect, he would have
missed the first few words on the list.
B According to the recency effect, he would have
Quick Quiz 7.1a missed the last few words on the list.

The Atkinson-Shiffrin Model C According to the serial position effect, most of

the items he missed were probably in the middle
of the list.
1 Which elements of memory do not actually store
KNOW…

information, but instead describe how information D According to the primacy effect, he would have
may be shifted from one type of memory to another? missed all of the words on the list.
A Serial position effects
4 Brain scans show that recently encountered items
ANALYZE…

B Recency effects
are processed in one area of the brain, whereas older
C Primacy effects items are stored in a different area. Which concept
D Control processes does this evidence support?
A Multiple memory stores
2 ________ lasts less than a minute, whereas ________
B A single memory store
holds information for extended periods of time, if not
permanently. C Complex control processes
A Long-term memory; short-term memory D Retrieval
B Short-term memory; sensory memory Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
C Short-term memory; long-term memory
D Long-term memory; process memory

Memory Systems :: Module 7.1 :: 277

 The Working Memory Model: role (Baddeley, 2001; Jonides et al., 2005): the phono-
logical loop, the visuospatial sketchpad, and the episodic
An Active STM System buffer. These storage components are then coordinated
Imagine you are driving a car when you hear the by a control centre known as the central executive. Each
announcement for a radio contest—the 98th caller at component will be discussed in more detail below.
1-800-555-HITS will win $98! As the DJ shouts out the
THE PHONOLOGICAL LOOP The phonologi-
phone number, you do not have a pen or a phone handy,
cal loop is a storage component of working memory that
and traffic is swarming, so what do you do? You will prob-
relies on rehearsal and that stores information as sounds, or
ably try to remember the number by using rehearsal,
an auditory code. It engages some portions of the brain
or repeating information (in this case, the number) until you
that specialize in speech and hearing, and it can be very
do not need to remember it anymore. Psychological research,
active without affecting memory for visual and spa-
however, demonstrates that remembering is much more
tial information. While the magical number 7 provides
than just repeating words to yourself. Instead, keeping
a good estimate of STM capacity in general, to focus
information like the radio station’s phone number avail-
more precisely on phonological memories, we must
able is an active process that is much more complex than
examine how long it takes to pronounce those items.
one would expect.
Based on the word-length effect , we know that people
This process involves working memory, a model
remember more one-syllable words (sum, pay, bar, …)
of short-term remembering that includes a combination of
than four- or five-syllable words (helicopter, university,
memory components that can temporarily store small amounts
alligator, …) in a short-term-memory task (Baddeley
of information for a short period of time. This includes new
et al., 1975). Despite the fact that both bar and alligator
information such as the specific phone number that will
are single chunks, you remember more chunks if they are
win $98 for you, as well as keeping track of the traf-
single syllables. Research indicates that working mem-
fic patterns. Working memory can also draw from older
ory can store as many syllables as can be rehearsed in
information that is stored in a relatively stable way—
about two seconds, and that this information is retained
the fact that you know what a phone is and how to
for approximately 15 seconds (Brown, 1958; Peterson &
operate one, and that $98 translates into roughly 25 iced
Peterson, 1959). So, in the radio-contest example, you
cappuccinos.
would likely be able to remember the phone number
A key feature of working memory is that it rec-
(it can be spoken in under two seconds unless you talk
ognizes that stimuli are encoded simultaneously in a
like you’re from Texas), but you would need to pull over
number of different ways (e.g., with vision and hear-
to use your phone fairly quickly, before the information
ing) rather than simply as a single unit of information.
started to fade away.
Indeed, the classic working memory model for short-
term remembering can be subdivided into three storage
THE VISUOSPATIAL SKETCHPAD The visuo-
components (Figure 7.7), each of which has a specialized
spatial sketchpad is a storage component of working
memory that maintains visual images and spatial layouts
in a visuospatial code . It keeps you up to date
on where objects are around you and where
Central executive
you intend to go. To do so, the visuospatial
Watch traffic, now listen to sketchpad engages portions of the brain related
radio, now watch traffic, call
that number! to perception of vision and space and does not
affect memory for sounds. Just as the phono-
logical store can be gauged at several levels—
that is, in terms of the number of syllables, the
Phonological loop Episodic buffer Visuospatial sketchpad
number of words, or the number of chunks—
Understanding the context, Understanding
Repeating to self:
the flow of traffic items stored in visuospatial memory can be
blending information
1-800-555-HITS
counted based on shapes, colours, and textures.
1-800-555-HITS I need to pass this car so I This leads to an important question: Can a
1-800-555-HITS can pull over and find my
phone to call that
smooth, square-shaped, red block count as one
1-800-555-HITS
number—quick! chunk? Or do texture, shape, and colour of the
block act as three separate units of informa-
{fig. 7.7} Components of Working Memory Work Together to Manage Complex Tasks tion? Research has consistently shown that a

278 :: Module 7.1 : : Memory Systems

square-shaped block painted in two colours is just as
easy to recognize as the same-shaped block painted in
one colour (Vogel et al., 2001). Therefore, visuospatial
working memory may use a form of chunking. This
process of combining visual features into a single unit or
goes by a different name, however: feature binding (see
Figure 7.8).
After visual feature binding, visuospatial memory
can accurately retain approximately four whole objects,
regardless of how many individual features one can find
on those objects. Perhaps this is evidence for the exis-
tence of a second magical number—four (Awh et al., {fig. 7.8} Working Memory Binds Visual Features into a
2007; Vogel et al., 2001). Single Chunk Working memory sometimes stores information
such as shape, colour, and texture as three separate chunks,
To put feature binding into perspective, consider the like the three pieces of information on the left. For most
amount of visual information available to you when you objects, however, it stores information as a single chunk, like
are driving a car as in the story that started this section. the box on the right.
If you are at the wheel, watching traffic, you probably
would not look at a car in front of you and remember
storage components. It does so by examining what infor-
images of red, shiny, and smooth. Instead, you would
mation is relevant to the person’s goals, interests, and
simply have these features bound together in the image
prior knowledge and then focusing attention on the
of the car, and you would be able to keep track of three
working memory component whose information will
or four such images without much problem as you
be most useful in that situation. For example, when you
glance at the speedometer and then back to the traffic
see a series of letters from a familiar alphabet, it is easy
around you.
to remember the letters by rehearsing them in the pho-
THE EPISODIC BUFFER Recent research sug- nological loop. In contrast, if you were to look at let-
gests that working memory also includes an episodic ters or characters from a foreign language—perhaps you
buffer—that is, a storage component of working memory that are visiting Seoul and you do not know Korean—you
combines the images and sounds from the other two components may not be able to convert them to sounds; thus you
into coherent, story-like episodes. These episodes include the would assign them to the visuospatial sketchpad instead
relevant information that will allow you to make sense (Paulesu et al., 1993). Regions within the frontal lobes
of the images and sounds, such as “I was driving to a of the brain are responsible for carrying out these tasks
friend’s house when I heard the radio DJ give a number for the central executive.
to call.” So how do these four components of the work-
The episodic buffer is the most recently hypothe- ing-memory system work for you when you can-
sized working memory system (Baddeley, 2001). The epi- not pull your car over immediately to place the 98th
sodic buffer seems to hold 7 to 10 pieces of information, call? Most of us would rely on our phonological loop,
which may be combined with other memory stores. This repeating the number 1-800-555-HITS to ourselves
aspect of its operation can be demonstrated by comparing until we can call. Meanwhile, our visuospatial sketch-
memory for prose (words strung into sentences) to mem- pad is remembering where other drivers are in rela-
ory for unrelated words. When people are asked to read tion to our car, even as we look away to check the
and remember meaningful prose, they usually remem- speedometer, the rearview mirror, or the volume
ber 7 to 10 more words than when reading a random list knob. Finally, the episodic buffer binds together all
of unrelated words. Some portion of working memory this information into episodes, which might include
is able to connect the prose with information found in information such as “I was driving to school,” “the DJ
LTM (“knowledge”) to increase memory capacity. announced a contest,” and “I wanted to pull over and
call the station.” In the middle of all this activity is the
THE CENTRAL EXECUTIVE Finally, working central executive, which guides attention and ensures
memory includes one component that is not primarily that each component is working on the appropriate
used for storing information. Instead, the central exec- task. Thus, although your memories often seem almost
utive is the control centre of working memory; it coordinates automatic, there is actually a lot of work going on in
attention and the exchange of information among the three your working memory.

Memory Systems :: Module 7.1 :: 279

 Quick Quiz 7.1b Long-Term Memory Systems:
The Working Memory Model: An Active Declarative and Nondeclarative
STM System Memories
1 Which of the following systems maintains information Figure 7.1 at the beginning of this module suggests

KNOW…
in memory by repeating words and sounds? that humans have just one type of long-term memory
A Episodic buffer C Phonological loop (LTM). However, as you read in the story about the neu-
B Central executive D Visuospatial sketchpad rological patient K.C., LTM has a number of different
components. K.C. could learn new skills, draw maps, and
2 Which of the following systems coordinates attention remember basic [Link], he was unable to recall specific
and the exchange of information among memory episodes in his own life (Tulving & Markowitsch, 1998).
storage components? What do cases like K.C.’s tell us about the organization
A Episodic buffer of LTM?
B Central executive One way to categorize LTM is based on whether or
C Phonological loop not we are conscious of a given memory (see Figure 7.9).
D Visuospatial sketchpad Specifically, declarative memor ies (or explicit
memories) are memories that we are consciously aware
3 When psychologists ask research participants to of and that can be verbalized, including facts about the
UNDERSTAND…

remember combinations of letters (such as TJD), why world and one’s own personal experiences . In contrast,
might they have participants engage in distracting tasks nondeclarative memories (or implicit memo-
such as counting backward by threes? ries) include actions or behaviours that you can remember
A Counting backward prevents rehearsal, so and perform without awareness. But, this initial division
researchers can see how long an unrehearsed
memory trace will last.
only scratches the surface of LTM’s complexity. Both
declarative and nondeclarative memories have mul-
B Researchers try to make the participants forget.
tiple subtypes, each with its own characteristics and
C Counting backward can facilitate episodic binding.
brain networks.
D Researchers are actually interested in backward-
counting ability. DECLARATIVE MEMORY Declarative memory
comes in two varieties (Tulving, 1972). Episodic mem-
4 When Nick looks for his friend’s motorcycle in a ories are declarative memories for personal experiences that
APPLY…

parking lot, he sees a single object, not two wheels, seem to be organized around “episodes” and are recalled from a
a seat, and a red body. This is an example of _______.
first-person (“I” or “my”) perspective. Examples of episodic
A a phonological loop C buffering
memories would be your first day of university, the party
B feature binding D proactive interference you went to last month, and watching the Olympics on
Answers can be found on page ANS-2. TV. Semantic memories, on the other hand, are declar-
ative memories that include facts about the world. Examples
of semantic memories would include know-
ing that Halifax is the capital of Nova Sco-
Semantic tia, remembering that Sean Connery was
Declarative the first actor to play James Bond, and that
Episodic bananas are (generally) yellow. The two types
Long-Term Memory
of memory can be contrasted in an example:
Procedural
Your semantic memory is your knowledge
Nondeclarative of what a bike is, whereas episodic memory
Conditioning is the memory of a specific time when you
rode a bike.
The case of K.C. provides compelling
evidence that semantic and episodic memo-
ries are distinct forms of declarative memory.
Although K.C. had no specific memories
{fig. 7.9} Varieties of Long-Term Memory Long-term memory can
be divided into different systems based on the type of information that is of events that took place in his high school
stored. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details. or his house, he did understand that he had

280 :: Module 7.1 : : Memory Systems

 memories in your brain right now. These memories can
take many different forms. Procedural memories are
patterns of muscle movements (motor memory) such as how to
walk, play piano, or drive a car. We often don’t think of
the individual steps involved in these behaviours, yet we
execute them flawlessly most of the time. This is the type
of nondeclarative memory demonstrated by the amnesic
woman who learned how to make dresses. Another form
of nondeclarative memory is classical conditioning, when a
previously neutral stimulus (e.g., a bell) produces a new
response (e.g., salivating) because it has a history of being
paired with another stimulus that produces that response
Monkey Business Images/[Link] (e.g., food). Although these associations can sometimes
This child may have episodic memories of specific piano be consciously recalled, this recollection is not neces-
lessons, semantic memories about what a piano is and how
it works, and procedural memories about how to play a few sary for conditioning to successfully take place (see
songs. Module 6.1).
One method of testing nondeclarative memory
(without poking participants with pins) is through a lab-
attended high school and that he lived in a specific home oratory technique known as priming. Priming is based on
in Mississauga, ON. However, K.C. is not the only exam- the idea that previous exposure to a stimulus will affect
ple of the distinction between these types of memory. an individual’s later responses, either to that same stimu-
Studies of older adults have noted that they show similar lus or to something related to it. For instance, if the word
(but much less severe) impairments to K.C. on memory “chase” were flashed on a computer screen and you were
tests. As people get older, their episodic memory declines later asked to complete the word stem “cha–” with the
more rapidly than their semantic memory (Luo & Craik, first word that came to mind, you would likely com-
2008). Older people are more likely to forget where they plete it with “chase” despite the fact that there are more
went on vacation five years ago than they are to forget common completions for that stem (e.g., chair). Impor-
something like the names of provincial capitals (Levine tantly, this effect can occur regardless of whether the
et al., 2002). Interestingly, they also show normal per- primed stimulus was consciously perceived or attended
formance on a number of tests related to nondeclarative to (Merikle & Joordens, 1997). Although this seems like
memories. a phenomenon that would be isolated to the laboratory,
priming actually occurs all the time in the real world. We
NONDECLARATIVE MEMORY Nondeclarative are constantly being influenced by previous exposure to
memory occurs when previous experiences influence advertisements, people, and a host of environmental cues
performance on a task that does not require the per- such as temperature (Gawronski et al., 2005; Strick et al.,
son to intentionally remember those experiences (Graf 2009). Even if we don’t consciously recall some of these
& Schacter, 1985). The earliest published report of this previous experiences, they do bias our behaviours. For
form of memory came in 1845 when a British physi- example, advertisements for trucks often show them per-
cian named Robert Dunn described the details of a forming rugged, “manly” activities such as hauling large
woman with amnesia (Schacter, 1985). This woman piles of wood down a bumpy dirt road (it’s what men
learned how to make dresses following her injury, but do). We aren’t expected to remember the road or any
had no conscious memory of learning to do so. A more other details of the commercials; in fact, we might not
pointed example was published in the early 20th century remember having seen the commercial at all. But, the
by Claparède (1911/1951). He reported on an amnesic next time we see that brand of truck, we immediately
woman who learned not to shake his hand because he remember that it is strong and reliable, just like our non-
had previously stuck her with a pin attached to his palm. declarative memories.
In both cases, the behaviours of patients with no con- It is important to remember that distinctions
scious memories were altered because of previous expe- between different types of memories do not mean that
riences, thus suggesting that this previous information those memories work in isolation. Many day-to-day tasks
was encoded into LTM in some form. involve both declarative and nondeclarative [Link]
But, nondeclarative memories are not isolated to might know how to ride a bike, which is an example of
cases of amnesia. You have thousands of nondeclarative a nondeclarative procedural memory; but, knowing that

Memory Systems :: Module 7.1 :: 281

 bikes are two-wheeled vehicles is a declarative seman- examples from studies of amnesia and other forms of
tic memory. Each type of memory adds its own unique memory loss to understand how our memory models fit
contribution to the events we experience—and the new with biological data.
memories we form—every day.
Watch MEMORY AT THE NEURAL LEVEL Memory at the
The Basics: Do You
cellular level can be summed up in the following way:
Remember When?
Cells that fire together, wire together. This idea was pro-
Quick Quiz 7.1c posed in the 1940s by Canadian neuroscientist Don-
Long-Term Memory Systems: Declarative ald Hebb. Specifically, he suggested that when neurons
and Nondeclarative Memories fire at the same time, it leads to chemical and physi-
cal changes in the neurons, making them more likely
1 Memories for information that was learned without
KNOW…

to fire together again in the future (Hebb, 1949). Later

our being aware of it are known as ___________.
A semantic memories research proved Hebb correct, and demonstrated that
changes occur across numerous brain cells as memories
B episodic memories
are forming, strengthening, and being stored (Lømo,
C nondeclarative memories
1966). This process, long-term potentiation (LTP),
D declarative memories
demonstrated that there is an enduring increase in connectivity
and transmission of neural signals between nerve cells that fire
2 Memories that can be verbalized, whether they are
together.
about your own experiences or your knowledge
Watch about the world, are called __________. The discovery of LTP occurred when research-
Neurological Basis A nondeclarative memories ers electrically stimulated two neurons in a rabbit’s
of Memory: Howard B procedural memories hippocampus—a key memory structure of the brain
Eichenbaum
C conditioned memories located in an area called the medial temporal lobes (see
D declarative memories Figure 7.10). Stimulation to the hippocampus increased
the number of electrical potentials from one neuron to
3 Mary suffered a head injury during an automobile the other. Soon, the neurons began to generate stronger
APPLY…

accident and was knocked unconscious. When she signals than before, a change that could last up to a few
woke up in a hospital the next day, she could tell hours (Bliss & Lømo, 1973). This finding does not mean
that she was in a hospital room, and she immediately that LTP is memory—no one has linked the strengthening
recognized her sister, but she had no idea why she was
of a particular synapse with a specific memory like your
in the hospital or how she got there. Which memory
system seems to be affected in Mary’s case? first day of university. In fact, no one has seen LTP outside
A Semantic memories of a laboratory. But, the strengthening of synapses shown
B Episodic memories in LTP studies may be one of the underlying mechanisms
C Nondeclarative memories
that allow memories to form.
D Working memories
Explore
Virtual Brain: Learning Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
and Memory

The Cognitive Neuroscience

of Memory
So far, we have primarily discussed the behavioural and
cognitive aspects of memory; but, the biopsychosocial
model reminds us that everything involves a biological
component as well. Therefore, psychologists also look
at how the nervous system changes with the formation
of new memories. To explore the cognitive neurosci-
ence of memory, we will take a brief look at the neu-
ronal changes that occur as memories are forming and
strengthening, and will then examine the brain struc- {fig. 7.10} The Hippocampus The hippocampus resides
tures involved in long-term storage. Finally, we will use within the temporal lobe and is critical for memory processes.

282 :: Module 7.1 : : Memory Systems

 To see how such microscopic detail relates to MEMORY,THE BRAIN, AND AMNESIA On August 31,
memory, consider the very simple case of learning and 1953, Henry Molaison was a 27-year-old man with
remembering discussed in a previous module: eye- intractable epilepsy. Because his seizures could not be
blink conditioning. Imagine you hear a simple tone controlled by medications, Mr. Molaison had been
right before a puff of air is blown in your eye; you referred to Dr. William Scoville, a respected Hartford-
will reflexively blink. After two or three pairings, just based neurosurgeon, for treatment. Dr. Scoville and his
the tone will be enough to cause an eye blink—this is colleagues had suggested that removing the areas of
an example of classical conditioning (see Module 6.1). Molaison’s brain that triggered the seizures would cure,
At the neural level, the tone causes a series of neurons or at least tame, his epilepsy. On September 1, 1953,
to respond, and the puff of air causes another series of Henry Molaison underwent a resection (removal) of his
neurons to respond. With repeated tone and air puff medial temporal lobes—including the hippocampus—
pairings, the neurons that are involved in hearing the on both sides of his brain. After that day, he became
tone, and those that control the blinking response, known to the world as neurological patient H.M.
develop a history of fi ring together. This simultane- H.M.’s surgery was successful in that he no longer
ous activation provides the opportunity for synapses to had seizures. However, as he recovered from his surgery,
become strengthened, representing the fi rst stages of it became apparent that the procedure had produced
memory. some unintended consequences. The doctors quickly
Watch
This relationship is not permanent, however. Last- determined that H.M. had amnesia—a profound loss of Special Topics: When
ing memories require consolidation, the process of con- at least one form of memory. However, not all of his memo- Memory Fails
verting short-term memories into long-term memories in the ries were lost; in fact, numerous studies conducted by
brain, which may happen at the level of small neuro- Brenda Milner of McGill University demonstrated that
nal groups or across the cortex (Abraham, 2006). When H.M. retained many forms of memory (Milner, 1962;
neurons fire together a number of times, they will adapt Scoville & Milner, 1957). He was able to recall aspects of
and make the changes more permanent—a process his childhood. He could also remember the names of the
called cellular consolidation. This process involves physical nurses who had treated him before the surgery, although
changes to the synapse between the cells so that the pre- he was unable to learn the names of nurses who he met
synaptic cell is more likely to stimulate a specific postsyn- afterward. Indeed, H.M. appeared unable to encode new
aptic cell (or group of cells). Without the consolidation information at all. Therefore, H.M. was experiencing
process, the initial changes to the synapse eventually fade a specific subtype of amnesia known as anterograde
away, and presumably so does the memory. (This process amnesia, the inability to form new memories for events occur-
can therefore be summed up with the saying: Use it or ring after a brain injury.
lose it.) To demonstrate the distinction between the ini- H.M.’s anterograde amnesia was not due to prob-
tial learning and longer-term consolidation, researchers lems with his sensory memory or his STM. Both abilities
administered laboratory rats a drug that allowed LTP, remained normal throughout his life (Corkin, 2002). He
but prevented consolidation from occurring (by block- was also able to recall details of his past, such as incidents
ing biochemical actions). The animals were able to learn from his school years and from jobs he had held; this
a task for a brief period, but they were not able to form demonstrates that his LTM was largely intact (Milner
long-term memories. By comparison, rats in the pla- et al., 1968). He was also able to form new implicit
cebo group, whose brains were able to consolidate the memories. He was able to learn new skills such as draw-
information, went through the same tasks and formed ing a picture by looking at its reflection in the mirror
long-term memories without any apparent problems despite the fact that he had no memory for learning this
(Squire, 1986). skill (Milner, 1962). Similar improvements were found
The initial strengthening of synapses and longer- for solving puzzles (Cohen et al., 1985). After extensive
term consolidation of these connections allow us to testing, researchers concluded that H.M.’s amnesia was
form new memories, thus providing us with an abil- not due to problems with a particular memory store,
ity to learn and to adapt our behaviour based on pre- but was instead due to problems with one of the control
vious experiences. However, these processes are not processes associated with those stores. Specifically, H.M.
performed in all areas of the brain. Instead, specific could not transfer declarative memories from STM into
structures and regions serve essential roles in allowing LTM.
us to form and maintain our memories, a fact power- The fact that H.M.’s brain damage was due to a
fully demonstrated by the memory deficits of patients precise surgical procedure (rather than to widespread
with amnesia. damage from an accident like patient K.C.) allowed

Memory Systems :: Module 7.1 :: 283

 taxi drivers, who were required to undergo
Damage to the extensive training and to memorize most
Lesion to Learning Fail to Test hippocampus of London, had substantially larger hip-
hippocampus trials consolidate failed! prevents future
consolidation. pocampi than did the control participants
(Maguire et al., 2000). This result implies
Damage to the
that the demanding memory requirements
hippocampus of that job altered the structure of brain
Learning Lesion to Test is
Consolidation does not prevent areas related to memory consolidation and
trials hippocampus successful!
retrieval of pre-
existing memory. spatial memory.
It is important to note that our long-
term memories do not just collect dust
{fig. 7.11} Damage to the Hippocampus: Disruption of Consolidation When the hippocam- after they have for med. They can be
pus is damaged, the injury interferes with consolidation, the formation of long-term memories.
updated regularly, such as when someone
Such damage does not prevent recall of preexisting memories, however.
reminds you of an event from years ago,
or when you are reminded of information
researchers to pinpoint the area of the brain responsible you learned as a child. In this way, memories undergo
for this specifi c memory problem. H.M. was missing a process called reconsolidation, in which the hippocam-
the medial temporal lobes of both hemispheres. This pus functions to update, strengthen, or modify exist-
damage included the hippocampus and surrounding ing long-term memories (Lee, 2010; Söderlund et al.,
cortex as well as the amygdala. Based on H.M. and sev- 2012). These memories then form networks in differ-
eral similar cases, researchers concluded that this region ent regions of the cortex, where they can (sometimes)
of the brain must be involved with consolidating be retrieved when necessary. These long-term declara-
memories, enabling information from STM to enter tive memories are distributed throughout the cortex of
and remain in LTM, a process that most of us take for the brain, rather than being localized in one region—a
granted. phenomenon known as cross-cortical storage (Paller, 2004).
Indeed, studies of hippocampal cells have demon- Interestingly, with enough use, some of the memory net-
strated that this structure is critical for the process of con- works will no longer need input from the hippocampus.
solidation discussed above. Although the hippocampus is The cortical networks themselves will become self-
not where most declarative memories are actually stored, sustaining. The more that memory is retrieved, the larger
it does maintain LTP networks until the acquired behav- and more distributed that network will become.
iour can form more connections throughout the brain. Newer memories, because they haven’t had as much
Eventually, the to-be-remembered behaviour will form time to form extensive networks using cross-cortical
networks involving the cortex. At this point, the hip- storage, are much more likely to be lost following brain
pocampus will not be necessary for the memory to be damage than are older memories. This brain damage
retrieved. However, without the hippocampus, as in the
case of H.M., these new cortical networks will never be
formed because the original LTP and consolidation pro-
cesses would not have been completed (see Figure 7.11).
The hippocampus also appears to be essential for
spatial memories such as remembering the layout of
your house or recalling the route you would take to get
to a friend’s house. This function might also be linked to
consolidation—remembering spatial information often
involves updating a memory with new information such
as learning alternative routes to get to your destina-
tion (i.e., “filling in” your map of an area). Remarkably,
brain-imaging studies suggest that the size of a person’s
hippocampus can vary with the amount of spatial infor- Lana Rastro/Alamy
mation that people are asked to consolidate. Researchers Researchers in London found that the hippocampi of taxi
drivers, who navigate the complex maze of the city, are larger
at Kings College London (U.K.) examined the brains of
than the hippocampi of non-taxi drivers (Maguire et al., 2000).
taxi drivers in that maze-like city and compared them What other careers do you think would produce changes in the
to the brains of age-matched control participants. The structure of the brain?

284 :: Module 7.1 : : Memory Systems

disrupts the consolidation of recently experienced mem-
Retrograde amnesia: Anterograde amnesia:
ories, causing them to fade away (Brown, 2002). This inability to remember inability or limited
type of memory loss is known as retrograde amnesia, what was already ability to form new
known at the onset of memories after the
a condition in which memory for the events preceding trauma or amnesia onset of amnesia
injury is lost (see Figure 7.12). It can be caused by dam-
age to the medial temporal lobes (as in patient K.C.) or
to the cortex of the frontal lobes. This type of amnesia is Time
injury
quite common following head injuries, including minor
ones such as concussions. However, the “lost time” is
generally limited to the seconds or minutes leading up {fig. 7.12} Retrograde and Anterograde Amnesia The
term amnesia can apply to memory problems in both direc-
to the injury. The loss of extensive periods of time, as tions. It can wipe out old memories, and it can prevent consoli-
seen in K.C., is quite rare (despite what you see on soap dation of new memories.
operas).
The fact that memories can be lost after even
minor brain damage shows us that our memory systems memories seems to be particularly sensitive to injuries.
are quite delicate. Each of the boxes and arrows in the K.C.’s devastating injury shows us that when we lose our
Atkinson-Shiffrin model (Figure 7.1) can be disrupted in memories, we lose an important part of ourselves. So be
some way; but, the formation and storage of long-term careful.

Quick Quiz 7.1d The Cognitive Neuroscience of Memory

1 _________ is a process that all memories must 3 Damage to the hippocampus is most likely to produce
APPLY…
KNOW…

undergo to become long-term memories. ________.

A Consolidation A retrograde amnesia
B Retrograde remembering B consolidation
C Anterograde remembering C anterograde amnesia
D Chunking D seizures

Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

2 Long-term potentiation can be described as

UNDERSTAND…

A a decrease in a neuron’s electrical signalling.

B neurons generating stronger signals than before,
which then persist.
C neural networking.
D an example of working memory.

Memory Systems :: Module 7.1 :: 285

 Module Summary
Module Now that you have read this module you should
7.1
KNOW…

● The key terminology of memory systems:

amnesia (p. 283) phonological loop (p. 278)

anterograde amnesia (p. 283) proactive interference (p. 276)
attention (p. 272) procedural memory (p. 281)
central executive (p. 279) rehearsal (p. 278)
Jsemeniuk/E+/Getty Images
chunking (p. 273) retrieval (p. 272)
consolidation (p. 283) retroactive interference (p. 276)
control process (p. 271) retrograde amnesia (p. 285)
declarative memory (p. 280) semantic memory (p. 280) 2. In another study, Dr. Richard removes a portion of the
encoding (p. 272) sensory memory (p. 272) rat’s hippocampus the day after it learns to navigate a
episodic buffer (p. 279) serial position effect (p. 275) maze. What will happen to the rat’s memory? Will it
episodic memory (p. 280) short-term memory (STM) become stronger? Weaker? Or will it be unaffected by
long-term memory (LTM) (p. 273) the procedure?
(p. 275) stores (p. 271)
long-term potentiation (LTP) visuospatial sketchpad (p. 278)
(p. 282) ANALYZE…
working memory (p. 278)
nondeclarative memory (p. 280)
● The claim that humans have multiple memor y
systems. Consider all the evidence from biological and
behavioural research, not to mention the evidence from
UNDERSTAND… amnesia. Data related to the serial position effect indicate
that information at the beginning and end of a list is
● Which structures of the brain are associated with remembered differently, and even processed and stored
specific memory tasks and how the brain changes differently in the brain. Also, evidence from amnesia studies
as new memories form. The hippocampus is critical suggests that LTM and STM can be affected separately
to the formation of new declarative memories. Long- by brain damage or disease. Most psychologists agree
term potentiation at the level of individual nerve cells that these investigations provide evidence supporting
is the basic mechanism underlying this process. Long- the existence of multiple storage systems and control
term memory stores are distributed across the cortex. processes.
Working memory utilizes the parts of the brain associated
with visual and auditory perception, as well as the frontal
lobes (for functioning of the central executive).

APPLY…

● Your knowledge of the brain basis of memory to predict

what types of damage or disease would result in which
types of memory loss. Try responding to these questions
for practice (check your answers on page ANS-2):
1. Dr. Richard trains a rat to navigate a maze, and then
administers a drug that blocks the biochemical activity
involved in long-term potentiation. What will happen to
the rat’s memory? Will it become stronger? Weaker?
Or is it likely the rat will not remember the maze at all?

286 :: Module 7.1 : : Memory Systems

 Tkreykes/Fotolia

Module

7.2 Encoding and Retrieving Memories

Learning KNOW… UNDERSTAND… APPLY… ANALYZE…

Objectives The key terminology How the type of cognitive processing What you have learned Whether emotional memories
After reading related to forgetting, employed can affect the chances of to improve your ability to are more accurate than
this module encoding, and retrieval remembering what you encounter memorize information non-emotional ones
you should

According to legend, the first person to develop methods of improving Focus Questions
memory was the Greek poet Simonides of Ceos (556–468 BCE). After
presenting one of his lyric poems at a dinner party in northern Greece, 1 What causes some memories to be strong, while others are weak?
the host, Scopas, told him that he was only going to pay half of the cost 2 How can we improve our memory abilities?
of the poem (he clearly wasn’t impressed by the work). Soon after this
exchange, a grumpy Simonides was told that two men on horses wanted
to talk to him outside. While talking to the horsemen, the roof of Scopas’
house collapsed, killing everyone inside (Greek legends are not happy
places…). When relatives wanted to bury the family, they were unable to
Why are some memories easier to recall than others? Why do we
figure out who the remains belonged to; none of the guests could recall
where the family members had been sitting. Simonides had encoded the forget things? How can you use memory research to improve your
information differently than the rest of the guests; he was able to assist performance at school and at work? These questions are addressed
the family by creating a visual image of the dinner party and listing who in this module, where we focus on factors that influence the encod-
was sitting in each chair. His story demonstrates one of the key points to ing and retrieval of memories.
be discussed in this module—that how you encode information affects
the likelihood of you remembering that information later.

Encoding and Retrieving Memories :: Module 7.2 :: 287

 Encoding and Retrieval Certainly this approach works some of the time,
but is it really the most effective way to remember? The
In its simplest form, memory consists of encoding new answer is a resounding “no” (Craik & Watkins, 1973).
information, storing that information, and then retriev- The limitations of this form of rehearsal were shown
ing that stored information at a later time. As you have in a sneaky experiment performed in the 1970s (see
read elsewhere in this book, encoding is the process of Figure 7.13); in this study, participants were asked to
transforming sensory and perceptual information into remember a four-digit number. After seeing the num-
memory traces, and retrieval is the process of accessing ber, they were asked to repeat a single word until being
memorized information and returning it to short-term prompted to report the number. The delay between
memory. In between these two processes is the concept the presentation of the number and the participants’
of storage, which refers to the time and manner in which responses varied from 2–18 seconds; this meant that the
information is retained between encoding and retrieval. Over amount of time each word was repeated also varied.
the past fifty years, researchers have uncovered a number Because participants were trying to remember the dig-
of factors that influence how our memory systems work, its, they barely paid attention to the word they repeated.
and also how we can improve our chances of remem- Later, when the researchers surprised the participants
bering information. The most important of these factors by asking them to recall the distracting word they had
appears to be how the information was encoded in the repeated, they found virtually no relationship between
first place. the duration of rehearsal (between 2 and 18 seconds) and
Explore REHEARSAL: THE BASICS OF ENCODING What the proportion of individuals who could recall the word
Encoding, Storage, would you do if someone gave you the address for a (Glenberg, Smith, & Green, 1977). In other words, lon-
and Retrieval in house party but you didn’t have a pen or your phone ger rehearsal did not lead to better recall. This is not to
Memory around? How would you keep the address in mind until say that repeating the word had no effect at all; rather,
you had a chance to run to your car to write it down? If this study demonstrated that repeating information
you’re like most people, you will recite the address over only had a small benefit, and that this benefit was not
and over again until you can write it down. This type increased with longer rehearsal times.
of memorization is known as rehearsal to psychologists It turns out that it is not how long we rehearse infor-
(although your teachers may have called it learning by mation, but rather how we rehearse it that determines
rote), and it is something probably all of us have tried (see the effectiveness of memory. Individuals in the study just
Module 7.1). Indeed, students often try to learn vocabu- described were engaged in maintenance rehearsal—
lary terms by reading flashcards with key terms and defi- prolonging exposure to information by repeating it—which
nitions over and over. But, is this strategy effective? does relatively little to facilitate encoding that leads to

1. Participants read a 2. Meanwhile, they repeated 3. As soon as the experimenter

four-digit number a given word until the said “stop,” they tried to recall
and tried to remember it. experimenter told them to stop the number.
(between 2 and 18 seconds).

Tank, tank,
3864 tank, tank 3864?

4. After several trials of steps 1– 3, participants were asked

to recall the words that they had repeated to themselves.

{fig. 7.13} Rote Rehearsal Has Limited Effects on Long-Term Memory After participants completed the procedure depicted
in this figure, they were given a surprise test of their memory for the words that they had recited. There was no difference in the
recall of words rehearsed for 2 or 18 seconds. This result suggests that simply repeating the word—maintenance rehearsal—has a
limited effect on our memory.

288 :: Module 7.2 : : Encoding and Retrieving Memories

the formation of long-term memories (although it given a surprise memory test for the words, the differ-
is better than nothing). By comparison, elaborative ences ranged from recalling as few as 14% of the shallow
rehearsal—prolonging exposure to information by thinking words to 96% of the deeply processed words (Craik &
about its meaning—significantly improves the process of Tulving, 1975). In essence, they were almost seven times
encoding (Craik & Tulving, 1975). For example, repeat- more likely to recall a deep-processed word than one
ing the word bottle, and then imagining what a bottle that was processed at only a shallow level. Importantly,
looks like and how it is used, is an elaborative technique. such effects are limited to LTM; STM memory rates are
In the story that began this module, Simonides used a unaffected by shallow or deep processing (Rose et al.,
form of elaborative rehearsal by not only memorizing 2010; Figure 7.14). Simulate
a list of people at a table (Scopus, Constantine, Helena, Similar effects have been found for two other forms Depth of Processing

etc.), but actively imagining the dinner table and think- of deep processing. The self-reference effect occurs when
ing about where people were relative to each other. you think about information in terms of how it relates
Although maintenance rehearsal helps us remember for to you or how it is useful to you; this type of encod-
a very short time, elaborative rehearsal improves long- ing will lead to you remembering that information bet-
term learning and remembering. This is likely a topic ter than you otherwise would have (Symons & Johnson,
that is important to you as a student. In virtually every 1997). That outcome is not terribly surprising, but it is
class you take, you have key terms to learn and exams still helpful to think about when learning material that
to test your progress. You should see how the two types you might not be interested in at first. Perhaps less intui-
of rehearsal come into play in these processes. Students tive is survival processing. Researchers have found that
who simply repeat key terms and their definitions are when items are processed as they relate to survival, they
employing maintenance rehearsal, and are less likely to are more likely to be recalled (Butler, Kang, & Roediger,
do well on an exam. The wise strategy is to try to elabo- 2009). Thus, if you find yourself wanting to remember
rate on the material rather than simply repeating it. something, see if you can relate it to your own experi-
ences or identify ways in which the information may aid
LEVELS OF PROCESSING Although we often find survival.
ourselves using maintenance rehearsal “in a pinch,” we Although encoding strategies clearly influence our
rarely use that strategy for information that we intend ability to remember information later, they only tell
to remember much later. Instead, we focus on elabo-
rative encoding, where additional sensory or semantic
(meaning) information is associated with the to-be- 1.0
remembered item. But, not all elaborative encoding
is created equal. Instead, different types of elaborative
Immediate Delayed
encoding can produce markedly different levels of 0.9
recall. The details surrounding this variability were first
described by researchers at the University of Toronto,
Proportion correct

and led to a framework for memory known as levels of 0.8

processing (LOP).
The LOP framework begins with the understand-
0.7
ing that our ability to recall information is most directly
related to how that information was initially processed
(Craik & Lockhart, 1972). Differences in processing can
0.6
be described as a continuum ranging from shallow to
deep processing. Shallow processing, as you might guess,
involves more superficial properties of a stimulus, such
0.5
as the sound or spelling of a word. Deep processing, on
the other hand, is generally related to an item’s mean-
ing or its function. It should come as no surprise that Shallow Intermediate Deep Shallow Intermediate Deep
deep processing is associated with better retention and Level of processing

retrieval. The superiority of deep processing was demon- {fig. 7.14} Levels of Processing Affect Long-Term Memory, but Not Working
strated in a study in which participants encoded words Memory When tested immediately after studying words, levels of processing do not
seem to affect memory. In contrast, when there is a gap between studying words and
using shallow processing (e.g., “Does this word rhyme
being tested, levels of processing are important. When words are encoded based
with dust?…TRUST ”) or deep processing (e.g., “Is on their meaning (semantics), they are better retained in long-term memory (Rose
this word a synonym for locomotive?…TRAIN”). When et al., 2010).

Encoding and Retrieving Memories :: Module 7.2 :: 289

 part of the story. The conditions in which we attempt Recall is helped substantially when there are hints,
to retrieve information from memory can also affect or retrieval cues, that help prompt our memory. The more
whether or not that information will be recalled. detailed the retrieval cue, the easier it is for us to pro-
duce the memory. For instance, if you were given a
RETRIEVAL Once information is encoded—be it in list of 30 words to remember, it is unlikely that you
a deep or shallow fashion—and stored in memory, the would be able to recall all of the words. But, if you were
challenge is then to be able to retrieve that informa- given a hint for a “forgotten” word, such as “gr—” for
tion when it is needed. There are two forms of inten- the word “grape,” you would be likely to retrieve that
tional memory retrieval, both of which are familiar to information. The hint “grap-” would provide even more
long-suffering students like the readers of this textbook. information than “gr—” and would lead to even better
Recognition involves identifying a stimulus or piece of retrieval (Tulving & Watkins, 1975). However, life is not
information when it is presented to you. Examples of a series of word lists. Instead, retrieval cues in the real
Simulate recognition memory would be identifying someone you world often involve places, people, sights, and sounds—
Recall know on the bus (or in a police lineup) or multiple- in other words, the environment or context in which
choice test questions. Recall involves retrieving informa- you are trying to retrieve a memory. Researchers have
tion when asked, but without that information being found that retrieval is most effective when it occurs in the same
present during the retrieval process. Examples of this context as encoding, a tendency known as the encoding
would be describing a friend’s appearance to someone specificity principle (Tulving & Thompson, 1973).
else or short-answer questions on an exam.

scuba club volunteered to memorize word lists—half of the

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC test participants did so while diving 20 feet (6.7 m) underwa-
LITERACY MODEL ter, and half did so while on land (Godden & Baddeley, 1975).
After a short delay, the divers were tested again; however,
Context-Dependent Memory some of the experimental participants had switched locations.
This led to four test groups: trained and tested underwater,
trained and tested on dry land, trained underwater but tested
The encoding specificity principle can take many forms. One
on land, and trained on land but tested underwater. As you
of the most intuitive is context-dependent memory, the idea
can see in Figure 7.15, the results demonstrated that context
that retrieval is more effective when it takes place in the
affects memory. Those who were tested in the same context
same physical setting (context) as encoding. But, what ele-
as where encoding took place (i.e., land–land or underwater–
ments of the environment make up “context”? Is one sense
underwater) remembered approximately 40% more items
(e.g., smell) enough to produce this effect? And, does context
than those who switched locations (i.e., land–underwater or
specificity affect all types of memory equally?
underwater–land). Thus, both controlled laboratory studies
and studies involving dramatic environmental manipulations
What do we know about have shown that matching the encoding and retrieval con-
context–dependent texts leads to better recall of studied material.
memory?
The initial demonstrations of context-
dependent learning and memory 16
Average words recalled

Encoded
used very simple cues: words. In such 14 on land
12 Encoded
studies, participants learned pairs of
10 underwater
words; some of the words might be associated with each 8
other (e.g., bark – dog) and others might rhyme with each 6
other (e.g., worse – nurse). A recall test for the second words 4
in each pair (e.g., dog or nurse) generally led to respectable 2
memory performance. However, performance improved 0
when the original context (the first word of the word pair) Recalled Recalled
on land underwater
was reinstated and could serve as a retrieval cue; the more
information from the original context that was included, the {fig. 7.15} Context-Dependent Learning Divers who
better the level of retrieval (Tulving & Watkins, 1975). encoded information on land had better recall on land than
underwater. Divers who encoded information underwater had
Subsequent studies have focused on the role of environ- the reverse experience, demonstrating better recall underwater
mental contexts on memory. In a classic study, members of a than when on land.

290 :: Module 7.2 : : Encoding and Retrieving Memories

 How can science to the context in which he or she encoded the to-be-
remembered information. Recognition memory (e.g., multiple-
explain context–
choice questions) is not significantly helped by context; this is
dependent memory? likely due to the fact that the presence of the item (e.g., a pho-
Context-dependent memor y tograph or one of the options on a test question) serves as a
clearly demonstrates that the very strong retrieval cue. Context does not add much above
characteristics of the environ- and beyond this cue (Fernández & Alonso, 2001). Recall, on the
ment can serve as retrieval cues for memory. In the Godden other hand, requires you to generate the to-be-remembered
and Baddeley (1975) study above, the primary cue was likely information without any external cues. In this case, returning to
the feeling of being underwater; however, diving also involves a the encoding context could help prompt a memory. A second,
change of lighting as well as the sounds of the breathing appa- and related, limitation of context-dependent memory is that
ratus. In other words, when we encode information, we are not all types of information are equally affected. Information
also encoding information from a number of different senses that is central to a memory episode (e.g., a person’s face in
(vision, hearing, touch, etc.). Presumably, each of these senses a photograph or in a conversation) is generally unaffected by
can help trigger memories. For instance, most of you have context. Peripheral information (e.g., the faces of people who
had the experience where an odour (e.g., cookies) instantly were nearby when you were having a conversation) does seem
brings back memories (e.g., your grandmother’s kitchen). This to be enhanced when a person returns to the original con-
common phenomenon was tested in a clever experiment text (Brown, 2003; Sutherland & Hayne, 2001). As a rule, when
by researchers in the U.K. In this study, researchers tested memory for information is quite good, context will have little
whether memory for a Viking museum in York, U.K., could effect on accuracy; however, when memory is relatively poor,
be enhanced if the memory test occurred in a room with a then returning to the encoding context can improve recall.
similar distinctive set of smells as the museum (burned wood,
But, there is one additional issue related to context-dependent
apples, garbage, beef, fish, rope/tar, and earth … which was the
memory. Researchers at Simon Fraser University have noted
Viking equivalent of Axe® body spray). The researchers found
that returning a person to the context in which he encoded
that participants produced more accurate memories for the
information can improve recall and increase the number of
museum when the smell of the test room matched the smell
false positives (i.e., saying “I remember” to stimuli that were
of the museum (Aggleton & Waskett, 1999). Similar results
never seen). Wong and Read (2011) showed participants a
have been found for the effect of smells on memory for word
video of a staged crime; viewing took place in either a large
lists (Stafford et al., 2009). Context-dependent memory has
testing room or a small study room. Participants returned one
also been found for the flavour of gum being chewed dur-
week later for a follow-up test in which they were asked to
ing encoding and retrieval (Baker et al., 2004) as well as for
identify the culprit from a photo lineup. This test took place
the amount of background noise when students are studying
either in the same room as the initial viewing of the video or
and taking a test (Grant et al., 1998). These results suggest
in the opposite room. The catch was that for half of the par-
that matching the physical and sensory characteristics of the
ticipants, the photo lineup did not include the person from the
encoding and retrieval environments affect memory, likely
original video (the “target absent condition”). The results of
due to the retrieval cues provided by these attributes.
the test demonstrated the effect of context: Performance was
Brain-imaging studies have also provided evidence in favour much higher when the testing took place in the same room as
of context-dependent memory. Studies using fMRI have found the initial encoding. However, participants who took the test
increased activity in the hippocampus and parts of the pre- in the same context as they saw the video were also more
frontal cortex (part of the frontal lobes) when the retrieval likely to claim that a photo looked familiar even in the target-
conditions match the context in which the memory was absent condition (see Figure 7.16). Returning to the encoding
encoded (Kalisch et al., 2006; Wagner et al., 1998). Activity in context may therefore alter a person’s threshold for saying
the right frontal lobes is particularly sensitive to context, likely “I remember.” This trend is likely due to the retrieval cues
because this region is known to be critical for the retrieval associated with the environment leading to a feeling of famil-
process (Tulving et al., 1994). Indeed, the precise size and area iarity that is mistakenly attributed to the to-be-remembered
of the frontal lobes that is activated varies depending upon the information (Leboe & Whittlesea, 2002), in this case the face
context in which retrieval occurs, suggesting that environmen- of a criminal. This study has clear implications for police pro-
tal context can influence the firing of brain networks. cedures, as many police departments encourage returning
witnesses to the scene of a crime in order to improve their
Can we critically evaluate memories (Hershkowitz et al., 1998; Kebbel et al., 1999).
this evidence?
Why is this relevant?
Although there is evidence that context-
dependent memory exists, there are One the most interesting implica-
some important limitations to these tions of context-dependent mem-
effects. First, not all types of memory are ory research is that it implies that
equally enhanced by returning a person some forgotten information is not

Encoding and Retrieving Memories :: Module 7.2 :: 291

 Target Present Target Absent
90

80

70

60
% Accurate

50

40

30

20

10

0
Same Different Same Different

{fig. 7.16} False Familiarity and Context-Dependent Memory In a study involving Rostislav Ageev/Fotolia
the identification of a thief in a staged robbery, participants viewed a robbery and then
later selected the thief from a lineup of photographs. If both stages of the study were
performed in the same room (i.e., the context had been reinstated, CR), identification of
the thief increased. However, we should also keep in mind that participants were also
memory-improvement strategies such as the mental imagery
more likely to rate an incorrect face as being familiar; this is shown by the lower accu-
racy score for the Same than for the Different contexts in the Target Absent condition on technique used by Simonides in the story at the beginning
the right (Wong & Read, 2011). of this module. However, the results of the Wong and Read
(2011) photo lineup story do suggest that we need to be cau-
gone forever, but is instead simply inaccessible because the tious in our interpretation of context-dependent memory, as
proper cues have not been provided (Tulving, 1974). This is the retrieval cues associated with the context could actually
the assumption made by police investigators who return wit- lead to false feelings of familiarity that could have devastating
nesses to the scene of the crime. It’s also similar to some effects on people’s lives.

It is usually not difficult to spot these context Research suggests that retrieval is more effective when
effects while they are occurring. Almost everyone has your internal state matches the state you were in during
had the experience of walking into a room to retrieve encoding. In the first demonstration of this state-dependent
something—maybe a specific piece of mail or a roll of memory, Goodwin and colleagues (1969) got half of their
tape—only to find that they have no idea what they participants extremely drunk (their blood-alcohol level
intended to pick up. We might call this phenomenon was three times the legal limit); the other half were sober.
context-dependent forgetting, if we believe the change in Participants encoded information and completed several
the environment influenced the forgetting. It is certainly memory tests; they were then instructed to return
frustrating, but can be reversed by the context reinstate- 24 hours later for additional testing (and a new liver). On
ment effect, which occurs when you return to the origi- Day 2 of testing, half of participants were again put into
nal location and the memory suddenly comes back. But, a state of severe intoxication; half of these participants
research also shows that these effects are not isolated to had also been drunk on Day 1, and the other half had
external contexts; your internal environment can serve as been [Link], there were four groups: drunk on Day 1
a retrieval cue for your memory as well. and Day 2 (drunk-drunk), drunk-sober, sober-drunk,
and sober-sober. Not surprisingly, the sober-sober group
STATE-DEPENDENT LEARNING Many of you will outperformed all of the others. However, tests of recall
have had the experience of waking up after a party and showed that the drunk-drunk group outperformed the
realizing that pockets of time are now “missing.” Your groups in which participants were intoxicated during
memory for those periods of time appears to have van- only one of the two test sessions. The state of intoxica-
ished. But, is that information gone forever, or can it be tion served as a retrieval cue for the participants’ memory.
accessed in the same way that environmental cues can As with context-dependent memory, this effect appears
help you access some context-dependent memories? to be strongest for declarative memory (e.g., recall), the

292 :: Module 7.2 : : Encoding and Retrieving Memories

form of memory that requires the participant to gener-
ate the response on her own (Duka et al., 2001). Quick Quiz 7.2a
Similar effects have been found for other substances. Encoding and Retrieval
For instance, marijuana researchers have found that
1 The time and manner in which information is retained

KNOW…
“experienced smokers” who learned (encoded) infor- between encoding and retrieval is __________.
mation while under the effects of marijuana performed A maintenance rehearsal
better if they received marijuana before subsequent B storage
tests than if they were sober (Hill et al., 1973; Stillman C elaborative rehearsal
et al., 1974). This group also outperformed participants D recall
who encoded information while sober, but were given
marijuana before the testing on Day 2. However, the
experimenters, in a beautiful example of an understate-
2 Prolonging exposure to information by repeating it to
oneself is referred to as ________.
ment, did note that “marihuana did produce some over- A maintenance rehearsal
all impairment in performance” (Stillman et al., 1974, B storage
p. 81). State-dependent memory has also been observed C elaborative rehearsal
for caffeine (Kelemen & Creeley, 2003), a finding that
D recall
might influence how some of you study and take exams.
However, it is important to remember that, like context-
3 According to the levels of processing approach to

UNDERSTAND…
dependent memory, the effects of state-dependent mem- memory, thinking about synonyms is one method of
ory are fairly small and limited to artificial stimuli such as _______ processing that should _______ memory for
word lists. There is therefore no guarantee that drinking that term.
yourself silly will fill in the gaps of your memory for A shallow; decrease C maintenance; increase
your previous wild night. B deep; increase D dualistic; decrease

MOOD-DEPENDENT LEARNING Just as simi- 4 If you are learning vocabulary for a psychology exam,
APPLY…

lar contexts and chemical states can improve memory, you are better off using a(n) ________ technique.
people remember better if their mood at retrieval A maintenance rehearsal
matches their mood during encoding (Bower, 1981; B elaborative rehearsal
Eich & Metcalfe, 1989). Volunteers in one study gener- C serial processing
ated words while in a pleasant or unpleasant mood, and D consolidation
then attempted to remember them in either the same
or a diff erent mood. The results indicated that if the 5 When taking a math exam, the concept of ________
type of mood at encoding and retrieval matched, then would indicate that you would do best if you took the
memory was superior. However, changes in the inten- exam in the same physical setting as the setting where
you learned the material.
sity of the mood did not seem to have an effect (Balch
A context-dependent learning
et al., 1999).
B state-dependent learning
As with context- and state-dependent memory,
mood-dependent memory has some limitations (Eich C mood congruence

et al., 1994). Mood has a very small effect on recogni- D elaborative rehearsal
tion memory; it has much larger effects on recall-based Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
tests. Additionally, it produces larger effects when the
participant must generate both the to-be-remembered
information (e.g., “an example of a musical instrument
is a g________”) than if the stimuli are externally gen-
erated (e.g., “remember this word: guitar”). In the first Emotional Memories
example, the participant must put more of his own cog- Do you remember what you ate for lunch last Tuesday?
nition into the encoding process; therefore, those cogni- Is that event imprinted on your memory forever? Unless
tive processes become important retrieval cues later on. your lunch was spectacularly good or bad, it’s unlikely
Although its effects are limited, mood-dependent that the memory of your sandwich will be very vivid.
memory does show that a person’s emotional state can But what if you saw police arrest people who were
have an effect on encoding and retrieval. As we shall see, fighting in the cafeteria? Or what if you got food poi-
the influence of emotion can be even more dramatic soning from your tuna sandwich? Suddenly, that lunch
when the stimuli themselves are emotional in nature. became much more memorable. Indeed, when you think

Encoding and Retrieving Memories :: Module 7.2 :: 293

 back to different times in your life, the events that first
come to mind are often emotional in nature such as
a wonderful birthday party or the fear of starting at a
new school. Emotion seems to act as a highlighter for
memories, making them easier to retrieve than neutral
memories. This is because emotional stimuli and events
are generally self-relevant and are associated with arousal
responses such as an increase in heart rate and sweating.
In linking emotion and memory back to topics discussed
earlier in this module, it seems reasonable to assume that
Simulate emotion leads to deep processing of stimuli.
What Do You The tendency for emotion to enhance our mem-
Remember? ory for events has been demonstrated in a number of
studies (LaBar & Cabeza, 2006). For instance, in one
experiment, two groups of volunteers viewed the same
slideshow depicting a woman’s daily activities, with the
final slide showing a bunch of friends gathered out-
side her door. If that was all the experiment entailed,
the two groups would have about an equal chance of
remembering the details—but, psychologists are sneaky,
so there was obviously some sort of experimental
manipulation involved. In this case, one group was told
that they were watching the woman on the way to her
birthday party, whereas the other group was told that
the woman was severely depressed and had thoughts of
suicide. Thus, one group received a mildly positive nar-
rative for the scene whereas the other group received creestee/[Link]
a strongly negative narrative. The volunteers who had Emotional items, particularly if they are threatening, capture
been given the sad scenario actually remembered more attention and are more likely to be retained in memory. An
example of this is the phenomenon of weapon focus in which
details from the slideshow (Laney et al., 2003). Because people recall the central element of the scene (the weapon) but
the two groups were randomly assigned, we assume that quickly forget the peripheral details.
the only thing that could have led to the stronger mem-
ories was the level of emotion tied to the photos for memory accuracy due to weapon focus, or the tendency to
one of the groups. focus on the weapon at the expense of peripheral infor-
Research has shown that this beneficial effect mation including the identity of the person holding the
of emotion is strongest after long (one hour or more) weapon (Kramer et al., 1990; Loftus et al., 1987). Inter-
rather than short delays (LaBar & Phelps, 1998; Sharot & estingly, damage to the amygdala eliminates these effects,
Phelps, 2004). This suggests that emotion’s largest influ- suggesting that this emotion-related structure plays a key
ence is on the process of consolidation, when informa- role in the formation of emotional memories (Adolphs
tion that has recently been transferred from short-term et al., 2005).
memory (STM) into long-term memory (LTM) is The above studies suggest that emotional material
strengthened and made somewhat permanent. Emotion received deeper (rather than shallow) processing. How-
has less of an effect on STM and on recognition mem- ever, levels of processing is not the only factor influencing
ory; these types of memory have much less variability memory and emotions. Emotion can influence memory
than LTM, thus leaving less room for emotion to influ- consolidation even if the stimuli themselves are not emo-
ence accuracy levels. tional in nature. For example, in one study, participants
Emotion also changes the type of information that studied a list of words and were then randomly assigned
is encoded. Specifically, central information about the to view a tape of oral surgery (the emotional condition)
gist of a scene (e.g., a snake) receives extra attention and or the way to brush your teeth effectively (presumably
is more likely to be remembered than peripheral infor- not the emotional condition). After the slideshow, the
mation (e.g., the flowers near the snake). This phenom- group members who viewed the surgery tape remem-
enon can take a more sinister turn in the courtroom. bered more of the words (see Figure 7.17 ) (Nielson
Many eyewitnesses to crimes have shown reductions in et al., 2005). Thus, emotions can lead to stronger memory

294 :: Module 7.2 : : Encoding and Retrieving Memories

 Pretest for Watch 30-minute recall:
word memory. surgery video. higher scores
Study a list
of words.
Pretest for Watch 30-minute recall:
word memory. brushing video. lower scores

{fig. 7.17} Does Emotion Improve Memory? Both groups remembered approximately the same percentage of words at pre-
test, and then watched dentistry videos unrelated to the word lists. The group whose members watched the more emotional video
recalled more of the words in the end (Nielson et al., 2005).

formation, even if the information is not directly related Kulik, 1977). (The term flashbulb refers to the flash of
to the emotional event. a camera.) These highly charged emotional memories
Researchers have identified many of the biological typically involve recollections of location, what was
mechanisms that allow emotion to influence memory happening at the time of the event, and the emotional
(Phelps, 2004). Much of this relationship involves struc- reactions of self and others (Brown & Kulik, 1977).
tures in the temporal lobe of the brain, the hippocampus
(the structure associated with the encoding of long-term
memories) and the amygdala (the structure involved
in emotional processing and responding). Brain imag-
ing shows that emotional memories often activate the
amygdala, whereas non-emotional memories generated
at the same time do not (Sharot et al., 2007). Activity
in the amygdala then influences the firing patterns of
other temporal-lobe structures, including the hippocam-
pus; this link is a major part of the emotion-memory
relationship (Dolcos et al., 2004). It is also quite time-
sensitive—amygdala responses to individual stimuli pre-
dict later memory accuracy for those items (Canli et al.,
2000). Of course, this association does not guarantee that
all of the details of an experience will be remembered
with complete accuracy.

FLASHBULB MEMORIES Can you remember

where you were when Sidney Crosby scored “the
golden goal” against Team USA in the Olympic
hockey final? Unless your celebration led to alcohol-
induced amnesia, it’s likely that you have some mental
image of that scene. What type of details are part of
that image? Can you remember what you were wear-
ing? Who was with you? For non-hockey fans, that
afternoon was simply a fun time with friends. But
for others, the memory of that event might take on Top: Beth Dixson/Alamy; bottom: John Lok/MCT/Newscom
an almost photographic quality. This phenomenon Many people have flashbulb memories of the September 11,
led researchers to label such an intense and unique 2001, terrorist attacks. However, not all flashbulb memories
memory as being a flashbulb memory—an extremely are negative. According to TSN, 80% of Canadians watched
Sidney Crosby crush the dreams of the American hockey team
vivid and detailed memory about an event and the conditions in the Vancouver Olympics. Do you remember that moment?
surrounding how one learned about the event (Brown & Are you sure?

Encoding and Retrieving Memories :: Module 7.2 :: 295

 Some may be personal memories, such as the memory 2 One study had participants view tapes of dental

UNDERSTAND…
of an automobile accident. Other events are so widely surgery after studying a word list. This study
felt that they seem to form flashbulb memories for an concluded that
entire society, such as the assassination of U.S. President A emotional videos have no effect on memory.
Kennedy in 1963 (Brown & Kulik, 1977), the explo- B emotional videos can enhance memory, but only
sion of the space shuttles Challenger or Columbia for material related to the video itself.

(Kershaw et al., 2009; Neisser & Harsch, 1992), and C emotional videos can enhance memory even for
unrelated material.
the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 (Hirst
et al., 2009; Paradis et al., 2004). One defining feature D emotional videos can enhance memory for related
material, while reducing memory for unrelated
of flashbulb memories is that people are highly con-
material.
fident that their recollections are accurate. But is this
confidence warranted?
3 Which statement best sums up the status of flashbulb

ANALYZE…
memories?
A Due to the emotional strain of the event, flashbulb
memories are largely inaccurate.

MYTHS IN MIND B Recall for only physical details is highly accurate.

C Both emotion and physical details are remembered
The Accuracy of Flashbulb very accurately.
Memories
D Over time, memory for details decays, similar to
Although flashbulb memories are very detailed and individu- what happens with nonflashbulb memories.
als reciting the details are very confident of their accuracy,
Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
it might surprise you to learn that they are not necessar-
ily more accurate than any other memories. For example,
researchers examined how university students remembered
the September 11, 2001, attacks in comparison to an emo-
tional but more mundane event (Talarico & Rubin, 2003).
On September 12, 2001, they asked students to describe
Forgetting and Remembering
the events surrounding the moment they heard about the Have you ever had the experience of studying intensely
attacks. For a comparison event, they asked students to for an exam, writing it, and then forgetting almost every-
describe something memorable from the preceding week- thing as soon as you walked out of the exam room? This
end, just two or three days before the attacks. Over several phenomenon is quite common, particularly if you did
months, the students were asked to recall details of both all of your studying the night before (or morning of) the
events, and the researchers compared the accuracy of the exam. Forgetting information is probably a good thing,
two memories. Although their memory for both events was
at least if it occurs in moderation. We don’t need to
fading at the same rate and they were equal in accuracy, the
remember every detail about each bus ride into school.
students acknowledged the decline in memory only for the
Instead, we want to have some control over what we do
mundane events. They continued to feel highly confident
in their memories surrounding the September 11 attacks, remember, thus allowing us to keep the useful informa-
when, in fact, those memories were not any more accurate. tion (e.g., terms for an exam) and deleting the less useful
The same pattern has been found for other major flashbulb information (e.g., the name of whatever creature of the
events, such as the 1986 space shuttle Challenger explosion deep Lindsay Lohan is dating). Of course, if we had that
and the verdict in the O. J. Simpson murder trial (Neisser & type of control, there would be no need to study the
Watch Harsch, 1992; Schmolk et al., 2000). intricacies of why we remember and forget things. As
The Big Picture: The you will see, this issue has been researched extensively.
Woman Who Cannot
Forget THE FORGETTING CURVE: HOW SOON WE
FORGET . . . It might seem odd that the first research
Watch
In the Real World: The Quick Quiz 7.2b on remembering was actually a documentation of how
quickly people forget. However, this approach does make
Memories We Don’t
Emotional Memories
Want sense: Without knowledge of forgetting, it is difficult to
1 ________ are extremely vivid and detailed memories ascertain how well we can remember. This early work
KNOW…

about an event. was conducted by Hermann Ebbinghaus, whom many

A Flashbulb memories C Rehearsal memories
psychologists consider the founder of memory research.
B Deep memories D Semantic memories Ebbinghaus (1885) was his own research participant in
his studies; these experiments involved him studying

296 :: Module 7.2 : : Encoding and Retrieving Memories

hundreds of nonsense syllables for later memory tests. 70
His rationale was that because none of the syllables had 60
any meaning, none of them should have been easier to

Percentage savings
remember based on past experiences. Ebbinghaus stud- 50
ied lists of these syllables until he could repeat them 40
twice (which is the worst pick-up line ever). He then
30
tested himself repeatedly—this is where his persistence
really shows—day after day. 20
How soon do we forget? The data indicated that
10
Ebbinghaus forgot about half of a list in an hour. If
Ebbinghaus had continued to forget at that rate, the rest 0
of the list should be lost after two hours. In reality, that 0 60 121 182 244 305 366 425 486 547 609 670 731
was not the case. After a day, he could generally remem- Hours until relearning
ber one-third of the material, and he could still recall {fig. 7.18} Ebbinghaus’s Forgetting Curve This graph reveals Ebbinghaus’s
between one-fifth and one-fourth of the words after a results showing the rate at which he forgot a series of nonsense syllables. You can
week. The graph in Figure 7.18 shows the basic pattern see that there is a steep decline in performance within the first day and that the rate of
forgetting levels off over time.
in his test results, which has come to be known as a for-
getting curve. It clearly shows that most forgetting occurs
right away, and that the rate of forgetting eventually a dinner table. Once the path is identified, the learner
slows to the point where one does not seem to forget takes a moment to visually relate the first word on the
at all. These results have stood the test of time. In fact, list to the first location encountered. For example, if you
in the century after Ebbinghaus conducted his research, need to remember to pick up noodles, milk, and soap
more than 200 articles were published in psychological from the store and the first thing you pass on the way
journals that fit Ebbinghaus’s forgetting curve (Rubin & to your friend’s house is an intersection with a stop sign,
Wenzel, 1996). In fact, one study demonstrated that this you might picture the intersection littered with noodles,
forgetting curve applies to information learned over and so on down the list. The image doesn’t need to be
50 years before (see Figure 7.19; Bahrick, 1984). cool—it just needs to be distinct enough to be memora-
Given that the forgetting curve has been docu- ble. When it is time to recall the items, the learner simply
mented in hundreds of experiments, it seems inevitable imagines the familiar drive, identifying the items to be
that we will forget most of the information that we purchased as they relate to each location along the path.
attempt to encode. However, as you have undoubtedly
learned over the course of your studies, there are tech-
niques that will allow you to improve your memory so
that the forgetting curve is not as steep. Vocabulary recall of Spanish
speakers learning English

100 Vocabulary recall of English

MNEMONICS: IMPROVING YOUR MEMORY SKILLS speakers learning Spanish
Percentage of original score

At the beginning of this module, you read about the

poet Simonides and his ability to use mental imagery 80

to improve his memory, thus allowing him to identify

60
the remains of people crushed under a collapsed roof.
Simonides was using a primitive type of mnemonic— Watch
40
a technique intended to improve memory for specific informa- Mnemonics
tion. As you will see in this section, there are a number 20
of different mnemonics that could be used to improve
memory, something that might be of interest to over- 0
whelmed students.
2m

2m

9m

14 m
n

7m

34 1m

49 m
8m
io

7
et

r
yr

yr
yr

yr

The technique that Simonides was using is known as

1y

3y

5y

9y
pl

25
om

the method of loci (pronounced “LOW-sigh”), a mne-

C

monic that connects words to be remembered to locations along {fig. 7.19} Bahrick’s Long-Term Forgetting Curve This
a familiar path. To use the method of loci, one must first forgetting curve indicates the rate at which adults forgot the
foreign language they took in high school. Compared to new
imagine a route that has landmarks or easily identifiable
graduates, those tested two to three years later forgot much of
spaces—for example, the things you pass on your way what they learned. After that, however, test scores stabilized,
from your home to a friend’s house or the seats around just as Ebbinghaus’s did a century earlier (Bahrick, 1984).

Encoding and Retrieving Memories :: Module 7.2 :: 297

 Andersen Ross/Iconica/Gettyimages
Restaurant staff often rely on mnemonic devices to remember
which diner receives each item.

Lori Howard/[Link] or a description and a sound—and it regularly produces

The method of loci relies on mental imagery of a familiar location or path, like this path stronger memories than the use of one form alone (Clark
that students take to class three times a week.
& Paivio, 1991). Dual coding leads to the information
receiving deeper, as opposed to shallow, processing; this
However, the method of loci can become a bit is because the additional sensory representations create
cumbersome when a person has to remember hun- a larger number of memory associations. This leads to
dreds of different facts, as occurs for university exams. a greater number of potential retrieval cues that can be
A more practical mnemonic is the use of acronyms, accessed later. For example, most children growing up in
pronounceable words whose letters represent the initials of an North America learned the alphabet with the help of a
important phrase or set of items . For example, the word song. In fact, even adults find themselves humming por-
“scuba” came into being with the invention of the self- tions of that song when alphabetizing documents in a
c ontained u nderwater b reathing a pparatus. “Roy G. file cabinet (you’ll do it too if asked which letter comes
Biv” gives you the colours of the rainbow: red, orange, after “k”). Both the visual “A-B-C-D” and the musical
yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. A related mne- “eh-bee-see-dee” are encoded together, making mem-
monic, the first-letter technique, uses the first letters ory easier than if you were simply given visual informa-
of a set of items to spell out words that form a sentence. It is tion to remember (e.g., “☛ ☞ ☞ ☛”, which is ABCD in
like an acronym, but it tends to be used when the first the meaningless “wingdings2” font). The simplest expla-
letters do not spell a pronounceable word (see Figure nation for the dual-coding advantage is that twice as
7.20). One well-known example is “Every Good Boy much information is stored.
Does Fine” for the five lines on the tre- The application of mnemonic strategies can be
ble clef in musical notation. Another is found in restaurants where waiters are not allowed
Taxonomy First letter mnemonic
“My Very Educated Mother Just Served to write out orders. These waiters use a variety of the
Kingdom King Us Nachos” for the eight planets in the techniques discussed in this chapter. Some use chunking
Phylum Philip solar [Link] types of mnemonic strategies, such as remembering soft drinks for a group of
Class Came techniques work by organizing the three customers, and cocktails for the other four. Waiters
information into a pattern that is easier also use the method of loci to link faces with positions at
Order Over
to remember than the original informa- the table. In one study, a waiter was able to recall as many
Family For tion. Acronyms have a meaning of their as 20 dinner orders (Ericsson & Polson, 1988). He used
Genus Good own, so the learner gets the benefit of the method of loci by linking food type (starch, beef, or
Species Spaghetti both elaborative rehearsal and deeper fish) with a table location, and he used acronyms to help
processing. with encoding salad dressing choices. Thus RaVoSe for a
{fig. 7.20} The First-Letter A number of mnemonic devices party of three would be ranch, vinegar and oil, and ses-
Technique Students of biol- are based on the premise of dual cod- ame. Waiters, as well as memory researchers, will tell you
ogy often use mnemonics, such ing. Dual coding occurs when information that the worst thing restaurant patrons can do is switch
as this example of the first letter
technique, which helps students is stored in more than one form—such as seats, as it completely disrupts the mnemonic devices
remember the taxonomic system. a verbal description and a visual image, used by the waiter (Bekinschtein et al., 2008).

298 :: Module 7.2 : : Encoding and Retrieving Memories

 While these mnemonic devices can help with rote
memorization, they may not necessarily improve your Quick Quiz 7.2c
understanding of material. Researchers have begun to Forgetting and Remembering
examine other memory boosters that may offer more
1 Dual coding seems to help memory by

KNOW…
benefits to you as a student as you prepare for exams. For A allowing for maintenance rehearsal.
example, some research has shown that desirable difficulties B ensuring that the information is encoded in
can aid learning. These techniques make studying slower multiple ways.
and more effortful, but result in better overall remem- C ensuring that the information is encoded on two
bering. They include spacing out your studying rather separate occasions.
than cramming, and studying material in varying orders. D duplicating the rehearsal effect.
Another popular approach to studying is to use
flashcards. Although psychologists have begun to under- Watch
2 If you are preparing for an exam by using flashcards,

APPLY…
stand how this process benefits students, they also have IT Video: Cramming
you will probably find that you are more confident
identified a few pitfalls that can hinder its effects. First
about some of the items than others. To improve your
is the spacing effect. When studying with flashcards, it exam performance, you should
is better to use one big stack rather than several smaller A drop the cards you already know.
stacks; using the entire deck helps take advantage of the B keep the cards in the deck even if you feel like you
effect of spacing the cards. A second potential problem know them.
is the fact that students become overconfident and drop C use elaborative rehearsal.
flashcards as soon as they believe they learn the material. D use the method of loci.
In reality, doing so seems to reduce the benefits of over-
learning the material (making it more difficult to forget)
and spacing out cards in the deck (Kornell, 2009; Kornell 3 If you wanted to remember a grocery list using the
method of loci, you should
& Bjork, 2007). No matter how you study, you should
A imagine the items on the list on your path through
take advantage of the testing effect, the finding that tak-
the grocery store.
ing practice tests can improve exam performance, even without
B match rhyming words to each item on your list.
additional studying. In fact, researchers have directly com- Watch
C repeat the list to yourself over and over again.
pared testing to additional studying and have found that, What’s in It for Me?
D tell a story using the items from the list. Making It Stick
in some cases, testing actually improves memory more
(Roediger et al., 2010). That’s why psychology textbooks Answers can be found on page ANS-2.
such as this one include “Quick Quizzes” and online
tests—to help you improve your memory. . . .

Encoding and Retrieving Memories :: Module 7.2 :: 299

 Module Summary

Module Now that you have read this module you should
7.2
KNOW…

● The key terminology related to forgetting, encoding,

and retrieval:
acronym (p. 298) flashbulb memory (p. 295)
dual coding (p. 298) maintenance rehearsal (p. 288) Tkreykes/Fotolia
elaborative rehearsal (p. 289) method of loci (p. 297)
encoding specificity principle mnemonic (p. 297)
(p. 290) storage (p. 288) you while you prepare yourself by imagining a familiar path
first-letter technique (p. 298) testing effect (p. 299) (perhaps the route you take to class). When you are ready
to learn the list, read a single item on the list and imagine
it at some point on the path. Feel free to exaggerate the
images in your memory—each item could become the
UNDERSTAND…
size of a stop sign or might take on the appearance of a
● How the type of cognitive processing employed particular building or tree that you pass by. Continue this
can affect the chances of remembering what you pattern for each individual item until you have learned the
encounter. Generally speaking, the deeper the processing, list. Then try what Ebbinghaus did: Test your memory over
the more likely something is to be remembered. Greater the course of a few days. How do you think you will do?
depth of processing may be achieved by elaborating on the
meaning of the information, through increased emotional
ANALYZE…
content, and through coding in images and sounds
simultaneously. ● Whether emotional memories are more accurate
than non-emotional ones. Both personal experiences
and controlled laboratory studies demonstrate that
APPLY…
emotion enhances memory. However, as we learned in the
● What you have learned to improve your ability to case of flashbulb memories, even memories for details of
memorize information. The best way to do so is to give significant events decline over time, although confidence
it a try. One mnemonic device that might be helpful is the in memory accuracy typically remains very high.
method of loci. Have someone create a shopping list for

300 :: Module 7.2 : : Encoding and Retrieving Memories

 RiceWithSugar/[Link]

Module

7.3 Constructing and Reconstructing Memories

Learning KNOW… UNDERSTAND… APPLY… ANALYZE…

Objectives The key terminology How schemas serve as frameworks for What you have learned The arguments in the
After reading used in discussing how encoding and constructing memories to judge the reliability of “recovered memory” debate
this module memories are organized How psychologists can produce eyewitness testimony
you should and constructed
false memories in the laboratory

In 1992, the Saskatchewan town of Martensville was rocked by a sex abuse Focus Questions
scandal. A complaint about a suspicious diaper rash from a parent of a tod-
dler attending a local daycare led to a police investigation. After repeated 1 How is it possible to remember events that never happened?
and extensive interviewing, the children claimed to remember astonishing 2 Do these false memories represent memory problems,
things including extensive sexual abuse, human sacrifice, a “Devil Church,” or are they just a normal part of remembering?
and a Satanic cult known as The Brotherhood of the Ram. The owners
of the daycare along with several other individuals—including five police
officers—were eventually arrested. However, a closer examination of the
police investigation identified some serious problems. Expert witnesses
noted that the questions used in the interviews were leading and sug-
The true story that opened this module demonstrates that memories
gestive. While certainly well-meaning, the investigators—who were not for past events can change over time. In a less disturbing example, cog-
trained to interview child witnesses—forgot a critical piece of informa- nitive psychologist and renowned memory researcher Ulric Neisser
tion: Memories are not like photographs perfectly depicting an event from once recounted what he was doing on December 7, 1941, the day
our past. Instead, they are reconstructed each time we retrieve them, and Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. Neisser was sitting in the living room
can therefore be altered by a number of different factors. listening to a baseball game on the radio when the program was

Constructing and Reconstructing Memories :: Module 7.3 :: 301

 interrupted with the news (Neisser, 2000). Or was he? He we encounter familiar events or objects, these schemas
had certainly constructed a very distinct memory for this become active, and they affect what we expect, what we
emotional event, but something must have gone wrong. pay attention to, and what we remember. Because we use
Baseball season does not last through December. As this these patterns automatically, it may be difficult to under-
example demonstrates, even memory researchers are prone stand what they are, even though you have been using
to misremembering. In this module we will examine how them your whole life. Here is an example; read the fol-
such misremembering occurs and what it says about how lowing passage through one time:
memories are constructed . . . and reconstructed.
The procedure is quite simple. First, you arrange things
into different groups. Of course, one pile may be sufficient,
How Memories Are Organized depending on how much there is to do. If you have to go
somewhere else due to lack of facilities, that is the next
and Constructed step; otherwise, you are pretty well set. It is important not
Think about the last time you read a novel or watched to overdo things. That is, it is better to do too few things at
a film. What do you recall about the story? If you have once than too many. At first the whole procedure will seem
a typical memory, you will forget the proper names of complicated. Soon, however, it will become just another
locations and characters quickly, but you will be able to facet of life. After the procedure is completed, one arranges
remember the basic plot for a very long time (Squire, the materials into different groups again. Then they can
1989; Stanhope et al., 1993). The plot may be referred to be put into their appropriate places. Eventually they will
as the gist of the story and it impacts us much more than be used once more, and the whole cycle will have to be
characters’ names, which are often just details. As it turns repeated (Bransford & Johnson, 1973).
out, much of the way we store memories depends on
At this point, if you were to write down the details of
our tendency to remember the gist of things.
the paragraph solely from memory, how well do you
THE SCHEMA: AN ACTIVE ORGANIZATION think you would do? Most people do not have high
Watch PROCESS The gist of a story gives us “the big pic- expectations for themselves, but they would blame it on
IT Video: Penny Test ture,” or a general structure for the memory; details can how vague the paragraph seems. Now, what if we tell
Explore be added around that structure. Gist is often influenced you the passage is about doing laundry? If you read the
Schema by schemas, organized clusters of memories that constitute paragraph a second time, you should see that it is easier
one’s knowledge about events, objects, and ideas. Whenever to understand, as well as to remember.

process of doing laundry. Refer back to the definition of

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC schema—a cluster of memories that constitutes your knowl-
LITERACY MODEL edge about an event (gathering clothes, going to the laundro-
mat), object (what clothes are, what detergent is), or idea (why
How Schemas Influence Memory clean clothes are desirable). When you read the paragraph the
first time, you probably did not know what the objects and
events were. However, when you were told it was about doing
Although schemas are used to explain memory, they can be
laundry, it activated your laundry schema—your personal col-
used to explain many other phenomena as well, such as the
lection of concepts and memories. Once your schema was
way we perceive, remember, and think about people and situ-
activated, you were prepared to make sense of the story
ations. In each case, schemas provide a ready-made structure
and could likely fill in the gaps of your memory for the pas-
that allows us to process new information more quickly than
sage with stored knowledge from your schema in long-term
we could without this mental shortcut. This makes schemas
memory (LTM). Second, we should point out that schemas
extremely useful. But, are they accurate?
are involved in all three stages of memory: They guide what
we attend to during encoding, organize stored memories, and
What do we know serve as cues when it comes time to retrieve information.
about schemas?
How can science
The laundry demonstration tells
us quite a bit about schemas and
explain schemas?
memory. First, most of us have our Where do schemas come
own personal schema about the from? They appear to be

302 :: Module 7.3 : : Constructing and Reconstructing Memories

 schema—it can be easier to recall, yet it may be more
35
difficult to recognize or report the exact details.
30 2. Distinctiveness. When we encounter new information,
some of it will not fit our schemas. If the new informa-
tion stands out as weird or unusual, it will be easy to
% of memory errors

25
recall. If it does not fit our schema, but is not all that un-
20 usual, it will likely be forgotten (Silva et al., 2006). Infor-
mation that does not fit into our schemas but is also not
15
terribly interesting (e.g., a muscular man with tattoos
driving a minivan) will be more difficult to remember.
10

5 Can we critically
evaluate the concept of
0
Immediate Delayed a schema?
Test time The concept of a schema is cer-
{fig. 7.21} Schemas Affect How We Encode and Remem- tainly useful in describing our meth-
ber In this study, memory was accurate when tested imme- ods of mental organization, but
diately, as shown by the small proportion of errors on the some psychologists remain skepti-
“immediate” side of the graph. After two days, however, partic- cal of its validity. After all, you cannot record brain activity
ipants misremembered seeing the schema-inconsistent tasks
and expect to see a particular schema, and individuals gener-
in line with stereotypes. For example, they misremembered the
homemaker stirring cake batter even if they had actually seen ally are not aware that they are using schematic processing.
the handyman do it (Kleider et al., 2008). Click on this figure It may even be the case that what we assume are schemas
in your eText to see more details. about laundry, gender, or ourselves are different every time
we think about these topics. If that is the case, then describ-
products of culture and experience (e.g., Ross & Wang, ing this tendency as a schema might even be misleading.
2010). For example, individuals within a culture tend to have
schemas related to gender roles—men and women are each However, recent brain-imaging studies suggest that schemas
assumed to engage in certain jobs and to behave in certain do exist and likely help with the process of memory consoli-
ways. Even if an individual realizes that these schemas are not dation (Wang & Morris, 2010). Both encoding and retrieving
100% accurate (in fact, they can be far from accurate in some information that was consistent with a schema learned during
cases), he or she is likely to engage in schematic processing the experiment led to greater activity in a network involving
when having difficulty remembering something specific.

A study by Heather Kleider and her associates (2008) dem-

onstrates how schemas influence memory quite well. These
investigators had research participants view photographs of
a handyman engaged in schema-consistent behaviour (e.g.,
working on plumbing) as well as a few schema-inconsistent
tasks (e.g., folding a baby’s clothing). Mixed in with these
photos were images of a stay-at-home mother doing chores,
including the same tasks. Immediately after viewing the pho-
tographs, participants were quite successful at remembering
correctly who had performed what actions. However, after
two days, what types of memory mistakes do you think the
researchers found? As you can see from Figure 7.21, individu-
als began making mistakes, and these mistakes are consistent
with gender schemas.

Research indicates that we remember events using

constructive memory, a process by which we first recall a
generalized schema and then add in specific details (Scoboria et
al., 2006; Silva et al., 2006). To this end, schemas can affect our
memory in two ways:

1. Organization. When we encounter a new situation, some

Brain-imaging data suggest that encoding information
objects and events will undoubtedly fit our schemas consistent with a schema activates a network involving
(i.e., our expectations) better than others. When the structures in the medial temporal lobe (including our friend, the
new information makes sense—that is, when it fits our hippocampus) and parts of the frontal lobes.

Constructing and Reconstructing Memories :: Module 7.3 :: 303

 parts of the medial temporal lobes (including the hippo- to things that are consistent with the depressive symptoms,
campus) and the frontal lobes (van Kesteren et al., 2010a, and will be more likely to recall events and feelings that are
2010b). Additionally, adding new information to an existing consistent with this schema. Thus the schema contributes to
schema actually changes the expression of genes in the fron- a pattern of thinking and focusing on negative thoughts. For-
tal lobes; so, you are essentially rewriting parts of your brain tunately, researchers have been able to target these schemas
when you add to a schema (Tse et al., 2011). Thus, while we in psychotherapy. The evidence shows that by changing their
cannot identify the neural correlates for a specific schema self-schema, individuals are better able to recover from even
like that for doing laundry, it is possible to see how schemas very serious bouts of depression (Dozois et al., 2009).
influence brain activity while new information is encoded and
entered into the structure of our LTM.

Why is this relevant?

Schemas are not limited to
memories for other people;
in fact, we all have sche-
mas about ourselves. Clinical psychology researchers have
become particularly concerned with the ways in which these
self-schemas may contribute to psychological problems. Con-
sider a person with clinical depression—a condition that
involves negative emotion, lack of energy, self-doubt, and self-
blame. An individual with depression is likely to have a very
negative self-schema, which means that he will pay attention Glow Images

Schemas about the self are based on past experiences to develop around the ages of 18 to 24 months (Howe, 2003).
and are used to organize the encoding of self-relevant Without these schemas, it is difficult and maybe even impos-
information in a way that can influence our responses sible to organize and encode memories about the self. This
(Markus, 1977). But self-schemas may serve an additional is not a universal phenomenon, however. Other researchers
role during development. Some evidence suggests that taking a cross-cultural perspective have found that a sense of
self emerges earlier among European Americans than among
the ability to form schemas, particularly self-schemas,
people living in eastern Asia, which correlates with earlier
plays a critical role in our ability to form memories
ages of first memories among European Americans (Fivush
about our lives. & Nelson, 2004; Ross & Wang, 2010). Why might this differ-
ence arise? The European American emphasis on developing a
sense of self encourages thinking about personal experiences,
which increases the likelihood that personal events—such
BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL as your third birthday party with that scary drunken clown
PERSPECTIVES who showed up, or getting chased by a dog—will be remem-
bered. In contrast, Asian cultures tend to emphasize social
Your Earliest Memories harmony and collectiveness over individualism, resulting in a
Think back to the earliest memory you can recall: How old schema that is more socially integrated than in Westerners.
were you? It is likely that you do not have any personal or This may explain the slightly later onset of autobiographical
autobiographical memories from before your third birthday. memory in Asian children. It will be interesting to see if this
Watch
Psychologists have been trying to explain this phenomenon— cultural difference changes as Asian cultures become more
Learning and Memory
sometimes called infantile amnesia. Which of the following “Americanized.”
in Infants: Kimberley
explanations do you think are supported by scientific evidence? Do these findings mean that we could get infants to
Cuevas
remember early life events by teaching them to talk about
Yes or no? The nervous system is still developing at birth. themselves at an early age? It is not likely. The most plausi-
Yes or no? Young children need to develop schemas to help ble reason why we do not have memories that exist before
organize and store memories. age three years is because the nervous system, including key
Yes or no? Different cultures tend to develop earliest memo- memory regions, continues to develop through infancy and
ries at different ages. toddlerhood. Its immaturity limits the degree to which a
Did you say yes to all of these? If so, you are in agreement young person can think, reflect on, and remember personal
with what scientific research shows. For example, cross- experiences (Newcombe et al., 2000).
cultural cognitive research indicates that self-schemas begin

304 :: Module 7.3 : : Constructing and Reconstructing Memories

 the study course participants revised their memories of
Quick Quiz 7.3a their past abilities in a way that allowed them to feel as
How Memories Are Organized though they benefited from the course. This memory
and Constructed bias allowed them to feel as though they were improving
over time, a bias that almost all of us have about ourselves
1 Schemas appear to affect which of the following stages
KNOW…

of memory?
(Ross & Wilson, 2000).
A Encoding C Retrieval The results of such studies demonstrate that our
B Storage D All of these stages memories are not stable, but instead change over time.
Indeed, we have all experienced a false memory, remem-
bering events that did not occur, or incorrectly recalling details of
2 The act of remembering through recalling a framework
an event. It is important to remember that these incorrect
and then adding specific details is known as ________.
A constructive memory memories do not necessarily indicate a dysfunction of
B confabulation memory, but rather reflect normal memory processes—
C schematic interpretation which are very much imperfect. As you read in the dis-
D distinctiveness
cussion of schemas, the elements of a memory must be
reconstructed each time that memory is retrieved. This
reconstruction is influenced by the demands of the cur-
3 Information that does not fit our expectations for a
UNDERSTAND…

specific context is likely to be forgotten if rent situation. Indeed, psychologists have identified sev-
A it is extremely unusual. eral ways in which our memories can be biased; they
B it only fits our expectations for another completely
have also noted how these biases can affect a number of
different context. real-world situations, particularly in the legal system.
C it is unexpected, but really not that unusual.
THE PERILS OF EYEWITNESS TESTIMONY Have
D it is schema consistent.
you ever witnessed a crime, or even a minor traffic acci-
Answers can be found on page ANS-2. dent? When asked later about what you witnessed, how
accurate were your reports? Most of us feel quite confi-
dent in our ability to retrieve this type of information.
However, psychologists have shown that a number of
Memory Reconstruction minor factors can dramatically influence the details of
You’ve all heard the cliché, “You are what you eat.” But, our “memories.”
it’s also becoming increasingly clear to psychologists that In one classic study, Elizabeth Loftus and John
“You are what you remember” (Wilson & Ross, 2003). Palmer (1974) showed undergraduate research par-
As you read earlier in this module, our memories are ticipants film clips of traffic accidents. Participants were
organized to a large degree by our schemas, including asked to write down a description of what they had
self-schemas. There is no guarantee, however, that these seen, and were then asked a specific question: “About
schemas are 100% accurate. In fact, a growing body of how fast were the cars going when they smashed into
research is showing that our memories of our past are each other?” However, the exact wording of this ques-
influenced by our motivation to view ourselves in par- tion varied across experimental conditions. For some
ticular ways. In other words, the past that we remember participants, the word “smashed” was replaced by “collided,”
is influenced by our mental state and our view of our- “bumped,” “contacted,” or “hit.” The results of the study
selves in the present (Albert, 1977). were stunning—simply changing one verb in the sen-
This bias was nicely demonstrated in a study con- tence produced large differences in the estimated speed
ducted by researchers at Concordia University and the of the vehicles (see Figure 7.22). At one extreme, the
University of Waterloo (Conway & Ross, 1984). The word “smashed” led to an estimate of 65.2 km/h. At
researchers had one group of participants complete a the low end of the spectrum, the word “contacted” led
study skills course while another group remained on a to estimates of 51.2 km/h. So, changing the verb altered
waiting list. The course itself proved completely inef- the remembered speed of the vehicles by 14 km/h. In
fective, at least in terms of improving study skills. The a follow-up study, Loftus and Palmer also found that
course did have an interesting effect on memory, how- participants in the “smashed” condition were more
ever. Participants who completed the study course rated likely to insert false details such as the presence of bro-
their previous study skills lower than they had rated them ken glass into their accident reports. This study was a
prior to taking the course; participants on the waiting powerful demonstration of the effect of question word-
list rated their study skills as being unchanged. Therefore, ing on memory retrieval and provided police with

Constructing and Reconstructing Memories :: Module 7.3 :: 305

 45

40

35
Estimated Speed (miles)

30

25

20

15

10

0
Smashed Collided Bumped Hit Contacted
Verbs Used to Describe the Accident

{fig. 7.22} The Power of a Word Simply changing the wording of a question altered
participants’ recollections of a filmed traffic accident. All participants viewed the same
filmed traffic accidents and all participants received the identical question with the
exception of one key verb: smashed, collided, bumped, hit, or contacted.
Source: Based on data from Table 1 from Loftus and Palmer (1974), p. 586.

important information about the need for caution when

questioning witnesses.
Another factor that can alter memories of an
Courtesy of Elizabeth Loftus
event—and that has implications for the legal sys-
Participants in one study viewed the top photo and later were
tem—is the information that is encoded after the event asked about the “yield sign,” even though they saw a stop
has occurred. When accurate, such information could sign. This small bit of misinformation was enough to get many
theoretically improve people’s memories; however, participants to falsely remember seeing a yield sign. Similarly,
participants who first viewed the bottom photo could be led
this type of information is not always accurate, which to misremember seeing a stop sign with a single misleading
explains why jury members are asked to avoid reading question.
about or watching TV reports related to the case with
which they are involved. Psychologists have shown that
this legal procedure is a wise one, as a number of stud- a playroom. For half of the children, his behaviour was
ies have proven the existence of the misinformation innocent and simply involved him cleaning the toys.
eff ect , when information occurring after an event becomes For the other children, Chester’s behaviour seemed
part of the memory for that event. In the original stud- abusive and involved him treating the toys roughly.
ies of this topic (Loftus, 1975), researchers attempted The children were later questioned by two interview-
to use the misinformation effect to change the details ers who were (1) accusatory (implying that Chester
of people’s memories. For example, in one study, stu- had been playing with the dolls when he should have
dents viewed a videotape of a staged car crash. In the been working), (2) innocent (implying that Ches-
experimental conditions, participants were asked about ter was simply cleaning the dolls), or (3) neutral (not
an object that was not in the video. One such ques- implying anything about Chester’s behaviour). When
tion was about the yield sign in the car crash video, the interviewer’s tone matched what the children saw,
even though the scene had contained a stop sign, not such as innocent questioning about Chester when he
a yield sign. Later, when asked if they had seen a yield treated the toys nicely or accusatory questioning when
sign, participants in the experimental group were likely Chester was rough with the toys, the children’s reports
to say yes. As this experiment demonstrates, one can of the behaviour were quite accurate. However, when
change the details of a memory by asking a leading the interview technique did not match the observed
question. behaviour (e.g., accusatory questioning when Chester
Children are particularly susceptible to misinfor- had simply cleaned the toys), the children’s responses
mation effects and to the effects of a question’s wording matched the interviewer’s tone. In other words,
(Bruck & Ceci, 1999). In one study, five- and six-year- the tone of the interviewer altered the details of the
old children watched a janitor (really an actor) named information that the children retrieved and reported
Chester as he cleaned some dolls and other toys in (Thompson et al., 1997).

306 :: Module 7.3 : : Constructing and Reconstructing Memories

 Children are also as dependent as adults on sche- present in the lineup.” Eyewitnesses often assume the
mas. For example, researchers told children about their guilty person is in the lineup, so they are likely to choose
clumsy friend Sam Stone. On numerous occasions, they a close match. This risk can be greatly reduced by in-
told funny stories about Sam’s life, including the times structing the eyewitness that the correct answer may be
“none of the above.”
he broke a Barbie doll and tore a sweater. Later, the
3. Compose the lineup carefully. The lineup should include
children met “Sam Stone.” During his time in the class-
individuals who match the eyewitness’s description of
room, he did not perform a single clumsy act. The fol-
the perpetrator, not the investigator’s beliefs about the
lowing day, the teacher showed the children a torn book suspect.
and a dirty teddy bear, but did not link Sam to these 4. Use sequential lineups. When an entire lineup is shown
damaged items. When questioned a few weeks later, simultaneously, the witness may assume one of the
however, many of the three- and four-year-old children people is guilty and settle on the best candidate. If the
reported that Sam Stone had ruined these objects. Some people in the lineup are presented one at a time, wit-
even claimed to have witnessed these acts themselves nesses are less likely to pick out an incorrect suspect
(Leichtman & Ceci, 1995). These findings should not because they are willing to consider the next person in
lead us to ignore the eyewitness testimony of children; the sequence.
but, they should also remind us (and investigators) that 5. Require confidence statements. Eyewitness confidence can
change as a result of an investigator’s response, or simply
memories—particularly those of children—are not sta-
by seeing the same suspect in multiple lineups, neither of
ble and unchanging like a photograph.
which make the testimony any more [Link],
confidence statements should be taken in the witness’s
own words after an identification is made.
6. Record the procedures. Eyewitness researchers have iden-
tified at least a dozen specific things that can go wrong
PSYCH @ during identification procedures. By recording these pro-
Court: Is Eyewitness cedures, expert witnesses can evaluate the reliability of
Testimony Reliable? testimony during hearings.

In the United States, more than 220 individuals convicted of Recently, Canadian legal experts produced the 2011 Report
crimes have been exonerated based on DNA evidence; more of the Federal/Provincial/Territorial Heads of Prosecutions Subcom-
than 75% of the original convictions were the result of mis- mittee on the Prevention of Wrongful Convictions. This 233-page
taken eyewitness testimony (Innocence Project, 2010; Wells document presents recommendations to the legal commu-
& Quinlivan, 2009). Although Canada lags far behind the U.S. nity for the use of eyewitness testimony, among other inves-
in the re-examination of questionable convictions, there have tigative practices, and highlights the need for testimony from
been a number of recent cases in which people wrongfully experts including psychologists.
convicted of murder were released. Considering that many
cases do not have DNA evidence available (it has been lost or
destroyed, or the quality of DNA samples has deteriorated),
there are likely to be many more wrongful convictions that IMAGINATION AND FALSE MEMORIES Because
we will never know about. our memories are not always as accurate as we would
While trying to pinpoint the individual responsible for a like them to be, people use a number of techniques to
crime, investigators often present a lineup of a series of indi- try to help themselves retrieve information. One of
viduals (either in person or in photographs) and ask the eye-
these techniques is to imagine the situation that you
witness to identify the suspect. Given the constructive nature
are trying, but failing, to remember. However, although
of memory, it should come as no surprise to hear that an eye-
witness gets it wrong from time to [Link] consequences of
this strategy seems logical at first, the results of several
this kind of wrongful conviction are dire: An innocent person studies suggest that the retrieved memories may not be
goes to jail while a potentially dangerous person stays free. very accurate. Research indicates that repeatedly imag-
How can the science of memory improve this process? ining an action such as breaking a toothpick makes it
Here are the six main suggestions for reforming procedures: very difficult for people to remember whether or not
they performed that imagined action (Goff & Roedi-
1. Employ double-blind procedures. Elsewhere in this book, Watch
ger, 1998). In fact, imagining events can often lead
we discussed how double-blind procedures help reduce Thinking Like a
experimenter bias. Similarly, a double-blind lineup can to imagination inflation, the increased confidence in a
Psychologist: Police
prevent an investigator from biasing an eyewitness, false memory of an event following repeated imagination of Lineup
either intentionally or accidentally. the event. The more readily and clearly we can imag-
2. Use appropriate instructions. For example, the investigator ine events, the more certain we are that the memories
should include the statement, “The suspect might not be are accurate.

Constructing and Reconstructing Memories :: Module 7.3 :: 307

 To study this effect, researchers created a list of that would allow them to study false memories in
events that may or may not have happened to the indi- more detail. The first of these techniques to be used is
viduals in their study (e.g., got in trouble for calling the Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm
911, found a $10 bill in a parking lot). The volunteers (see Figure 7.23). In the DRM procedure, participants
were first asked to rate their confidence that the event study a list of highly related words called semantic associates
happened. In sessions held over a period of days, par- (which means they are associated by meaning). The
ticipants were asked to imagine these events, until finally word that would be the most obvious member of the list
they were asked to rate their confidence again. For each just happens to be missing. This missing word is called
item they were asked to imagine, repeated imagination the critical lure. What happens when the participants are
inflated their confidence in the memory of the event given a memory test? A significant proportion of par-
(Garry et al., 1996; Garry & Polaschek, 2000). Impor- ticipants remember the critical lure, even though it never
tantly, imagination inflation is very similar to guided appeared on the list (Deese, 1959; Roediger & McDer-
imagery, a technique used by some clinicians (and some mott, 1995). When individuals recall the critical lure, it
police investigators) to help people recover details of is called an intrusion, because a false memory is sneaking
events that they are unable to remember. It involves a into an existing memory.
guide giving instructions to participants to imagine cer- The fact that people make intrusion errors is not
tain events. Like the misinformation effect, guided imag- particularly surprising. However, the strength of the
ery can be used to alter memories for actual events, but effect is astonishing. In routine studies, the DRM lures
it can also create entirely false memories. For example, as many as 70% of the participants. The most obvious
in one experiment, volunteers were asked to imagine a way to reduce this effect would be to simply explain the
procedure in which a nurse removed a sample of skin DRM procedure and warn participants that intrusions
from a finger. Despite the fact that this is not a medical may occur. Although this approach has proved effective
procedure and that it almost certainly never occurred, in reducing intrusions, false memories still occur (Gallo
individuals in the experimental group reported more et al., 1997). Obviously, intrusions are very difficult to
often that this event had actually happened to them than prevent, but not because memory is prone to mistakes.
their peers in the control condition reported (Mazzoni In fact, memory is generally accurate and extremely
& Memon, 2003). In other words, attempting to imag- efficient, given the millions of bits of information we
ine an event can implant new—and false—events into a encounter every day. Instead, the DRM effect reflects
person’s memory. the fact that normal memory processes are constructive.
A second method of creating false memories in
CREATING FALSE MEMORIES IN THE LABORA- the laboratory comes from doctored photographs. For
Simulate TORY Given that several research studies have shown instance, researchers at the University of Victoria and
Creating False that false memories are fairly easy to create, and given their colleagues exposed undergraduate research partici-
Memories that such memories can have dramatic and tragic conse- pants to altered photographs showing the participant and
quences when they appear in clinical or legal settings, it his or her parent taking a ride on a hot-air balloon, an
became important for researchers to develop techniques event that did not actually occur (Wade et al., 2002). For
this type of experiment to work, the volunteers in the
butter study had to recruit the help of their family. Their parents
jam provided pictures of the participant from early childhood,
crust
food
along with an explanation of the event, the location, and
milk the people and objects in the photo. The researchers took
slice Critical lure one of the pictures and digitally cut and pasted it into
eat
flour bread a balloon ride. On three occasions the participants went
wine through the set of pictures, the true originals plus the
sandwich
jelly doctored photo, in a structured interview process (the
loaf kind designed to help police get more details from eye-
rye
dough witnesses). By the end of the third session, half the par-
toast ticipants had some memory for the balloon ride event,
even though it never occurred (Wade et al., 2002).
{fig. 7.23} A Sample Word List and Its Critical Lure for Photographic images such as the ones used in the
the DRM Procedure The words on the left side are all closely hot-air balloon study leave it to the participant to fill in
related to the word “bread”—but “bread” does not actually
the gaps as to what “happened” on their balloon ride.
appear on the list. People who study this list of words are very
likely to misremember that “bread” was present. Other researchers have gone so far as to create false

308 :: Module 7.3 : : Constructing and Reconstructing Memories

Courtesy of Wade, K., Garry, M., Read, J., & Lindsay, S
In one study of false memory, true photos were obtained from volunteers’ families (left), and were edited to look like a balloon ride
(right). About half of the volunteers in this study came to recall some details of an event that never happened to them.

videotaped evidence of an event (Nash et al., 2009). had ever been raped or that she had ever been pregnant
For this method, a volunteer was videotaped watching (Loftus, 1997).
a graduate student perform an action. Then, researchers Beth’s story is an example of a false recovered
videotaped a researcher performing an additional action. memory, a memory of a traumatic event that is suddenly
Then the videos were spliced together to show the vol- recovered after blocking the memory of that event for a long
unteer watching an event that she, in reality, did not period of time, often many years. This idea that we sup-
actually see. Now imagine you were shown a video of press traumatic memories is popularly known as repres-
yourself watching an action you had not seen before— sion from Freudian psychoanalysis; however, a repressed
would you believe it? In fact, a significant portion of memory can still affect other psychological processes,
the individuals did form memories of the events they leading people to suffer in other ways such as experi-
had never witnessed. This type of false memory retrieval encing depression. This school of thought suggests that
mirrors that created in the guided imagery exercises if a repressed memory can be recovered, then a patient
used in some clinical settings, a trend that sparked a can find ways to cope with the trauma. Some thera-
very contentious debate in both the scientific and legal pists espouse this view and use techniques such as hyp-
communities. nosis and guided imagery to try to unearth repressed Simulate
memories. Memory Experiment
THE DANGER OF FALSE REMEMBERING In the Can we suppress our memories of traumatic life
early 1990s, Beth Rutherford sought the help of her events? As it turns out, it is possible although not very
church counsellor to deal with personal issues. During common. In one survey study, researchers examined
their sessions, the counsellor managed to convince her the testimony of people who had been imprisoned in
that her father, a minister, had raped her. The memory Camp Erika, a Nazi concentration camp in The Neth-
was further elaborated so that she remembered becoming erlands, in the early 1940s (Wagenaar & Groeneweg,
pregnant and that her father had forced her to undergo 1990). Most of the prisoners were able to provide
an abortion using a coat hanger. You can imagine what detailed information about their time in the concentra-
kind of effects this had on the family. Her father had tion camp, but a minority of prisoners did not remem-
little choice but to resign from his position, and his repu- ber many emotional events during their imprisonment
tation was left in shambles. Although it can be difficult to including the names and appearances of people who
prove some false memories, this incident is particularly tortured them and the fact that they had witnessed
disturbing because it could have been supported by medi- murders! But, being able to suppress a horrific memory
cal evidence. When a medical investigation was finally is very different from then recovering that memory
conducted, absolutely no evidence was found that Beth years later.

Constructing and Reconstructing Memories :: Module 7.3 :: 309

 Recovered memories, like many other types of active. When revealing falsely remembered information,
long-term memory, are difficult to study because one these same individuals have much less activity in the sen-
can rarely determine if they are true or false. This uncer- sory regions—the brain is not drawing on mental imag-
tainty has led to the recovered memory controversy, ery because it was not there in the first place (Dennis
a heated debate among psychologists about the validity of recov- et al., 2012; Stark et al., 2010). Interestingly, these brain
ered memories (Davis & Loftus, 2009). On one side of results do not always map onto the participants’ con-
the controversy are some clinical mental health work- scious memories of what they had seen. So, this method
ers (although certainly not the majority) who regularly might be able to distinguish between true and false
attempt to recover memories they suspect have been memories better than the participant himself (Johnson
repressed. On the opposing side are the many psycholo- et al., 2012). However, although these neuroimaging
gists who point out that the techniques that might help results are promising, these studies did not use stimuli that
“recover” a memory bear a striking resemblance to those were as emotional as the recovered memories patients
that are used to create false memories in laboratory report. Therefore, as with most areas of psychology, much
research; they often involve instructions to remember, more research will be needed in this controversial area.
attempts to form images, and social reinforcement for Although this module provides some frightening
reporting memories (Spanos et al., 1994). How can this examples of how malleable our memories are, there is
disagreement be resolved? actually something inspirational about these results. We
One method is to use brain imaging to differenti- construct our own memories and, as a result, our own
ate true and false memories. Psychologists have found reality. Therefore, we have the power to focus our mem-
that when people recount information that is true, the ories on the positive experiences of our lives, or on the
visual and other sensory areas of the brain become more negative ones. It’s up to you—remember that.

Quick Quiz 7.3b Memory Reconstruction

1 If you are presented with a list of 15 words, all of 4 Jonathan witnessed a robbery. The police then asked him
KNOW…

APPLY…
which have something in common, you are most likely to select the perpetrator from a [Link] can be most
participating in a study focusing on __________. confident in his selection if
A misinformation effects C imagination inflation A the authorities smiled after Jonathan’s response so
B the DRM procedure D repression that he would feel comfortable during the lineup
procedure
B the authorities had the lineup presented all at
2 Which of the following effects demonstrates that one
the same time so Jonathan could compare the
can change the details of a memory just by how a
individuals.
question is phrased?
A Misinformation effects C Imagination inflation C the lineup included individuals of different races
and ethnicities.
B The DRM procedure D Repression
D Jonathan was given the option to not choose any
of the people from the lineup if no one fit his
3 What might happen if a study participant viewed a
UNDERSTAND…

memory.
doctored photograph of an event that did not actually
occur?
5 Psychologists who study false memories have engaged in
ANALYZE…

A The person could develop a memory for the event

and he would not recognize that it was a false a debate over the validity of recovered memories. Why
memory. are they skeptical about claims of recovered memories?
A They have never experienced recovered memories
B The person would be unable to form memories of
themselves.
the event.
B Many of the techniques used to recover memories
C The person could develop a memory for the event,
in therapy bear a striking similarity to the tech-
but he would clearly recognize that it was a false
niques used to create false memories in research.
memory.
C Brain scans can easily distinguish between true and
D We cannot make any predictions about what might
false memories.
or might not happen.
D Scientists have proved that it is impossible to
remember something that you have once forgotten.

Answers can be found on page ANS-2.

310 :: Module 7.3 : : Constructing and Reconstructing Memories

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
7.3
KNOW…

● The key terminology used in discussing how memories

are organized and constructed:

constructive memory (p. 303) recovered memory (p. 309)

DRM procedure (p. 308) recovered memory controversy
false memory (p. 305) (p. 310) RiceWithSugar/[Link]
imagination inflation (p. 307) schema (p. 302)
misinformation effect (p. 306)

ANALYZE…

UNDERSTAND… ● The arguments in the “recovered memory” debate.

You should first understand the premise behind the
● How schemas serve as frameworks for encoding and
idea of recovered memories: Some people believe that
constructing memories. Schemas guide our attention,
if a memory is too painful, it might be blocked from
telling us what to expect in certain circumstances. They
conscious recollection, only to be recovered later through
organize long-term memories and provide us with cues
therapeutic techniques. Others argue that it is difficult to
when it comes time to retrieve those memories.
prove that a “recovered” memory is actually recovered.
● How psychologists can produce false memories in the Given how easy it is to create false memories, they argue,
laboratory. Psychologists have found that a number of any memory believed to be recovered should be viewed
factors contribute to the construction of false memories, with skepticism.
including misinformation, imagination inflation, and the
semantic similarities used in the DRM procedure.

APPLY…

● What you have learned to judge the reliability

of eyewitness testimony. Eyewitness testimony is
absolutely crucial to the operation of most legal systems,
but how reliable is it? Since 1989, 225 U.S.-based cases
of exonerations (convictions that have been overturned
due to new evidence after the trial) have been made
possible thanks to the help of The Innocence Project. In
these cases, the original convictions were based on the
following information (some cases included multiple
sources):
Eyewitness misidentification (173 cases)
Improper or unvalidated forensics (116 cases)
False confessions (51 cases)
Questionable information from informants (36 cases)
What percentage of the exonerations involve eyewitness
mistakes? What do these data suggest about research on
eyewitness testimony? (See our answers on page ANS-3.)

Constructing and Reconstructing Memories :: Module 7.3 :: 311

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding How We Remember
and Forget

1 What do we know about the basic processes

of memory? 2 How can science help explain
how memory works?
Review pages 288–289 for the processes involved in memory acquisition and Research shows that the hippocampus is crucial to consoli-
recall. Then review Figure 7.1 on page 271 for the Atkinson-Shiffrin model of dating long-term memories. Support for this idea also comes
memory storage. Both are important concepts in the chapter, but the details of from outside the laboratory: Binge-drinking has noticeable
how they work together can be confusing. Encoding is the process of transform- effects on the hippocampus, which can result in memory loss
ing sensory information into memory, whereas retrieval is the process of access- or blackouts. On page 283, we discussed the example of H.M.,
ing and using memory. In addition, there is storage, or how memory is retained a man who was unable to form new memories after his hip-
after it is encoded. The Atkinson-Shiffrin model organizes these processes as pocampus was surgically removed.
they relate to different types of memory storage—sensory memory, short-term When the structures of the brain are in good working order, the
memory (STM), and long-term memory (LTM). Recall that the process of con- right strategies help us create lasting memories. Figure 7.14 on
verting short-term memories to lasting memories in the brain is called consolida- page 289 shows us that simple repetition is not as effective as
tion; without it, memories cannot become permanent. For example, if an image is more involved types of rehearsal in creating such memories, and
encoded to sensory memory, it is stored for a very short time, and then is either research on levels of processing reveals that it is not so much how
forgotten or converted to STM. After it is encoded to STM, the image is stored by long we try to memorize something, but rather how we do so. If
way of rehearsal, and then either forgotten or encoded to LTM. Once the image is thinking about information in a certain way helps us remember
in long-term memory, the brain will consolidate it and then store the memory for something, can feelings about the information do the same? On
years—maybe even permanently. page 294, we mentioned studies that suggest a link
between emotions and the quality of memories.
Of course, our memories are not perfect—a
point supported by research on the misinforma-
tion effect and the DRM paradigm, two proce-
dures used in false memory research.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video
excerpt on remembering. You can access the

3
video at MyPsychLab or by clicking the play but-
Andreka/Shutterstock
Can we critically evaluate claims about memory?
ton in the centre of your eText. If your instructor assigns this
video as a homework activity, you will find additional content to If emotions enhance processing of information, can we completely trust our
help you in MyPsychLab. You can also view the video by using most vivid and emotional memories? Myths in Mind on page 296 explored
your smart phone and the QR code below, or you can go to the the idea of flashbulb memories. Researchers have found that despite the level
YouTube link provided. of detail involved in memories tied to emotional events, they are ultimately
no more accurate than any other type of memories. Similarly, the controversy
After you have read the chapter and watched the video, imag-
around recovered memories continues, both because of the difficulty of proving
ine you are reading your textbook and studying for an upcom-
or disproving them and because methods of recovering “lost” memories bear
ing exam in psychology. Identify and describe each step in the
a striking similarity to laboratory experiments that produce false memories.
process required for remembering information from your text-
book in order to do well on the exam. Discuss two strategies for On a more positive note, Psych @ Court on page 307 discussed how we
improving memory and provide examples of how each could help can use what we know about the science of memory to improve accuracy in
you on the exam. police lineups. A practical application of this chapter’s concepts included using
what you know about the forgetting curve (Figure 7.18, p. 297) to strategize
ways to consolidate memories for easy retrieval when you need them, such as
at test time. Using dual-coding in mnemonic strategies, like the method of loci,
can aid learning, as can taking your studying beyond basic repetition of infor-
mation. Finally, on page 299 we suggested over-learning and creating desirable
difficulties to develop a deeper understanding and memory for the material.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]//wor
[Link]/workthemodel
work
kthemo
kth
hemodde
del
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

312 :: Chapter 7 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 8
Thought and Language
8.1 The Organization of Knowledge
● Concepts and Categories p. 315
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Categories and the Brain p. 317
● Culture and Categories p. 320
● Module Summary p. 323

8.2 Problem Solving, Judgment,

and Decision Making
● Defining and Solving
Problems p. 325
● Judgment and Decision
Making p. 327
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Maximizing and Satisficing
in Complex Decisions p. 332
● Module Summary p. 335

8.3 Language and Communication

● What Is Language? p. 337
● The Development of
Language p. 341
● Genes, Evolution, and
Language p. 344
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Genes and Language p. 345
● Module Summary p. 349

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 350
ICP/incamerastock/Alamy
 Dmitry Vereshchagin/Fotolia

Module

8.1 The Organization of Knowledge

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology Theories of how people organize Your knowledge to identify The claim that the language
After reading associated with their knowledge about the world prototypical examples we speak determines
this module concepts and categories how we think
How experience and culture can shape
you should the way we organize our knowledge

When Edward regained consciousness in the hospital, his family imme- Focus Questions
diately noticed that something was wrong. The most obvious problem
was that he had difficulty recognizing faces, a relatively common disor- 1 How do people form easily recognizable
der known as prosopagnosia. As the doctors performed more testing, categories from complex information?
it became apparent that Edward had other cognitive problems as well. 2 How does culture influence the ways in
Edward had difficulty recognizing objects—but not all objects. Instead, he which we categorize information?
couldn’t distinguish between different types of instruments and different
types of animals even though he could use language to describe their
appearance. His ability to recognize most other types of objects seemed
normal.

Neurological patients like Edward may seem unrelated to your own life.
Each of us has amassed a tremendous amount of knowledge in the
However, for specific categories of visual information to be lost, they course of our lifetime. Indeed, it is impossible to put a number on
must have been stored in similar areas of the brain before brain dam- just how many facts each of us knows. Imagine trying to record
age occurred. Therefore, these cases give us some insight into how the everything you ever learned about the world—how many books
brain stores and organizes the information that we have encoded into could you fill? Instead of asking how much we know, psychologists
memory. are interested in how we keep track of it all. In this module, we

314 :: Module 8.1 : : The Organization of Knowledge

will explore what those processes are like and how they
work. We will start by learning about the key terminol-
Not a triangle–does
ogy before presenting theories about how knowledge is Not a triangle–too
not have straight
many sides
stored over the long term. connected lines

Concepts and Categories

A concept is the mental representation of an object, event, Triangle!
Not a triangle–
A three-sided
or idea. Although it seems as though different concepts too many sides
polygon
should be distinct from each other, there are actually
very few independent concepts. You do not have just
one concept for chair, one for table, and one for sofa.
Instead, each of these concepts can be divided into Triangle!
Not a triangle–too
A three-sided
smaller groups with more precise labels, such as arm chair many sides
polygon
or coffee table. Similarly, all of these items can be lumped
together under the single label, furniture. Psychologists
use the term categories to refer to these clusters of interre-
{fig. 8.1} Using the Definition of a Triangle to Categorize Shapes
lated concepts. We form these groups using a process called
categorization.

CLASSICAL CATEGORIES: DEFINITIONS AND your definition of bird and then categorize the items in Watch
RULES Categorization is difficult to define in that it the table. Basics: The Mind Is
involves elements of perception (Chapter 4), memory Ideally, you said yes to the sparrow and penguin, and What the Brain Does

(Chapter 7), and “higher-order” processes like decision no to the apple. But did you notice any difference in
making (Module 8.2) and language (Module 8.3). The how you responded to the sparrow and penguin? Psy-
earliest approach to the study of categories is referred to chologists have researched classical categorization using
as classical categorization; this theory claims that objects a behavioural measure known as the sentence-verification
or events are categorized according to a certain set of rules or technique , in which volunteers wait for a sentence
by a specific set of features—something similar to a dic- to appear in front of them on a computer screen and
tionary definition (Lakoff & Johnson, 1999; Rouder & respond as fast as they can with a yes or no answer to
Ratcliffe, 2006). Definitions do a fine job of explaining statements such as A sparrow is a bird, or, A penguin is a
how people categorize items in certain situations. For bird. The choice the subject makes, as well as her reac-
example, a triangle can be defined as “a figure (usually, tion time to respond, is measured by the researcher.
a plane rectilinear figure) having three angles and three Sentence-verification shows us that some members of a
sides” (Oxford English Dictionary, 2011). Using that defi- category are recognized faster than others (Olson et al.,
nition, you should find it easy to categorize the triangles 2004; Rosch & Mervis, 1975). In other words, subjects
in Figure 8.1. almost always answer “yes” faster to sparrow than to pen-
Classical categorization does not tell the full story guin. This seems to go against a classical, rule-based cat-
of how categorization works, however. We use a variety egorization system because both sparrows and penguins
of cognitive processes in determining which objects fit are equally good fits for the definition, but sparrows are
which category. One of the major problems we confront somehow perceived as being more bird-like than pen-
in this process is graded membership—the observation guins. Thus, a modern approach to categorization must
that some concepts appear to make better category members than explain how “best examples” influence how we catego-
others. For example, see if the definition in Table 8.1 fits rize items.

Table 8.1 :: Categorizing Objects According to the Definition of Bird

Definition: Any of the class Aves of warm-blooded, egg-laying, feathered vertebrates with forelimbs modified to form wings.
(American Heritage Dictionary, 2007)
Now categorize a set of items by answering yes or no regarding the truth of the following sentences.
1. A sparrow is a bird.
2. An apple is a bird.
3. A penguin is a bird.

The Organization of Knowledge :: Module 8.1 :: 315

 Now that you have read about categories
based on a set of rules or characteristics (clas-
sical categories) and as a general comparison
A prototypical bird might look something
like this one on the right. based on resemblances (prototypes), you might
wonder which approach is correct. Research
It combines features of actual birds,
such as those below. says that we can follow either approach—the
choice really depends on how complicated a
category or a specific example might be. If there
are a few major distinctions between items, we
use resemblance; if there are complications, we
switch to rules (Feldman, 2003; Rouder & Rat-
cliff , 2004, 2006). For example, in the case of
seeing a bat dart by, your first impression might
be “bird” because it resembles a bird. But if you
investigated further, you will see that a bat fits
the classical description of a mammal, not a
bird. In other words, it has hair, gives live birth
Left: chatursunil/[Link]; centre: Al Mueller/[Link]; rather than lays eggs, and so on.
right: Leo/[Link]
{fig. 8.2} A Prototypical Bird Click on this figure in your eText to see more details. NETWORKS AND HIERARCHIES Classi-
cal categorization and prototypes only explain
PROTOTYPES: CATEGORIZATION BY COMPARI- part of how we organize information. Each concept that
SON When you hear the word bird, what mental image we learn has similarities to other concepts. A sparrow
comes to mind? Does it resemble an ostrich? Or is your has physical similarities to a bat (e.g., size and shape); a
image closer to a robin, sparrow, or blue jay? The likely sparrow will have even more in common with a robin
image that comes to mind when you imagine a bird is because they are both birds (e.g., size, shape, laying eggs,
what psychologists call a prototype (see Figure 8.2). Pro- etc.). These connections among ideas can be represented
totypes are mental representations of an average category member in a network diagram known as a semantic network, an
(Rosch, 1973). If you took an average of the three most interconnected set of nodes (or concepts) and the links that join
familiar birds, you would get a prototypical bird. them to form a category (see Figure 8.3). Nodes are circles
Prototypes allow for classification by resemblance. that represent concepts, and links connect them together
When you encounter a little creature you have never seen
before, its basic shape—maybe
just its silhouette—can be Eats

compared to your prototype

of a bird. A match will then be Animal Breathes
made and you can classify the
creature as a bird. Notice how Moves
different this process is from Wings Fins
classical categorization: No
rules or definitions are involved, Bird Can fly Fish Scales
just a set of similarities in over-
all shape and function. Red Feathers Can
Tall swim
The main advantage of belly
prototypes is that they help
Can’t
explain why some category Robin Sings Emu
fly
Trout
members make better exam-
ples than others. Ostriches are Ugly
birds just as much as blue jays
are, but they do not resemble
the rest of the family very well. {fig. 8.3} A Semantic Network Diagram for the Category “Animal” The nodes include
the basic-level categories, Birds and Fish. Another node represents the broader category
In other words, blue jays are of Animals, while the lowest three nodes represent the more specific categories of Robins,
closer to the prototypical bird. Emus, and Trout.

316 :: Module 8.1 : : The Organization of Knowledge

to represent the structure of a category as well as the rela- indicates confusion, claiming that if the speaker knew it
tionships among different categories (Collins & Loftus, was a bird, he should have said so; otherwise, it sounds like
1975). In these networks, similar items have more, and he is trying to figure out which kind of animal he is look-
stronger, connections than unrelated items. These con- ing at. Indeed, superordinate categories like “animal” are gen-
nections explain why it is easier to identify one mem- erally used when someone is uncertain about an object
ber of a category (e.g., oranges, from the category “fruit”) or when he or she wishes to group together a number
after seeing another word from that category (e.g., apple) of different examples from the basic-level category (e.g.,
than after seeing an unrelated word (e.g., elephant). Acti- birds, cats, dogs). In contrast, when the speaker identifies
vating the individual concept for “apple” makes con- a subordinate-level category like robin, it suggests that there is
nected nodes in the network more likely to become something special about this particular type of bird. It may
activated, a phenomenon known as priming. also indicate that the speaker has expert-level knowledge
Something you may notice about Figure 8.3 is that of the basic category and that using the more specific level
it is arranged in a hierarchy—that is, it consists of a struc- is necessary to get her point across in the intended way.
ture moving from general to very specific. This organiza- In order to demonstrate the usefulness of semantic
tion is important because different levels of the category networks in our attempt to explain how we organize
are useful in different situations. The most frequently knowledge, complete this easy test generated by the ani-
used level, in both thought and language, is the basic- mal network in Figure 8.3. If you were asked to react
level category, which is located in the middle row of the to dozens of sentences, and the following two sentences
diagram (where birds and fish are) (Johnson & Mervis, were included among them, which do you think you
1997; Rosch et al., 1976). A number of qualities make would mark as “true” the fastest?
the basic-level category unique:
• A robin is a bird.
• Basic-level categories are the terms used most often • A robin is an animal.
in conversation.
As you can see in the network diagram, robin and bird are
• They are the easiest to pronounce.
closer together; in fact, to connect robin to animal, you
• They are the level at which prototypes exist.
must first go through bird. Sure enough, people regard
• They are the level at which most thinking occurs.
the sentence “A robin is a bird” as a true statement faster
To get a sense for how different category levels than “A robin is an animal.”
influence our thinking, we can compare sentences refer- Now consider another set of examples. Which trait
ring to an object at different levels. Consider what would do you think you would verify faster?
happen if someone approached you and made any one
• A robin has wings.
of the following statements:
• A robin eats.
• “There’s an animal in your yard.”
Using the connecting lines as we did before, we can pre-
• “There’s a bird in your yard.”
dict that it would be the first statement about wings. As
• “There’s a robin in your yard.”
research shows, our guess would be correct. The next Simulate
The second sentence—“There’s a bird in your yard”— question scientists must ask is why? Research involving The Mind’s
is probably the one you are most likely to hear, and it brain-damaged patients suggests that many of our cat- Organization
makes reference to a basic level of a category (birds). Many egorization abilities are due to the manner in which this of Conceptual
people would respond that the choice of animal as a label information is organized in the brain. Knowledge

the same category in the same general area. This organization

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC would help explain phenomena like semantic priming. But, is
LITERACY MODEL this really how our brain organizes the objects we see?

Categories and the Brain

What do we know
about categories
When we see an object, we attempt to retrieve its name from
and the brain?
memory; this is part of the process of recognizing the things
around us. Identifying the object also activates the seman- Initial attempts to understand
tic network that is associated with it. How is this possible? how information is organized in
Some researchers suggest that our brain stores items from the brain relied on patients with

The Organization of Knowledge :: Module 8.1 :: 317

 100
Naming Performance of Patient E.W. How can science
explain how
80 categories are
organized in the
60 brain?
40 As scientists began to look more closely at the deficits of
these patients, it became clear that the living vs. non-living
20 distinction was a bit too simplistic. First, some patients had
problems with very specific categories within the larger category
0 of living items. So, a patient could identify animals but not fruits
Animal Body Part Clothing Fruit Furniture and vegetables (Samson & Pillon, 2003). The second problem
Category of Image was that there are so many possible categories of living and
non-living things that it became unlikely that each could be
{fig. 8.4} Naming Errors for a CSVA Patient Patients with CSVA have prob- fit into its own unique part of the brain. In reaction to these
lems identifying members of specific categories. When asked to identify the object
depicted by different line drawings, patient E.W. showed a marked impairment for and other problems, researchers developed new theories that
the recognition of animals. Her ability to name items from other categories demon- better fit the data. In one popular view, known as the domain-
strated that her overall perceptual abilities were preserved. Data from Caramazza specific hypothesis, researchers proposed that evolutionary
and Shelton (1998). pressures led to the development of specialized circuits in the
brain for a small group of categories that were important for
our survival. These categories included animals, fruits and veg-
damage to the temporal lobes who displayed a very spe-
etables, members of our own species, and possibly tools (Car-
cific set of symptoms. These patients had trouble identifying
amazza & Mahon, 2003). This theory can explain most, but not
objects such as pictures of animals or vegetables despite the
all, of the problems observed in the patients tested thus far.
fact that they were able to describe the different shapes that
made up those objects (i.e., they could still see). The fact that One weakness of this view is that it doesn’t take into account
these deficits were for particular categories of objects was people’s different experiences with each category. If you are
intriguing, as it suggested that damaging certain parts of the a chef at a vegetarian restaurant, you would obviously spend
brain could affect the ability to recognize some categories more time learning about different fruits and vegetables than
while leaving others unaffected (Warrington & McCarthy, the average person. As a result, you would form more con-
1983; Warrington & Shallice, 1979). Because these problems nections in your semantic network for vegetables. You would
were isolated to certain categories, these patients were also form more brain connections for this category because
diagnosed as having a disorder known as category specific you would have memories of learning to cook different
visual agnosia (or CSVA). An example of such a patient was dishes. The question, then, is whether these large networks
described at the opening of this module. in the brain would provide some back-up systems so that
your knowledge of vegetables would be preserved even after
Early attempts to find a pattern in these patients’ deficits
brain damage. Research by Canadian scientists suggests that
focused on the distinction between living and non-living cat-
it would. Their patient, known by the initials E.L.M., played
egories (see Figure 8.4). Several patients with CSVA had dif-
the bugle in a military band when he was younger. Over time,
ficulties identifying fruits, vegetables, and/or animals; however,
he became an expert with brass instruments. When tested
these patients were still able to accurately identify members of
after his stroke, the researchers found that he was impaired
categories such as tools and furniture (Arguin et al., 1996; Bunn
at naming stringed instruments but was still able to name
et al., 1998). A smaller group of patients showed the opposite
different types of brass instruments (Dixon et al., 2002). This
pattern of results, with deficits for non-living categories (Cappa
result doesn’t mean that the domain-specific hypothesis is
et al., 1998; Saffran & Schwartz, 1994). Based on these patterns
incorrect; but, it does show that our experiences influence
of data, scientists suggested that different categories are orga-
how we categorize objects and information.
nized in the brain based on their sensory (visual, touch, etc.)
and functional features (i.e., what they are used for) (War-
rington & Shallice, 1984). Members of the same living catego- Can we critically
ries (e.g., birds) have a number of sensory features in common, evaluate this
such as shape, the presence of feathers, and skinny legs. Mem-
bers of the same non-living categories (e.g., tools) have a num-
information?
ber of functional features in common (e.g., used to fix things, Although these different case stud-
associated with repetitive movements like sawing or hammer- ies are compelling, we must be
ing). Therefore, the fact that living and non-living categories cautious about assuming these
relied on different types of information (in general) implied results apply to how the healthy brain organizes informa-
that they would be stored in different areas of the brain, and tion (Bukach et al., 2004). An important concern is that the
would explain the symptoms of patients with CSVA. damage associated with CSVA differs slightly from patient

318 :: Module 8.1 : : The Organization of Knowledge

to patient, making it difficult to say with any certainty that allow surgeons to avoid those regions during surgery. It
damage to a particular area will definitely result in a deficit will also provide health-care workers with useful informa-
related to a specific category. Also, the causes of this dam- tion when they are making initial assessments of patients. If
age vary from patient to patient (e.g., stroke, car accident, a patient appears to have problems naming objects, a nurse
etc.), as do their personal experiences. Additionally, testing or doctor informed about categorization research would
procedures and stimuli differ across laboratories; therefore, begin to look for patterns in the patient’s errors to see if
there is no guarantee that problems related to a particular some categories are more affected than others. Addition-
category are being assessed in the same way for different ally, the fact that a patient’s life experiences can alter how
patients. Finally, these studies cannot tell us if the deficits categories are distributed in the brain suggests that doc-
are due to damage to a specific brain region or if that dam- tors need to learn more about a patient’s history before
age instead disrupted a pathway that just happened to cross making a diagnosis. As you will read below, experience
through that brain region. doesn’t just alter how existing concepts are categorized—
it can also influence how new items are incorporated into
In order to address some of these concerns, it was neces-
existing semantic networks.
sary for researchers to conduct studies with healthy-brained
individuals. Researchers have used brain imaging to show
that different parts of the temporal lobes are active when
people view items from different categories including ani-
mals, tools, and people (Martin et al., 1996). Thus, although
different people will vary in terms of the exact location that
these categories are stored, it does appear that some cat-
egories are stored separately from others.

Why is this relevant?

Knowledge of how our brain
organizes and stores infor-
mation can have an obvious
impact upon medical treatments. Understanding where
important categories of objects are stored in memory will [Link]/Fotolia

CATEGORIZATION AND EXPERIENCE Our abil- In a series of studies with medical students and prac-
ity to form categories is based on our experiences. As tising physicians, Geoffrey Norman and colleagues at
we are exposed to new stimuli, we instinctively try to McMaster University found that recent exposure to
organize them into groups based on similar physical an example from one category can bias how people
and semantic features. But, this process doesn’t end in diagnose new cases (Leblanc et al., 2001; Norman
childhood. Instead, researchers have noted that adults et al., 1989a, 1989b). In one experiment, medical stu-
integrate new stimuli into categories based on what dents were taught to diagnose different skin conditions
they have experienced before (Jacoby & Brooks, 1984). using written rules as well as photographs of these
When encountering a new item, people will select its diseases. Some of the photographs were typical exam-
category by retrieving the item(s) that are most similar ples of that disorder whereas other photographs were
to it from memory (Brooks, 1978). In fact, recent stud- unusual cases that resembled other disorders. When
ies have found that we sometimes retrieve individual tested later, the participants were more likely to rely
features (e.g., a beaver’s tail) rather than an entire object on the previously viewed photographs than they were
from memory (Brooks & Hannah, 2006; Hannah, 2005). on the rules (a fact that would surprise most medical
Normally, these procedures lead to fast and accurate cat- schools); in fact, the unusual photographs viewed dur-
egorization. If you see an animal with wings and a beak, ing training even led to wrong diagnoses for test items
you can easily retrieve from memory a bird that you pre- that were textbook examples of that disorder (Allen
viously saw; doing so will lead you to infer that this new et al., 1992)! This shows the power that our memory
object is a bird, even if it is a type of bird that you might can have on how we take in and organize new infor-
not have encountered before. mation. As an aside, expert physicians were accurate
However, there are also times when our reliance over 90% of the time in most studies, so you can still
on previously experienced items can lead us astray. trust your doctor.

The Organization of Knowledge :: Module 8.1 :: 319

 individuals from traditional villages in Central Amer-
Quick Quiz 8.1a ica to identify a variety of plants and animals that are
Concepts and Categories extremely relevant to their diet, medicine, safety, and
other aspects of their lives. Not surprisingly, these indi-
1 A _______ is a mental representation of an average

KNOW . . .
member of a category. viduals referred to plants and animals at a more specific
A basic-level category C similarity principle level than North American university students would
B prototype D network (Bailenson et al., 2002; Berlin, 1974). Thus, categori-
zation is based—at least to some extent—on cultural
2 ________ refer to mental representations of objects, learning. Psychologists have also discovered that cul-
events, or ideas. tural factors influence not just how we categorize indi-
A Categories C Primings vidual objects, but also how objects in our world relate
B Concepts D Networks to one another.

3 Classical categorization approaches do not account for

UNDERSTAND . . .

________, a type of categorization that notes some

items make better category members than others.
A basic-level categorization BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
B prototyping PERSPECTIVES
C priming
Culture and Categorical Thinking
D graded membership
Animals, relatives, household appliances, colours, and other enti-
ties all fall into categories. However, people from different cul-
4 Janice, a medical school student, looked at her
APPLY . . .

Simulate tures might differ in how they categorize such objects. In North
Power of Words
grandmother’s hospital chart. Although her
grandmother appeared to have problems with her
America, cows are sometimes referred to as “livestock” or
intestines, Janice thought the pattern of the lab results “food animals,” whereas in India, where cows are regarded as
resembled those of a patient with lupus who Janet had sacred, neither category would apply.
seen in the clinic earlier that week. Janice is showing In addition, how objects are related to each other dif-
an example of fers considerably across cultures. Which of the two photos in
A how memory for a previous example can influence Figure 8.5a do you think someone from North America took?
categorization decisions. Researchers asked both American and Japanese university stu-
B how people rely on prototypes to categorize dents to take a picture of someone, from whatever angle or
objects and events. degree of focus they chose. American students were more
C how we rely on a set of rules to categorize objects. likely to take close-up pictures, whereas Japanese students typi-
D how we are able to quickly categorize examples cally included surrounding objects (Nisbett & Masuda, 2003).
from specific categories. When asked which two objects go together in Figure 8.5b,
American college students tend to group cows with chickens—
Answers can be found on page ANS-3. because both are animals. In contrast, Japanese students cou-
pled cows with grass, because grass is what cows eat (Gutchess
et al., 2010; Nisbett & Masuda, 2003). These examples demon-
strate cross-cultural differences in perceiving how objects are
related to their environments. People raised in North America
Culture and Categories tend to focus on a single characteristic, whereas Japanese peo-
The human brain is wired to perceive similarities and ple tend to view objects in relation to their environment.
differences and, as we learned from prototypes, the end Researchers have even found differences in brain function
result of this tendency is to categorize items based on when people of different cultural backgrounds view and cate-
these comparisons as well as on our previous experiences gorize objects (Park & Huang, 2010). Figure 8.6 reveals differ-
with members of different categories. However, our nat- ences in brain activity when Westerners and East Asians view
photos of objects, such as an animal, against a background of
ural tendency to do so interacts with our cultural expe-
grass and trees. Areas of the brain devoted to processing both
riences; how we categorize objects depends to a great
objects (lateral parts of the occipital lobes) and background
extent on what we have learned about those objects
(the parahippocampal gyrus, an area underneath the hippocam-
from others in our culture. pus) become activated when Westerners view these photos,
Various researchers have explored the relation- whereas only areas devoted to background processes become
ships between culture and categorization by studying activated in East Asians (Goh et al., 2007). These findings dem-
basic-level categories among people from different cul- onstrate that a complete understanding of how humans catego-
tural backgrounds. For example, researchers have asked rize objects requires application of the biopsychosocial model.

320 :: Module 8.1 : : The Organization of Knowledge

 Cultural differences in how people think and cate-
gorize items have also led to the idea of linguistic rela-
tivity (or the Whorfian hypothesis)—the theory that the
language we use determines how we understand the world. For
example, the English language has several colour names,
such as black, white, red, blue, green, yellow, purple, orange,
and pink. If speakers want to be more specific, they use
some combination of other terms, such as blue-green or
sky-blue. By comparison, some cultures have fewer dedi-
cated colour words; the Dani people of New Guinea, for
example, have one word for blue-green, but no words to
(a) distinguish what English speakers consider to be proto-
typically blue or prototypically green. Do these language
differences affect the way individuals perceive, catego-
rize, and remember colours?
The results of research in this area are mixed. When
dividing colour samples, similar to what you would find
when shopping for paint, English speakers set aside dif-
ferent stacks of cards for samples that seemed more blue
and those that seemed more green. In contrast, the Dani
included those same samples in one larger blue-green
category (Roberson et al., 2000). However, subsequent
research has not been able to clarify whether this effect
occurred because the language differences led the sub-
(b) jects to actually perceive colour differently (true linguis-
Top: Nisbett & Masuda (2003, PNAS)
tic relativity) or if they were just using language as a
{fig. 8.5} Your Culture and Your Point of View (a) Which
means to complete the sorting task. For example, when
of these two pictures do you think a North American would be
more likely to take? (b) Which two go together? individuals were asked to use a verbal distracter (pro-
ducing irrelevant speech), it prevented them from using
the colour terms for the sorting task. In that case, there
are no differences between cultures (Roberson & Dav-
Westerners East Asians
idoff , 2000). Therefore, although many of these studies
are compelling and receive attention in the media, more
research needs to be performed to rule out alternative
explanations and to prevent us from drawing incorrect
conclusions like the one discussed below.

Background areas Object areas

Park et al. Culture Wires the Brain: A Cognitive Neuroscience

Perspective. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 2010; 5 (4):
391. Reprinted by Permission of SAGE Publications.
{fig. 8.6} Brain Activity Varies by Culture Brain regions
that are involved in object recognition and processing are acti-
vated differently in people from Western and Eastern cultures.
Brain regions that are involved in processing individual objects
are more highly activated when Westerners view focal objects
against background scenery, whereas people from East Asian
countries appear to attend to background scenery more
closely than focal objects.

The Organization of Knowledge :: Module 8.1 :: 321

 MYTHS IN MIND
How Many Words for Snow?

From time to time, people repeat a bit of “wisdom” about

how language relates to thinking. One often-cited example is
about the Inuit in Canada’s Arctic regions, who are thought to
have many words for snow, each with a different meaning. For
example, aput means snow that is on the ground, and gana
means falling snow. This observation, which was made in the
early 19th century by anthropologist Franz Boas, was often
repeated and exaggerated, with claims that Inuit people had
Ton Koene/age fotostock/SuperStock
dozens of words for different types of snow. With so many
The Inuit do have multiple words for snow, but so do a lot of
words for snow, it was thought that perhaps the Inuit people other cultures.
perceive snow differently than someone who does not live
near it almost year-round. Scholars used the example to argue
that language determines how people categorize the world. blowing snow, sticky snow, drifting snow, and “oh-sweet-God-
Research tells us that we must be careful in over- it’s-snowing-in-May-snow,” just as well as an Inuit who lives
generalizing the influence of language on categorization. The with snow almost year-round (Martin, 1986). Therefore, we
reality is that the Inuit seem to categorize snow the same see that the linguistic relativity hypothesis is incorrect in this
way a person from the rest of Canada does. Someone from case: The difference in vocabulary for snow does not lead to
balmy Winnipeg can tell the difference between falling snow, differences in perception.

Quick Quiz 8.1b Culture and Categories

1 The idea that our language influences how we 2 Research on linguistic relativity suggests that
ANALYZE . . .
KNOW . . .

understand the world is referred to as ________. A language has a complete control over how people
A the context specificity hypothesis categorize the world.
B sentence verification B language can have some effects on categorization,
but the effects are limited.
C the Whorfian hypothesis
D priming C language has no effect on categorization.
D researchers have not addressed this question.

Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

322 :: Module 8.1 : : The Organization of Knowledge

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
8.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with concepts and

categories:
categories (p. 315) linguistic relativity (Whorfian
classical categorization (p. 315) hypothesis) (p. 321)
concept (p. 315) prototypes (p. 316)
graded membership (p. 315) semantic network (p. 316)
Dmitry Vereshchagin/Fotolia

UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . .

● Theories of how people organize their knowledge ● Your knowledge to identify prototypical examples. Try
about the world. First, certain objects and events are the following questions for practice (check your answers
more likely to be associated in clusters. The priming effect on page ANS-3):
demonstrates this phenomenon; for example, hearing the 1. What is the best example for the category of fish: a
word “fruit” makes it more likely that you will think of hammerhead shark, a trout, or an eel?
“apple” than, say, “table.” More specifically, we organize our
knowledge about the world through semantic networks, 2. What do you consider to be a prototypical sport?
which arrange categories from general to specific levels. Why?
Usually we think in terms of basic-level categories, but 3. Some categories are created spontaneously, yet
under some circumstances we can be either more or less still have prototypes. For example, what might be a
specific. Studies of people with brain damage suggest that prototypical object for the category “what to save if
the neural representations of members of evolutionarily your house is on fire”?
important categories are stored together in the brain.
These studies also show us that our previous experience
with a category can influence how we categorize new ANALYZE . . .
stimuli and how it is stored in the brain.
● The claim that the language we speak determines
● How experience and culture can shape the way we
how we think. Researchers have shown that language can
organize our knowledge. One of many possible examples
influence the way we think, but it cannot entirely shape
of this influence was discussed. Specifically, ideas of how
how we perceive the world. For example, people can
objects relate to one another differ between people from
categorize colours even if they do not have specific words
North America and people from Eastern Asia. People from
for them.
North America (and Westerners in general) tend to focus
on individual, focal objects in a scene, whereas people
from Japan tend to focus on how objects are interrelated.

The Organization of Knowledge :: Module 8.1 :: 323

 Polaris/Newscom

Module

8.2 Problem Solving, Judgment,

and Decision Making
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology The characteristics that Your knowledge to Whether human thought is
After reading of problem solving and problems have in common determine if you tend to be primarily logical or intuitive
this module decision making a maximizer or a satisficer
How obstacles to problem
you should solving are often self-imposed

Ki-Suck Han was about to die. He had just been shoved onto the sub- be most helpful. Regardless of whether you believe this account, it does
way’s tracks and was desperately scrambling to climb back onto the sta- illustrate an important point: Reasoning and decision making can be per-
tion’s platform as the subway train rushed toward him. If you were a few formed in a number of ways and can be influenced by a number of fac-
metres away from Mr. Han, what would you have done? What factors [Link] is why we don’t all respond the same way to the same situation.
would have influenced your actions?

In this case, the person on the platform was R. Umar Abbasi, a freelance Focus Questions
photographer working for The New York Post. Mr. Abbasi did not put down
his camera and run to help Mr. Han. Instead, he took a well-framed pho- 1 How do people make decisions and solve problems?
tograph that captured the terrifying scene. The photograph was published 2 How can having multiple options lead people
on the front page of the Post and was immediately condemned by people to be dissatisfied with their decisions?
who were upset that the photographer didn’t try to save Mr. Han’s life
(and that the Post used the photograph to make money). In a statement
released to other media outlets, the Post claimed that Mr. Abbasi felt that
he wasn’t strong enough to lift the man and instead tried to use his cam- In other modules of this text, you have read about how we learn
era’s flash to signal the driver. According to this explanation, Mr. Abbasi and remember new information (Modules 7.1 and 7.2) and how
analyzed the situation and selected a course of action that he felt would we organize our knowledge of different concepts (Module 8.1).

324 :: Module 8.2 : : Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making

This module will focus on how we use this information When we think logically, we rely on algorithms,
to help us solve problems and make decisions. Although problem-solving strategies based on a series of rules. As such,
it may seem like such “higher-order cognitive abilities” they are very logical and follow a set of steps, usually in
are distinct from memory and categorization, they are a preset order. Computers are very good at using algo-
actually a wonderful example of how the different top- rithms because they can follow a preprogrammed set of
ics within the field of psychology relate to each other. steps and perform thousands of operations every second.
When we try to solve a problem or decide between People, however, are not always so [Link] tend to rely
alternatives, we are actually drawing on our knowledge on intuition to find strategies and solutions that seem like
of different concepts and using that information to try to a good fit for the problem. These are called heuristics,
imagine different possible outcomes (Green et al., 2006). problem-solving strategies that stem from prior experiences and
How well we perform these tasks depends on a number provide an educated guess as to what is the most likely solution.
of factors including our problem-solving strategies and Heuristics are often quite efficient; these “rules of thumb”
the type of information available to us. are usually accurate and allow us to find solutions and to
make decisions quickly. In the example of trying to figure
out where you left your phone, you are more likely to
Defining and Solving Problems put your phone down at a friend’s house than on the bus,
You are certainly familiar with the general concept of a so that increases the likelihood that your phone is still sit-
problem, but in psychological terminology, problem ting on his coffee table. Calling your friend to ask about
solving means accomplishing a goal when the solution or the your phone is much simpler than retracing your steps
path to the solution is not clear (Leighton & Sternberg, 2003; from class to the gym to the grocery store, and so on.
Robertson, 2001). Indeed, many of the problems that we Of course, different problems call for different
face in life contain obstacles that interfere with our ability to approaches. In fact, in some cases, it might be useful
reach our goals. The challenge, then, is to find a technique to start off with one type of problem-solving and then
or strategy that will allow us to overcome these obstacles. switch to another. Think about how you might play the
As you will see, there are a number of options that people children’s word-game known as hangman, shown in
use for this purpose—although none of them are perfect. Figure 8.7. Here, the goal state is to spell a word. In the
initial state, you have none of the letters or other clues to
PROBLEM-SOLVING STRATEGIES AND TECH- guide you. So your obstacles are to overcome (i.e., fill in)
NIQUES Each of us will face an incredible number of blanks without guessing the wrong letters. How would
problems in our lives. Some of these problems will be you go about achieving this goal?
straightforward and easy to solve; however, others will On one hand, an algorithm might go like this:
be quite complex and will require us to come up with a Guess the letter A, then B, then C, and so on through
novel solution. How do we remember the strategies we the alphabet until you lose or until the word is spelled.
can use for routine problems? And, how do we develop However, this would not be a very successful approach.
new strategies for nonroutine problems? Although these An alternative algorithm would be to find out how fre- Watch
questions appear as if they could have an infinite number quently each letter occurs in the alphabet and then guess The Big Picture: I Am,
of answers, there seem to be two common techniques the letters in that order until the game ends with you Therefore I Think
that we use time and again.
One type of strategy is more objective, logical,
and slower, whereas the other is more subjective, intui-
tive, and quicker (Gilovich & Griffin, 2002; Holyoak &
Morrison, 2005). The difference between them can be
illustrated with an example. Suppose you are trying to
figure out where you have left your [Link]’ve tried
the trick of calling yourself using a landline phone, but
you couldn’t hear it ringing. So, it’s not in your house. A
logical approach might involve making of list of the places
you’ve been in the last 24 hours and then retracing your
steps until you (hopefully) find your phone. An intuitive {fig. 8.7} Problem Solving in Hangman In a game of hang-
approach might involve thinking about previous times man, your job is to guess the letters in the word represented by
you’ve lost your phone or wallet and using these experi- the four blanks to the left. If you get a letter right, your oppo-
nent will put it in the correct blank. If you guess an incorrect
ences to guide your search (e.g., “I’m always forgetting letter, your opponent will draw a body part on the stick figure.
my phone at Dan’s place, so I should look there first”). The goal is to guess the word before the entire body is drawn.

Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making :: Module 8.2 :: 325

 that occurs when an individual attempts to apply a routine solution
to what is actually a new type of problem. Sometimes a mental
set occurs when an individual applies the routine solution
when a much easier solution is possible. Figure 8.10 pres-
ents a problem that often elicits a mental set. The answer
appears at the bottom of the page, but make your guess
before you check it. Did you get it right? If not, then you
probably succumbed to a mental set.
Mental sets can occur in many different situations. For
instance, a person may experience functional fixedness,
{fig. 8.8} The Nine-Dot Problem Connect all nine dots which occurs when an individual identifies an object or technique
using only four straight lines and without lifting your pen or that could potentially solve a problem, but can think of only its
pencil (Maier, 1930). The solution to the problem can be seen
on page 327 (Figure 8.9). most obvious function. Functional fixedness can be illustrated
with a classic thought problem: Figure 8.11 shows two
winning or losing. So, you would start out by selecting strings hanging from a ceiling. Imagine you are asked to tie
E, then A, and so on. On the other hand, a heuristic the strings together. However, once you grab a string, you
might be useful. For example, if you discover the last let- cannot let go of it until both are tied [Link] problem
ter is G, you might guess that the next-to-last letter is N, is, unless you have extraordinarily long arms, you cannot
because you know that many words end with -ing. reach the second string while you are holding on to the
As you can see, some problems (such as the hang- first one (Maier, 1931). So how would you solve the prob-
man game) can be approached with either algorithms or lem? Figure 8.13 on p. 328 offers one possible answer and
heuristics. In other words, most people start out a game an explanation of what makes this problem challenging.
like hangman with an algorithm: Guess the most fre- Problem solving occurs in every aspect of life, but
quent letters until a recognizable pattern emerges, such as you can see, there are basic cognitive processes that
as -ing, or the letters -oug (which are often followed by appear no matter what the context. We identify the goal
h, as in tough or cough) appear. At that point, you might we want to achieve, try to determine the best strategy to
switch to heuristics and guess which words would be do so, and hope that we do not get caught by unexpected
most likely to fit in the spaces. obstacles—especially those we create in our own minds.

COGNITIVE OBSTACLES Using algorithms or heu-

ristics will often allow you to eventually solve a problem; Quick Quiz 8.2a
however, there are times when the problem-solving rules
Defining and Solving Problems
and strategies that you have established might actually
get in the way of problem solving. The nine-dot prob- 1 ________ are problem-solving strategies that
KNOW . . .

lem (Figure 8.8; Maier, 1930) is a good example of such provide a reasonable guess for the solution.
A Algorithms C Operators
a cognitive obstacle. The goal of this problem is to connect
all nine dots using only four straight lines and without B Heuristics D Subgoals
lifting your pen or pencil off the paper. Try solving the
nine-dot problem before you read further. 2 Javier was attempting to teach his daughter how to
UNDERSTAND . . .

Here is something to think about when solving this tie her shoes. The strategy that would prove most
effective in this situation would be a(n) ________.
problem: Most people impose limitations on where the
A heuristic C obstacle
lines can go, even though those limits are not a part of
B algorithm D mental set
the rules. Specifically, people often assume that a line can-
not extend beyond the dots. As you can see in Figure 8.9,
breaking these rules is necessary in order to find a solu- 3 Jennifer was trying to put together her new bookshelf in
her bedroom. Unfortunately, she didn’t have a hammer.
tion to the problem. Frustrated, she went outside and sat down beside some
Having a routine solution available for a problem gen- bricks that were left over from a gardening project. Her
erally allows us to solve that problem with less effort than inability to see that the bricks could be used to hammer
we would use if we encountered it for the first time. This in nails is an example of a(n) ________.
efficiency saves us time and effort. Sometimes, however, A mental set C algorithm

routines may impose cognitive barriers that impede solv- B functional fixedness D heuristic
ing a problem if circumstances change so that the routine Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
solution no longer works. A mental set is a cognitive obstacle

326 :: Module 8.2 : : Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making

 Judgment and Decision Making
Like problem solving, judgments and decisions can be
based on logical algorithms, intuitive heuristics, or a
combination of the two types of thought (Gilovich &
Griffin, 2002; Holyoak & Morrison, 2005). We tend to
use heuristics more often than we realize, even those of
us who consider ourselves to be logical thinkers. In this Watch
section of the module, we will examine specific types In the Real World:

of heuristics and consider how they influence how we Changing Your Mind

{fig. 8.9} One Solution to the Nine-Dot Problem In

make and evaluate decisions.
this case, the tendency is to see the outer edge of dots as
a boundary, and to assume that one cannot go past that REPRESENTATIVENESS AND AVAILABILITY
boundary. However, if you are willing to extend some of the Please read the following scenario:
lines beyond the dots, it is actually quite a simple puzzle to
complete. Linda is 31 years old, single, outspoken, and very bright.
She majored in philosophy. As a student, she was deeply
concerned with issues of discrimination and social justice,
and also participated in antinuclear [Link]
is more likely?

Lala Lela (A) Linda is a bank teller.

(B) Linda is a bank teller and is active in the feminist
movement.
Which answer did you choose? In a study that presented
this problem to participants, the researchers reported
that (B) was chosen more than 80% of the time. Most
Lila Lola respondents stated that option (B) seemed more correct
even though option (A) is actually much more likely and
would be the correct choice based on the question asked
(Tversky & Kahneman, 1982).
{fig. 8.10} The Five-Daughter Problem Maria’s father has five So how is the correct answer (A)? Individuals
daughters: Lala, Lela, Lila, and Lola. What is the fifth daughter’s
who approach this problem from the stance of prob-
name?
The fifth daughter’s name is Maria.
ability theory would apply some simple logical steps.
The world has a certain number of (A) bank tellers; this
number would be considered the base rate, or the rate at
which you would find a bank teller in the world’s popu-
lation just asking random people on the street if they
are a bank teller. Among the base group, there will be
a certain number of (B) bank tellers who are feminists,
as shown in Figure 8.12. In other words, the number
of bank tellers who are feminists will always be a frac-
tion of (i.e., less than) the total number of bank tellers.
But, because many of Linda’s qualities could relate to
a “feminist,” the idea that Linda is a bank teller and a
feminist feels correct. This type of error, known as the
conjunction fallacy, reflects the mistaken belief that finding
a specific member in two overlapping categories (i.e.,
a member of the conjunction of two categories) is more
{fig. 8.11} The Two-String Problem Imagine you are
standing between two strings and need to tie them together. likely than finding any member of one of the larger,
The only problem is that you cannot reach both strings at the general categories. Explore
same time (Maier, 1931). In the room with you is a table, a The conjunction fallacy demonstrates the use of The Two-String
piece of paper, a pair of pliers, and a ball of cotton. What do
the representativeness heuristic: making judgments of Problem
you do? For a solution, see Figure 8.13 on page 328. Click on
this figure in your eText to see more details. likelihood based on how well an example represents a specific

Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making :: Module 8.2 :: 327

 information. In fact, heuristics often lead to correct
assumptions about a situation.

(A) All bank tellers

Consider this scenario:
(the base)
You are in a department store trying to find a product that
(B) Bank tellers is apparently sold out. At the end of the aisle, you see a
who are
feminists young man in tan pants with a red polo shirt—the typical
employee’s uniform of this chain of stores. Should you stop
(C) All feminists
and consider the probabilities yielding an answer that was
technically most correct?

(A) A young male of this age would wear tan pants and
a red polo shirt.
(B) A young male of this age would wear tan pants and
{fig. 8.12} The Conjunction Fallacy There are more bank a red polo shirt and work at this store.
tellers in the world than there are bank tellers who are femi-
nists, so there is a greater chance that Linda comes from either Or does it make sense to just assume (B) is correct, and
(A) or (B) than just (B) alone. to simply ask the young man for help (Shepperd &
Koch, 2005)? In this case, it would make perfect sense
to assume (B) is correct and not spend time wondering
category. In the bank teller example, we cannot identify about the best logical way to approach the situation. In
any traits that seem like a typical bank teller. At the same other words, heuristics often work and, in the process,
time, the traits of social activism really do seem to rep- save us time and effort. However, there are many situa-
resent a feminist. Thus, the judgment was biased by the tions in which these mental short cuts can lead to biased
fact that Linda seemed representative of a feminist, even or incorrect conclusions.
though a feminist bank teller will always be rarer than The availability heuristic entails estimating the fre-
bank tellers in general (i.e., the representativeness heu- quency of an event based on how easily examples of it come
ristic influenced the decision more than logic or math- to mind. In other words, we assume that if examples are
ematical probabilities). readily available, then they must be very frequent. For
Seeing this type of problem has led many people to example, researchers asked volunteers which was more
question what is wrong with people’s ability to use logic: frequent in the English language:
Why is it so easy to get 80% of the people in a study to
give the wrong answer? In fact, there is nothing inher- (A) Words that begin with the letter K
ently wrong with using heuristics; they simply allow indi- (B) Words that have K as the third letter
viduals to obtain quick answers based on readily available
Most subjects chose (A) even though it is not the
correct choice. The same thing happened with the
consonants L, N, R, and V, all of which appear as
the third letter in a word more often than they appear as
the first letter (Tversky & Kahneman, 1973). This out-
come reflects the application of the availability heuristic:
People base judgments on the information most readily
available.
Of course, heuristics often do produce correct
answers. Subjects in the same study were asked which
was more common in English:

{fig. 8.13} A Solution to the Two-String Problem One (A) Words that begin with the letter K
solution to the two-string problem from page 327 is to take (B) Words that begin with the letter T
the pliers off the table and tie them to one string. This pro-
vides enough weight to swing one string back and forth while In this case, more subjects found that words beginning
you grab the other. Many people demonstrate functional fixed- with T were readily available to memory, and they were
ness when they approach this problem—they do not think of
using the pliers as a weight because its normal function is as correct. The heuristic helped provide a quick intuitive
a grasping tool. answer.

328 :: Module 8.2 : : Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making

 There are numerous real-world examples of the
availability heuristic. In the year following the Septem-
ber 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, people were much more
likely to overestimate the likelihood that planes could
crash and/or be hijacked. As a result, fewer people flew
that year than in the year prior to the attacks, opting
instead to travel by car when possible. The availability of
the image of planes crashing into the World Trade Cen-
ter was so vivid and easily retrieved from memory that
it influenced decision making. Ironically, this shift proved
to be dangerous, particularly given that driving is statisti-
cally much more dangerous than flying. Gerd Gigeren-
zer, a German psychologist at the Max Planck Institute
in Berlin, examined traffic fatalities on U.S. roads in the
years before and after 2001. He found that in the cal-
endar year following these terrorist attacks, there were
more than 1500 additional deaths on American roads
(when compared to the average of the previous years).
Within a year of the attacks, the number of people using
Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP Images
planes returned to approximately pre-9/11 levels; so
The availability of extreme events like 9/11 and plane crashes leads people to over-
did the number of road fatalities (Gigerenzer, 2004). In estimate the likelihood of experiencing these events.
other words, for almost a year, people overestimated the
risks of flying because it was easier to think of examples
of 9/11 than to think of all of the times hijackings and The anchoring heuristic has also been produced
plane crashes did not occur; and, they underestimated the experimentally. In these cases, questions worded in dif-
risks associated with driving because these images were ferent ways can produce vastly different responses (Epley
less available to many people. This example shows us that & Gilovich, 2006; Kahneman & Miller, 1986). For exam-
heuristics, although often useful, can cause us to incor- ple, consider what might happen if researchers asked the
rectly judge the risks associated with many elements of same question to two different groups, using a different
our lives (Gardner, 2008). anchor each time:
(A) What percentage of countries in the United Nations
ANCHORING EFFECTS While the representative-
are from Africa? Is it greater than or less than 10%?
ness and availability heuristics involve our ability to
What do you think the exact percentage is?
remember examples that are similar to the current situ-
(B) What percentage of countries in the United Nations
ation, other heuristics influence our responses based on
are from Africa? Is it greater than or less than 65%?
the way that information is presented. Issues such as the
What do you think the exact percentage is?
wording of a problem, the variety of multiple-choice
options, and the problem’s frames of reference can have Researchers conducted a study using similar methods
a profound impact on judgments. One such effect, and found that individuals in group (A), who received
known as the anchoring effect, occurs when an individ- the 10% anchor, estimated the number to be approxi-
ual attempts to solve a problem involving numbers and uses mately 25%. Individuals in group (B), who received the
previous knowledge to keep (i.e., anchor) the response within 65% anchor, estimated the percentage at approximately
a limited range. Sometimes this previous knowledge 45%. In this case, the anchor obviously had a significant
consists of facts that we can retrieve from memory. For effect on the estimates.
example, imagine that you are asked to name the year The anchoring heuristic can have a large effect on
that British Columbia became part of Canada. Although your life. For example, have you ever had to bargain
most of you would, of course, excitedly jump from your with someone while travelling? Or have you ever nego-
chair and shout, “1871!” the rest might assume that if tiated the price of a car? If you are able to establish a
Canada became a country in 1867, then B.C. likely low anchor during bargaining, the final price is likely to
joined a few years after that. In this latter case, the birth be much lower than if you let the salesperson dictate the
of our country in 1867 served as an anchor for the terms. So don’t be passive—use what you learn in this
judgment about when B.C. joined Confederation. course to save yourself some money.

Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making :: Module 8.2 :: 329

 FRAMING EFFECTS Decision making can also be is framed in terms of saving people and the other is framed
influenced by how a problem is worded or framed. Con- in terms of killing people. Yet, people become much
sider the following dilemma: Imagine that you are a self- more risk-averse when the question is framed in terms
less doctor volunteering in a village in a disease-plagued of potential losses (or deaths). Interestingly, when people
part of [Link] have two treatment [Link] A don’t follow the typical pattern of framed responses (e.g.,
has been used before; you know that it will save 200 selecting Treatment C rather than being risk-averse and
of the 600 villagers. Vaccine B is untested; it has a 33% selecting Treatment D), there is an increase in activity in
chance of saving all 600 people and a 67% chance of sav- regions of the prefrontal cortex associated with learning
ing no one. Which option would you choose? new rules (de Martino et al., 2006). This activity sug-
Now let’s suppose that you are given two different gests that the brain may be attempting to incorporate this
treatment options for the villagers. Treatment C has been response into a new set of mental rules that can be used
used before and will definitely kill 67% of the villagers. to guide similar decisions in the future.
Treatment D is untested; it has a 33% chance of killing
none of the villagers and a 67% chance of killing them BELIEF PERSEVERANCE AND CONFIRMATION
all. Which option would you choose? BIAS Whenever we solve a problem or make a deci-
Most people choose the vaccine that will definitely sion, we have an opportunity to evaluate the outcome to
save 200 people (Vaccine A) and the treatment that has make sure we got it right and to judge how satisfied we
a chance of killing no one (Treatment D). This ten- are with the decision. However, feeling satisfied does not
dency is interesting because options A and C are identi- necessarily mean we are correct.
cal as are options B and D. As you can see by looking at Imagine you and several friends sit down for a poker
Figure 8.14, the only difference between them is that one match with an old deck of cards. The dealer removes

Problem 1

Vaccine A Vaccine B

100% probability that 1/3 are saved 1/3 probability that all are saved

2/3 probability that none is saved

Problem 2

Vaccine C Vaccine D

100% probability that 2/3 die 1/3 probability that nobody dies

2/3 probability that all die

{fig. 8.14} Framing Effects When people are asked which vaccine or treatment they would use to help a hypothetical group of
villagers, the option they select is influenced by how the question is worded or framed. If the question is worded in terms of saving
villagers, most people choose Vaccine A. If the question is worded in terms of killing villagers, most people choose Treatment D.

330 :: Module 8.2 : : Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making

the cards from the box and counts to make sure they Confirmation bias and belief perseverance together
are all present. At first, he comes up with 51 cards—one can dramatically influence a person’s beliefs, especially
short. On the second try, he gets 52 cards—the correct in relation to complex, emotionally charged areas such
amount. Now that he has reached the expected number, as religion and politics. In fact, much of the research
he goes on to deal the first round. What is wrong with on these biases shows that people treat evidence in
his reasoning in this case? ways that minimize negative or uncomfortable feelings
The most obvious problem is that the dealer while maximizing positive feelings (Westen et al., 2006).
assumed that he had counted correctly when he counted For example, one American study examined the brain
52 cards (the expected number) without entertaining regions and self-reported feelings involved in interpret-
the possibility that he was correct when he counted 51 ing information about presidential candidates during
cards (an unexpected number). This is an example of the 2004 campaign. The participants were all deeply
belief perseverance, when an individual believes he or she committed to either the Republican (George “Dubya”
has the solution to the problem or the correct answer for a ques- Bush) or Democratic (John Kerry) candidate, and they
tion (e.g., How many cards are in this deck?), and accepts all encountered information that was threatening toward
only evidence that will confirm those beliefs. Our dealer knew each candidate. As you can see from the results in
the correct number of cards would be 52. He exhibited Figure 8.15, participants had strong emotional reactions
the belief perseverance by ignoring the count that gave to threatening (self-contradictory) information about
him 51 as some sort of mistake; meanwhile, the count their own candidate, but not to the alternative candidate,
that confirmed his idea that there should be 52 cards was or a relatively neutral person, such as a retired network
considered to be correct. news anchor. Analyses of the brain scans demonstrated
Along the same general lines, the confirmation that very different neural processes were at work in
bias occurs when an individual searches for only evidence that each condition. When the threat was directed at the Explore
will confirm his or her beliefs instead of evidence that might participant’s own candidate, brain areas associated with Confirmation Bias
disconfirm them. This differs from belief perseverance in ignoring or suppressing information were more active,
that the confirmation bias is the search for a particular whereas few of the regions associated with logical think-
type of evidence, not a way of evaluating evidence that ing were activated (Westen et al., 2006).
already exists. In the case of our dealer, he could have These data demonstrate that a person’s beliefs can
laid out all 13 cards from each suit to ensure that he influence their observable behavioural responses to
had a full deck—that would have been a logical way to information as well as the brain activity underlying these
identify if any cards were missing. Instead, he exhibited behaviours. As we shall see, decision making—and our
the confirmation bias by seeking out only confirmatory happiness with those decisions—can also be influenced
evidence. by a person’s personality.

“Definitely contradictory”
4 Democrats
Republicans
3.5
Mean rating of perceived
contradictions

2.5

1.5

“Definitely not contradictory” 1

Bush contradiction Kerry contradiction Nonpolitician

contradiction

{fig. 8.15} Ratings of Perceived Contradictions in Political Statements Democrats and Republicans reached very different
conclusions about candidates’ contradictory statements. Democrats readily identified the opponent’s contradictions but were less
likely to do so for their own candidate; the same was true for Republican responders.

Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making :: Module 8.2 :: 331

 high on a test of maximization invested more time and effort,
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC but were actually less pleased with the outcome (Schwartz
LITERACY MODEL et al., 2002).

Maximizing and Satisficing in Complex In another study, researchers questioned recent univer-
Decisions sity graduates about their job search process. Believe it or
not, maximizers averaged 20% higher salaries, but were less
happy about their jobs than satisficers (Iyengar et al., 2006).
One privilege of living in a technologically advanced, demo- This outcome occurred despite the fact that the opposite
cratic society is that we get to make many decisions for our- would seem to be true—if humans were perfectly logical
selves. However, for each decision there can be more choices decision makers.
than we can possibly consider. As a result, two types of con-
So now we know that just the presence of alternative
sumers have emerged in our society. Satisficers are individu-
choices can drive down satisfaction—but how can that be?
als who seek to make decisions that are, simply put, “good
enough.” In contrast, maximizers are individuals who attempt
to evaluate every option for every choice until they find the How can science
perfect fit. Most people exhibit some of both behaviours, sat-
explain maximizing
isficing at times and maximizing at other times. However, if
you consider all the people you know, you can probably iden-
and satisficing?
tify at least one person who is an extreme maximizer—he To answer this question,
or she will always be comparing products, jobs, classes, and researchers asked partici-
so on, to find out who has made the best decisions. At the pants to read vignettes that included a trade-off between
same time, you can probably identify an extreme satisficer— number of choices and effort (Dar-Nimrod et al., 2009). Try
the person who will be satisfied with his or her choices as this example for yourself:
long as they are “good enough.”
Your cleaning supplies (e.g., laundry detergent, rags, carpet
cleaner, dish soap, toilet paper, glass cleaner) are running
What do we know low. You have the option of going to the nearest grocery
about maximizing and store (5 minutes away), which offers 4 alternatives for each
satisficing? of the items you need, or you can drive to the grand clean-
ing superstore (25 minutes away), which offers 25 differ-
If one person settles for the good-
ent alternatives for each of the items (for approximately the
enough option while another
same price). Which store would you go to?
searches until he finds the best
possible option, which individual In the actual study, maximizers were much more likely to
do you think will be happier with the decision in the end? spend the extra time and effort to have more choices. Thus,
Most people believe the maximizer will be happier, but this if you decided to go to the store with more options, you are
is not always the case. In fact, researchers such as Barry probably a maximizer. What this scenario does not tell us is
Watch Schwartz of Swarthmore College and his colleagues have no whether having more or fewer choices was pleasurable for
What’s in It for Me? shortage of data about the paradox of choice, the observa- either maximizers or satisficers.
Making Choices tion that more choices can lead to less satisfaction. In one
study, the researchers asked participants to recollect both See how well you understand the nature of maximizers
large (more than $100) and small (less than $10) purchases and satisficers by predicting the results of the next study:
and report the number of options they considered, the time Participants at the University of British Columbia com-
spent shopping and making the decision, and the overall sat- pleted a taste test of one piece of chocolate, but they could
isfaction with the purchase. Sure enough, those who ranked choose this piece of chocolate from an array of 6 pieces or

Table 8.2 :: Satisfaction of Maximizers and Satisficers

6 ALTERNATIVES 30 ALTERNATIVES

Maximizers 5.64 4.73

Satisficers 5.44 6.00

Source: Adapted from Dar-Nimrod et al. (2009). The Maximization Paradox: The costs of seeking alternatives. Personality and
Individual Differences, 46, 631–635, Figure 1 and Table 1.

332 :: Module 8.2 : : Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making

an array of 30 pieces. When there were 6 pieces, who was Why is this relevant?
happier—maximizers or satisficers? What happened when
there were 30 pieces to choose from? As you can see in Although we described maxi-
Table 8.2, the maximizers were happier when there were mizing and satisficing in terms
fewer options. On a satisfaction scale indicating how much of purchasing decisions, you
they enjoyed the piece of chocolate that they selected, might also notice that these
the maximizers scored higher in the 6-piece condition styles of decision making can be applied to other situations,
(5.64 out of 7) than in the 30-piece condition (4.73 out such as multiple-choice exams. Do you select the first response
of 7; Dar-Nimrod et al., 2009). In contrast, satisficers did that sounds reasonable (satisficing), or do you carefully review
not show a statistical difference between the conditions each of the responses and compare them to one another
(5.44 and 6.00 for the 6-piece and 30-piece conditions, before marking your choice (maximizing)? Once you make your
respectively). choice, do you stick with it, believing it is good enough (satisfic-
ing), or are you willing to change your answer to make the best
possible choice (maximizing)? Despite the popular wisdom that
Can we critically you should never change your first response, there may be an
evaluate this advantage to maximizing on exams. Research focusing on more
information? than 1500 individual examinations showed that when people
changed their answers, they changed them from incorrect to
One hypothesis that seeks to
correct 51% of the time, from correct to incorrect 25% of the
explain the dissatisfaction of maxi-
time, and from incorrect to another incorrect option 23% of
mizers suggests that they invest
the time (Kruger et al., 2005).
more in the decision, so they
expect more from the outcome. Imagine that a satisficer
and a maximizer purchase the same digital camera for $175.
The maximizer may have invested significantly more time and
effort into the decision so, in effect, she feels like she paid
considerably more for the camera.

Regardless of the explanation, we should keep in mind

that maximizers and satisficers are preexisting categories.
People cannot be randomly assigned to be in one category
or another, so these findings represent the outcomes of
quasi-experimental research (see Module 2.2). We cannot
be sure that the act of maximizing leads to dissatisfaction
based on these data. Perhaps maximizers are the people who
are generally less satisfied, which in turn leads to maximizing
behaviour. Gogo Images/Glow Images

The research discussed above suggests that there

are some aspects of our consumer-based society that PSYCH @
might actually be making us less happy. This seems
counterintuitive given that the overwhelming number
Decision Making
of product options available to us almost guarantees that
and Neuromarketing
we will get exactly what we want (or think we want). Psychology and marketing have been linked for over a cen-
Recently, brain-imaging researchers began studying tury. In fact, Freud’s nephew, Edward Bernays, was one of the
consumer behaviour in an attempt to understand what first advertising executives to appeal to consumers’ desires
makes us like (and buy) particular products. As you read as opposed to simply providing information about a product
the following section, think about whether the results (Ewen, 1996). In these early years, advertisers would study
psychological theories and then test their new-and-improved
of these, and future, studies will increase or decrease
ad campaigns on focus groups, small groups of individuals
people’s happiness. No one knows for sure—what do
from the demographic that their product was aimed at (e.g.,
you think?
white males, aged 40–65). In the last 10 years, however, the

Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making :: Module 8.2 :: 333

 psychological tools used by marketers have become much
more advanced, and potentially worrisome. Quick Quiz 8.2b
With advances in brain-imaging techniques (see Judgment and Decision Making
Module 3.4), it is now possible to examine how the brain
1 Based on ________, people judge something as more

KNOW . . .
responds to different stimuli, including different consumer
likely if it strongly represents a specific category.
products. This new field, neuromarketing, triggered fears that
A anchoring C loss aversion
big corporations could use techniques like functional magnetic
resonance imaging (fMRI) and event-related potentials (ERPs) B priming D representativeness
to unlock our secret motivations for wanting and buying prod-
ucts (e.g., Lindstrom & Underhill, 2010). Indeed, early books in 2 When an individual makes judgments based on how
this area made strong claims suggesting that people had “buy easily things come to mind, he or she is employing the
buttons” in their brains; in other words, these authors were ________ heuristic.
claiming that if a product triggered activity in a particular brain A confirmation C availability
area, it would indicate that the person was going to buy that B representativeness D belief perseverance
product (Renvoise & Morin, 2007).
In reality, there is no buy button in your brain. However, 3 Belief perseverance seems to function by

UNDERSTAND . . .
neuroscientists have been able to identify several regions A maximizing positive feelings.
of the brain involved with the decision to buy a product. In B minimizing negative feelings.
one study, researchers found the nucleus accumbens, part of
C maximizing negative feelings while minimizing
a reward centre in the brain, is active when we view prod-
positive feelings.
ucts that we like. When the price attached to the product
D minimizing negative feelings while maximizing
was deemed to be too high, activity was detected in the
positive feelings.
insula (a brain area related to disgust); decreased activity was
found in the medial parts of the prefrontal cortex (a brain
area that responds to an item’s reward value). Astonishingly, 4 Why do psychologists assert that heuristics are

ANALYZE . . .
the researchers were able to link particular patterns of brain beneficial for problem solving?
activity to a person’s intent to buy the presented item (Knut- A Heuristics increase the amount of time we spend
arriving at good solutions to problems.
son et al., 2007). This activity occurred before the participant
indicated that she was going to make the purchase! B Heuristics decrease our chances of errors
Companies are now using neuromarketing during the dramatically.
design phase of product development to predict whether C Heuristics help us make decisions efficiently.
consumers will like different features and packaging (Ariely D Heuristics are considered the most logical thought
& Berns, 2011). These companies claim that in a decade, mar- pattern for problem solving.
keters will be able to predict your consumer preferences as
accurately, or better, than you can. It remains to be seen, how- 5 The fact that humans so often rely on heuristics is
ever, whether neuromarketing studies reliably predict behav- evidence that
iour in the real world and whether they provide any insights A humans are not always rational thinkers.
that can’t be uncovered through traditional—and cheaper— B it is impossible for humans to think logically.
marketing techniques.
C it is impossible for humans to use algorithms.
D humans will always succumb to the confirmation bias.
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

Hector Amezcua/ZUMA Press/Newscom

334 :: Module 8.2 : : Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
8.2
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology of problem solving and decision

making:

algorithms (p. 325) heuristics (p. 325)

anchoring effect (p. 329) mental set (p. 326)
availability heuristic (p. 328) problem solving (p. 325)
belief perseverance (p. 331) representativeness heuristic
Polaris/Newscom
confirmation bias (p. 331) (p. 327)
functional fixedness (p. 326)
4. When I watch TV, I channel surf, often scanning
through the available options even while attempting
UNDERSTAND . . . to watch one program.
● The characteristics that problems have in common. 5. I treat relationships like clothing: I expect to try a lot
All problems involve people attempting to reach some on before finding the perfect fit.
sort of goal; this goal can be an observable behaviour like 6. I often find it difficult to shop for a gift for a friend.
learning to serve a tennis ball or a cognitive behaviour
7. When shopping, I have a difficult time finding clothing
like learning Canada’s ten provincial capitals. This process
that I really love.
involves forming strategies that will allow the person to
reach the goal. It may also require a person to overcome 8. No matter what I do, I have the highest standards for
one or more obstacles along the way. myself.
● How obstacles to problem solving are often self- 9. I find that writing is very difficult, even if it’s just
imposed. Many obstacles arise from the individual’s writing to a friend, because it’s so difficult to word
mental set, which occurs when a person focuses on only things just right. I often do several drafts of even
one known solution and does not consider alternatives. simple things.
Similarly, functional fixedness can arise when an individual 10. I never settle for second best.
does not consider alternative uses for familiar objects.
When you are finished, average your ratings together to
find your overall score. Scores greater than 4 indicate
APPLY . . .
maximizers; scores less than 4 indicate satisficers.
● Your knowledge to determine if you tend to be a Approximately one-third of the population scores below
maximizer or a satisficer. To do so, rate the following 3.25 and approximately one-third scores above 4.75.
items on a scale from 1 (completely disagree) to 7 Where does your score place you?
(completely agree), with 4 being a neutral response.
1. Whenever I’m faced with a choice, I try to imagine ANALYZE . . .
what all the other possibilities are, even ones that
aren’t present at the moment. ● Whether human thought is primarily logical or
2. No matter how satisfied I am with my job, it’s intuitive. This module provides ample evidence that
only right for me to be on the lookout for better humans are not always logical. Heuristics are helpful
opportunities. decision-making and problem-solving tools, but they do
not follow logical principles. Even so, the abundance of
3. When I am in the car listening to the radio, I often heuristics does not mean that humans are never logical;
check other stations to see whether something instead, they simply point to the limits of our rationality.
better is playing, even if I am relatively satisfied with
what I’m listening to.

Problem Solving, Judgment, and Decision Making :: Module 8.2 :: 335

 Reuters

Module

8.3 Language and Communication

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology from How language is structured Your knowledge to Whether species other than
After reading the study of language distinguish between humans are able to use language
How genes and the brain are
this module units of language such as
involved in language use
you should phonemes and morphemes

Dog owners are known for attributing a lot of intelligence, emotion, could learn object names in just one trial. Rico again confirmed his own-
and “humanness” to their canine pals. Sometimes they may appear to ers’ claims, and the researchers concluded that his ability to understand
go overboard—such as Rico’s owners, who claimed their border collie new words was comparable to that of a three-year-old child (Kaminski
understood 200 words, most of which refer to different toys and objects et al., 2004).
he likes to play with. His owners claimed that they could show Rico a toy,
However, as you will see in this module, Rico’s abilities, while impressive,
repeat its name a few times, and toss the toy into a pile of other objects;
are dwarfed by those of humans. Our ability to reorganize words into
Rico would then retrieve the object upon verbal command. Rico’s abil-
complex thoughts is unique in the animal kingdom and may even have
ity appeared to go well beyond the usual “sit,” “stay,” “heel,” and per-
aided our survival as a species.
haps a few other words that dog owners expect their companions to
understand.

Claims about Rico’s language talents soon drew the attention of scien- Focus Questions
tists, who skeptically questioned whether the dog was just responding to 1 What is the difference between language and
cues by the owners, such as their possible looks or gestures toward the other forms of communication?
object they asked their pet to retrieve. The scientists set up a carefully
controlled experiment in which no one present in the room knew the 2 Might other species, such as chimpanzees, also
location of the object that was requested. Rico correctly retrieved 37 out be capable of learning human language?
of 40 objects. The experimenters then tested the owners’ claim that Rico

336 :: Module 8.3 : : Language and Communication

Communication happens just about anywhere you can Wernicke’s area
find life. Dogs bark, cats meow, monkeys chatter, and
mice can emit sounds undetectable to the human ear
when communicating. Honeybees perform an elabo-
rate dance to communicate the direction, distance, and
quality of food sources (von Frisch, 1967). Animals even
communicate by marking their territories with their
distinct scent, much to the chagrin of the world’s fire
hydrants. Language is among the ways that humans com-
municate. It is quite unlike the examples of animal com-
munication mentioned previously. So what differentiates Broca’s area
language from these other forms of communication?
And, what is it about our brains that allows us to turn
different sounds and lines into the sophisticated lan-
guages found across different human cultures?
{fig. 8.16} Two Language Centres of the Brain Broca’s
and Wernicke’s areas of the cerebral cortex are critical to
language function. Click on this figure in your eText to see
What Is Language? more details.
Language is one of the most intensively studied areas in
all of psychology. Thousands of experiments have been
performed to identify different characteristics of lan- different processes using different areas of the brain. In
guage as well as the brain regions associated with them. the years following the publication of Broca’s research,
But, all fields of study have a birthplace. In the case of other isolated language impairments were discovered.
the scientific study of language, it began with an interest- In 1874, a young Prussian (German) physician named
ing case study of a patient in Paris in the early 1860s. Carl Wernicke published a short book detailing his
study of different types of aphasia. Wernicke noted that
EARLY STUDIES OF LANGUAGE In 1861, Paul some of his patients had trouble with language compre-
Broca, a physician and founder of the Society of Anthro- hension rather than language production. These patients
pology of Paris, heard of an interesting medical case. typically had damage to the posterior superior temporal
The patient appeared to show a very specific impair- gyrus (the back and top part of the temporal lobe). This
ment resulting from a stroke suffered 21 years earlier. He region, now known as Wernicke’s area, is the area of the
could understand speech and had fairly normal mental brain most associated with finding the meaning of words (see
abilities; however, he had great difficulty producing speech Figure 8.16). Damage to this area results in Wernicke’s
and often found himself uttering single words separated aphasia, a language disorder in which a person has dif-
by pauses (uh, er . . .). In fact, this patient acquired the ficulty understanding the words he or she hears. These
nickname “Tan” because it was one of the only sounds patients are also unable to produce speech that other
that he could reliably produce. Tan had what is known people can understand—the words are spoken fluently
as aphasia, a language disorder caused by damage to the brain and with a normal intonation and accent, but these words
structures that support using and understanding language. seem randomly thrown together (i.e., what is being said
Tan died a few days after being examined by Broca. does not make sense). Consider the following example:
During the autopsy, Broca noted that the brain damage Examiner: I’d like to have you tell me something
appeared primarily near the back of the frontal lobes in about your problem.
the left hemisphere. Over the next couple of years, Broca
Person with Wernicke’s aphasia: Yes, I, ugh, cannot
found 12 other patients with similar symptoms and simi-
hill all of my way. I cannot talk all of the things I do,
lar brain damage, indicating that “Tan” was not a unique
and part of the part I can go alright, but I cannot tell
case. This region of the left frontal lobe that controls our ability
from the other people. I usually most of my things. I
to articulate speech sounds that compose words is now known
know what can I talk and know what they are, but I
as Broca’s area (see Figure 8.16). The symptoms asso-
cannot always come back even though I know they
ciated with this damage, as seen in Tan, are known as
should be in, and I know should something eely I
Broca’s aphasia.
should know what I’m doing . . .
The fact that a brain injury could affect one part
of language while leaving others preserved suggested The important thing to look for in this sample of speech
that the ability to use language involves a number of is how the wrong words appear in an otherwise fluent

Language and Communication :: Module 8.3 :: 337

 stream of utterances. Contrast this with an example of that the topic of the sentence occurred or will occur
Broca’s aphasia: at a different time. For instance, you can say to your
roommate, “I’m going to order pizza tonight,” with-
Examiner: Tell me, what did you do before you
out her thinking the pizza is already there.
retired?
• Languages can produce entirely new meanings. It is
Person with Broca’s aphasia: Uh, uh, uh, pub, par, possible to produce a sentence that has never been
partender, no. uttered before in the history of humankind, simply by
Examiner: Carpenter? reorganizing words in different ways. As long as you
Person with Broca’s aphasia: (Nodding to signal yes) select English words and use correct grammar, others
Carpenter, tuh, tuh, twenty year. who know the language should be able to understand
[Link] can also use words in novel ways. Imagine the
Notice that the individual has no trouble understanding tabloid newspaper headline: Bat Boy Found in Cave! In
the question or coming up with the answer. His diffi- North American culture, “bat boys” are regular kids
culty is in producing the word carpenter and then putting who keep track of the baseball bats for ball players.
it into an appropriate phrase. Did you also notice the In this particular tabloid, the story concerned a com-
missing morpheme /-s/ from twenty year? This is another pletely novel creature that was part bat and part boy.
characteristic of Broca’s aphasia:The individual words are Both meanings could be correct, depending upon the
often produced without normal grammatical flair: no context in which the term bat boy is used.
articles, suffixes, or prefixes. • Language is passed down from parents to children. As
Broca’s aphasia can include some difficulties in we will discuss later in this module, children learn to
comprehending language as well. In general, the more pay attention to the particular sounds of their native
complex the syntax, the more difficult it will be to language(s) at the expense of other sounds (Werker,
understand. Compare these two sentences: 2003). Children also learn words and grammatical rules
The girl played the piano. from parents, teachers, and peers. In other words, even
The piano was played by the girl. if we have a natural inclination to learn a language,
experience dictates which language(s) we will speak.
These are two grammatically correct sentences (although
Language requires us to link different sounds (or
the second is somewhat awkward) that have the same
gestures) with different meanings in order to understand
meaning but are structured differently. Patients with
and communicate with other people. Therefore, under-
damage to Broca’s area would find it much more dif-
standing more about these seemingly simple elements
ficult to understand the second sentence than the first.
This impairment suggests that the distinction between
speech production and comprehension is not as simple
as was first thought. Indeed, as language became a central
topic of research in psychology, researchers quickly real-
ized that this ability—or set of abilities—is among the
most complex processes humans perform.

PROPERTIES OF LANGUAGE Language, like many

other cognitive abilities, flows so automatically that we
often overlook how complicated it really is. However,
cases like those described above show us that language
is indeed a complex set of skills. Researchers define
language as a form of communication that involves the use of
spoken, written, or gestural symbols that are combined in a rule-
based form. With this definition in mind, we can distin-
guish which features of language make it a unique form
of communication.
• Language can involve communication about objects
and events that are not in the present time and place.
We can use language to talk about events happen- Weekly World News
ing on another planet or that are happening within Words can be arranged or combined in novel ways to produce
atoms. We can also use different tenses to indicate ideas that have never been expressed before.

338 :: Module 8.3 : : Language and Communication

of language is essential for understanding language as a of interpretation, and each of us has an extensive men-
whole. tal dictionary to prove it. Not only do normal speak-
ers know tens of thousands of words, but they can often
PHONEMES AND MORPHEMES: THE BASIC understand new words they have never heard before
INGREDIENTS OF LANGUAGE Languages contain based on their understanding of morphemes.
discrete units that exist at differing levels of complexity. Although phonemes, morphemes, and semantics have
When people speak, they assemble these units into larger an obvious role in spoken language, they also play a sur-
and more complex units. Some psychologists have used prising role in our ability to read. When you recognize
a cooking analogy to explain this phenomenon: We all a word, you effortlessly translate the word’s visual form
start with the same basic language ingredients, but they (known as its orthography) into the sounds that make up
can be mixed together in an unlimited number of ways that word (known as its phonology or phonological code).
(Pinker, 1999). These sounds are combined into a word, at which point
Phonemes are the most basic of units of speech sounds. you can access its meaning or semantics. However, not
You can identify phonemes rather easily; the phoneme all people are able to translate orthography into sounds.
associated with the letter t (which is written as /t/, where Individuals with dyslexia have difficulties translating words
the two forward slashes indicate a phoneme) is found at into speech sounds. Indeed, children with dyslexia show
the end of the word pot or near the beginning of the less activity in the left fusiform cortex (near the back and
word stop. If you pay close attention to the way you use bottom of the temporal lobe), a brain area involved with
your tongue, lips, and vocal cords, you will see that pho- word recognition and with linking word and sound rep-
nemes have slight variations depending on the other let- resentations (Desroches et al., 2010).This difficulty linking
ters around them. Pay attention to how you pronounce letters with phonemes leads to unusually slow reading in
the /t/ phoneme in stop, stash, stink, and stoke. Your both children and adults despite the fact that these people
mouth will move in slightly different ways each time, have normal hearing and are cognitively and neurologi-
and there will be very slight variations in sound, but they cally healthy (Desroches & Joanisse, 2009; Shaywitz, 1998).
are still the same basic phoneme. Individual phonemes This research into the specific impairments asso-
typically do not have any meaning by themselves; if you ciated with dyslexia allows scientists and educators to
want someone to stop doing something, asking him to develop treatment programs to help children improve
/t/ will not suffice. their reading and language abilities. One of the most
Morphemes are the smallest meaningful units of a lan- successful programs has been developed by Maureen
guage. Some morphemes are simple words, whereas oth- Lovett and her colleagues at Sick Kids Hospital in
ers may be suffixes or prefixes. For example, the word pig Toronto and Brock University. Their Phonological and
is a morpheme—it cannot be broken down into smaller Strategy Training (PHAST) program (now marketed as
units of meaning. You can combine morphemes, how- EmpowerTM Reading to earn research money for the
ever, if you follow the rules of the language. If you want hospital) has been used to assist over 6000 students with
to pluralize pig, you can add the morpheme /-s/, which reading disabilities. Rather than focusing on only one
will give you pigs. If you want to describe a person as a aspect of language, this program teaches children new
pig, you can add the morpheme /-ish/ to get piggish. In word-identification and reading-comprehension strate-
fact, you can add all kinds of morphemes to a word as gies while also educating them about how words and
long as you follow the [Link] could even say piggable phrases are structured (so that they know what to expect
(able to be pigged) or piggify (to turn into a pig). These when they see new words or groups of words). Children
words do not make much literal sense, but they combine who completed these programs showed improvements
morphemes according to the rules; thus we can make a on a number of measures of reading and passage compre-
reasonable guess as to the speaker’s intended meaning. hension (Frijters et al., 2013; Lovett et al., 2012). Given
Our ability to combine morphemes into words is one that 5–15% of the population has some form of reading
distinguishing feature of language that sets it apart from impairment, treatment programs like the PHAST could
other forms of communication (e.g., we don’t produce have a dramatic effect on our educational system.
a lengthy series of facial expressions to communicate a As you can see, languages derive their complexity
new idea). In essence, language gives us productivity—the from several elements, including phonemes, morphemes,
ability to combine units of sound into an infinite num- and semantics. And, when these systems are not func-
ber of meanings. tioning properly, language abilities suffer. But phonemes,
Finally, there are the words that make up a language. morphemes, and semantics are just the list of the ingre-
Semantics is the study of how people come to understand dients of language—we still need to figure out how to
meaning from words. Humans have a knack for this kind mix these ingredients together.

Language and Communication :: Module 8.3 :: 339

 A goat is eating a flower. This example demonstrates that a statement (A)
can be turned into a well-formed question (B) just
by moving the verb “is” to the beginning of the
A goat is eating a flower sentence. Perhaps that is one of the hidden rules of
(noun phrase) (verb phrase)
syntax. Try it again:
(A) A goat that is eating a flower is in the garden.
A goat is eating a flower
(article) (noun) (verb) (object) (B) IS a goat that ______ eating a flower is in the
garden?
As you can see, the rule “move is to the beginning
is eating a flower
(verb) (verb) (article) (noun) of the sentence” does not apply in this case. Do you
know why? It is because we moved the wrong is.
{fig. 8.17} Syntax Allows Us to Understand Language by the Organization of the The phrase that is eating a flower is a part of the noun
Words The rules of syntax help us divide a sentence into noun phrases, verb phrases, and phrase because it describes the goat. We should have
other parts of speech.
moved the is from the verb phrase. Try it again:
(A) A goat that is eating a flower is in the garden.
SYNTAX: THE LANGUAGE RECIPE Perhaps the (B) IS a goat that is eating a flower ______ in the
most remarkable aspect of language is syntax, the rules garden?
for combining words and morphemes into meaningful phrases
and sentences—the recipe for language. Children mas- This is a well-formed sentence. It may be grammatically
ter the syntax of their native language before they leave awkward, but the syntax is understandable (Pinker, 1994).
elementary school. They can string together morphemes As you can see from these examples, the order of
and words when they speak, and they can easily distin- words in a sentence helps determine what the sentence
guish between well-formed and ill-formed sentences. means, and syntax is the set of rules we use to determine
But despite mastering those rules, most speakers cannot that order.
tell you what the rules are; syntax just seems to come
PRAGMATICS: THE FINISHING TOUCHES If syn-
naturally. It might seem odd that people can do so much
tax is the recipe for language, pragmatics is the icing on
with language without a full understanding of its inner
the cake. Unlike syntax, which takes place in your brain,
workings. Of course, people can also learn how to walk
Watch pragmatics is the study of nonlinguistic elements of language
without any understanding of the biochemistry that
Susan Goldwin- use. It places heavy emphasis on the speaker’s behaviours
Meadow: The Role of allows their leg muscles to contract and relax.
and the social situation (Carston, 2002).
Gesture in Thinking The most basic units of syntax are nouns and verbs.
Pragmatics reminds us that sometimes what is said
They are all that is required to construct a well-formed sen-
is not as important as how it is said. For example, a stu-
tence, such as Goats eat. Noun–verb sentences are perfectly
dent who says, “I ate a 50-pound cheeseburger,” is most
adequate, if a bit limited, so we build phrases out of nouns
likely stretching the truth, but you probably would not
and verbs, as the diagram in Figure 8.17 demonstrates.
call him a liar. Pragmatics helps us understand what he
Syntax also helps explain why the order of words in
implied. The voracious student was actually flouting—or
a sentence has such a strong effect on what the sentence
blatantly disobeying—a rule of language in a way that
means. For example, how would you make a question
is obvious (Grice, 1975; Horn & Ward, 2004). There are
out of this statement?
all sorts of ways in which flouting the rules can lead
(A) A goat is in the garden. to implied, not literal meanings; a sample of those are
(B) IS a goat ______ in the garden? shown in Table 8.3.

Table 8.3 :: Pragmatic Rules Guiding Language Use

THE RULE FLOUTING THE RULE THE IMPLICATION
Say what you believe is true. My roommate is a giraffe. He does not really live with a giraffe. Maybe his roommate is
very tall?
Say only what is relevant. Is my blind date good-looking? He’s got a great She didn’t answer my question. He’s probably not
personality. good-looking.
Say only as much as you need to. I like my lab partner, but he’s no Einstein. Of course he’s not Einstein. Why is she bothering to tell me
this? She probably means that her partner is not very smart.

340 :: Module 8.3 : : Language and Communication

 Importantly, pragmatics depends upon both the languages different? And, why can’t we produce and Watch
speaker (or writer) and listener (or reader) understanding distinguish between some of the sounds of these other Thinking Like a
that rules are being flouted in order to produce a desired languages? It turns out that experience plays a major role Psychologist:
meaning. If you speak with visitors from a different in your ability to speak the language, or languages, that Multilingualism:

country, you may find that they don’t understand what you do. Speaking One’s Mind

you mean when you flout the rules of Canadian English

I N FA N T S , S O U N D P E R C E P T I O N , A N D
or use slang (shortened language). When we say “The
LANGUAGE ACQUISITION Say the following
goalie stood on his head,” most hockey-mad Canadians
phrase out loud: “Your doll.” Now, say this phrase: “This
understand that we are commenting on a goaltender’s
doll.” Did you notice a difference in how you pro-
amazing game; however, someone new to hockey would
nounced doll in these two situations? If English is your
be baffled by this expression. This is another example of
first language, it is quite likely that you didn’t notice
how experience—in this case with a culture—influences
the slight change in how the letter “d” was expressed.
how we use and interpret language.
But, Hindi speakers would have no problem making this
distinction. To them, the two instances of the word doll
Quick Quiz 8.3a would be pronounced differently and would mean lentils
and branch, respectively.
What Is Language?
Janet Werker of the University of British Columbia
1 What are the rules that govern how words are strung and her colleagues have found that very young English-
KNOW . . .

together into meaningful sentences?

learning infants are able to distinguish between these two
A Semantics C Morphemics
“d” sounds. But, by 10 months of age, the infants began
B Pragmatics D Syntax
hearing sounds in a way that is consistent with their
native language; because English has only one “d” sound,
2 The study of how people extract meaning from words English-learning infants no longer detected the difference
is called ________.
between these two sounds (Werker & Tees, 1984; Werker
A syntax C semantics
et al., 2012). This change is not a weakness on the part of
B pragmatics D flouting
English-learning infants. Rather, it is evidence that they
are learning the statistical principles of their language.
3 Besides being based in a different region of the brain,
UNDERSTAND . . .

Infants who hear only English words will group differ-

a major distinction between Broca’s aphasia and
Wernicke’s aphasia is that ent pronunciations of the letter “d” into one category
A words from people with Broca’s aphasia are strung because that is how this sound is used in English. Hindi-
together fluently, but often make little sense. learning children will learn to separate different types of
B Broca’s aphasia is due to a FOXP2 mutation. “d” sounds because this distinction is important. A related
C Wernicke’s aphasia results in extreme stuttering. study using two “k” sounds from an Interior Salish (First
D words from people with Wernicke’s aphasia are Nations) language from British Columbia produced sim-
strung together fluently, but often make little sense. ilar results—English-learning infants showed a significant
drop-off in hearing sounds for the non-English language
4 ________ is an example of a morpheme, while after 8–10 months (Werker & Tees, 1984).
APPLY . . .

________ is a phoneme.
A /dis/; /ta/ C /da/; /ah/
B /a/; /like/ D /non/; /able/

Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

The Development of Language

Human vocal tracts are capable of producing approximately
200 different phonemes. However, no language uses all
of these sounds. Jul’hoan, one of the “clicking languages”
of Botswana, contains almost 100 sounds (including over CVR/Flickr/Getty Images
Infants are able to distinguish between almost all of the
80 different consonant sounds). In contrast, English
phonemes humans can produce; however, by 8–10 months of
contains about 40 sounds. But, if Canadians are geneti- age, infants show superior perception of phonemes from their
cally identical to people in southern Africa, why are our own language.

Language and Communication :: Module 8.3 :: 341

 In addition to becoming experts at identifying the language acquisition, they are only one part of this com-
Watch sounds of their own language, infants also learn how to plex process (Messer, 2000). Here are a few examples that
Stimulating Language separate a string of sounds into meaningful groups (i.e., illustrate how learning through imitation and reinforce-
Development into words). Infants as young as two months old show ment is just one component of language development:
a preference for speech sounds over perceptually similar
• Children often produce phrases that include incor-
non-speech sounds (Vouloumanos & Werker, 2004). And,
rect grammar or word forms. Because adults do not
when presented with pronounceable non-words (e.g.,
(often) use these phrases, it is highly unlikely that
strak), infants prefer to hear words that follow the rules
such phrases are imitations.
of their language. An English-learning baby would pre-
• Children learn irregular verbs and pluralizations on a
fer non-words beginning in “str” to those beginning in
word-by-word basis. At first, they will use “ran” and
“rst” because there are a large number of English words
“geese” correctly. However, when children begin to
that begin with “str” (Jusczyk et al., 1993). Additionally,
use grammar on their own, they over-generalize the
newborn infants can distinguish between function words
rules. A child who learns the /-ed/ morpheme for
(e.g., prepositions) and content words (e.g., nouns and
past tense will start saying runned instead of ran. When
verbs) based on their sound properties (Shi et al., 1999).
she learns that /-s/ means more than one, she will
By six months of age, infants prefer the content words
begin to say gooses instead of geese. It is also unlikely
(Shi & Werker, 2001), thus showing that they are learn-
that children would produce these forms by imitating.
ing which sounds are most useful for understanding the
• When children use poor grammar, or when they
meaning of a statement.
over-generalize their rules, parents may try to cor-
By the age of 20 months, the children are able to use
rect them. Although children will acknowledge their
the perceptual categories that they developed in order to
parents’ attempts at instruction, this method does
rapidly learn new words. In some cases, children can per-
not seem to work. Instead, children go right back to
form fast mapping—the ability to map words onto concepts
over-generalizing.
or objects after only a single exposure. Human children seem
to have a fast-mapping capacity that is superior to any In light of these and many other examples, it seems
other organism on the planet. This skill is one potential clear that an exclusively behaviourist approach falls short
explanation for the naming explosion, a rapid increase in in explaining how language is learned. After all, there are
vocabulary size that occurs at this stage of development. profound differences in the success of children and adults
The naming explosion has two biological expla- in learning a new language: Whereas adults typically
nations as well. First, at this stage of development, the struggle, children seem to learn the language effortlessly.
brain begins to perform language-related functions in If reinforcement and imitation were the primary means
the left hemisphere, similar to the highly efficient adult by which language was acquired, then adults should be
brain; prior to this stage, this information was stored and able to learn just as well as children.
analyzed by both hemispheres (Mills et al., 1997). Sec- The fact that children seem to learn language dif-
ond, the naming explosion has also been linked to an ferently than adults has led psychologists to use the term
increase in the amount of myelin on the brain’s axons, language acquisition when referring to children instead of
a change that would increase the speed of communica- language learning. The study of language acquisition has
tion between neurons (Pujol et al., 2006). These changes revealed remarkable similarities among children from
would influence not only the understanding of language, all over the world. Regardless of the language, children
but also how a child uses language to convey increasingly seem to develop this capability in stages, as shown in
complex thoughts such as “How does Spiderman stick Table 8.4.
to walls?” and “Why did Dad’s hair fall out?”
SENSITIVE PERIODS FOR LANGUAGE The
Watch PRODUCING SPOKEN LANGUAGE Lear ning phases of language development described above sug-
Language to identify and organize speech sounds is obviously an gest that younger brains are particularly well-suited to
Development important part of language development. An equally acquiring languages; this is not the case for older brains.
critical skill is producing speech that other people will Imagine a family with two young children who immi-
be able to understand. Early psychologists focused only grated to Canada from a remote Russian village where
on behavioural approaches to language learning. They no one spoke English. The parents would struggle
believed that language was learned through imitating with English courses, while the children would attend
sounds and being reinforced for pronouncing and using English-speaking schools. Within a few years, the par-
words correctly (Skinner, 1985). Although it is certainly ents would have accumulated some vocabulary but they
true that imitation and reinforcement are involved in would likely still have difficulty with pronunciation and

342 :: Module 8.3 : : Language and Communication

 Table 8.4 :: Milestones in Language Acquisition and Speech
AVERAGE TIME
OF ONSET (MONTHS) MILESTONE EXAMPLE
1–2 Cooing Ahhh, ai-ai-ai
4–10 Babbling (consonants start) Ab-ah-da-ba
8–16 Single-word stage Up, mama, papa
24 Two-word stage Go potty
24+ Complete, meaningful phrases strung together I want to talk to Grandpa.

grammar (Russian-speaking people often omit articles (perceived) need for a common sign language. When the
such as the). Meanwhile, their children would likely pick first schools for the deaf were established, adults and teen-
up English without much effort and have language skills aged students attempted to learn to read lips. While few
equivalent to those of their classmates; they would have mastered this skill, these students did do something even
roughly the same vocabulary, the same accents, and even more astonishing: They developed their own primitive
the same slang. sign [Link] language, Lenguaje de Signos Nicaragüese
Why do children pick up a language so much more (LSN), involves a number of elaborate gestures similar to
easily than adults? Most psychologists agree that there is a game of charades and does not have a consistent set
a sensitive period for language—a time during childhood of grammatical rules. But, it was a start. Children who
in which children’s brains are primed to develop lan- attended these schools at an early age (i.e., during the sen-
guage skills (see also Module 10.1). Children can absorb sitive period for language acquisition) used this language
language almost effortlessly, but this ability seems to fade as the basis for a more fluent version of sign language:
away starting around the seventh year. Thus, when fami- Idioma de Signos Nicaragüese (ISN). ISN has grammatical
lies immigrate to a country that uses a different language, rules and can be used to express a number of compli-
the children are able to pick up this language much cated, abstract ideas (Pinker, 1994). It is now the standard
more quickly than their parents (Hakuta et al., 2003; sign language in Nicaragua. The difference between LSN
Hernandez & Li, 2007). and ISN is similar to the difference between adults and
A stunning example of critical periods comes from children learning a new language. If you acquire the new
Nicaragua. Until 1979, there was no sign language in this language during childhood, you will be much more flu-
Central American country because there were no schools ent than if you try to acquire it during adulthood (Seng-
for people with hearing impairments and therefore no has, 2003; Senghas et al., 2004).

Left: Stephen McBrady/PhotoEdit; right: Kayte Deioma/PhotoEdit

Signed languages share the same characteristics of spoken languages. They have a rich vocabulary, syntax, and set of pragmatic
rules.

Language and Communication :: Module 8.3 :: 343

 THE BILINGUAL BRAIN Let’s go back to the that being bilingual helps protect against the onset of
example of the Russian-speaking family who immi- dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (Bialystok et al., 2007;
grated to balmy Canada. The young children learn- Schweizer et al., 2012), a finding that leaves many at a
ing English would also be speaking Russian at home loss for words.
with their parents. As a result, they would be learning
two languages essentially at the same time. What effect
would this situation have on their ability to learn each
language?
Quick Quiz 8.3b
Although bilingualism leads to many benefits (see The Development of Language
below), there are some costs to learning more than 1 What is fast mapping?

KNOW . . .
one language. Bilingual children tend to have a smaller A The rapid rate at which chimpanzees learn sign
vocabulary in each language than unilingual children language
(Mahon & Crutchley, 2006). In adulthood, this differ- B The ability of children to map concepts to words
ence is shown not by vocabulary size, but by how eas- with only a single example
ily bilinguals can access words. Compared to unilingual C The very short period of time that language input
adults, bilingual adults are slower at naming pictures can be useful for language development

(Roberts et al., 2002), have more difficulty on tests that D A major difficulty that people face when affected by
Broca’s aphasia
ask them to list words starting with a particular letter
(Rosselli et al., 2000), have more tip-of-the-tongue
experiences in which they can’t quite retrieve a word 2 The term “sensitive period” is relevant to language

UNDERSTAND . . .
acquisition because
(Gollan & Acenas, 2004), and are slower and less accu-
A exposure to language is needed during this time for
rate when making word/non-word judgments (Ransdell language abilities to develop normally.
& Fischler, 1987). These problems with accessing words
B Broca’s area is active only during this period.
may be due to the fact that they use each language less
C it is what distinguishes humans from the apes.
than a unilingual person would use their single language
D it indicates that language is an instinct.
(Michael & Gollan, 2005).
The benefits of bilingualism, however, appear to far
3 What is the most accurate conclusion from studies of
ANALYZE . . .

outweigh the costs. One difference that has been repeat-

bilingualism and the brain?
edly observed is that bilingual individuals are much
A Being bilingual causes the brain to form a larger
better than their unilingual counterparts on tests that number of connections than it normally would.
require them to control their attention or their thoughts. B Being bilingual reduces the firing rate of the frontal
These abilities, known as executive functions (or executive lobes.
control), enable people who speak more than one lan- C Only knowing one language allows people to
guage to inhibit one language while speaking and lis- improve their executive functioning.
tening to another (or to limit the interference across D Being bilingual makes it more likely that a person
languages). If they didn’t, they would produce confus- will have language problems if they suffer brain
ing sentences like The chien is tres sick. Although most damage.
of you can figure out that this person is talking about a Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
sick dog, you can see how such sentences would make
communication challenging. Researchers have found
that bilinguals score better than unilinguals on tests of
executive control throughout the lifespan, beginning in
infancy (Kovacs & Mehler, 2009) and the toddler years
Genes, Evolution, and Language
(Poulin-Dubois et al., 2011) and continuing throughout This module began with a discussion of two brain areas
adulthood (Costa et al., 2008) and into old age (Bialy- that are critical for language production and comprehen-
stok et al., 2004). Bilingualism has also recently been sion: Broca’s area and Wernicke’s area, respectively. But,
shown to have important health benefits. Because the these brain areas didn’t appear out of nowhere. Rather,
executive control involved with bilingualism uses areas genetics and evolutionary pressures led to the devel-
in the frontal lobes, these regions may form more con- opment of our language-friendly brains. Given recent
nections in bilinguals than unilinguals (Bialystok, 2009, advances in our understanding of the human genome
2011a, 2011b). As a result, these brains likely have more (see Module 3.1), it should come as no surprise that
back-up systems if damage occurs. Indeed, Ellen Bialy- researchers are actively searching for the genes involved
stok at York University and her colleagues have shown with language abilities.

344 :: Module 8.3 : : Language and Communication

 WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC Unaffected family
members:
Affected family
members:
LITERACY MODEL Male Male
Genes and Language Female Female

Deceased Twins
Given that language is a universal trait of the human species,
it likely involves a number of different genes. These genes II III
would, of course, also interact with the environment. In this I
section we examine whether it is possible that specific genes
are related to language.

What do we know about

genes and language?
Many scientists believe that the evi-
dence is overwhelming that language
is a unique feature of the human spe-
cies, and that language evolved to {fig. 8.18} Inheritance Pattern for the Mutated FOXP2
Gene in the KE Family Family members who are “affected”
solve problems related to survival have inherited a mutated form of the FOXP2 gene, which
and reproductive fitness. Language adds greater efficiency to results in difficulty with articulating words. As you can see
thought, allows us to transmit information without requiring us from the centre of the figure, the mutated gene is traced to
to have direct experience with potentially dangerous situations, a female family member, and has been passed on to the indi-
viduals of the next two generations.
and, ultimately, facilitates communicating social needs and desires.
Claims that language promotes survival and reproductive suc- a mutated copy. Those who inherit the mutated copy
cess are difficult to test directly with scientific experimentation, have great difficulty putting thoughts into words (Tomblin
but there is a soundness to the logic of the speculation. We can et al., 2009).Thus, it appears that the physical and chemical pro-
also move beyond speculation and actually examine how genes cesses that FOXP2 codes for are related to language function.
play a role in human language. As with all complex psychologi- What evidence indicates that this gene is specifically involved
cal traits, there are likely many genes associated with language. in language? If you were to ask the members of the family who
Nevertheless, amid all of these myriad possibilities, one gene has inherited the mutant form of the gene to speak about how to
been identified that is of particular importance. change the batteries in a flashlight, they would be at a loss.
A rather jumbled mixture of sounds and words might come
How can science out, but nothing that could be easily understood. However,
these same individuals have no problem actually performing
explain a genetic
the task. Their challenges with using language are primarily
basis of language? restricted to the use of words, not with their ability to think.
Studies of this gene have Scientists have used brain-imaging methods to further test
primarily focused on whether the FOXP2 mutation affects language. One group
the KE family (their name is abbreviated to maintain their of researchers compared brain activity of family members
confidentiality). Many members of this family have inher- who inherited the mutation of FOXP2 with those who did
ited a mutated version of a gene on chromosome 7 (see not (Liégeois et al., 2003). During the brain scans, the par-
Figure 8.18 ; Vargha-Khadem et al., 2005). Each gene has ticipants were asked to generate words themselves, and
a name—and this one is called FOXP2. All humans carry also to repeat words back to the experimenters. As you can
a copy of the FOXP2 gene, but the KE family passes down see from Figure 8.19, the members of the family who were

Normal FOXP2 Mutation at FOXP2

Unaffected group Affected group

R Broca’s area L R L
Liégeois, F., Badeweg, T., Connelly, A., Gadian, D.G., Mishkin, M., & Vargha-Khadem, F. (2003). Language fMRI abnor-
malities associated with FOXP2 gene mutation. Nature Neuroscience, 6, 1230–1237.
{fig. 8.19} Brain Scans Taken while Members of the KE Family Completed a Speech Task The unaffected group shows a
normal pattern of activity in Broca’s area, while the affected group shows an unusual pattern.

Language and Communication :: Module 8.3 :: 345

 unaffected by the mutation showed normal brain activity: Why is this relevant?
Broca’s area of the left hemisphere became activated, just
as expected. In contrast, Broca’s area in the affected family This work illuminates at least
members was silent, and the brain activity that did occur was part of the complex relation-
unusual for this type of task. ship between genes and lan-
guage. Other individual genes
Can we critically that have direct links to language function will likely be dis-
covered someday as well. It is possible that this information
evaluate this evidence? could be used to help us further understand the genetic
As you have now read, language has basis of language disorders. The fact that the FOXP2 gene
multiple components. Being able to is found in many other species suggests that it may play a
articulate words is just one of many role in one of the components of language rather than being
aspects of using and understanding the gene for language. Thus, researchers will have to search
language. The research on FOXP2 is elsewhere in their quest to understand why and how human
very important, but reveals only how a single gene relates to language became so much more complex than that of any
one aspect of language use. There are almost certainly a large other species.
number of different genes working together to produce each
component of language. To their credit, FOXP2 researchers
are quick to point out that many other genes will need to
be identified before we can claim to understand the genetic
basis of language; FOXP2 is just the beginning.

It is also worth noting that although the FOXP2 gene affects

human speech production, it does occur in other species
that do not produce sophisticated language. This gene is
found in both mice and birds as well as in humans, and the
human version shares a very similar molecular structure to
the versions observed in these other species. Interestingly,
the molecular structure and activity of the FOXP2 gene in
songbirds (unlike non-songbirds) is similar to that in humans,
again highlighting its possible role in producing meaningful
sounds (Vargha-Khadem et al., 2005). Glenn Bartley/All Canada Photos/Glow Images

The fact that animals such as songbirds have some momentum in the mid-1950s when psychologists
of the same language-related genes as humans suggests attempted to teach spoken English to a chimpanzee
that other species may have some language abilities. As named Viki (Hayes & Hayes, 1951). Viki was cross-
it turns out, many monkey species have areas in their fostered, meaning that she was raised as a member of a fam-
brains that are similar to Broca’s and Wernicke’s area. As ily that was not of the same species. Like humans, chimps
in humans, these regions are connected by white-matter come into the world dependent on adults for care, so
pathways, thus allowing them to communicate with each the humans who raised Viki were basically foster par-
other (Galaburda & Pandya, 1982). These areas appear to ents. Although the psychologists learned a lot about how
be involved with the control of facial and throat muscles smart chimpanzees can be, they did not learn that Viki
and with identifying when other monkeys have made was capable of language—she managed to whisper only
a vocalization. This is, of course, a far cry from human about four words after as many years of trying.
language. But, the fact that some monkey species have Psychologists who followed in these researchers’
similar “neural hardware” to humans does lead to some footsteps did not consider the case to be closed. Perhaps
interesting speculations about language abilities in the Viki’s failure to learn spoken English was a limitation
animal kingdom. not of the brain, but of physical differences in the vocal
tract and tongue that distinguish humans and chimpan-
CAN ANIMALS USE LANGUAGE? Psychologists zees. One project that began in the mid-1960s involved
have been studying whether nonhuman species can teaching chimpanzees to use American Sign Language
acquire human language for many decades. Formal stud- (ASL). The first chimpanzee involved in this project was
ies of language learning in nonhuman species gained named Washoe. The psychologists immersed Washoe in

346 :: Module 8.3 : : Language and Communication

 MICHAEL NICHOLS/National Geographic Stock
Kanzi is a bonobo chimpanzee that has learned to use an
artificial language consisting of graphical symbols that corre-
spond to words. Kanzi can type out responses by pushing but-
tons with these symbols, shown in this photo. Researchers are
also interested in Kanzi’s ability to understand spoken English
(which is transmitted to the headphones by an experimenter
who is not in the room).

350 symbols through training, but he learned his first

symbols simply by watching as researchers attempted
to teach his mother how to use the language. In addi-
tion to the lexigrams he produces, Kanzi seems to rec-
Photo permission granted by Friends of Washoe ognize about 3000 spoken words. His trainers claim that
Washoe was the first chimpanzee taught to use some of the Kanzi’s skills constitute language (Savage-Rumbaugh &
signs of American Sign Language. Washoe died in 2007 at Lewin, 1994). They argue that he can understand sym-
age 42 and throughout her life challenged many to examine
bols and at least some syntax; that he acquired symbols
their beliefs about human uniqueness.
simply by being around others who used them; and that
he produced symbols without specific training or rein-
an environment rich with ASL, using signs instead of forcement. Those who work with Kanzi conclude that
speaking and keeping at least one adult present and com- his communication skills are quite similar to those of a
municating with her throughout the day. By the time young human in terms of both the elements of language
she turned two years old, Washoe had acquired about (semantics and syntax) and the acquisition of language
35 signs through imitation and direct guidance of how (natural and without effortful training).
to configure and move her hands. Eventually, she learned Findings with apes have inspired psychologists to see
approximately 200 signs. She was able to generalize if other intelligent, large-brained animals might be able
signs from one context to another and to use a sign to to acquire language. Dolphin trainers have long mar-
represent entire categories of objects, not just specific velled at how adept their pupils are at responding to ges-
examples. For example, while Washoe learned the sign tures. Dolphins can learn that unique gestures can refer
for the word “open” on a limited number of doors and to specific objects as well as directions such as right and
cupboards, she subsequently signed “open” to many dif- left (Herman, 2002). Do the dolphins simply associate a
ferent doors, cupboards, and even her pop bottles. The single gesture with a response that, if made, is rewarded
findings with Washoe were later replicated with other with food? As it turns out, the dolphins can respond
chimps (Gardner et al., 1989). appropriately when given gestural commands such as Watch
Instead of using sign language, some researchers have one meaning “put the ball on the left into the basket on Classic Footage of

developed a completely artificial language to teach to the right.” Thus, they may not merely associate a gesture Chimpanzees and

apes. This language consists of symbols called lexigrams— with an action and a reward, but rather understand the Sign Language

small keys on a computerized board that represent words use of gestures as symbols (Herman et al., 1993).
and, therefore, can be combined to form complex ideas Despite their ability to communicate in complex
and phrases. One subject of the research using this lan- ways, debate continues to swirl about whether these
guage is a bonobo named Kanzi (bonobos are another animals are using language. Returning to chimpanzees,
species of chimpanzee). Kanzi has learned approximately many language researchers point out that their signing

Language and Communication :: Module 8.3 :: 347

 and artificial language use is very different from how • There is little reputable experimental evidence show-
humans use language. Is the vastness of the difference ing that apes pass their language skills to other apes.
important? Is using 200 signs different in some critical • Productivity—creating new words (gestures) and us-
way from being able to use 4000 signs, roughly the num- ing existing gestures to name new objects or events—
ber found in the ASL dictionary (Stokoe et al., 1976)? is rare, if it occurs at all.
If our only criterion for whether a communication sys- • Some of the researchers become very engaged in the
tem constitutes language is the number of words used, lives of these animals and talk about them as friends
then we can say that nonhuman species acquire some and family members (Fouts, 1997; Savage-Rumbaugh
language skills after extensive training. But as you have & Lewin, 1994). This tendency has left critics to won-
learned in this module, human language involves more der the extent to which personal attachments to the
than just using words. In particular, our manipulation of animals might interfere with the objectivity of the data.
phonemes, morphemes, and syntax allow us to utter an
It must be pointed out that the communication sys-
infinite number of words and sentences, thereby convey-
tems of different animals have their own adaptive func-
ing an infinite number of thoughts.
tions. It is possible that these species simply didn’t have
Some researchers who have worked closely with
a need to develop a complex form of language. How-
language-trained apes observed too many critical differ-
ever, in the case of chimpanzees, this point doesn’t hold
ences between humans and chimps to conclude that lan-
true. Both humans and chimpanzees evolved in small
guage extends beyond our species (Seidenberg & Pettito,
groups in (for the most part) similar parts of the world;
1979). For example:
thus, chimpanzees would have faced many of the same
• One major argument is that apes are communicat- social and environmental pressures as humans. However,
ing only with symbols, not with the phrase-based their brains, although quite sophisticated, are not as large
syntax used by humans. Although some evidence of or well-developed as those of humans. It seems, there-
syntax has been reported, the majority of their “utter- fore, that a major factor in humanity’s unique language
ances” consist of single signs, a couple of signs strung abilities is the wonderful complexity and plasticity of
together, or apparently random sequences. the brain.

Quick Quiz 8.3c Genes, Evolution, and Language

1 Which nonhuman species has had the greatest success 3 What is the most accurate conclusion from research
KNOW . . .

ANALYZE . . .

at learning a human language? conducted on primate language abilities?

A Border collies C Dolphins A Primates can learn some aspects of human
B Bonobo chimpanzees D Rhesus monkeys language, though many differences remain.
B Primates can learn human language in full.

2 Studies of the KE family and the FOXP2 gene indicate C Primates cannot learn human language in any way.
UNDERSTAND . . .

that D There are not enough research data to reach

A language is controlled entirely by a single gene reliable conclusions on this topic.
found on chromosome 7.
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
B language is still fluent despite a mutation to this
gene.
C this particular gene is related to one specific aspect
of language.
D mutations affecting this gene lead to highly
expressive language skills.

348 :: Module 8.3 : : Language and Communication

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
8.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology from the study of language:

aphasias (p. 337) phoneme (p. 339)
Broca’s area (p. 337) pragmatics (p. 340)
cross-foster (p. 346) semantics (p. 339)
fast mapping (p. 342) syntax (p. 340)
Reuters
language (p. 338) Wernicke’s area (p. 337)
morpheme (p. 339)

ANALYZE . . .
UNDERSTAND . . .
● Whether species other than humans are able to use
● How language is structured. Sentences are broken down language. Nonhuman species certainly seem capable of
into words that are arranged according to grammatical acquiring certain aspects of human language. Studies with
rules (syntax). The relationship between words and their apes have shown that they can learn and use some sign
meaning is referred to as semantics. Words can be broken language or, in the case of Kanzi, an artificial language
down into morphemes, the smallest meaningful units of system involving arbitrary symbols. Critics have pointed
speech, and phonemes, the smallest sound units that make out that many differences between human and nonhuman
up speech. language use remain.
● How genes and the brain are involved in language
use. Studies of the KE family show that the FOXP2 gene is
involved in our ability to speak. However, mutation to this
gene does not necessarily impair people’s ability to think.
Thus, the FOXP2 gene seems to be important for just one
of many aspects of human language. Multiple brain areas
are involved in language—two particularly important ones
are Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas.

APPLY . . .

● Your knowledge to distinguish between units of

language such as phonemes and morphemes. Which
of these represent a single phoneme and which represent
a morpheme? Do any of them represent both? Check
your answers on page ANS-3.
1. /dis/
2. /s/
3. /k/

Language and Communication :: Module 8.3 :: 349

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Cognitive Obstacles

1 What do we know about problem solving

and decision making? 2 How can science help explain the cognitive
obstacles to problem solving and decision
We generally approach problems either logically (with an algorithm) or in- making?
tuitively (with a heuristic), and usually with some combination of both. For As mentioned in the discussion on pages 325–333, research
example, suppose you are moving to university, and your car is fully packed shows that people often treat evidence in ways that minimize
except for one last box that does not seem to fit. If you took an algorithmic their own discomfort and maximize their positive feelings.
approach to this problem, you might go online to find a physics website. After Called confirmation bias, this situation occurs when we filter
entering the dimensions of your car’s trunk as well as those of each box, you information through our existing belief systems and perspec-
would print out the optimal placement of each box and repack your car ac- tives. We are even more likely to exhibit this bias when the
cording to the step-by-step directions. If you took a heuristic approach, you information relates to highly charged issues such as politics
might remember that your mother always told you to pack the big items first or religion.
and then squeeze the smaller ones in. Using this general rule of thumb, you
would reorganize the trunk.
Now review the idea of cognitive obstacles on page 326. Imagine you are
thinking ahead to future moves, and shopping for a bigger car. Despite its docu-
mented record of poor gas mileage, you decide to buy the model that first
comes to mind, being persuaded by all the ads for the car you have recently
seen. In this instance, you are displaying the availability heuristic, or making a
decision based only on information that is readily
available.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video
excerpt about making choices. You can
access the video at MyPsychLab or by clicking the
play button in the centre of your eText. If your
ICP/incamerastock/Alamy
instructor assigns this video as a homework activity, you will find
additional content to help you in MyPsychLab. You can also view 3 Can we critically evaluate claims about
cognitive obstacles?
the video by using your smart phone and the QR code below, or
The fact that people consistently make decisions based on represen-
you can go to the YouTube link provided.
tativeness or availability, and make biased judgments so that they can
Consider what you know about cognitive shortcuts and obstacles. maintain their sense of comfort in the world, leads many people to won-
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, imagine der what is wrong with human thought processes. Surely they must be
that Maria’s method of studying worked effectively throughout flawed! In reality, there is nothing inherently wrong with using heuris-
high school until she took her first foreign language course. In tics; in fact, they can sometimes be valuable and useful. Heuristics allow
this course, her grades were much lower than usual. How might a people to make quick decisions based on readily available information.
mental set have played a role in Maria’s academic problem? While the use of cognitive shortcuts can also open us up to mistakes
and biases, being aware that we are fallible encourages us to be more ef-
fective critical thinkers and to spend more time evaluating our decisions.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]//wor
[Link]/workthemodel
work
kthemo
kth
hemod
de
del
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

350 :: Chapter 8 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 9
Intelligence Testing
9.1 Measuring Intelligence
● Different Approaches to
Intelligence Testing p. 353
● The Chequered Past of
Intelligence Testing p. 357
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Beliefs about Intelligence p. 360
● Module Summary p. 363

9.2 Understanding Intelligence

● Intelligence as a Single,
General Ability p. 365
● Intelligence as Multiple,
Specific Abilities p. 367
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Testing for Fluid and
Crystallized Intelligence p. 369
● The Battle of the Sexes p. 374
● Module Summary p. 376

9.3 Biological, Environmental,

and Behavioural Influences
on Intelligence
● Biological Influences on
Intelligence p. 378
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Brain Size and Intelligence p. 381
● Environmental Influences
on Intelligence p. 383
● Behavioural Influences on
Intelligence p. 387
● Module Summary p. 389
Mihai Simonia/Shutterstock

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 390
 LesPalenik/[Link]

Module

9.1 Measuring Intelligence

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology The reasoning behind the The concepts of entity theory Why it is difficult to
After reading associated with intelligence eugenics movements and its and incremental theory to remove all cultural bias
this module and intelligence testing use of intelligence tests help kids stay in school from intelligence testing
you should

Leilani Muir kept trying to get pregnant, but to no avail. Finally, frustrated, In Leilani’s case, when she was 14, she was told by doctors she needed to
she went to her doctor to see if there was a medical explanation. It have her appendix removed, so trusting the good doctors, she went under
turned out that there was, but not one that she expected; the doctors the knife, changing her life forever. She was never told of the fallopian tube
found that her fallopian tubes had been surgically destroyed, permanently surgery, and had to find out on her own after her many attempts to get
sterilizing her. pregnant. Later in her life, Leilani had her IQ re-tested. She scored 89,
which is close to average and well above the cutoff for forced sterilization.
How could someone’s fallopian tubes be destroyed without them know-
ing? Unfortunately, Leilani is one of the tens of thousands of victims of In 1996, Leilani received some measure of justice. She sued the govern-
the misguided application of intelligence tests. Born into a poor farming ment of Alberta and won her case, becoming the first person to receive
family near Calgary, Alberta, Leilani was entered by her parents into the compensation for injustices committed under the Sexual Sterilization Act.
Provincial Training School for Mental Defectives when she was 11. A few For her lifetime of not being able to have children, she received almost
years later, she was given an intelligence test, and she scored 64, which $750 000 in damages.
was below the 70 point cutoff required by law for forced sterilization.

You may not have heard of forced sterilization, but it was a not uncom- Focus Questions
mon practice in the United States and parts of Canada for almost half
of the 20th century. In 1928, Alberta passed the Sexual Sterilization Act, 1 How have intelligence tests been misused in modern society?
giving doctors the power to sterilize people deemed to be “genetically 2 Why do we have the types of intelligence tests that we have?
unfit,” without their consent. One of the criteria that could qualify a
person for being genetically unfit was getting a low score on an IQ test.

352 :: Module 9.1 : : Measuring Intelligence

 Mary Evans Picture Library/Alamy
Sir Francis Galton believed that intelligence was something
people inherit. Thus, he believed that an individual’s relatives
were a better predictor of intelligence than practice and effort.

The Canadian Press Images/Edmonton Journal

even though one seems to be smarter than the [Link]
characteristics make one person seem more intelligent
What happened to Leilani Muir was terrible and should than the other? Is that characteristic really intelligence,
never have happened. But this story also serves to drive or is it some other quality such as maturity or poise? As
home an extremely important truth about psychology, you can see, defining intelligence is not a simple matter.
and science more generally—it is important to measure The history of psychology has seen dozens of attempts
things properly. Leilani’s life-altering misfortune was the to do so, and dozens of methods for measuring this very Watch
result of both inhumane policies as well as the failure complex entity. We will begin this module by examining Special Topics:
to accurately measure her intelligence. Her initially low attempts at measuring intelligence, and will then review Intelligence Testing,
score was the result of an error in a single measurement. some of the social consequences of intelligence testing. Then and Now
Intelligence is not something like length or mass; there
is no objective standard to which we can compare our INTELLIGENCE AND PERCEPTION: GALTON’S
measures to see if they are accurate. Instead, we have to ANTHROPOMETRIC APPROACH The systematic
rely upon rigorous testing of our methodologies. If this attempt to measure intelligence in the modern era began
testing is not done well then, as this story attests, horrible with Sir Francis Galton (1822–1911). Galton believed
consequences can ensue. that because people learn about the world through their
senses, those with superior sensory abilities would be
So, how can we measure intelligence accurately?
more sensitively attuned to the world, and able to learn
What does the science say? As you will see in this mod-
more about it. Thus, sensory abilities should be an indi-
ule, this question is not easy to answer. Intelligence mea-
cator of a person’s intelligence. In 1884, Galton created
sures have a very chequered past, making the whole
a set of 17 sensory tests, such as the highest and lowest
notion of intelligence one of the most hotly contested
sounds people could hear or their ability to tell the dif-
areas in all of psychology.
ference between objects of slightly different weights, and
began testing people’s abilities in his anthropometric labo-
Different Approaches ratory. Anthropometrics (literally, “the measurement of
people”) referred to methods of measuring physical and mental
to Intelligence Testing variation in humans. Galton’s lab attracted many visitors,
Intelligence is a surprisingly difficult concept to define. allowing him to measure the sensory abilities of thousands
You undoubtedly know people who earn similar grades of people in England (Gillham, 2001).

Measuring Intelligence :: Module 9.1 :: 353

 One of Galton’s colleagues, James McKeen Cattell, test score for each age. Binet argued that a child’s test
took his tests to the United States and began measuring score measured her mental age, the average intellectual
the abilities of university students. This research revealed, ability score for children of a specific age. For example, if a
however, that people’s abilities on different sensory tests 7-year-old’s score was the same as the average score for
were not correlated with each other, or only very weakly. 7-year-olds, she would have a mental age of 7, whereas if
For example, having exceptional eyesight seemed to sig- it was the same as the average score for 10-year-olds, she
nify little about whether one would have exceptional would have a mental age of 10, even though her chron-
hearing. Clearly, this was a problem, because if two mea- ological age would be 7 in both cases. A child with a
sures don’t correlate well with each other, then they can’t mental age lower than her chronological age would be
both be indicators of the same thing, in this case Gal- expected to struggle in school and to require remedial
ton’s sensory definition of intelligence. Cattell also found education.
that students’ scores on the sensory tests did not predict The practicality of Binet and Simon’s test was
their grades, which one would expect would also be an apparent to others, and soon researchers in the United
indicator of intelligence. As a result, Galton’s approach to States began to adapt it for their own use. Lewis Terman
measuring intelligence was generally abandoned. at Stanford University adapted the test for American
children and established average scores for each age
INTELLIGENCE AND THINKING:THE STANFORD– level by administering the test to thousands of children.
BINET TEST In contrast to Galton, a prominent In 1916, he published the first version of his adapted
French psychologist, Alfred Binet, argued that intelli- test, and named it the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale
gence should be indicated by more complex thinking (Siegler, 1992).
processes, such as memory, attention, and comprehension. Terman and others almost immediately began
This view has influenced most intelligence researchers describing the Stanford-Binet test as a test intended to
up to the present day; they define intelligence as the measure innate levels of intelligence. This differed substan-
ability to think, understand, reason, and adapt to or overcome tially from Binet, who had viewed his test as a mea-
obstacles (Neisser et al., 1996). From this perspective, sure of a child’s current abilities, not as a measure of
intelligence reflects how well people are able to reason an innate capacity. There is a crucial difference between
and solve problems, plus their accumulated knowledge. believing that test scores reflect a changeable ability or
In 1904, Binet and his colleague, Theodore Simon, an innate capacity that is presumably fixed. The inter-
were hired by the French government to develop a test pretation of intelligence as a fixed, innate ability set the
to measure intelligence. At the end of the 19th century, stage for the incredibly misguided use of intelligence
institutional reforms in France had made primary school tests in the decades that followed, as we discuss later in
education available to all children. As a result, French this module.
educators struggled to deliver a curriculum to students To better reflect people’s presumably innate and
ranging from the very bright to those who found school fixed levels of intelligence, Terman adopted William
exceptionally challenging. To respond to this problem, Stern’s concept of the intelligence quotient, or IQ, a
the French government wanted an objective way of label that has stuck to the present day. IQ is calculated by
identifying “retarded” children who would benefit from taking a person’s mental age, dividing it by his chronological
specialized education (Siegler, 1992). age, and then multiplying by 100. For example, a 10-year-
Watch Binet and Simon experimented with a wide variety old child with a mental age of 7 would have an IQ of
Language Assessment of tasks, trying to capture the complex thinking pro- 7/10 × 100 = 70. On the other hand, if a child’s men-
Portions of Stanford- cesses that Binet believed comprised intelligence. They tal and chronological ages were the same, the IQ score
Binet Intelligence Scale settled on thirty tasks, arranged in order of increasing would always be 100, regardless of the age of the child;
difficulty. For example, simple tasks included repeating thus, 100 became the standard IQ for the “average child.”
sentences and defining common words like “house.” To see the conceptual difference implied by these
More difficult tasks included constructing sentences two ways of reporting intelligence, consider the follow-
using combinations of certain words (e.g., Paris, river, ing two statements. Does either one sound more opti-
fortune), reproducing drawings from memory, and being mistic than the other?
able to explain how two things differed from each other.
Watch • He has a mental age of 7, so he is 3 years behind.
Classic Footage
Very difficult tasks included being able to define abstract
• He has an IQ of 70, so he is 30 points below average.
of Assessment of concepts and to logically reason through a problem
Memory with the (Fancher, 1985). To many people, being 3 years behind in mental age
Stanford-Binet Binet and Simon gave their test to samples of chil- seems changeable; with sufficient work and assistance,
Intelligence Scale dren from different age groups to establish the average such a child should be able to catch back up to his peers.

354 :: Module 9.1 : : Measuring Intelligence

On the other hand, having an IQ that’s 30 points below
average sounds like the diagnosis of a permanent condi-
tion; such a person seems doomed to be “unintelligent”

Number of scores
forever.
One other odd feature of both Binet’s mental age
concept and Stern’s IQ was that they didn’t make much
68%
sense when you applied them to adults. For example,
is a person with the mental age of 45 not as smart as
someone with the mental age of 70? Similarly, imagine
95%
a 30-year-old with a mental age of 30; her IQ would be 0.1% 0.1%
100. But in 10 years, when she was 40, if her mental age
2% 14% 34% 34% 14% 2%
stayed at 30, she would have an IQ of only 75. Given that
55 70 85 100 115 130 145
IQ scores remain constant after about age 16 (Eysenck,
1994), this would mean that adults get progressively less Wechsler IQ score
smart with every year that they age. {fig. 9.1} The Normal Distribution of Scores for a Standardized Intelligence Test
To adjust for this problem, psychologists began to
use a different measure, deviation IQ, for calculating the
IQ of adults (Wechsler, 1939). The deviation IQ is cal- and make decisions. The CPI, in contrast, is based on the
culated by comparing the person’s test score with the Working Memory and Processing Speed subtests. It is
average score for people of the same age. In order to included in the Full Scale IQ category because greater
calculate deviation IQs, one must first establish the working memory capacity and processing speed allow
norm, or average, for a population. To do so, psycholo- more cognitive resources to be devoted to reasoning
gists administer tests to huge numbers of people, and and solving problems. Figure 9.3 shows some sample test
use these scores to estimate the average for people of items from the WAIS.
different ages. These averages are then used as baselines
against which to compare the person. Because “average” RAVEN’S PROGRESSIVE MATRICES Although the
is defined to be 100, a deviation IQ of 100 means that Stanford-Binet test and the WAIS have been widely
the person is average, whereas an IQ of 115 would mean used across North America, they have also been criti-
that the person’s IQ is above average (see Figure 9.1). cized by a number of researchers. One of the key prob-
One advantage of using deviation IQ scores is that, lems with many intelligence tests is that questions often
because they are calculated relative to others of the same require knowledge of the test developer’s culture and
age, it avoids the problem of IQ scores that consistently language. This cultural bias puts people from different
decline with age. cultures and social classes at an immediate disadvantage.
However, clearly a person’s intelligence should not be
THE WECHSLER ADULT INTELLIGENCE SCALE affected by whether they are fluent in English or famil- Watch
David Wechsler developed an IQ test that was specialized iar with Western culture. In response to this problem, Cultural Influences on
for adult populations. After much research, this evolved psychologists have tried to develop more valid, “culture- Intelligence: Robert
into the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS), free” tests. Sternberg
which remains the most common intelligence test in use
today for adolescents and adults. The WAIS is currently
in its fourth edition. (In an ironic twist, Wechsler him-
Full scale IQ
self was classified as having mild intellectual disabilities—
“feeble minded” was the term used at the time—as a
nine-year-old child when his family immigrated to the General ability index Cognitive proficiency index
United States from Romania.)
The WAIS provides a single IQ score for each test Verbal Perceptual Working Perceptual
taker—the Full Scale IQ—but also breaks intelligence comprehension reasoning memory speed
index index index index
into a General Ability Index (GAI) and a Cognitive Pro-
ficiency Index (CPI), as shown in Figure 9.2. The GAI is
Similarities, Block design,
computed from scores on the Verbal Comprehension and Vocabulary, Digit span, Symbol search,
Matrix reasoning,
Perceptual Reasoning indices. These measures tap into Arithmetic Coding
Information Visual puzzles
an individual’s intellectual abilities, but without plac-
ing much emphasis on how fast he can solve problems {fig. 9.2} Subscales of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale

Measuring Intelligence :: Module 9.1 :: 355

 In the 1930s, John Raven developed Raven’s
Processing Speed Index
Progressive Matrices, an intelligence test that is based
Symbol search View groupings of symbols for specific numbers of on pictures, not words, thus making it relatively unaffected
each symbol, and fill in a blank with a missing symbol.
by language or cultural background. The main set of
Coding Match different symbols with specific numbers, tasks found in Raven’s Progressive Matrices mea-
and fill in a blank with a correct symbol given sure the extent to which test takers can see patterns
a certain number.
in the shapes and colours within a matrix and then
determine which shape or colour would complete
the pattern (see Figure 9.4). Note how this type of
Working Memory Index
problem does not require knowledge of a specific
Arithmetic Jack has $16 and owes $8 to Hank and $4 to Frank. language, culture, or human-made object or custom.
What percentage of the original $16 will Jack still
have after he pays Hank and Frank?

Digit span Recall the order of number strings in both forward Quick Quiz 9.1a
and reverse directions.
Different Approaches to Intelligence
Testing
1 Galton developed anthropometrics as a means

KNOW . . .
Perceptual Reasoning Index
to measure intelligence based on ________.
Matrix reasoning View the pattern in the top two rows and A creativity
fill in the blank of the third row.
B perceptual abilities
C physical size and body type
D brain convolution

2 The deviation IQ is calculated by comparing an

UNDERSTAND . . .
individual’s test score
A at one point in time to that same person’s
test score at a different point in time.
B to that same person’s test score from a dif-
ferent IQ test; the “deviation” between the
tests is a measure of whether either test is
inaccurate.
C to that same individual’s school grades.
Block Design
D to the average score for other people who
Which three pieces are needed to make this puzzle? are the same age.

3 In an attempt to be culturally unbiased, Raven’s

Progressive Matrices relies upon what types of
questions?
A Verbal analogies
B Spatial calculations
C Visual patterns
D Practical problems that are encountered in
every culture

Verbal Comprehension Index

4 If someone’s mental age is double her
APPLY . . .

Vocabulary What does profligate mean? chronological age, what would her IQ be?
A 100
Similarities In what way are a bicycle and a car alike? B 50
C 200
Information On which continent is Japan located? D Cannot be determined with
this information

{fig. 9.3} Types of Problems Used to Measure Intelligence These hypothetical prob- Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
lems are consistent with the types seen on the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale.

356 :: Module 9.1 : : Measuring Intelligence

 IQ TESTING AND THE EUGENICS MOVEMENT
In order to understand the logic of Terman and his fol-
lowers, it is important to examine the larger societal
context in which his theories were developed. The end
of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries was a
remarkable time in human history. A few centuries of
European colonialism had spread Western influence
through much of the world. The Industrial Revolution,
which was concentrated in the West, compounded this,
making Western nations more powerful militarily, tech-
1 2
nologically, and economically. And in the sciences, Dar-
win’s paradigm-shattering work on the origin of species
firmly established the idea of evolution by natural selec-
3 4 tion (see Module 3.1), permanently transforming our
scientific understanding of the living world.
Although an exciting time for the advancement of
human knowledge, this confluence of events also had
5 6
some very unfortunate outcomes, especially in terms
of how colonialism affected non-Western cultures and
people of non-Caucasian ethnicities. In particular, the
7 8 stage was set for social “visionaries” to apply Darwin’s
ideas to human culture, and to explain the military–
economic–technological dominance of Western cultures
by assuming that Westerners (and especially Caucasians)
{fig. 9.4} Sample Problem from Raven’s Progressive were genetically superior. This explanation served as a
Matrices Which possible pattern (1–8) should go in the blank
handy justification for the colonial powers’ imposition
space? Check your answer at the bottom of the page.
of Western-European values on other cultures; in fact, it
was often viewed that the colonizers were actually doing
other cultures a favour, helping to “civilize” them by
The Chequered Past of Intelligence
assimilating them into a “superior” cultural system.
Testing The “social Darwinism” that emerged gave rise
IQ testing in North America got a significant boost to one of the more ugly social movements of recent
during World War I. Lewis Terman, developer of the times—eugenics, which means “good genes” (Gillham,
Stanford-Binet test, worked with the United States mil- 2001). The history of eugenics is intimately intertwined
itary to develop a set of intelligence tests that could be with the history of intelligence testing. In fact, Francis
used to identify which military recruits had the poten- Galton himself, a cousin of Charles Darwin, made an
tial to become officers and which should be streamed extensive study of the heritability of intelligence, and it
into non-officer roles. The intention was to make the was he who coined the term eugenics.
officer selection process more objective, thereby increas-
ing the efficiency and effectiveness of officer train-
ing programs. Following World War I, Terman argued
for the use of intelligence tests in schools for similar
purposes—identifying students who should be chan-
nelled into more “advanced” academic topics that
would prepare them for higher education, and others
who should be channelled into more skill-based topics
that would prepare them for direct entry into the skilled
trades and the general workforce. Armed with his pur-
portedly objective IQ tests, he was a man on a mission
to improve society. However, the way he went about American Philosophical Society
doing so was rife with problems. Many people viewed eugenics as a way to “improve” the
human gene pool. Their definition of “improve” is certainly up
for debate.
Answer to Figure 9.4: Pattern 6.

Measuring Intelligence :: Module 9.1 :: 357

 of lower status. For example, he wrote, “High-grade or
border-line deficiency . . . is very, very common among
Spanish-Indian and Mexican families of the Southwest
and also among [Link] dullness seems to be racial,
or at least inherent in the family stocks from which they
come. . . . Children of this group should be segregated
into separate classes. . . . They cannot master abstractions
but they can often be made into efficient workers . . .
from a eugenic point of view they constitute a grave
problem because of their unusually prolific breeding”
(Terman, 1916, pp. 91–92).
Such ideas gained enough popularity that forced
sterilization was carried out in at least 30 states and
two Canadian provinces, lasting for almost half a cen-
tury. In Alberta, the Sexual Sterilization Act remained
in force until 1972, by which time more than 2800
people had undergone sterilization procedures in that
province alone. And as you might have guessed, new
immigrants, the poor, Native people, and Blacks were
American Philosophical Society
sterilized far more often than the White middle and
Supporters of eugenics often noted that its logic was based on research and
philosophy from many different fields. Doing so put the focus on the abstract
upper classes.
intellectual characteristics of eugenics rather than on some of its disturbing, Although the actions of eugenicists were horribly
real-world implications. misguided and inflicted irreparable suffering on so
many, it is a disturbing lesson to realize that they were,
initially, motivated by arguably “good” humanitarian
Galton noticed that many members of his own values. Eugenicists like Terman genuinely believed that
family were successful businessmen and some, like they were making the world a better place. Just like a
Charles Darwin, eminent scientists. He studied other farmer would breed undesirable characteristics out of
families and concluded that eminence ran in fami- his livestock, they believed they were doing the same for
lies, which he believed was due to “good breeding.” society. It’s easy, and comforting, to simply demonize the
Although families share more than genes, such as eugenicists, assuming only “evil” people would do such
wealth, privilege, and social status, Galton believed that a thing. It’s far more challenging to accept that people
genes were the basis of the family patterns he observed with good intentions can, if guided by questionable
(Fancher, 2009). science, end up inflicting great harm.
Galton’s views influenced Lewis Terman, who pro-
moted an explicitly eugenic philosophy; he argued for THE RACE AND IQ CONTROVERSY One of the
the superiority of his own “race,” and in the interest of reasons intelligence tests played so well into the agendas
“improving” society, believed that his IQ tests provided a of eugenicists is that, from Terman onwards, research-
strong empirical justification for eugenic practices. One ers over the last century have consistently found differ-
such practice was the forced sterilization of people like ences in the IQ scores of people from different ethnic
Leilani Muir who we discussed at the beginning of this groups. Before we go any further, we want to acknowl-
module. edge that this is a difficult, and potentially upsetting, set
As Terman administered his tests to more people, of research findings. However, it’s important to take a
it seemed like his race-based beliefs were verified by close look at this research, and to understand the con-
his data. Simply put, people from other cultures didn’t troversy that surrounds it, because these fi ndings are
score as highly on his tests as did Western Caucasians. well known in the world of intelligence testing and
For example, 40% of new immigrants to Canada and could be easily misused by those who want to spread
the United States scored so low they were classified as prejudiced views. As you will see, when you take a
“feebleminded” (Kevles, 1985). He concluded that people close look at the science, the story is not nearly as clear
from non-Western cultures and non-White ethnicities as it may appear at first glance.
did not, in general, have as high IQs, and he therefore The root of this issue about “race and IQ” is that
argued that it was appropriate, even desirable, to stream there is a clear and reliable hierarchy of IQ scores across
them into less challenging academic pursuits and jobs different ethnic groups. This was first discovered in the

358 :: Module 9.1 : : Measuring Intelligence

early 1900s, and by the 1920s, the United States passed conclusions, in particular their argument that the differ-
legislation making it standard to administer intelligence ences in IQ scores between ethnic groups means that
tests to new immigrants arriving at Ellis Island for entry there are inherent, genetic differences in intelligence
into the [Link] result was that overwhelming num- between the groups. Within the general public, reaction
bers of immigrants were officially classified as “morons” was similarly mixed, with many people seizing upon it to
and “feebleminded.” Some psychologists suspected that justify policies such as limiting immigration, discontinu-
these tests were unfair, and that the low scores of these ing affirmative action programs, and otherwise working
minority groups might be due to language barriers and to overturn decades of progress made in the fight for
a lack of knowledge of American culture. Nevertheless, civil rights and equality.
as intelligence tests were developed that were increas-
ingly culturally sensitive—such as Raven’s Progressive PROBLEMS WITH THE RACIAL SUPERIORITY
Matrices—these differences persisted. Specifically, Asian INTERPRETATION In many ways, the simplest cri-
people tended to score the highest, followed by Whites, tique of the racial superiority interpretation of these test
followed by Latinos and Blacks; this has been found in score differences is that the tests themselves are culturally
samples in several parts of the world, including Canada biased. This critique was lodged against intelligence tests
(Rushton & Jensen, 2005). Other researchers have found from the time of Terman and, as we discussed earlier, a
that Native people in Canada score lower as a group considerable amount of research focused on creating
than Canadians with European ancestry (e.g., Beiser & tests that were not biased due to language and culture. Watch
Gotowiec, 2000). But in spite of all this work, the test score differences Cultural Biases: Robert
The race-IQ research hit the general public in 1994 between ethnic groups remained. Guthrie
with the publication of The Bell Curve (Herrnstein & A more subtle critique was that it wasn’t neces-
Murray, 1994), which became a best-seller. This book sarily the tests that were biased, but the very process
focused on over two decades of research that replicated of testing itself. If people in minority groups are less
the race differences in IQ that we mentioned earlier. familiar with standardized tests, if they are less moti-
Herrnstein and Murray also argued that human intel- vated to do well on the tests, or if they are less able to
ligence is a strong predictor of many different personal focus on performing well during the testing sessions,
and social outcomes, such as workplace performance, they will be more likely to produce lower test scores.
income, and the likelihood of being involved in criminal This indeed seems to be the case; researchers have
activities. Additionally, The Bell Curve argued that those found that cultural background affects many aspects of
of high intelligence were reproducing less than those the testing process including how comfortable people
of low intelligence, leading to a dangerous population are in a formal testing environment, how motivated
trend in the United States. They believed that America they are to perform well on such tests, and their ability
was becoming an increasingly divided society, populated to establish rapport with the test administrators (Anas-
by a small class of “cognitive elite,” and a large under- tasi & Urbina, 1996).
class with lower intelligence. They argued therefore that Research has also indicated that the IQ differ- Watch
a healthy society would be a meritocracy, in which people ences may be due to a process known as stereotype In the Real World:
who had the most ability and worked the hardest would threat, which occurs when negative stereotypes about a group Intelligence Tests and
receive the most wealth, power, and status. Those who cause group members to underperform on ability tests (Steele, Stereotypes
didn’t have what it took to rise to the top, such as those 1997). In other words, if a Black person is reminded of
with low IQs, should be allowed to live out their fates, the stereotype that Black people perform more poorly Watch
Joshua Aronson:
and should not therefore be helped by programs such as than White people on intelligence tests, she may end up
Can Technology Help
Head Start, affirmative action programs, or scholarships scoring lower on that test because she was afraid of liv-
People Overcome
for members of visible minorities. Instead, the system ing up to that stereotype. Researchers have identified
Stereotype Threat?
should simply allow people with the most merit to rise at least three reasons why this happens. First, stereotype
to the top, even if they ended being disproportionately threat increases arousal due to the fact that individuals
of certain cultural or ethnic backgrounds. are aware of the negative stereotype about their group,
As you can imagine, this research sparked a bitter and are concerned that a poor performance may reflect
controversy. Within the academic world, some research- poorly on their group; this arousal then undermines their
ers have claimed that these findings are valid (e.g., test performance. Second, stereotype threat causes people
Gottfredson, 2005), whereas others have argued that to become more self-focused, paying more attention to
these results are based on flawed methodologies and poor how well they are performing, thus leaving fewer cogni-
measurements (e.g., Lieberman, 2001; Nisbett, 2005). tive resources for them to focus on the test itself. Third,
Others have sought to discredit Herrnstein and Murray’s stereotype threat increases the tendency for people to

Measuring Intelligence :: Module 9.1 :: 359

 stereotype threat (Nisbett et al., 2012), establishing it as
a reliable phenomenon that regularly suppresses the test
scores of many stereotyped groups in a variety of settings.
These concerns cast doubt on the validity of IQ scores
for members of non-White ethnic and cultural groups,
suggesting that a test score reflects not merely IQ but also
other factors, such as linguistic or cultural bias in the test-
ing situation. Other researchers have taken issue with the
genetic interpretation of the findings, arguing that even if one
accepts that the tests are valid and there really are intel-
ligence differences between groups in society, this may not
reflect innate, genetic differences. For example, consider
the circumstances that poor people and ethnic minorities
face in countries like Canada or the United States. People
from such groups tend to experience a host of factors that
contribute to poorer cognitive and neurological develop-
ment, such as poorer nutrition, greater stress, lower-quality
schools, worse medical treatment, higher rates of illness
Watch (Acevedo-Garcia et al., 2008), and greater exposure to
Demographics and industrial toxins such as lead (Dilworth-Bart & Moore,
Intelligence Testing:
2006). Given the accumulation of these factors, it seems
Robert Guthrie
highly likely (although the controversy continues in the
literature) that the race-IQ gap is explained not by genetic
differences, but by differences in environments, stereotype
threat effects, and responses to the process of testing itself.
These disadvantages can also make people from
Andresr/[Link] economically poorer backgrounds and some ethnic
Stereotype threat: Just being reminded of a stereotype can minorities feel like their efforts to succeed are futile. In
reduce performance on mental tasks. other words, initial difficulties in school or on achieve-
ment tests may lead individuals to believe that they are
actively try to inhibit negative thoughts they may have, not intelligent and that, due to their difficult lives, there
which also reduces the cognitive resources that could is no hope for improvement. However, recent research
otherwise be used to focus on the test (Schmader et al., suggests that it is possible to improve one’s intelligence—
2008). There have now been more than 200 studies on it just requires the belief that change is possible.

Surprisingly to many people, intelligence is highly change-

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC able. Yet many people hold implicit beliefs that their intel-
LITERACY MODEL ligence level is relatively fixed. Ironically, that belief itself will
tend to limit people’s potential to positively affect their own
Beliefs about Intelligence intelligence.

Simulate Although intelligence test scores are supposed to measure What do we know
Survey: What Is intelligence, as you’ve read in this module, scores on about the kinds of
Intelligence? these tests can be influenced by a number of factors. Some beliefs that may affect
of these are fairly obvious, like fatigue, illness, or stress; but
test scores?
some are very subtle, such as the beliefs we have about
our own intelligence. Think about your own intelligence Educators and parents have long
for a moment: Do you believe your level of intelligence is been perplexed by students who
something innate to you, a basic quality of yours, like your consistently achieve below what
height, which is relatively unchangeable? Or do you believe their ability would predict. This is an especially important
it is more changeable, something you could improve if you issue for students, as children’s self-perceptions of their men-
worked at it? Can you make yourself smarter? tal abilities have a very strong influence on their academic

360 :: Module 9.1 : : Measuring Intelligence

performance (Greven et al., 2009). For some students, it is 2006). If they are motivated to succeed at a task, then they
simply a matter of apathy, but for others, it can be a very will work through failures and challenges—if intelligence and
frustrating experience. ability can change, then it makes sense to keep pursuing goals.

Thus it was truly a serious matter when psychologist Carol Resilience is a desirable trait, so Dweck and her colleagues Watch
Dweck (2002) responded to a colleague’s inquiry about tested a group of junior high students to see whether incre- What’s in It for Me?
“Why smart people can be so stupid.” Her research has mental views could be taught (Blackwell et al., 2007). In a How Resilient Are You?
found some interesting conclusions in that there seem to be randomized, controlled experiment, they taught one group
two influential beliefs about the nature of intelligence. First is of Grade 7 students incremental theory—that they could
entity theory: the belief that intelligence is a fixed character- control and change their ability. This group’s grades increased
istic and relatively difficult (or impossible) to change. Second is over the school year, whereas the control group’s grades
incremental theory: the belief that intelligence can be shaped actually declined (Figure 9.5). Thus, if you are skeptical about
by experiences, practice, and effort. According to Dweck and your own abilities, it might pay to look into Dweck’s research
colleagues, beliefs based on entity theory and incremental more closely.
theory have different effects on academic performance.
Can we critically
How can science evaluate this research?
test whether These findings suggest that any time
beliefs affect a belief about intelligence or abil-
performance? ity can be changed to become more
incremental, then that change should
A c c o rd i n g t o D we c k ’s
probably be made. One unanswered
research, the differences between the two theories are not
question raised by this research, however, is whether this
nearly as important as the differences in behaviour that result.
is indeed always for the best. What if, in some situations, it
In experiments by Dweck and her colleagues, students were
is true that no matter how hard a person tries, he or she is
identified as holding either entity theories or incremental
unlikely to succeed? At what point do we encourage people
theories. The students had the chance to answer 476 general
to be more “realistic” and to accept their limitations? Is it
knowledge questions dealing with topics such as history, lit-
truly always desirable to encourage people to “reach for the
erature, math, and geography. They received immediate feed-
stars,” or is it sometimes better to steer people away from
back on whether their answers were correct or incorrect.
the shattered dreams and heartache that would accompany
Those who held entity theories were more likely to give up
striving only to fail?
in the face of highly challenging problems, and they were likely
to withdraw from situations that resulted in failure. These An additional difficulty surrounding these studies is that it is
individuals believe that successful people were born that way, not clear what mechanisms might be causing the improve-
so why keep punishing yourself if you simply do not have the ments. Does the incremental view of intelligence lead to
ability to succeed? By comparison, people with incremen- increased attention, effort, and time organizing study mate-
tal views of intelligence were more resilient (Mangels et al., rials? Or is it actually just a positive mood manipulation?

78
Incremental
77
Entity
76
75
Math grades

74
73
72
71
70
69
68
Fall 7th Spring 7th Fall 8th Spring 8th
grade grade grade grade

{fig. 9.5} Personal Beliefs Influence Grades Students who hold incremental views of intelligence (i.e., the belief that intelli-
gence can change with effort) show improved grades in math compared to children who believe that intelligence is an unchanging
entity (Blackwell et al., 2007).

Measuring Intelligence :: Module 9.1 :: 361

 Positive moods have been shown to improve performance programs such as this could counteract the disempowering
on tests of perception and creativity (Isenberg, 1987); effects of stereotypes by helping members of stereotyped
perhaps the hope associated with the incremental view is groups to have greater resilience and to avoid succumbing
influencing students’ emotions, not their IQs. to negative beliefs about themselves. Not only is intelligence
changeable, as this research shows, but perhaps society itself
However, regardless of the mechanism(s) involved, the fact
Watch
can be changed through the widespread application of this
that it is possible to help students by changing their view of
The Big Picture: What
research, as it lurches toward a truly level playing field.
intelligence could be a powerful force for educational change
Is Intelligence? in the future.

Why is this relevant?

This research has huge poten-
tial to be applied in schools
and to become a par t of
standard parenting practice.
Teaching people to adopt the view that intelligence and
other abilities are trainable skills will give them a greater
feeling of control over their lives; it may improve their grades
in the process. Carol Dweck and Lisa Sorich Blackwell have
designed a program called Brainology to teach students
from elementary through high school that the brain can be
trained and strengthened through practice. They hope that lisafx/iStockphoto

Quick Quiz 9.1b The Chequered Past of Intelligence Testing

1 People who believe that intelligence is relatively APPLY . . . 4 As a major exam approaches, a teacher who is hoping to
KNOW . . .

fixed are said to advocate a(n) ________ theory of reduce stereotype threat and promote an incremental
intelligence. theory of intelligence would most likely
A incremental C sexist A remind test takers that males tend to do poorly on
B entity D hereditary the problems.
B remind students that they inherited their IQ from
their parents.
2 ________ is the situation in which, when people are
C cite research of a recent study showing that a
aware of stereotypes about their social group, they
may fear being reduced to that stereotype. particular gene is linked to IQ.
A Incremental intelligence D let students know that hard work is the best way
to prepare for the exam.
B Hereditary intelligence
C Stereotype threat
5 According to the discussion of the race and IQ controversy
ANALYZE . . .

D Intelligence discrimination
A there are clear IQ differences between people
of different ethnicities, and these probably have a
3 Eugenics was a movement that promoted genetic basis.
A the use of genetic engineering technologies to B the use of Raven’s Progressive Matrices has shown
improve the human gene pool. that there are in fact no differences in IQ between
B the assimilation of one culture into another, often the “races”; any such group differences must be due
as part of colonialism. to cultural biases built into the tests.
C using measures of physical capabilities (e.g., visual C many scholars believe that the ethnic differences in
acuity) as estimates of a person’s intelligence. IQ are so large that one could argue that a person’s
D preventing people from reproducing if they were race should be considered a relevant factor in
deemed to be genetically inferior, so as to improve important decisions, such as who to let into medical
the human gene pool. school or who to hire for a specific job.
D even if tests are constructed that are culturally
unbiased, the testing process itself may still favour
some cultures over others.

Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

362 :: Module 9.1 : : Measuring Intelligence

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
9.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with intelligence and

intelligence testing:
anthropometrics (p. 353) Raven’s Progressive Matrices
entity theory (p. 361) (p. 356)
incremental theory (p. 361) Stanford-Binet test (p. 354) LesPalenik/[Link]
intelligence (p. 354) stereotype threat (p. 359)
intelligence quotient (IQ) Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale
(p. 354) (WAIS) (p. 355)
mental age (p. 354)
ANALYZE . . .

● Why it is difficult to remove all cultural bias from

UNDERSTAND . . . intelligence testing. There are many reasons why the
process of intelligence testing contains cultural bias,
● The reasoning behind the eugenics movements and resulting in inaccuracies when testing people from certain
its use of intelligence tests. The eugenicists believed cultural groups: Tests may contain content or knowledge
that abilities like intelligence were inborn, and thus, by that is more relevant to some cultures; the method of
encouraging reproduction between people with higher testing (e.g., paper and pencil multiple-choice questions)
IQs, and reducing the birthrate of people with lower may be more familiar to people from some cultures; the
intelligence, the overall genetic pool of humankind could environment of testing may make people from some
be improved. cultures more comfortable; the presence of negative
stereotypes about one’s group may interfere with test-
APPLY . . . taking abilities; and the internalization of self-defeating
beliefs, such as entity theory beliefs, may further interfere
● The concepts of entity theory and incremental theory with the ability of members of disadvantaged cultures to
to help kids stay in school. One of the key reasons that have the optimism to believe that they can improve their
people stop trying to succeed, and then eventually drop performance.
out of school, is that they internalize a belief that their
basic abilities, such as their intelligence, are fixed and not
something they can change. By not trying, they guarantee
that they will perform poorly, which then reinforces their
tendency to not try very hard. By training young people
to think of themselves as changeable, to think of the brain
like a muscle that can be strengthened through exercise,
people can improve their scores on intelligence tests. At
the same time, they may become much more resilient
to negative circumstances, and much better able to cope
when life offers them challenges or setbacks.

Measuring Intelligence :: Module 9.1 :: 363

 Lane V. Erickson/Shutterstock

Module

9.2 Understanding Intelligence

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology related Why intelligence is divided into Your knowledge to identify Whether teachers should
After reading to understanding intelligence fluid and crystallized types examples from the triarchic spend time tailoring
this module theory of intelligence lessons to each individual
Intelligence differences between
you should student’s learning style
males and females

Blind Tom was born into a Black slave family in 1849. When his mother such as music, mathematics, or art. The existence of savants complicates
was bought in a slave auction by General James Bethune,Tom was included our discussion of intelligence considerably. Normally, the label “intelli-
in the sale for nothing because he was blind and believed to be useless. gent” or “unintelligent” is taken to indicate some sort of overall abil-
Indeed, Tom was not “smart” in the normal sense of the term. Even as an ity, the amount of raw brainpower available to the person, akin to an
adult he could speak fewer than 100 words and would never be able to go engine’s horsepower. But this doesn’t map onto savants at all—they have
to school. But he could play more than 7000 pieces on the piano, including seemingly unlimited “horsepower” for certain skills and virtually none
a huge classical music repertoire and many of his own compositions. Tom for many others. The existence of savants, and the more general phenom-
could play, flawlessly, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Bach, Chopin, Verdi, Ros- enon of people being good at some things (e.g., math, science) but not
sini, and many others, even after hearing a piece only a single time. As an others (e.g., languages, art), challenges our understanding of intelligence
11-year-old, he played at the White House, and by 16 went on a world and makes us ask more deeply, what is intelligence? Is it one ability? Or
tour. A panel of expert musicians performed a series of musical experi- is it many?
ments on him, and universally agreed he was “among the most wonderful
phenomena in musical history.” Despite his dramatic linguistic limitations,
he could reproduce, perfectly, up to a 15-minute conversation without los- Focus Questions
ing a single syllable, and could do so in English, French, or German, without
1 Is intelligence one ability or many?
understanding any part of what he was saying. In the mid-1800s, he was
considered to be the “eighth wonder of the world.” 2 How have psychologists attempted to explain
intelligence as a collection of different abilities?
Today, Tom would be considered a savant, an individual with low mental
capacity in most domains but extraordinary abilities in other specific areas

364 :: Module 9.2 : : Understanding Intelligence

 Scientific evidence for intelligence as a general abil-
ity dates back to early 20th-century work by Charles
Spearman, who began by developing techniques to cal-
culate correlations among multiple measures of men-
tal abilities (Spearman, 1923). One of these techniques,
known as factor analysis, is a statistical technique that
examines correlations between variables to find clusters of related
variables, or “factors.” For example, imagine that scores on
tests of vocabulary, reading comprehension, and verbal
reasoning correlate highly together; these would form
a “language ability” factor. Similarly, imagine that scores
on algebra, geometry, and calculus questions correlate
highly together; these would form a “math ability” fac-
tor. However, if the language variables don’t correlate
very well with the math variables, then you have some
confidence that these are separate factors; in this case, it
would imply that there are at least two types of inde-
pendent abilities: math and language abilities. For there
to be an overarching general ability called “intelligence,”
one would expect that tests of different types of abilities
would all correlate with each other, forming only one
factor.
Bettmann/Corbis
SPEARMAN’S GENERAL INTELLIGENCE Spear-
man found that schoolchildren’s grades in different
school subjects were positively correlated, even though
In general, people believe that intelligence involves the
the content of the different topics (e.g., math vs. history)
ability to think, understand, reason, learn, and find solu-
was very different. This led Spearman to hypothesize the
tions to problems. But how are these abilities related to
existence of a general intelligence factor (abbreviated
each other? Does the content of a person’s intelligence
as “g”). Spearman believed that g represented a person’s
matter? To be intelligent, must a person be able to do
“mental energy,” reflecting his belief that some people’s
these things well for math, history, poetry, music, and
brains are simply more “powerful” than others (Stern-
child rearing? Or does intelligence break down into sets
berg, 2003). This has greatly influenced psychologists up
of lower-level abilities? If so, does that mean that there
to the present day, cementing within the field the notion
isn’t any such thing as “intelligence” per se, but rather a
that intelligence is a basic cognitive trait comprising the
whole host of narrower “intelligences”? As you will learn
ability to learn, reason, and solve problems, regardless of
in this module, a full picture of intelligence involves
their nature. Spearman’s concept of g is apparent today Watch
various perspectives on how many different abilities fall
with a wide range of intelligence tests administered by Basics: Theories of
under the term “intelligence.”
psychologists (Johnson et al., 2008). Intelligence

Is g real? Does it predict anything meaningful? In

Intelligence as a Single, fact, g does predict many important phenomena. For
example, correlations between g and high school and
General Ability university grades are about .5, which is a relatively strong
When we say someone is intelligent, we usually are association (Neisser et al., 1996). The general intelligence
implying they have a high level of a generalized cognitive factor also predicts how many years a person will stay in
ability. We expect intelligent people to be “intelligent” in school, as well as how much they will earn afterwards
many different ways, about many different topics. Intel- (Ceci & Williams, 1997).
ligent people are the kids who do well in almost every General intelligence scores also predict many seem-
subject in high school, whereas the unintelligent seem ingly unrelated phenomena, such as how long you are
to struggle in almost every class they take. We wouldn’t likely to live (Gottfredson & Deary, 2004), how quickly
normally call someone intelligent if she were good at, you can make snap judgments on perceptual discrimina-
say, making up limericks, but nothing else. Intelligence tion tasks (i.e., laboratory tasks that test how quickly peo-
should manifest itself in many different domains. ple form perceptions; Deary & Stough, 1996), and how

Understanding Intelligence :: Module 9.2 :: 365

 Total percentage of the population in this range: well you can exert self-control (Shamosh et al., 2008).
50
Some other examples of g’s influences are depicted in
Figure 9.6.
Watch
40 In the workplace, intelligence test scores not only

Percentage
Thinking Like a 30 predict who gets hired, but also how well people per-
Psychologist: form at a wide variety of jobs. In fact, the correlation is
20
Intelligence Tests so strong that after almost a century of research (Schmidt
and Success & Hunter, 1998), general mental ability has emerged as
10
the single best predictor of job performance (correlation
0
≤75 75–90 90–110 110–125 ≥125 = .53; Hunter & Hunter, 1984). Overall intelligence is
IQ Scores a far better predictor than the applicant’s level of edu-
cation (correlation = .10) or how well the applicant
Individuals in this range who divorced within
five years: does in the job interview itself (correlation = .14). It is
12 amazing to think that in order to make a good hiring
decision, a manager would be better off using a single
10
number given by an IQ test than actually sitting down
8 and interviewing applicants face to face!
Percentage

6 The usefulness of g is also shown by modern neuro-

4 science research findings that overall intelligence predicts
how well our brains work. For example, Tony Vernon at
2
Western University (formerly the University of Western
0 Ontario) and his colleagues have found that general intel-
≤75 75–90 90–110 110–125 ≥125
IQ Scores ligence test scores predict how efficiently we conduct
impulses along nerve fibres and across synapses (Johnson
Individuals in this range who live in poverty: et al., 2005; Reed et al., 2004). This efficiency of nerve
25 conduction allows for more efficient information pro-
cessing overall. As a result, when working on a task, the
20
brains of highly intelligent people don’t have to work as
Percentage

15 hard as those of less intelligent people; high IQ brains

show less overall brain activation than others for the same
10
task (Grabner et al., 2003; Haier et al., 1992).
5 Thus, overall intelligence, as indicated by g, is related
to many real-world phenomena, from how well we do at
0
≤75 75–90 90–110 110–125 ≥125 work to how well our brains function.
IQ Scores
DOES G TELL US THE WHOLE STORY? Clearly, g
Individuals in this range who have been reflects something real. However, we have to remem-
incarcerated:
ber that correlation does not equal causation. It is pos-
8
sible that the effects of g are due to motivation—being
7
motivated to succeed would lead to better grades, bet-
6
ter IQ scores, and better job performance. Therefore, it is
Percentage

5
4
important to be cautious when interpreting these results.
3
We should also ask whether g can explain every-
2 thing about a person’s intelligence. A single number can-
1 not possibly capture the kind of genius exhibited by the
0 savants we discussed earlier. Or you can think closer to
≤75 75–90 90–110 110–125 ≥125
your own experience—surely you have known people
IQ Scores
who were very talented in art or music but terrible in
{fig. 9.6} General Intelligence Is Related to Many Differ- math or science? Or did you ever know an incredibly
ent Life Outcomes General intelligence (g) predicts not just
intellectual ability, but also psychological well-being, income,
smart person who was socially awkward, or a charismatic
and successful long-term relationships. and charming person who you’d never want as your

366 :: Module 9.2 : : Understanding Intelligence

chemistry partner? There may be many ways of being Moving beyond intelligence as a single ability may
intelligent, and reducing all of that diversity to a single help us to better appreciate the different gifts we all have.
number seems to overlook the different types of intel-
ligence that people have.
The idea that it is important to appreciate the diver- Quick Quiz 9.2a
sity of abilities different people possess is captured very Intelligence as a Single, General Ability
well by a story told by Craig Kielburger, a famous young
1 Spearman believed that

KNOW . . .
Canadian from Toronto who, at age 12, founded the char- A people have multiple types of intelligence.
ity Kids Can Free the Children (usually shortened to Free B intelligence scores for math and history courses
the Children). Craig quickly gained national and interna- should not be correlated.
tional acclaim as his organization inspired millions of kids C statistics cannot help researchers understand how
to take action against child labour and poverty. He has different types of intelligence are related to each
now been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize multiple other.
times, won countless awards, and written several books. D some people’s brains are more “powerful” than
Craig and his brother, Mark, write, others, thus giving them more “mental energy.”

Many of us have difficulty recognizing our skills and tal-

2 What is factor analysis?

UNDERSTAND . . .
ents as the gifts they truly are. Craig learned this lesson A A method of ranking individuals by their
a few years ago while he was doing a television interview intelligence
on a show that was focusing on “accomplished youth.” B A statistical procedure that is used to identify
The other young interviewee was nineteen years old, had which sets of psychological measures are highly
already completed his master’s degree and PhD, and was correlated with each other
working at an important job at a pharmaceutical company. C The technique of choice for testing for a single,
Throughout the interview, he kept mentioning that he was general intelligence
“gifted,” a fact that he had discovered when he passed a D The technique for testing the difference between
special IQ test. Thereafter, the boy’s parents told him that two means

he was “gifted,” his teachers spent extra time with him

because he was “gifted,” and the media labelled him as 3 Researchers who argue that g is a valid way of
“gifted.” He must have said the word “gifted” at least understanding intelligence would NOT point to
research showing
five times during the interview. Finally, the host turned
A people with high g make perceptual judgments
to Craig and asked, “Well, are you gifted, Craig?” Craig more quickly.
looked at her and shook his head. B people with high g are more likely to succeed at
Later that day, Craig was still thinking about this their jobs.
interview when he went back to the Free The Children C the brains of people with low g conduct impulses
office. As he looked around at the remarkable people who more slowly.
work with us, he realized that he had given the host the D people with low g are better able to do some tasks
wrong answer. Craig saw our webmaster, whom we all than people with high g.
consider to be incredibly gifted when it comes to designing
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
websites that are visited by millions of people around the
world. He saw our young writing staff, gifted in translating
their passion and energy into words to inspire others. He
saw our amazing adult volunteers, who are gifted mentors, Intelligence as Multiple,
giving tirelessly of their time and expertise. The more he
thought about it, the more Craig realized that he couldn’t Specific Abilities
think of anyone he knew who wasn’t gifted. Spearman himself believed that g didn’t fully capture intel-
In our society, we are often led to believe that only an ligence. After all, although different items on an intelligence
extraordinary few people qualify as “gifted.” In truth, every- test were correlated with each other, their correlations were
one has a unique gift to share with the world, whether it’s never 1.0, and usually far less than [Link] is an important
for creating beautiful works of art, healing the sick, being a point, because correlations less than 1.0 mean that scores
compassionate listener, fixing things that are broken, raising on one item do not perfectly predict scores on another
money, being a good friend, or finding solutions to problems. [Link] performance when answering a given question
(Kielburger & Kielburger, 2006, pp. 258–259) is not determined by just one factor, global intelligence, but

Understanding Intelligence :: Module 9.2 :: 367

 obviously reflects many other factors, such as idiosyncratic abilities were in fact correlated with each other, suggesting
knowledge that helps you answer that particular question, that there was after all an overarching general intelligence.
or the amount of attention available to focus on the ques- A highly technical and statistical debate raged for
tion in that moment (vs. being distracted, tired, stressed, or several more decades between proponents of g and pro-
having other things on your mind). ponents of multiple intelligences, until it was eventually
To account for the idiosyncratic skill or knowledge decided, of course, that both of them were right.
factor, Spearman hypothesized a second kind of abil-
ity that was specific to each task (i.e., each item on a THE HIERARCHICAL MODEL OF INTELLIGENCE
test). And in a flurry of creativity, he chose the inspired The controversy was largely settled by the widespread
name “ s” to represent this specific-level, skill-based adoption of hierarchical models that describe how some
intelligence. His two-factor theory of intelligence was types of intelligence are “nested” within others in a similar
therefore comprised of g and s, where g represents our manner to how, for example, a person is nested within her
general, overarching intelligence, and s represents our community, which may be nested within a city, which is
skill or ability level for a given task. nested within a province. The general hierarchical model
Nobody has seriously questioned the s part of describes how our lowest-level abilities (those relevant to a
Spearman’s theory; obviously, each task in life, from particular task, like Spearman’s s) are nested within a mid-
opening a coconut, to using an ATM machine, to solv- dle level that roughly corresponds to Thurstone’s primary
ing calculus problems, requires abilities that are specific mental abilities (although not necessarily the specific ones
to the task. However, the concept of g has come under that Thurstone hypothesized), and these are nested within
heavy fire throughout the intervening decades, leading a general intelligence (Spearman’s g; Gustaffson, 1988). By
to several different theories of multiple intelligences. the mid-1990s, analyses of prior research on intelligence
The first influential theory of multiple intelligences concluded that almost all intelligence studies were best
was created by Louis Thurstone, who examined scores of explained by a three-level hierarchy (Carroll, 1993).
general intelligence tests using factor analysis, and found What this means is that we have an overarching
seven different clusters of what he termed primary men- general intelligence, which is made up of a small num-
tal abilities. Thurstone’s seven factors were word fluency ber of sub-abilities, each of which is made up of a large
(which is the person’s ability to produce language flu- number of specific abilities that apply to individual tasks.
ently), verbal comprehension, numeric abilities, spatial Figure 9.7 shows the evolution of these models.
visualization, memory, perceptual speed, and reasoning However, even this didn’t completely settle the
(Thurstone, 1938). He argued that there was no mean- debate about what intelligence really is, because it left
ingful g, but that intelligence needed to be understood at open a great deal of room for different theories of the
the level of these primary mental abilities that functioned best way to describe the middle-level factors. And as you
independently of each other. However, Spearman (1939) will see in the next section, even the debate about g has
fired back, arguing that Thurstone’s seven primary mental been updated in recent years.

(a) (b) (c)

g g

Verbal Mathematical
intelligence intelligence

Verbal Mathematical
intelligence intelligence

1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4

Intelligence as a Multifaceted view Hierarchical model

unitary trait of intelligence (Today’s dominant view)
(Early 20th-century view) (Emerged in the 1930s)

Notes:
• “g” stands for general, a single factor underlying all intelligent behaviour.
• Numbered boxes represent multiple tests of different intellectual abilities.

{fig. 9.7} Comparing Different Theories of Intelligence Diagrams A and B summarize Spearman’s and Thurstone’s historical
views. Diagram C represents the modern, general consensus that intelligence is a three-level hierarchy (although see the Working
the Scientific Literacy Model section for a further wrinkle in this story . . . ).

368 :: Module 9.2 : : Understanding Intelligence

 WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC
LITERACY MODEL
Testing for Fluid and Crystallized
Intelligence
Fluid intelligence
(Gf)
The concept of g implies that performance on all aspects of
an intelligence test is influenced by this central ability. But
careful analyses of many data sets, and recent neurobiological
evidence, have shown that there may be two types of g that
have come to be called fluid intelligence (Gf) and crystallized
intelligence (Gc).
Crystallized intelligence
(Gc)
What do we know
{fig. 9.8} Fluid and Crystallized Intelligence Fluid intelli-
about fluid and gence is dynamic and changing, and may eventually become
crystallized intelligence? crystallized into a more permanent form.

The distinction between fluid and

processes more information and learns more things will gain
crystallized intelligence is basically
more crystallized knowledge (Horn & Cattell, 1967). Note,
the difference between “figuring
however, that this compelling hypothesis has received little
things out” and “knowing what
empirical support thus far (Nisbett et al., 2012). The second
to do from past experience.” Fluid intelligence (Gf) is
is that it is difficult, perhaps impossible, to measure Gf with-
a type of intelligence used in learning new information and solv-
out tapping into people’s pre-existing knowledge and experi-
ing new problems not based on knowledge the person already
ence, as we discuss below.
possesses. Tests of Gf involve problems such as pattern rec-
ognition and solving geometric puzzles, neither of which is The distinction between Gf and Gc certainly makes intuitive
heavily dependent on past experience. For example, Raven’s sense, but does scientific evidence support it?
Progressive Matrices, in which a person is asked to com-
plete a series of geometric patterns of increasing complex- How can science
ity (see Module 9.1), is the most widely used measure of Gf.
Crystallized intelligence (Gc), is a type of intelligence that
help distinguish
draws upon past learning and experience. Tests of Gc, such as between fluid
tests of vocabulary and general knowledge, depend on indi- and crystallized
viduals’ prior knowledge to come up with the right answer intelligence?
(Figure 9.8; Cattell, 1971).
One interesting line of research that supports the Gf/Gc
Gf and Gc are thought to be largely separate from each distinction comes from examining how each type changes
other, with two important exceptions. One is that having over the life span (Cattell, 1971; Horn & Cattell, 1967). In
greater fluid intelligence means that the person is better one study, people aged 20 to 89 years were given a wide
able to process information and to learn; therefore, greater array of tasks, including the Block Design task (see Figure 9.3),
Gf may, over time, lead to greater Gc, as the person who the Tower of London puzzle (see Figure 9.9 ), and tests

Tower of London Test

Shallice (1982)

2 moves 4 moves 5 moves

Initial Position Goal Position Goal Position Goal Position

(no.2) (no.6) (no.10)

{fig. 9.9} Measuring Fluid Intelligence The Tower of London problem has several versions, each of which requires the test
taker to plan and keep track of rules. For example, the task might involve moving the coloured beads from the initial position so
that they match any of the various end goal positions.

Understanding Intelligence :: Module 9.2 :: 369

 t
8IJDI
4PVUI
"NFSJDBO
DPVOUSJFT
BSF
UIFTF contrast, this brain region does not play a central role in crys-
tallized intelligence, which is more dependent on long-term
memory systems that involve a number of different regions
of the cortex.

Can we critically
evaluate crystallized
and fluid intelligence?
There are certainly questions we
can ask about crystallized and fluid
intelligence. For one, is there really
PACIFIC any such thing as fluid intelligence,
OCEAN or does it merely break down into specific sub-abilities?
And, are fluid and crystallized intelligence completely different
from each other, or are they related in some ways?

Cognitive psychologists generally accept that fluid intelli-

gence is a blending of several different cognitive abilities.
For example, the abilities to switch attention from one
stimulus to another, inhibit distracting information from
interfering with concentration, sustain attention on some-
ATLANTIC OCEAN
thing at will, and keep multiple pieces of information in
your working memory at the same time, are all part of fluid
intelligence (Blair, 2006). If Gf is simply a statistical creation
that reflects the integration of these different processes,
perhaps researchers would be better off focusing their
t
%P
irony
BOE
coincidence
NFBO
UIF
TBNF
UIJOH attention on these systems, rather than the more abstract
t
8IBU
EPFT
abstruse
NFBO
construct Gf.

{fig. 9.10} Measuring Crystallized Intelligence Crystallized Another critique is that fluid and crystallized intelligence
intelligence refers to facts, such as names of countries. are not, after all, entirely separable. Consider the fact
that crystallized intelligence involves not only possessing
knowledge in your brain, but also being able to access that
of reaction time. Researchers have found that performance knowledge when it’s needed. Fluid cognitive processes, and
in tasks that require Gf peaks in early to middle adulthood the brain areas that support them such as the prefrontal
and declines thereafter (Bugg et al., 2006). Other research- cortex, play important roles in both storing and retrieving
ers have found a consistent decline after adolescence in crystallized knowledge from long-term memory (Ranganath
tasks that require fluid intelligence (Avolio & Waldman, 1994; et al., 2003).
Baltes & Lindenberger, 1997). Gc, by comparison, shows
Similarly, tests of fluid intelligence likely also draw upon crys-
greater stability than Gf as a person ages (Schaie, 1994).
tallized knowledge. For example, complete-the-pattern tasks
Examples of Gc are vocabulary and verbal ability (Figure 9.10).
such as Raven’s Progressive Matrices may predominantly
Healthy, older adults generally do not show much decline, if
reflect fluid intelligence, but people who have never seen any
any, in these skills, at least until they reach their elderly years
type of similar task or had any practice with such an exercise
(Miller et al., 2009).
will likely struggle with them relative to someone with prior
Neurobiological evidence further backs this up. The function- exposure to similar types of tasks. For example, if you are
ing of brain regions associated with Gf tasks declines sooner learning a new card game, you will have to rely upon your
than the functioning of those regions supporting Gc tasks fluid intelligence to help you learn the rules, figure out effec-
(Geake & Hansen, 2010). For example, the decline of Gf with tive strategies, and outsmart your opponents. However, your
age is associated with reduced efficiency in the prefrontal overall knowledge of cards, games, and strategies will help
cortex (Braver & Barch, 2002), a key brain region involved you, especially if you compare yourself to a person who has
in the cognitive abilities that underlie fluid intelligence. In played no such games in his life.

370 :: Module 9.2 : : Understanding Intelligence

 Why is this relevant?
Recognizing the distinct-
ness of Gf and Gc can help
to reduce stereotypes and
expectations about intelli-
gence in older persons, reminding people that although cer-
tain kinds of intelligence may decline with age, other types
that rely on accumulated knowledge and wisdom may even
increase as we get older (Kaufman, 2001). Also, research
on fluid intelligence has helped psychologists to develop
a much more detailed understanding of the full comple-
ment of cognitive processes that make up intelligence, and
to devise tests that measure these components’ processes Jose Luis Pelaez/Glow Images
more precisely.

STERNBERG’S TRIARCHIC THEORY OF INTEL- get things done, and accomplish their goals. Practical
LIGENCE Other influential models of intelligence intelligence is believed to have a great deal to do with
have been proposed in attempts to move beyond g. For one’s job performance and success.
example, Robert Sternberg (1983, 1988) developed the • Creative intelligence is the ability to create new ideas Explore

triarchic theory of intelligence, a theory that divides and generate novel solutions to problems. Obviously, Sternberg’s Triarchic

intelligence into three distinct types: analytical, practical, and Theory of Intelligence
artists must have some level of creative intelligence,
creative (see Figure 9.11 ). These components can be because they are, by definition, trying to create things Explore
described in the following ways: that are new. It also takes creative intelligence to be a Creativity
scientist because creative thinking is often required to
• Analytical intelligence is “book smarts.” It’s the ability to Simulate
conceive of good scientific hypotheses and develop
reason logically through a problem and to find solutions. Survey: What Is
ways of testing them (Sternberg et al., 2001). Creativity?
It also reflects the kinds of abilities that are largely tested
on standard intelligence tests that measure g. Most intel- Sternberg believed that both practical and creative Watch
ligence tests predominantly measure analytical intelli- intelligences predict real-world outcomes, such as job Practical Intelligence:
gence, while generally ignoring the other types. success, better than analytical intelligence (Sternberg Robert Sternberg
• Practical intelligence is “street smarts.” It’s the abil- et al., 1995). However, other psychologists have ques-
Watch
ity to find solutions to real-world problems that are tioned whether Sternberg’s theory adequately cap-
Intelligence: Robert
encountered in daily life, especially those that involve tures separate intelligences, or whether they are merely
Sternberg
other people. Practical intelligence is what helps aspects of g. In particular, practical intelligence may be
people adjust to new environments, learn how to part of g (Gottfredson, 2003; Jensen, 1993), and creativ- Watch
ity may not be an “intelligence” per se, but a tendency Successful
to think in ways that challenge norms and conven- Intelligence: Robert

tions. Furthermore, psychologists have criticized Stern- Sternberg

Analytical
(book smarts)
berg’s studies of job performance, arguing that the test
items that were supposed to measure practical intelli-
gence were merely measuring job-related knowledge
(Schmidt & Hunter, 1993).

GARDNER’S THEORY OF MULTIPLE INTELLI- Simulate

Practical Creative GENCES Howard Gardner proposed an even more Gardner’s Theory of
(street smarts) (creativity) elaborate theory of multiple intelligences than Stern- Intelligence

berg. Gardner was inspired by specific cases, such as

people who were savants (discussed in the introduction
to this module), who had extraordinary abilities in lim-
{fig. 9.11} The Triarchic Theory of Intelligence According ited domains, very poor abilities in many others, and low
to psychologist Robert Sternberg, intelligence comprises three
overlapping yet distinct components. Click on this figure in g. Gardner also was informed by cases of people with
your eText to see more details. brain damage, which showed that some specific abilities

Understanding Intelligence :: Module 9.2 :: 371

 Table 9.1 :: Gardner’s Proposed Forms of Intelligence
Verbal/linguistic intelligence The ability to read, write, and speak effectively
Logical/mathematical intelligence The ability to think with numbers and use abstract thought; the ability to use logic or mathematical
operations to solve problems
Visuospatial intelligence The ability to create mental pictures, manipulate them in the imagination, and use them to solve problems
Bodily/kinesthetic intelligence The ability to control body movements, to balance, and to sense how one’s body is situated
Musical/rhythmical intelligence The ability to produce and comprehend tonal and rhythmic patterns
Interpersonal intelligence The ability to detect another person’s emotional states, motives, and thoughts
Self/intrapersonal intelligence Self-awareness; the ability to accurately judge one’s own abilities, and identify one’s own emotions and
motives
Naturalist intelligence The ability to recognize and identify processes in the natural world—plants, animals, and so on
Existential intelligence The tendency and ability to ask questions about purpose in life and the meaning of human existence

would be dramatically affected but others would remain Gardner’s intelligences. Nevertheless, Gardner’s model
intact (Gardner, 1983, 1999). He also noted that “normal has been widely adopted in society, particularly in edu-
people” (presumably, those of us who are not savants cational settings, where it has been quite influential.
and also don’t have brain damage) differ widely in their Educators often argue that if children have different
abilities and talents, having a knack for some things but intelligences, then you can teach children more effec-
being hopeless at others. Gardner argued that if intel- tively if you present information that appeals to the types
ligence were a single ability, like g, then people would of intelligence that are most dominant for them, or in
show greater consistency in their abilities. other words, their learning style. Thus, teachers should be
Explore Based on his observations, Gardner proposed a able to teach more effectively if they appeal to different
Gardner’s Multiple theory of multiple intelligences, a model claiming that intelligences, such as using visual displays for their “visual
Intelligences there are eight (now updated to at least nine) different forms of learners,” the spoken word for their “auditory learners,”
intelligence, each independent from the others (see Table 9.1). and exercises that encourage kids to move around and
As intuitively appealing as this is, critics have pointed use their hands for their “kinesthetic/tactile learners.”
out that few of Gardner’s intelligences can be accurately But does this make a difference?
and reliably measured, making his theory unfalsifiable
and difficult to research. One of the key challenges to
overcome in order to measure Gardner’s different intel-
ligences is that so many measurement techniques (e.g.,
self-report scales) may not be able to capture a per-
MYTHS IN MIND
son’s intelligence in certain domains. As an analogy, you Learning Styles
would not try to measure people’s running speed by
asking them questions on a paper and pencil test; you The proposal that humans have individual learning styles can
have to get them to run and see how fast they are. Simi- be easily tested scientifically: Individuals should learn and
larly, you can’t really measure an ability like “interper- retain more information presented to them through their
sonal intelligence” using paper and pencil scales, because preferred learning style than through other styles.
then you are measuring people’s verbal/linguistic intel- However, finding evidence to support this has proven
ligence, or perhaps their beliefs about their interper- difficult. In fact, dozens of studies have failed to show any
sonal abilities, but you are not getting a direct window benefit for studying according to an individual’s learning style
into how well they can actually interact competently (Pasher et al., 2008). This result probably occurs because
with other people. Developing proper measures to test regardless of how you encounter something—reading, watch-
ing, listening, or moving—whether you retain it over the long
Gardner’s theory is therefore not a criticism against his
term largely depends on whether you process and store the
theory as much as it is a challenge to researchers to
meaning of the information (Willingham, 2004). As a result, it
develop better ways of measuring intelligence (Tirri & makes much less sense for teachers to tailor their instruc-
Nokelainen, 2008). tional styles to fit individual students than it does for teach-
Thus far, these measurement challenges have not ers to teach in ways that help their students deeply process
been adequately met, and there is therefore relatively material rather than merely committing it to memory with-
little data supporting the existence and independence of out much understanding.

372 :: Module 9.2 : : Understanding Intelligence

 The concept of multiple intelligences can also be
extended to domains that we don’t typically associate
with intelligence. Is an amazing actor showing a special
form of intelligence? What about hockey sense, that skill
to know where you should be on the ice in different
situations? Clearly hockey sense (or soccer sense, etc.)
involves intelligence in some way, as it requires a person
to interpret rapidly changing patterns (player locations)
and decide upon an optimal course of action. The chal-
lenge for sports teams—who would have to pay mil-
lions of dollars to draft picks in sports like hockey and
Photothek/Andia/Alamy football—is to find some test that could predict a play-
Are there actually “learning styles”? Educators have long er’s ability to play a sport in an intelligent way. How-
argued that individual students learn better if instruction
practices are adapted to suit their style of learning, but
ever, the attempts to link sports intelligence with more
evidence supporting the existence of different learning styles traditional measures of intelligence have proven quite
is virtually nonexistent. elusive.

PSYCH @ counter-strategy. Players must memorize their responsibili-

ties for each possible play, keeping in mind the rules for legal
The NFL Draft tackling and blocks in the midst of the action, and be able
to update their play “on the fly” as optimal strategies change
Every spring, American football fans turn their
moment to moment depending on how the play unfolds. To
attention to “the draft,” during which professional teams in
assess their intelligence, for the past three decades, candidates
the National Football League (NFL) take turns selecting
participating in the NFL draft have completed the Wonderlic
the best amateur football players to join their teams. Pride,
Personnel Test, a 50-question test that is completed in less
potential championships, and a lot of money are at stake, so
than 12 minutes.
teams use all the information they can get to select the play-
Wonderlic scores have been shown to predict perfor-
ers whom they think will contribute the most to the team’s
mance in a wide variety of jobs, regardless of the specific job,
success. As a part of the run-up to the draft, the candidates
the tasks an employee has to perform, or the job’s complexity
demonstrate their physical aptitude through tests focusing
(Schmidt & Hunter, 1998; Schmidt et al., 1981). But will they
on speed, strength, coordination, and agility by running, lifting,
be a good predictor in the NFL, a setting that predominantly
jumping, and clearing obstacles.
requires high levels of strength and athletic ability? The NFL
But what about the cognitive aspects of the game?
certainly believes so, as the Wonderlic has been used to guide
Football is a highly complex game, filled with strategy and
draft choice picks since the 1970s. This is an important ques-
tion, considering the millions of dollars it costs teams to sign
their players, particularly their first- and second-round draft
picks. If the Wonderlic works, it should be the most helpful
tool for picking players for the more complex and cognitively
challenging positions, such as quarterback, relative to posi-
tions that rely more on athleticism, such as running back.
However, after studying 762 players from the 2002,
2003, and 2004 drafts and measuring their performance on
the field in multiple ways, researchers concluded that there
was no significant correlation between Wonderlic scores and
performance. Contrary to the NFL’s widely adopted practice,
intelligence (as measured by Wonderlic scores) and foot-
ball prowess seem to have nothing to do with each other.
What’s more, the performance of only two football positions,
AP Photo/Ed Reinke tight end and defensive back, showed any significant correla-
The Wonderlic is supposed to predict success in professional
tion with Wonderlic scores, and it was in a negative direction
football, although it is not always very successful. This failure (Lyons et al., 2009). That means that lower intelligence scores
could be because of low validity. predict greater football success for these positions.

Understanding Intelligence :: Module 9.2 :: 373

 It seems that NFL teams would be well advised to throw but in general, being highly intelligent does not seem to be
out the Wonderlic test entirely, or perhaps only use it to an advantage in professional football. In the now immortal-
screen for defensive backs and tight ends, and choose the ized words of former Washington Redskins quarterback Joe
less intelligent players. No offence is intended whatsoever to Thiesmann, “Nobody in the game of football should be called
football players, who may be extremely intelligent individuals, a genius. A genius is somebody like Norman Einstein.”

Quick Quiz 9.2b The Battle of the Sexes

Intelligence as Multiple, Specific Abilities The distinction between g and multiple intelligences plays
1 Which of the following is not part of the triarchic an important role in the oft-asked question of whether
KNOW . . .

theory of intelligence? males are smarter than females or vice versa. Although
A Practical C Kinesthetic earlier studies showed some average intelligence dif-
B Analytical D Creative ferences between males and females, this has not been
upheld by subsequent research and is likely the result of
2 ________ proposed that there are eight different forms bias in the tests that favoured males over females. One of
of intelligence, each independent from the others. the most conclusive studies was conducted in 2007, using
A Robert Sternberg C L. L. Thurstone 42 different tests of mental abilities to compare males and
B Howard Gardner D Raymond Cattell females. They found almost no differences in intelligence
between the sexes (Johnson & Bouchard, 2007).
3 The ability to adapt to new situations and solve new Some research has found that although males and
problems reflects ________ intelligence(s), whereas females have the same average IQ score, there is much
the ability to draw on one’s experiences and greater variability in male scores, which suggests that
knowledge reflects ________ intelligence(s).
there are more men with substantial intellectual chal-
A fluid; crystallized C general; multiple
lenges, as well as more men who are at the top of the
B crystallized; fluid D multiple; general
brainpower heap (Deary et al., 2007; Dykiert et al.,
2009). However, this may not be as simple as it appears.
4 The hierarchical model of intelligence describes that
ANALYZE . . .

For example, one type of test that shows this male advan-
A some types of intelligence are more powerful and
tage at the upper levels of ability examines math skills on
desirable than others.
standardized tests. A few decades ago, about twelve times
B intelligence is broken down into two factors, a
higher-level factor called g, and a lower-level factor
more males than females scored at the very top (Benbow
called s. & Stanley, 1983). This difference has decreased in recent
C scores on intelligence tests are affected by different years to 3–4 times as many males scoring at the top
levels of factors, ranging from lower-level factors end of the spectrum. Not surprisingly, this change has
such as physical health, to higher-level factors such occurred just as the number of math courses being taken
as a person’s motivation for doing well on the test. by females—and the efforts made to increase female
D intelligence is comprised of three levels of enrollment in such courses—has increased. So, the dif-
factors, which are roughly similar to Spearman’s g, ference in results between the sexes is still there, but it’s
Thurstone’s primary mental abilities, and
been vastly reduced by making math education more
Spearman’s s.
accessible and acceptable for females (Wai et al., 2010).
The apparent advantage enjoyed by males may be
5 Which of the following statements is an argument for
the result of an unintentional selection bias. More males
multiple intelligences?
A Statistical analyses show that all varieties of intelli-
than females drop out of secondary school; because these
gence tests are highly correlated with one another. males would have lower IQs, on average, the result is that
B Most individuals who score high on verbal tests fewer low-IQ men attend university. Therefore, most of
also score high on quantitative and performance the samples of students used in psychology studies are
tests. skewed in that they under-represent men with low IQs.
C Some individuals score high on verbal tests but This biased sampling of males and females would make
very low on quantitative tests, and vice versa. it seem like men have higher fluid intelligence, when in
D Some people would rather listen to a lecture than reality they may not (Flynn & Rossi-Casé, 2011).
view a film because they are “auditory” learners. So, who’s smarter, males or females? Neither. The
Answers can be found on page ANS-3. best data seems to show that they are basically equal in
overall intelligence.

374 :: Module 9.2 : : Understanding Intelligence

 under-representation of women in these disciplines, such as
prevalent stereotypes that discourage girls from entering the
maths and sciences, parents from supporting them in doing
so, and teachers from evaluating females’ work without bias.
The under-representation of females in some disci-
plines may also be due to stereotype threat, when people
become aware of stereotypes about their social group and
become fearful of being reduced to that stereotype (see
Module 9.1). So, if females are aware of the stereotype
that “girls can’t do math,” the fear of living up to that ste-
reotype may produce enough anxiety that it undermines
their performance. As a result, they do underperform
on that task compared to males, although not necessar-
ily because of their mathematical abilities. Interestingly, a
clever set of studies by Steve Spencer at the University of
Waterloo showed that if subjects are told that a math test
has shown gender differences in the past, females will do
worse than males; however, if they are told the test has
shown no gender differences in the past, females perform
equally as well as males (Spencer et al., 1999). Thus, any
evidence for group differences in abilities needs to be
carefully examined to see whether negative beliefs about
the groups could be causing the differences that are found.
Overlooking the many other factors that limit
females’ participation in the maths and sciences is a dan- Watch

gerous thing to do. This was dramatically shown in 2005 Gender Differences:
Robert Sternberg
when the President of Harvard University, Lawrence
Summers, was removed from his position shortly after
making a speech in which he argued that innate differ- Watch

ences between the sexes may be responsible for under- Gender and Spatial

representation of women in science and engineering. Ability: Nora

Top: Brand X Pictures/Thinkstock; Newcombe
bottom: Bob Daemmrich/PhotoEdit The outrage many expressed at his comments reflected
Males and females are not equally distributed across all pro- the fact that many people realize that highlighting innate
fessions. Do these discrepancies arise because of inherent dif- differences while minimizing or ignoring systemic fac- Simulate
ferences in cognitive abilities, or something else? tors only serves to perpetuate problems, not solve them. Mental Rotation

DO MALES AND FEMALES HAVE UNIQUE

COGNITIVE SKILLS? Although the results Can you find the match?
discussed above suggest that males and females are One of the three figures below Conversely, women tend to
matches the one on top. Males outperform men on verbal fluency
equally intelligent, when multiple intelligences are often perform tasks like this mental tasks like this one.
considered, rather than overall IQ, a clear differ- rotation problem faster than females.
ence between the sexes does emerge. Females are,
on average, better at verbal abilities, some memory In 60 seconds, name as many words
that start with the letter “G” that you
tasks, and the ability to read people’s basic emotions, can think of.
whereas males have the advantage on visuospatial
OR
abilities, such as mentally rotating objects or aim-
ing at objects (see Figure 9.12; Halpern & LaMay, In 60 seconds, name as many different
2000; Johnson & Bouchard, 2007; Tottenham et al., kinds of animals you can think of.

2005; Weiss et al., 2003).

This finding is frequently offered as an expla- (a) (b)
nation for why males are more represented in fields
{fig. 9.12} Mental Rotation and Verbal Fluency Tasks Some research indicates that, on
like engineering, science, and mathematics. However, average, males outperform females on mental rotation tasks (a), while females outperform
there are many other factors that could explain the men on verbal fluency (b). Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.

Understanding Intelligence :: Module 9.2 :: 375

 Quick Quiz 9.2c The Battle of the Sexes
1 Men tend to outperform women on tasks requiring 2 Research on gender differences in intelligence leads to

ANALYZE . . .
KNOW . . .
________, whereas women outperform men on tasks the general conclusion that
requiring ________. A males are more intelligent than females.
A spatial abilities; the ability to read people’s B females are more intelligent than males.
emotions
C males and females are equal in overall intelligence.
B practical intelligence; interpersonal intelligence
D it has been impossible to tell which gender is
C memory; creativity more intelligent thus far, because stereotype threat
D logic; intuition makes men underperform on some questions and
women underperform on others.

Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

Module Summary
Module Now that you have read this module you should
9.2
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology related to understanding

intelligence:
crystallized intelligence (Gc) multiple intelligences (p. 372)
(p. 369) savant (p. 364)
factor analysis (p. 365) triarchic theory of intelligence Lane V. Erickson/Shutterstock
fluid intelligence (Gf) (p. 369) (p. 371)
general intelligence factor (g)
(p. 365)
APPLY . . .

● Your knowledge to identify examples from the triarchic

UNDERSTAND . . . theory of intelligence. Recall from page 371 that this
theory proposes the existence of analytical, practical,
● Why intelligence is divided into fluid and crystallized and creative forms of intelligence. Classify whether the
types. Mental abilities encompass both the amount of individual in the following scenario is low, medium, or high
knowledge accumulated and the ability to solve new in regard to each of the three aspects of intelligence.
problems. This understanding is consistent not only with
Katrina is an excellent chemist. She has always performed
our common views of intelligence, but also with the results
well in school, so it is no surprise that she earned her PhD
of decades of intelligence testing. Also, the observation
from a prestigious institution. Despite her many contributions
that fluid intelligence can decline over the life span, even
and discoveries related to chemistry, however, she seems to
as crystallized intelligence remains constant, lends further
fall short in some domains. For example, Katrina does not
support to the contention that they are different abilities.
know how to cook her own meals and if anything breaks at
● Intelligence differences between males and females. her house, she has to rely on someone else to fix it.
Males and females generally show equal levels of overall
Check your answers on page ANS-3.
intelligence, as measured by standard intelligence tests.
However, men do outperform women on some tasks,
particularly spatial tasks such as mentally rotating ANALYZE . . .
objects, whereas women outperform men on other
tasks, such as perceiving emotions. Although there are ● Whether teachers should spend time tailoring lessons to
some male-female differences in specific abilities, such each individual student’s learning style. Certainly, no one
as math, it is not yet clear whether these reflect innate would want to discourage teachers from being attentive to
differences between the sexes, or whether other factors the unique characteristics that each student brings to the
are responsible, such as reduced enrollment of women classroom. However, large-scale reviews of research suggest
in math classes and the presence of stereotype threat in that there is little basis for individualized teaching based on
testing sessions. learning styles (e.g., auditory, visual, kinesthetic).

376 :: Module 9.2 : : Understanding Intelligence

 MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/Getty Images/Newscom

Module

9.3 Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural

Influences on Intelligence
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology related Different approaches Your knowledge of environmental Claims that infant intelligence is
After reading to heredity, environment, to studying the genetic and behavioural effects on intelligence increased by viewing educational
this module and intelligence basis of intelligence to understand how to enhance television programming
you should your own cognitive abilities

In 1955, the world lost one of the most brilliant scientists in history, You might expect that Einstein’s brain was intensively studied by leading
Albert Einstein. Although you are probably familiar with his greatest sci- neurologists. But, instead, the brain mysteriously disappeared. Twenty-two
entific achievements, you may not know about what happened to him years later, a journalist named Steven Levy tried to find Einstein’s brain.
after he died—or more specifically, what happened to his brain. The search was fruitless until Levy tracked down Dr. Harvey in Wichita,
Kansas, and interviewed him in his office. Dr. Harvey was initially reluc-
Upon his death, a forward-thinking pathologist, Dr. Thomas Harvey,
tant to tell Levy anything about the brain, but eventually admitted that he
removed Einstein’s brain (his body was later cremated) so that it could
still had it. In fact, he kept it right there in his office! Sheepishly, Dr. Har-
be studied in the hope that medical scientists would eventually unlock
vey opened a box labelled “Costa Cider” and there, inside two large jars,
the secret to his genius. Dr. Harvey took photographs of Einstein’s brain,
floated the chunks of Einstein’s brain. Levy later wrote, “My eyes were
and then it was sliced up into hundreds of tissue samples placed on
fixed upon that jar as I tried to comprehend that these pieces of gunk
microscope slides, and 240 larger blocks of brain matter, which were pre-
bobbing up and down had caused a revolution in physics and quite pos-
served in fluid. Surprisingly, Dr. Harvey concluded that the brain wasn’t at
sibly changed the course of civilization. Swirling in formaldehyde was the
all remarkable, except for being smaller than average (1230 grams, com-
power of the smashed atom, the mystery of the universe’s black holes,
pared to the average of 1300–1400 grams).
the utter miracle of human achievement.”

Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence :: Module 9.3 :: 377

 Since that time, several research teams have discovered THE GENETICS OF INTELLIGENCE: TWIN AND
important abnormalities in Einstein’s brain. Einstein had a ADOPTION STUDIES The first step to under-
higher than normal ratio of glial cells to neurons in the left standing the genetic contributions to high intelligence
parietal lobe (Diamond et al., 1985) and parts of the temporal is to determine the extent to which intelligence is, in
lobes (Kigar et al., 1997), and a higher density of neurons in fact, related to our genes. The belief that intelligence
the right frontal lobe (Anderson & Harvey, 1996). Einstein’s
is a capacity that we are born with has been widely
parietal lobe has been shown to be about 15% larger than
held since the early studies of intelligence. However,
average, and to contain an extra fold (Witelson et al., 1999).
The frontal lobes contain extra convolutions (folds and
because early researchers lacked today’s sophisticated
creases) as well. These extra folds increase the surface area methods for studying genetic influences, they had to
Explore and neural connectivity in those areas. rely upon their observations of whether intelligence
Factors Affecting
seemed to run in families, which it seemed to do (see
How might these unique features have affected Einstein’s
Intelligence Module 9.1). Since those early days of intelligence
intelligence? The frontal lobes are heavily involved in abstract
research, many studies have been conducted to see
thought, and the parietal lobes are involved in spatial process-
just how large the genetic infl uence on intelligence
Explore ing, which plays a substantial role in mathematics. Thus, these
Correlations between unique brain features may provide a key part of the neuroana- may be.
IQ Scores of tomical explanation for Einstein’s remarkable abilities in math Studies of twins and children who have been
Persons of Varying and physics. Einstein not only had a unique mind, but a unique adopted have been key tools allowing researchers to
Relationships brain. begin estimating the genetic contribution to intelli-
gence. Decades of such research have shown that genetic
similarity does contribute to intelligence test scores. Sev-
Focus Questions
eral important findings from this line of work are sum-
1 Which biological and environmental factors have been marized in Figure 9.13 (Plomin & Spinath, 2004). The
found to be important contributors to intelligence? most obvious trend in the figure shows that as the degree
2 Is it possible for people to enhance of genetic relatedness increases, similarity in IQ scores
their own intelligence? also [Link] last two bars on the right of Figure 9.13
present perhaps the strongest evidence for a genetic
basis for intelligence. The intelligence scores of identi-
cal twins correlate with each other at about .85 when
Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be as smart as Einstein? they are raised in the same home, which is much higher
Or even just smarter than you already are? Imagine if than the correlation for fraternal twins. Even when
you could boost your IQ, upgrading your brain like you identical twins are adopted and raised apart, their intel-
might upgrade a hard drive. You could learn more eas- ligence scores are still correlated at approximately .80—a
ily, think more quickly, remember more. What benefits very strong relationship. In fact, this is about the same
might you enjoy? Greater success? A cure for cancer? A correlation that researchers find when individuals take
Nobel Prize? Or at least you might not have to study the same intelligence test twice and are compared with
as much to get good grades. As you will read in this themselves!
module, there are in fact ways to improve your intel-
ligence (although perhaps not to “Einsteinian” levels). THE HERITABILITY OF INTELLIGENCE Overall,
However, to understand how these techniques can ben- the heritability of intelligence is estimated to be between
efit us, we must also understand how our biology and 40% and 80% (Nisbett et al., 2012). However, interpret-
our environment—“nature” and “nurture”—interact to ing what this means is extremely tricky. People often
influence intelligence. think that this means that 40% or more of a person’s
intelligence is determined by genes. But this is a serious
misunderstanding of heritability.
Biological Influences on Intelligence A heritability estimate describes how much of the
The story of Einstein’s brain shows us, once again, that differences between people in a sample can be accounted
our behaviours and abilities are linked to our biology. for by differences in their genes (see Module 3.1). This
However, although scientists have been interested in may not sound like an important distinction, but in
these topics for over 100 years, we are only beginning fact it’s extremely important! It means that a heritabil-
to understand the complex processes that influence ity estimate is not a single, fixed number; instead, it is a
measures like IQ scores. In this section, we discuss the number that depends on the sample of people being studied.
genetic and neural factors that influence intelligence, and Heritability estimates for different samples can be very
how they may interact with our environment. different. For example, the heritability of intelligence for

378 :: Module 9.3 : : Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence

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{fig. 9.13} Intelligence and Genetic Relatedness Several types of comparisons reveal genetic contributions to intelligence
(Plomin & Spinath, 2004). Generally, the closer the biological relationship between people, the more similar their intelligence
scores. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.

wealthy people has been estimated to be about 72%, but both have to do with an under-appreciation for how
for people living in poverty, it’s only 10% (Turkheimer genes interact with the environment. First, as discussed
et al., 2003). in Module 3.1, genes do not operate in isolation from
Why might this be? Heritability estimates depend the environment. The “nature vs. nurture” debate is no
on other factors, such as how different or similar people’s longer about whether it is nature OR nurture that con-
environments are. If people in a sample inhabit highly tributes to development. Instead, we understand that
similar environments, the heritability estimate will be “nurture shapes nature”; that is, environmental factors
higher, whereas if they inhabit highly diverse environ- determine how genes express themselves and influence
ments, the heritability estimate will be lower. Because the organism.
most wealthy people have access to good nutrition, good Second, genes that influence intelligence may do so
schools, plenty of enrichment opportunities, and strong indirectly, operating through other factors. For example,
parental support for education, these factors contribute imagine genes that promote novelty- seeking. People
fairly equally to the intelligence of wealthy people; thus, with these genes would be more likely to expose them-
differences in their intelligence scores are largely genetic. selves to new ideas and new ways of doing things. This
But the environments inhabited by people living in pov- tendency to explore, rooted in their genes, may lead
erty differ widely. Some may receive good schooling and them to become more intelligent. However, in more
others very little. Some may receive proper nutrition dangerous environments, these novelty-seeking genes
(e.g., poor farming families that grow their own food), could expose the person to more danger, rather than
whereas others may be chronically malnourished (e.g., to learning opportunities. In these contexts, genes that
children in poor inner-city neighbourhoods). For poorer promote stability-seeking could be more adaptive, lead-
families, these differences in the environment would ing the stability-seeker to live longer and be better inte-
have a huge impact on intelligence (as we discuss later in grated into the community, thereby gaining knowledge
this module) leading to lower heritability estimates. and becoming more intelligent. In both cases, genes
There are many other problems with interpret- influence intelligence, but neither could be considered
ing heritability estimates as indications that genes cause a “smart gene” because they have such different conse-
differences in intelligence. Two of the most important quences in different environments.

Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence :: Module 9.3 :: 379

 BEHAVIOURAL GENOMICS Twin and adoption associated with the new gene. The animal that receives
studies show that some of the individual differences this so-called gene transplant is referred to as a transgenic
observed in intelligence scores can be attributed to animal. Although this approach may sound like science
genetic factors. But these studies do not tell us which fiction, it has already yielded important discoveries, such
genes account for the differences. To answer that ques- as transgenic mice that are better than average learners
tion, researchers use behavioural genomics, a technique that (Cao et al., 2007; Tang et al., 1999).
examines how specific genes interact with the environ- One now-famous example is the creation of
ment to influence behaviours, including those related to “Doogie mice,” named after the 1990s TV character
intelligence (see Module 3.1). Thus far, the main focus of Doogie Howser (played by a young Neil Patrick Harris),
the behavioural genomics approach to intelligence is to a genius who became a medical doctor while still a teen-
identify genes that are related to cognitive abilities, such ager. Doogie mice were created by manipulating a single
as learning and problem solving (Deary et al., 2010). gene, NR2B (Tang et al., 1999). This gene encodes the
Overall, studies scanning the whole human genome NMDA receptor, which plays a crucial role in learning
show that intelligence levels can be predicted, to some and memory. Having more NMDA should, therefore,
degree, by the collection of genes that individuals inherit allow organisms to retain more information (and possi-
(Craig & Plomin, 2006; Plomin & Spinath, 2004). These bly to access it more quickly). Consistent with this view,
collections of genes seem to pool together to influence Doogie mice with altered NR2B genes learned signif-
general cognitive ability; although each contributes a icantly faster and had better memories than did other
small amount, these contributions add together to have mice. For example, when the Doogie mice and normal
a larger effect. However, although almost 300 individual mice were put into a tank of water in which they had to
genes have been found to have a large impact on vari- find a hidden ramp in order to escape, the Doogie mice
ous forms of mental retardation (Inlow & Restifo, 2004), took half as many trials to remember how to get out of
very few genes have been found to explain normal vari- the tank.
ation in intelligence (Butcher et al., 2008). In one large The different types of studies reviewed in this sec-
study that scanned the entire genome of 7000 people, tion show us that genes do have some effect on intelli-
researchers found a mere six genetic markers that pre- gence. What they don’t really show us is how these effects
dicted cognitive ability. Taken together, these six markers occur. What causes individual differences in intelligence?
only explained 1% of the variability in cognitive ability One theory suggests that these differences are due to dif-
(Butcher et al., 2008). ferences in the size of the brain.
One promising line of genetic research has been
to conduct experiments by manipulating the genes of
mice and seeing whether this affects their intelligence.
Gene knockout (KO) studies involve removing a spe-
cific gene and comparing the characteristics of animals with and
without that gene. In one of the first knockout studies of
intelligence, researchers discovered that removing one
particular gene disrupted the ability of mice to learn
spatial layouts (Silva et al., 1992). Since this investigation
was completed, numerous studies using gene knockout
methods have shown that specific genes are related to
performance on tasks that have been adapted to study
learning and cognitive abilities in animals (Robinson
et al., 2011). AP Photo/Princeton University
Scientists can also take the opposite approach; The Princeton University lab mouse, Doogie, is able to learn
faster than other mice thanks to a bit of genetic engineering.
instead of knocking genes out, they can insert genetic Researchers inserted a gene known as NR2B that helps create
material into mouse chromosomes to study the changes new synapses and leads to quicker learning.

380 :: Module 9.3 : : Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence

 How can science
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC explain the
LITERACY MODEL relationship
Brain Size and Intelligence between brain size
and intelligence?
Are bigger brains more intelligent? We often assume that to In relatively rare cases, researchers have two main sources
be the case—think of the cartoon characters that are super- of data available to them: a brain and an intelligence test
geniuses; they almost always have gigantic heads. (Check out score. In one modern and highly detailed study, Sandra
[Link] Witelson at McMaster University and her colleagues (2006)
for an exhaustive list, in case you doubt this claim. . . .) Or collected 100 brains of deceased individuals who had pre-
think about what it means to call someone a “pea brain.” viously completed the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale
Psychologists have not been immune to this belief either, and (WAIS). Detailed anatomical examinations and size mea-
many studies have searched for a correlation between brain surements were made on the entire brains and certain
size and intelligence. regions that support cognitive skills. For women and right-
handed men (but not left-handed men), 36% of the variation
What do we know in verbal intelligence scores was accounted for by the size
of the brain; however, brain size did not significantly account
about brain size and for the other component of intelligence that was measured,
intelligence? visuospatial abilities.
Brain-based approaches to mea- The size of the brain and its various regions is just one way
suring intelligence rest on a of looking at intelligence. One of the most obvious fea-
common-sense assumption: Think- tures of the human brain is its convoluted surface. These
ing occurs in the brain, so a larger convolutions (called gyri; pronounced “ji-rye”) comprise
brain should be related to greater intelligence. But does sci- the outer part of the cerebral cortex (see Figure 9.14 ).
entific evidence support this common-sense notion? In the The number and size of these cerebral gyri is greater in
days before modern brain imaging was possible, researchers species that have complex cognitive and social lives, such
typically obtained skulls from deceased subjects, filled them as elephants, dolphins, and primates (Marino, 2002; Rogers
with fine-grained matter such metal pellets, and then trans- et al., 2010). But what about humans: Are individual differ-
ferred the pellets to a flask to measure the volume. These ences in intelligence test scores related to convolutions
efforts taught us very little about intelligence and brain of the cortex? Using brain imaging technology, researchers
or skull size, but a lot about problems with measurement have scanned the brains of healthy adults who had com-
and racial prejudice. In some cases, the studies were highly pleted the WAIS. The degree of convolution across the
flawed and inevitably led to conclusions that Caucasian males surface of the cortex was then correlated to the subjects’
(including the Caucasian male scientists who conducted IQ score. It turns out that the higher the score on the
these experiments) had the largest brains and, therefore, WAIS, the more convolutions seen across several regions
were the smartest of the human race (Gould, 1981). Mod- of the cortex; the degree of convolutions accounted for
ern approaches to studying the brain and intelligence are far approximately 25% of the variability in WAIS scores
more sophisticated, thanks to newer techniques and a more (Luders et al., 2008).
enlightened knowledge of the brain’s form and functions.

Cerebral gyri

{fig. 9.14} Does Intelligence Increase with Brain Size? While the size of the brain may have a modest rela-
tionship to intelligence, the convolutions or “gyri” along the surface of the cortex are another important factor:
Increased convolutions are associated with higher intelligence test scores.

Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence :: Module 9.3 :: 381

 Can we critically and function. This can help give us insight into many impor-
tant phenomena, such as anorexia nervosa (a psychological
evaluate this issue?
disorder marked by self-starvation) or prolonged periods
A common critique of studies exam- of alcohol abuse, both of which lead to the loss of brain
ining brain size and IQ is that it is volume along with cognitive abilities (e.g., McCormick
not always clear what processes or et al., 2008; Schottenbauer et al., 2007). Measurements of
abilities are being tested. IQ scores brain volume have also played a key role in understanding
could be measuring a number of the impaired neurological and cognitive development of
things including working memory, processing speed, your abil- children growing up in institutional settings (e.g., orphan-
ity to pay attention, or even your motivation to perform well ages), as well as how these children benefit from adop-
on the test. Therefore, when studies show that brain size can tion, foster care, or increased social contact (Sheridan et
account for 25% of the variability in IQ scores, it is not always al., 2012). Better understanding of how experiences like
clear what ability (or abilities) are underlying these results. anorexia, alcoholism, and child neglect affect brain devel-
opment may provide ways of developing effective interven-
Similarly, there may be no causal connection whatsoever. It
tions that could help people who have suffered from such
could be a third-variable problem; that is, brain size and perfor-
experiences.
mance on intelligence tests could both be related to other
factors, such as the presence of toxins in a child’s environ-
ment, stress, nutrition, physical health, or the amount of
enriching stimulation experienced during childhood (Choi
et al., 2008). These other factors might explain both brain size
and intelligence. If so, then the brain-IQ relationship would
be “spurious” (i.e., it would only be due to the common rela-
tionship both variables share with these other factors).

Furthermore, if brain size explains 25% of the variability

in IQ scores, what about the other 75%? Clearly, there is
more to intelligence than the mere biological fact of having a
bigger or smaller brain. Size isn’t everything . . .

Why is this relevant?

This research furthers our
understanding of the relation-
ship between brain structure Janine Wiedel Photolibrary/Alamy

Quick Quiz 9.3a Biological Influences on Intelligence

1 When scientists insert genetic material into an 3 Identical twins, whether reared together or apart, tend
ANALYZE . . .
KNOW . . .

animal’s genome, the result is called a ________. to score very similarly on standardized measures of
A genomic animal C knockout animal intelligence. Which of the following statements does this
B transgenic animal D fraternal twin finding support?
A Intelligence levels are based on environmental
factors for both twins reared together and twins
2 How do gene knockout studies help to identify the
UNDERSTAND . . .

reared apart.
contribution of specific genes to intelligence?
B Environmental factors are stronger influences on
A After removing or suppressing a portion of
twins raised together compared to twins reared
genetic material, scientists can look for changes in
apart.
intelligence.
C The “intelligence gene” is identical in both twins
B After inserting genetic material, scientists can see
reared together and reared apart.
how intelligence has changed.
D Genes are an important source of individual varia-
C Scientists can rank animals in terms of intelligence,
tions in intelligence test scores.
and then see how the most intelligent animals dif-
fer genetically from the least intelligent. Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
D They allow scientists to compare identical and
fraternal twins.

382 :: Module 9.3 : : Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence

Environmental Influences whether you had older siblings. Debate about this issue
has raged for many decades within psychology. However,
on Intelligence a 2007 study of more than 240 000 people in Norway
As described earlier, research on the biological under- found that the IQs of first-born children are, on aver-
pinnings of intelligence repeatedly emphasizes the age, about three points higher than those of second-born
importance of environmental factors. For example, envi- children and four points higher than those of third-born
ronmental conditions determine which genes get children (Kristensen & Bjerkedal, 2007).
expressed (“turned on”) for a given individual; thus, Why might this be? The most important factor,
without the right circumstances, genes can’t appropri- researchers believe, is that older siblings, like it or not,
ately affect the person’s development. Also, brain areas end up tutoring and mentoring younger siblings, impart-
involved in intelligence are responsive to a wide variety ing the wisdom they have gained through experience
of environmental factors. The full story of how “nature” on to their younger siblings. Although this may help
influences intelligence is intricately bound up with the the younger sibling, the act of teaching their knowledge
story of how “nurture” influences intelligence. benefits the older sibling more (Zajonc, 1976). The act
Evidence describing the influence of environmen- of teaching requires the older sibling to rehearse previ-
tal factors comes from many sources that include both ously remembered information and to reorganize it in a
animal and human studies. Controlled experiments with way that their younger sibling will understand. Teaching
animals show that growing up in physically and socially therefore leads to a deeper processing of the information,
stimulating environments results in faster learning and which, in turn, increases the likelihood that it will be
enhanced brain development compared to growing up remembered later (see Module 7.2).
in a dull environment (Hebb, 1947; Tashiro et al., 2007). Before any first-born children reading this section
For example, classic studies in the 1960s showed that rats start building monuments to their greatness, it is impor-
who grew up in enriched environments (i.e., these rats tant to note that the differences between the IQs of first-
enjoyed toys, ladders, and tunnels) ended up with bigger and later-born siblings are quite small: three or four points.
brains than rats who grew up in impoverished environ- Indeed, many later-born kids have higher IQs than their
ments (i.e., simple wire cages). Not only were their cere- first-born siblings. Nevertheless, this finding is one exam-
bral cortices approximately 5% larger (Diamond et al., ple of how environments can influence intelligence.
1964; Rosenzweig et al., 1962), but their cortices con-
tained 25% more synapses (Diamond et al., 1964). With SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS Another key finding in
more synapses, the brain can make more associations, the intelligence literature is that children growing up in
potentially enhancing cognitive abilities such as learn- wealthy homes have, on average, higher IQs than those
ing and creativity. In this section, we review some of the growing up in poverty (Turkheimer et al., 2003). In gen-
major environmental factors that influence intelligence. eral, wealthier people have access to greater resources
and opportunities than the poor, leading to many envi-
BIRTH ORDER One of the most hotly debated ronmental differences between the two populations. In
environmental factors affecting intelligence is simply fact, many of the environmental factors that affect intel-
whether you were the oldest child in your family, or ligence and cognitive functioning are not evenly distrib-
uted between the rich and poor. For example, consider
how much language kids are exposed to at home; one
U.S. study estimated that by age three, children of profes-
sional parents will have heard 30 million words, children
of working-class parents will have heard only 20 million
words, and children of unemployed African-American
mothers will have heard only 10 million words. Further-
more, the level of vocabulary is strikingly different for
families in the different socioeconomic (SES) categories,
with professional families using the most sophisticated
language (Hart & Risley, 1995).
Other studies have shown that higher SES homes are
much more enriching and supportive of children’s intel-
Carolyn A. McKeone/Photo Researchers, Inc. lectual development—high SES parents talk to their chil-
Growing up in an enriched environment enhances brain devel- dren more; have more books, magazines, and newspapers
opment and functioning. in the home; give them more access to computers; take

Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence :: Module 9.3 :: 383

 Left: Barry Lewis/Alamy; right: ONOKY-Photononstop/Alamy
Socioeconomic status is related to intelligence. People from low socioeconomic backgrounds typically have far fewer opportuni-
ties to access educational and other important resources that contribute to intellectual growth.

them to more learning experiences outside the home intelligence is still relatively new, it would appear that eat-
(e.g., visits to museums); and are less punitive toward the ing foods low in saturated fats and rich in omega-3 fats,
children (Bradley et al., 1993; Phillips et al., 1998). whole grains, and fruits and veggies are your smartest bets.
Unfortunately, the effects of SES don’t end here.
Rather, SES interacts with a number of other factors that STRESS High levels of stress in economically poor
can influence intelligence including nutrition, stress, and populations is also a major factor helping to explain the
education. The difference between rich and poor peo- rich-poor IQ gap. People living in poverty are exposed
ple’s exposure to these factors almost certainly affects the to high levels of stress through many converging fac-
IQ gap between the two groups. tors, ranging from higher levels of environmental noise
and toxins, to more family conflict and community vio-
NUTRITION It’s a cliché we are all familiar with— lence, to less economic security and fewer employment
“you are what you eat.” Yet over the past century, the opportunities. These and many other stresses increase the
quality of the North American diet has plummeted as amounts of stress hormones such as cortisol in their bod-
we have adopted diets that are highly processed, high in ies, which in turn is related to poorer cognitive func-
sugar and fat, low in fibre and nutrients, and laden with tioning (Evans & Schamberg, 2009). High levels of stress
chemicals (e.g., preservatives, colour, flavour). There is also interfere with working memory (the ability to hold
some evidence suggesting that poor nutrition could have multiple pieces of information in memory at one time;
negative effects on intelligence. For example, research has Evans & Schamberg, 2009), and the self-control needed
shown that diets high in saturated fat quickly lead to sharp to persevere when faced with challenging tasks (Evans
declines in cognitive functioning in both animal and & Stecker, 2004), such as difficult questions on an IQ
human subjects. On the other hand, diets low in such fats test. These self-control deficits interfere with learning in
and high in fruits, vegetables, fish, and whole grains are school (Blair & Razza, 2007; Ferrer & McArdle, 2004).
associated with higher cognitive functioning (Greenwood The toxic effects of chronic stress show up in the brain
& Winocur, 2005; Parrott & Greenwood, 2007). as well, damaging the neural circuitry of the prefrontal
A massive longitudinal study on diet is currently cortex and hippocampus, which are critical for working
underway in the United Kingdom. The Avon Longitu- memory and other cognitive abilities (e.g., controlling
dinal Study of Parents and Children is following the devel- attention, cognitive flexibility) as well as for the consoli-
opment of children born to 14 000 women in the early dation and storage of long-term memories (McEwen,
1990s. This research has shown that a “poor” diet (high in 2000). In short, too much stress makes us not only less
fat, sugar, and processed foods) early in life leads to reliably healthy, but less intelligent.
lower IQ scores by age 8.5, whereas a “health-conscious”
diet (emphasizing salads, rice, pastas, fish, and fruit) leads EDUCATION One of the great hopes of modern
to higher IQs. Importantly, this was true even when society has been that universal education would level the
researchers accounted for the effects of other variables, playing field, allowing all children, rich and poor alike,
such as socioeconomic status (Northstone et al., 2012). access to the resources and skills necessary to achieve
So what kinds of foods should we eat to maximize success. Certainly, attending school has been shown to
our brainpower? Although research on nutrition and have a large impact on IQ scores (Ceci, 1991). During

384 :: Module 9.3 : : Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence

 100

95

90

IQ scores
85 Britain
Netherlands
80 Israel
Norway
75 Belgium

1942 1952 1962 1972 1982 1992

Year

{fig. 9.15} The Flynn Effect For decades, there has been a general trend toward increasing IQ scores. This trend, called the
Flynn effect, has been occurring since standardized IQ tests have been administered.

school, children accumulate factual knowledge, learn to 2007, Flynn estimates that, in general, IQ scores rise
basic language and math skills, and also learn skills related about one point every three years (Flynn, 2007).
to scientific reasoning and problem solving. Children’s The magnitude of the Flynn effect is striking. In
IQ scores are significantly lower if they are not attending the Dutch study noted above, today’s group of 18-year-
school (Ceci & Williams, 1997; Nisbett, 2009). In fact, for olds would score 35 points higher than 18-year-olds in
most children, IQ drops even over the months of sum- 1950. The average person back then had an IQ of 100,
mer holiday (Ceci, 1991; Jencks et al., 1972), although but the average person today, taking the same test, would
the wealthiest 20% actually show gains in IQ over the score 135, which is above the cutoff considered “gifted”
summer, presumably because they enjoy activities that in most gifted education programs! Or consider this the
are even more enriching than the kinds of experiences opposite way—if the average person today scored 100
delivered in the classroom (Burkam et al., 2004; Cooper on today’s test, the average person in 1950 would score
et al., 2000). However, although education has the about 65, enough to qualify as mentally disabled.
potential to help erase the rich-poor gap in IQ, its effec- How can we explain this increase? Nobody knows
tiveness at doing so will depend on whether the rich and for sure, but one of the most likely explanations is that
poor have equal access to the same quality of education modern society requires certain types of intellectual skills,
and other support and resources that would allow them such as abstract thinking, scientific reasoning, classifica-
to make full use of educational opportunities. tion, and logical analysis. These have been increasingly
Clearly, environmental factors such as nutrition, emphasized since the Industrial Revolution, and particu-
stress, and education all influence intelligence, which larly since the information economy and advent of com-
gives us some clues as to how society can contribute puters have restructured society over the past half-century
to improving the intelligence of the population. Inter- or so. Each successive generation spends more time
estingly, exactly such a trend has been widely observed manipulating information with their minds, spending
across the last half-century or so; it appears that genera- more time with visual media, in the form of television,
tion after generation, people are getting smarter! video games, and now the Internet, as well as spending
more time in school. It seems reasonable to propose that
THE FLYNN EFFECT: IS EVERYONE GETTING it is these shifts in information processing that have led to
SMARTER? The Flynn effect, named after researcher the increases in IQ scores (Nisbett et al., 2012).
James Flynn, refers to the steady population level increases in This explanation of the Flynn effect suggests that
intelligence test scores over time (Figure 9.15). This effect spending time with various forms of media can be a
has been found in numerous situations across a num- kind of brain exercise, which can increase intelligence.
ber of countries. For example, in the Dutch and French This possibility has also been exploited by corporations
militaries, IQ scores of new recruits rose dramatically seeking to market products to enhance brainpower, tap-
between the 1950s and 1980s—21 points for the Dutch ping into the almost universal wish of parents to have
and about 30 for the French (Flynn, 1987). From 1932 smart kids.

Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence :: Module 9.3 :: 385

 MYTHS IN MIND
Can the Media Make Babies Smarter?

A 2008 Statistics Canada Report revealed that 99% of Cana-

dian households have a television, with an average of 2.4 tele-
visions per home (Solutions Research Group, 2006). In the
U.S., the average household has more TV sets (2.93) than
people (2.5; Nielsen Research, 2010)! Almost two-thirds of
children aged two years and younger watch television every
day, and they average about 80 minutes of TV watching per Niamh Baldock/Alamy
day (Rideout & Hamel, 2006). Such statistics can make people Watching television at a very young age may slow the pro-
feel self-conscious, wondering if they are letting their children cesses of cognitive and intellectual development.
down by planting them in front of the tube. Some parents try
to reduce their guilt by insisting that most of the TV time is enriching—hands-on play; this is true even when the televi-
spent on educational programs. Surely that’s better, right? It sion is merely on in the background (Schmidt et al., 2008).
might even be beneficial! After all, aren’t programs like Sesame The bulk of evidence suggests that relying on the “elec-
Street and Blue’s Clues specifically designed to facilitate learn- tronic babysitter” for children is not a good idea, particularly
ing? Indeed, research suggests that such programs produce if they are under three years of age. Interestingly, after a class
cognitive benefits for children older than at least 24 months action lawsuit was launched, the Walt Disney Company decided
(Anderson et al., 2001; Wright et al., 2001). to refund the cost of Baby Einstein videos that people had
Given that watching at least some educational program- bought, believing that they would boost their children’s intel-
ming has positive effects on pre-schoolers, parents widely ligence. Although the company claimed that this was merely
believe that programming for infants must have similar ben- part of their new “enhanced customer satisfaction guaran-
efits. Despite the American Academy of Pediatrics’ recom- tee,” it does seem to imply that Disney did not have sufficient
mendation that children younger than two years of age watch evidence of positive effects from those videos to justify their
no television whatsoever (AAP, 1999), the majority of parents claims that the videos would improve children’s intelligence.
(68%) have ignored this (Certain & Kahn, 2002), feeling confi-
dent that videos targeting the very young can have a positive
impact on their children’s development (Rideout & Hamel,
2006; Robb et al., 2009). Companies, of course, rushed to Quick Quiz 9.3b
create programs for infants that purported to be educational Environmental Influences on Intelligence
and beneficial. These became incredibly popular, particularly
1 What have controlled experiments with animals found in
UNDERSTAND . . .

the Disney Corporation’s Baby Einstein videos and related

products; at its peak the Baby Einstein brand sold a staggering regard to the effects of the environment on intelligence?
A Stimulating environments result in faster learning
$200 million worth of products each year, a full 90% of the
and enhanced brain development.
baby media market (Lewin, 2009).
So, do they work? The evidence is mixed. For example, B Deprived environments result in faster learning
and enhanced brain development.
highly publicized reports (Christakis et al., 2004; Zimmerman
& Christakis, 2005; Zimmerman et al., 2007), concluded that C Stimulating environments result in slower learning
infants and toddlers who view a great deal of television were and poorer brain development.
more likely to have attention deficits, poorer language devel- D Deprived environments have no effect on learning
opment, and lower achievement in school. On the other hand, and poorer brain development.
other researchers have failed to replicate these findings, con-
cluding that there is no relationship between the amount of 2 In which way have psychologists NOT studied the
major environmental factors that, through their
television viewed in infancy and later attentional or cognitive
interaction with genes, influence intelligence?
outcomes (e.g., Foster & Watkins, 2010; Mistry et al., 2007;
A By measuring stress hormones among poor and
Schmidt et al., 2009). One major problem with the use of TV
affluent children and correlating them with intel-
as a learning tool has been called the video deficit, which ligence test scores
describes how young children do not learn very much from infor-
B By depriving some children of education and
mation presented on screens (Barr, 2010; Troseth, 2010), and
comparing them to others who attended school
certainly not as much as they learn from interacting directly
C By measuring children’s nutrition and then
with a person who teaches them (Barr & Hayne, 1999; Hayne
correlating it with intelligence scores
et al., 2003). Furthermore, not only are very young kids not
learning much from their TV time, they are being distracted D By correlating children’s birth order in the family
with intelligence scores
from the activities that would be the most developmentally

386 :: Module 9.3 : : Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence

 3 Research on television viewing by children under the with attentional disorders (e.g., Klingberg et al., 2005)

ANALYZE . . .
age of 2 shows that and people over 80 years of age (Buschkuehl et al., 2008).
A TV is especially detrimental to children aged 3 years Furthermore, the benefits are not merely short term, but
or older. last for at least three months (Jaeggi et al., 2011).
B there is never any benefit from television, not even
from educational programs. NOOTROPIC DRUGS Another behaviour that many
C infants who watch educational shows are, on people believe improves their cognitive functioning is
average, better learners when they reach school age.
the use of certain drugs. Nootropic substances (mean-
D even educational programming shows no benefit, and ing “affecting the mind”) are substances that are believed to
can even slow some aspects of cognitive development.
beneficially affect intelligence. Nootropics can work through
Answers can be found on page ANS-3. many different mechanisms, from increasing overall
arousal and alertness, to changing the availability of cer-
tain neurotransmitters, to stimulating nerve growth in
the brain.
Behavioural Influences Certainly, these drugs can work for many people. For
example, two drugs commonly used are methylpheni-
on Intelligence date (Ritalin) and modafinil (Provigil). Methylphenidate
If you want to make yourself more intelligent, we’ve is a drug that inhibits the reuptake of norepinephrine
covered a number of ways to do that—eat a brain- and dopamine, thus leaving more of these neurotrans-
healthy diet, learn how to manage stress better, keep mitters in the synapses between cells; although gener-
yourself educated (if not in formal schooling, then per- ally prescribed to help people with attentional disorders,
haps by continuing to be an active learner), and expose Ritalin can also boost cognitive functioning in the gen-
yourself to diverse and stimulating activities. But is there eral population (Elliott et al., 1997). Modafinil, originally
anything else you can do? For example, if you want big- developed to treat narcolepsy (a sleep disorder), is known
ger muscles, you can go to the gym and exercise. Can to boost short-term memory and planning abilities by
you do the same thing for the brain? Some fascinating affecting the reuptake of dopamine (Turner et al., 2003).
recent research suggests that you can. Boosting the brain, however, does not come with-
out risk. For example, the long-term effects of such
BRAIN TRAINING PROGRAMS The first tech- drugs are poorly understood. There are also potential
nique is the use of “brain training” programs designed side effects, which may be severe; dependency issues, as
to improve working memory and other cognitive skills. people come to rely on such drugs and use them more
Until recently, people generally believed this would regularly; and problems with providing unfair advantages
not work, that although we can increase the amount to people willing to take such drugs, which puts pressure
of information we have in our heads, we can’t change on others to take them as well in order to stay competi-
the actual functioning of the brain systems that make us tive (Sahakian & Morein-Zamir, 2007). Because of these
intelligent. risks, a September 2013 review in the Canadian Medi-
However, in a ground-breaking line of research, a cal Association Journal recommended that doctors “should
computer task (the “N-back” task) was used as an exer- seriously consider refusing to prescribe medications for
cise program for working memory. In this task, people cognitive enhancement to healthy individuals” (Forlini
are presented with a stimulus, such as squares that light up et al., 2013, p. 1047).
on a grid, and are asked to press a key if the position on These risks have to be weighed against the poten-
the grid is the same as the last trial. The task gets progres- tial benefits of developing these drugs. For example,
sively more difficult, requiring participants to remember researchers in the United Kingdom have argued that if
what happened two, three, or more trials ago (although nootropic drugs could improve the cognitive function-
it takes considerable practice for most people to be able ing of Alzheimer’s patients by even a small amount, such
to reliably remember what happened even three trials as a mere 1% change in the severity of the disease each
ago). Practising the N-back task was shown to not only year, this would be enough not only to dramatically
improve performance at that task, but also to increase improve the lives of people with Alzheimer’s and their
participants’ IQ scores (specifically, their fluid intelli- families, but to completely erase the predicted increases
gence; Jaeggi et al., 2008). This staggering finding showed in long-term health care costs for the U.K.’s aging popu-
that practising cognitive exercises could affect the cog- lation (Sahakian & Morein-Zamir, 2007).
nitive abilities that underlie intelligence, and this seems There are no easy answers when it comes to the
to hold for a variety of populations, including children nootropic drugs. But we would caution you—there

Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence :: Module 9.3 :: 387

 are much safer ways to increase your performance 2010). Other forms of meditation have been shown to
than ingesting substances that will affect your brain in slow down the rate of cognitive decline and the loss of
unknown ways. grey matter in the brain normally associated with aging
(Pagnoni & Cekic, 2007). Meditation also increases the
MEDITATION Research on the cognitive benefits thickness of parts of the brain, especially the prefrontal
of meditation has exploded over the past decade or so. cortex, that are in turn associated with performance on
Numerous studies have linked mindfulness medita- intelligence tests (Lazar et al., 2005).
tion with improvements in cognitive functioning. For With all of these cognitive and brain benefits, it
example, going on a ten-day mindfulness retreat has should be no surprise that meditation can increase IQ.
been shown to improve working memory, which is But what may surprise you is how little time it can
very highly correlated with IQ (Chambers et al., 2008). take—one line of research showed that a mere five
Mindfulness practice also helps people to recover more days of a mindfulness-based program improved the abil-
quickly from negative emotions (Ortner et al., 2007); ity to pay attention and increased IQ scores on Raven’s
this may increase IQ test scores indirectly, by helping Progressive Matrices (Tang,Y., et al., 2007). Furthermore,
people keep stress or other negative feelings from inter- the longer and more regularly one practises meditation, the
fering with their ability to concentrate on the test. greater the benefits seem to be, both for cognitive abilities
Meditation may not only help people in the short and for beneficial effects to brain structure (Jha et al., 2010;
term, but may produce long-term benefits as well. For Pagnoni & Cekic, 2007).
example, mindfulness meditation increases the thickness In sum, although few people are blessed with brains
and density of the white-matter pathways connecting as abnormally intelligent as Einstein’s, there are practical
the anterior cingulate gyrus to a number of other brain things anyone can do to maximize their potential brain-
regions. These networks play key roles in helping peo- power. From eating better to providing our brains with
ple to control their attention and emotional reactions, challenging exercises, we can use the science of intel-
both of which could improve intelligence (Tang et al., ligence to make the most out of our genetic inheritance.

Quick Quiz 9.3c Behavioural Influences on Intelligence

1 A commonly used nootropic drug is ________. 3 Research on nootropic drugs shows that
ANALYZE . . .
KNOW . . .

A Tylenol® C Ritalin® A they have a much larger effect on intelligence than

do environmental factors such as socioeconomic
B Ecstasy D Lamictal®
status.
B they show low addiction rates and are therefore
2 Which of the following is NOT an effect of
UNDERSTAND . . .

quite safe.
meditation?
C they have a larger effect on long-term memory
A Meditation can improve working memory.
than on working memory.
B Meditation reduces the number of unnecessary
D these drugs can produce increases in intelligence.
axons in the frontal lobes.
C Meditation can increase the thickness of the Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
prefrontal cortex.
D Meditation can improve attentional abilities.

388 :: Module 9.3 : : Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
9.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology related to heredity, environment,

and intelligence:
Flynn effect (p. 385) nootropic substances (p. 387)
gene knockout (KO) studies video deficit (p. 386)
(p. 380) MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/Getty Images/Newscom

UNDERSTAND . . . ● Remain an active learner by continually adding to your

education or learning
● Different approaches to studying the genetic basis
● Don’t spend too much time watching TV and other
of intelligence. Behavioural genetics typically involves
media that are relatively poor at challenging your
conducting twin or adoption studies. Behavioural
cognitive abilities
genomics involves looking at gene–behaviour relationships
at the molecular level. This approach often involves using ● Practise playing brain-training programs, such as video
animal models, including knockout and transgenic models. games based on the N-back task
● Practise meditation
APPLY . . .
● The use of nootropic drugs remains a potential strategy
● Your knowledge of environmental and behavioural for enhancing your cognitive faculties; however, given
effects on intelligence to understand how to enhance the potential side effects, addictive possibilities, and the
your own cognitive abilities. Based on the research we uncertainty regarding the long-term consequences of
reviewed, there are many different strategies that are good using such drugs, this option may not be the best way
bets for enhancing the cognitive abilities that underlie to influence intelligence.
your own intelligence. (Note: some of these strategies are
known to be helpful for children, and the effects on adult
ANALYZE . . .
intelligence are not well researched.)
● Choose challenging activities and environments that ● Claims that infant intelligence is increased by viewing
are stimulating and enriching educational television programming. As you read in
● Eat diets low in saturated fat and processed foods the Myths in Mind feature, television viewing appears to
and high in omega-3 fatty acids, nuts, seeds, fruits, and have no benefits for cognitive development for very young
antioxidant-rich vegetables children (i.e., younger than two years old), and in some
cases inhibits it. On the other hand, certain programs may
● Reduce sources of stress and increase your ability to have cognitive benefits for somewhat older children.
handle stress well

Biological, Environmental, and Behavioural Influences on Intelligence :: Module 9.3 :: 389

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Intelligence

1 What do we know about testing and evaluating intelligence?

To understand and evaluate intelligence tests—and indeed, any kind of
2 How can science help explain theories
of intelligence?
research—you should know the difference between reliability and validity. Reli- As you can see in Figure 9.6 on page 366, research has shown
ability means that the test provides consistent and stable scores across multiple a correlation between IQ, which is primarily an indicator of
observations. Validity means that the test measures what it claims to be measur- a single intelligence (g), and several other positive outcomes,
ing, in this case intelligence. If Helen took the same intelligence test twice and such as higher income, better physical and psychological health,
she received two very different results, then you would question the reliability and successful relationships. Researchers have mixed opinions
of the test. If she found an online test that purports to measure IQ depend- on the validity of aptitude tests such as the SAT (a standard-
ing on how long she could hold her breath, then you would likely question ized test taken by most American high school students), as
its validity. Without reliability, a test will lack validity. Also, just because a test is there is only a slightly positive correlation between high test
reliable, that does not mean it is valid. Helen may be able to hold her breath for scores and later academic performance. By comparison, strong
approximately 20 seconds each time she tries, but the amount of time she can research evidence supports the idea that intelligence can be
hold her breath will never be a valid test of intelligence. While none of the IQ divided into the dual categories of fluid intelligence (the ability
tests involve holding your breath for any length of time, many intelligence and to adapt to new problems) and crystallized intelligence (the
aptitude tests do appear to measure a single, generalized intelligence. ability to solve problems based on past experience). Research
There is still debate over the exact nature of intelligence. Consider Sternberg’s involving the existence of savants—people with low men-
triarchic theory of intelligence (Figure 9.11 on page 371) and Gardner’s con- tal capabilities in some areas and extraordinary abilities in
cept of multiple intelligences (Table 9.1 on page 372), and think about how others—also supports the idea that intelligence has multiple
each contrasts with Spearman’s theory of a general, components. Gardner’s speculation on the mul-
basic intelligence (g). tiple dimensions of intelligence in particular has
had a heavy influence on the emphasis on learn-
ing styles in educational practice.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video
excerpt on the theories of intelligence. You
can access the video at MyPsychLab or by clicking
the play button in the centre of your eText. If your
instructor assigns this video as a homework activ- Mihai Simonia/Shutterstock
ity, you will find additional content to help you
in MyPsychLab. You can also view the video by using your smart
phone and the QR code below, or you can go to the YouTube link
3
Can we critically evaluate claims about intelligence?
Does scientific research confirm that multiple kinds of intelli-
gence exist, driving everything from your artistic ability to how you learn
provided.
vocabulary terms? Are aptitude tests such as the SAT and the GRE (a
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, pro- test taken by university students applying to graduate school) a waste
vide real-world examples for the following types of intelligences of your time? Myths in Mind on page 372 highlights how research-
as theorized by Gardner: verbal/linguistic, bodily-kinesthetic, and ers have failed to find evidence that people learn more efficiently when
intrapersonal. Present some of the arguments critics have offered teaching is tailored to their particular learning style. Furthermore, crit-
against Gardner’s research. ics of Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences question whether the
ability to paint a beautiful picture is intelligence or whether it should
just be considered a skill. Of course, despite the fact that the research
is unclear on whether aptitude tests predict later academic success, the
slight correlation between high scores and academic performance, and
the relatively minor issues in reliability, have ensured that these scores
are still used by many institutions.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]//wor
[Link]/workthemodel
work
kthemo
kth
hemod
de
del
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

390 :: Chapter 9 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 10
Lifespan Development
10.1 Physical Development from
Conception through Infancy
● Methods for Measuring
Developmental Trends p. 393
● Zygotes to Infants: From One
Cell to Billions p. 394
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: The Long-Term Effects
of Premature Birth p. 397
● Sensory and Motor Development
in Infancy p. 399
● Module Summary p. 404

10.2 Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive

and Emotional Development
● Cognitive Changes: Piaget’s
Cognitive Development
Theory p. 406
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Evaluating Piaget p. 409
● Social Development:
Attachment, Personality,
and Reading Others p. 411
● Module Summary p. 419 Dubova/Shutterstock

10.3 Adolescence 10.4 Adulthood and Aging

● Physical Changes in ● Physical Changes in
Adolescence p. 421 Adulthood p. 432
● Emotional Challenges in Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Adolescence p. 422 Aging and Cognitive Change p. 434
Working the Scientific Literacy ● Psychosocial Development
Model: Adolescent Risk and across the Lifespan p. 435
Decision Making p. 424 ● Social Development: Intimacy
● Cognitive Development: Moral and Generativity p. 437
Reasoning vs. Emotions p. 425 ● Module Summary p. 441
● Social Development: Identity

●
and Relationships p. 427
Module Summary p. 430
• Work the Scientific Literacy
Model p. 442
 Paul Doyle/Alamy

Module

10.1 Physical Development from Conception

through Infancy

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology related The pros and cons to Your understanding to identify The effects of
After reading to developmental research different research designs in the best ways expectant preterm birth
this module methods and prenatal and developmental psychology parents can ensure the health
you should infant physical development of their developing fetus

It is difficult to overstate the sheer miracle and profundity of birth. Con- same, just a little more developed. Our movements are even basically the
sider the following story, told by a new father. “About two days after same, just a little more coordinated. But fundamentally, we are just giant
the birth of my first child, I was driving to the hospital and had one of babies. I like to remember that now and then, when I feel intimidated by
‘those moments,’ an awe moment, when reality seems clear and won- someone, or when I feel too self-important. It’s humbling, and liberating.”
drous. What triggered it was that the person driving down the highway
The story of how we got from where we started “once upon a time”
in the car next to mine yawned. Suddenly, I remembered my newborn
to where we are now, and what’s going to happen to us as we continue
baby yawning just the day before, and somehow, it hit me—we are all
to age, is a remarkable story that developmental psychologists have
just giant babies. All of us, from the power broker in the business suit to
painstakingly pieced together over the past century or so of scientific
the rebellious teenager in gangsta fashion, the tired soccer parent in the
research. And it starts with a single egg and a single sperm.
mini-van and the elderly couple holding hands on the sidewalk. Despite
all of our cherished opinions, political beliefs, dreams and aspirations, the
endless drama of our soap opera lives, and all the things we know and Focus Questions
remember, we are, at our essence, giant babies. We have the same basic
needs as babies—food, security, love, air, water, plus we’ve added a moun- 1 How does brain development occur, before and after birth?
tain of wants to those needs—the latest gadget, exciting ways to spend 2 What are newborns able to sense?
our weekends, feeling smarter than the people around us. But our bod-
ies are basically the same, just a little bigger. Our brains are basically the

392 :: Module 10.1 : : Physical Development from Conception through Infancy

Developmental psychology is the study of human physi- reflect any number of differences between people from
cal, cognitive, social, and behavioural characteristics across the those time periods—such as differences in nutrition, par-
lifespan. Take just about anything you have encountered enting norms, medical advances, cultural changes, envi-
so far in this text, and you will probably find psycholo- ronmental pollutants, or many other factors. This creates
gists approaching it from a developmental perspective. big problems in interpreting the findings of a study—
From neuroscientists to cultural psychologists, examin- do differences between the age groups reflect a normal
ing how we function and change across different stages developmental process or do they reflect more general
of life raises many central and fascinating questions. differences between people born into these time periods?
A longitudinal study fixes the problem of cohort
effects, but the demands of following a single group of
Methods for Measuring
people for a long period of time can be very costly and
Developmental Trends time-consuming. Longitudinal designs often suffer from
Studying development requires some special methods the problem of attrition, which occurs when participants
for measuring and tracking change over time. A cross- drop out of a study for some reason, such as losing inter-
sectional design is used to measure and compare samples of est or moving away. Despite these challenges, some very
people at different ages at a given point in time. For example, ambitious long-term studies have been done, sometimes
to study cognition from infancy to adulthood, you could following the same people for decades (e.g., the Seven
compare people of different age groups—say, groups of Up series, the Minnesota Twins study).
1-, 5-, 10-, and 20-year-olds. In contrast, a longitudinal
PATTERNS OF DEVELOPMENT: STAGES AND CON-
design follows the development of the same set of individuals
TINUITY To parents, sometimes it may seem like chil-
through time. With this type of study, you would select a
dren can’t grow up quickly enough, and days crawl by with
sample of infants and measure their cognitive development Explore
little apparent change. At other times, it seems like they
periodically over the course of 20 years (see Figure 10.1). Cross-Sectional and
grow up too fast and change so quickly you feel their child-
These different methods have different strengths Longitudinal Research
hood is slipping by; you leave on a weekend business trip
and weaknesses. Cross-sectional designs are relatively Designs
and when you come back, you’ve missed their first steps or
cheap and easy to administer, and they allow a study to
their vocabulary has advanced dramatically. To account for
be done quickly (because you don’t have to wait around
both periods of slow and rapid growth, development is seen
while your participants age). On the other hand, they can
as a progression of abrupt transitions in physical or mental
suffer from cohort effects, which are differences between
skills, interspersed with slower, more gradual change. Psy-
people that result from being born in different time periods. For
chologists often describe this pattern of change as a series
example, if you find differences between people born
of stages. The transition from stage to stage involves rapid
last year with those born in the 1990s or 1970s, this may
shifts in thinking and behaving, and fundamental shifts in
Time 1 the types of abilities a child can perform.
Subjects What accounts for the rapid physical and behav-
age A ioural transitions that occur during early development?
Complex interactions between genetics and the envi-
Cross-sectional Subjects ronment are constantly shaping developmental processes.
study age B
Change occurs rapidly when individuals are “ready” for
Subjects
it; that is, there are certain times in development when
age C individuals are particularly sensitive to the stimulation
that facilitates physiological, neurological, behavioural,
and cognitive development. The concept of a sensitive
Longitudinal study
period helps explain how this transformation happens.

Time Time Time

THE IMPORTANCE OF SENSITIVE PERIODS
1 2 3 Timing is everything during key stages of development.
A sensitive period is a window of time during which expo- Watch

Subjects Chi Hae: Raising an

sure to a specific type of environmental stimulation is needed
Eleven-Month-Old,
{fig. 10.1} Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Methods In for normal development of a specific ability. For example, to
Part 1
cross-sectional studies, different groups of people—typically become fluent in their native language, infants need to
of different ages—are compared at a single point in time. In be exposed to speech during their first few years of life.
longitudinal studies, the same group of subjects is tracked
over multiple points in time. Click on this figure in your eText
Long-term deficits can emerge if the needed stimulation,
to see more details. such as language, is missing during a sensitive period.

Physical Development from Conception through Infancy :: Module 10.1 :: 393

 Sensitive periods of development are a widespread
phenomenon. They have been found in humans and Quick Quiz 10.1a
other species for abilities such as depth perception, bal- Methods for Measuring Developmental
ance, and recognition of parents. A sensitive period for Trends
identifying with a culture may be uniquely human.
1 The effects of language deprivation during infancy

KNOW . . .
Among immigrants of all ages, it is the younger indi-
and childhood can be irreversible. This fact is best
viduals (0 to 20 years) who are quicker to identify more explained by which concept?
strongly with their new culture (Cheung et al., 2011). A Cohort effects
B Sensorimotor functioning
C Sensitive period
Table 10.1 :: Phases of Prenatal Development
D Stage theories
A summary of the stages of human prenatal development and some of the major
events at each.
2 A researcher has only one year to complete a study

APPLY . . .
GERMINAL: 0 TO 2 WEEKS
on a topic that spans the entire range of childhood. To
Major Events complete the study she should use a ________ design.
Migration of the blastocyst from the fallopian A cohort
tubes and its implantation in the uterus. Cellular B longitudinal
divisions take place that eventually lead to
C correlational
multiple organ, nervous system, and skin tissues.
D cross-sectional

3 Which of the following is a factor that would be least

ANALYZE . . .
likely to be a cohort effect for a study on cognitive
development in healthy people?
A Differences in genes between individuals
B Differences in educational practices over time
C Changes in the legal drinking age
EMBRYONIC: 2 TO 8 WEEKS D Changes in prescription drug use
Major Events Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
Stage in which basic cell layers become
differentiated. Major structures such as the head,
heart, limbs, hands, and feet emerge. The embryo
attaches to the placenta, the structure that allows
for the exchange of oxygen and nutrients and Zygotes to Infants: From One Cell
the removal of wastes.
to Billions
We begin our exploration of developmental psychol-
ogy from even before birth, because what happens in the
prenatal environment can have consequences for psycho-
logical functioning throughout the rest of a person’s life.

FERTILIZATION AND GESTATION During preg-

FETAL STAGE: 8 WEEKS TO BIRTH
nancy, the fetus’s development is already being shaped by
Major Events both genetic and environmental factors. Understand-
Brain development progresses as distinct regions ing the complex interplay between nature and nurture
take form. The circulatory, respiratory, digestive, requires examining the process of development, starting
and other bodily systems develop. Sex organs
with fertilization.
appear at around the third month of gestation.
Our lives begin when a single sperm (out of
approximately 200 million who start the journey into
the vagina) is able to find its way into the ovum (egg
cell), at which point the ovum releases a chemical that
bars any other sperm from entering. A zygote, the initial
cell formed when the nuclei of egg and sperm fuse, mysteri-
Top: Doug Steley A/Alamy; centre: [Link]/
ously comes into being in this moment, and out of this
Alamy; bottom: Claude Edelmann/Science Source
single cell, the rest of our lives flow.

394 :: Module 10.1 : : Physical Development from Conception through Infancy

 4 weeks 7 months human brain can be seen during the embry- Watch
Midbrain Hindbrain
Auditory
onic stage, between the second and third Period of the Zygote
vesicle Cerebrum
weeks of gestation, when some cells migrate
to the appropriate locations and begin to
differentiate into nerve cells. The first signs
Optic vesicle Cerebellum of the major divisions of the brain—the
forebrain, the midbrain, and the hindbrain—
7 weeks
Spinal cord are apparent at only 4 weeks (see Figure
10.2). By 11 weeks, differentiations between
Metencephalon
(becomes the cerebral hemisphere, the cerebellum, and
cerebellum
and pons) the brain stem are apparent. During the final
months of pregnancy, a fatty tissue called
9 months (at birth)
Spinal cord
myelin builds up around developing nerve
Cerebrum cells, a process called myelination. Myelin
insulates nerve cells, enabling them to con-
11 weeks
Cerebral hemisphere duct messages more rapidly and efficiently
Cerebellum (see Module 3.2; Giedd, 2008).
Explore
Medulla
At birth, the newborn has an esti-
Cerebellum Dendritic
mated 100 billion neurons and a brain that
Spreading: Forming
Spinal cord
Spinal cord
is approximately 25% the size and weight of
Interconnections in the
an adult brain. Astonishingly, this means that Brain
Optic chiasm at birth, the infant has created virtually all
of the neurons that will comprise the adult Explore
Virtual Brain:
{fig. 10.2} Fetal Brain Development The origins of the major regions brain, growing up to 4000 new neurons per
of the brain are already detectable at four weeks’ gestation. Their differ- Development of the
second in the womb (Brown et al., 2001);
entiation progresses rapidly, with the major forebrain, midbrain, and hind- Brain
brain regions becoming increasingly specialized. Click on this figure in
what’s missing from the newborn brain
your eText to see more details. is most of the connections between these
neurons (Kolb, 1989, 1995). This gives us
This is the beginning of the germinal stage, the a key insight into one of our core human capacities—
first phase of prenatal development, which spans from concep- our ability to adapt to highly diverse environments. In
tion to two weeks. Shortly after it forms, the zygote begins contrast with most other animal species, whose brains
dividing, first into two cells, then four, then eight, and develop predominantly in the womb, human brains
so on. It also begins travelling down the fallopian tubes develop most of their neural organization through
toward the uterus, where it becomes implanted into the interaction with the outside environment. This means
lining of the uterus (Table 10.1). The ball of cells, now that the environment structures us to be the way we are,
called a blastocyst, splits into two groups. The inner to a phenomenal degree.
group of cells develops into the fetus. The outer group This reliance upon the outside world is why human
of cells forms the placenta, which will pass oxygen and babies are so, well, useless at birth! (No offence to babies,
nutrients to, and expel waste from, the fetus. but seriously, they are pretty useless, just lying there in
Explore
The embryonic stage spans weeks two through eight, their own drool randomly waving their limbs about.) The Embryonic Period:
during which time the embryo begins developing major physical But it’s also why human children and adults are able to A Critical Period of
structures such as the heart and nervous system, as well as the adapt to the challenges of just about any environment on Human Development
beginnings of arms, legs, hands, and feet. earth; we become the type of organism needed to live in
The fetal stage spans week eight through birth, the environment into which we’re born. Watch

during which time the skeletal, organ, and nervous systems Fetal Development

become more developed and specialized. Muscles develop Watch

NUTRITION, TERATOGENS, AND FETAL DEVEL-
and the fetus begins to move. Sleeping and waking Second Trimester
OPMENT The rapidly developing fetal brain is highly
cycles start and the senses become fi ne-tuned—even
vulnerable to environmental influences, such as the
to the point where the fetus is responsive to external
mother’s nutrition and teratogens in the bloodstream.
cues (these events are summarized in Table 10.1).
Nutrition is critical for normal fetal development.
FETAL BRAIN DEVELOPMENT Human brain In fact, aside from specifi c teratogens (as we discuss
development is an extremely lengthy process—con- below), proper nutrition is the single most impor-
tinuing all the way to adulthood. The beginnings of the tant non-genetic factor affecting fetal development

Physical Development from Conception through Infancy :: Module 10.1 :: 395

 (Phillips, 2006). To provide this nourishment, preg- One of the most famous and heartbreaking examples
nant women typically require an almost 20% increase of teratogens was the use of thalidomide, a sedative
in energy intake during pregnancy, including sufficient that was hailed as a wonder drug for helping pregnant
quantities of protein (which affects neurological devel- women deal with morning sickness during pregnancy.
opment; Morgane et al., 2002) and essential nutrients Available in Canada from 1959 to 1962, thalidomide
(especially omega-3 fatty acids, folic acid, zinc, calcium, was disastrous, causing miscarriages, severe birth defects
and magnesium). Given that most people’s diets do not such as blindness and deafness, plus its most well-
provide enough of these critical nutrients, supplementa- known effect, phocomelia, in which victims’ hands, feet,
tion is generally a good idea (Ramakrishnan et al., 1999). or both emerged directly from their shoulders or hips,
Fetal malnutrition can have severe consequences, functioning more like flippers than limbs; indeed, pho-
producing low-birth-weight babies who are more comelia is taken from the Greek words phoke, which
likely to suffer from a variety of diseases and illnesses, means “seal,” and melos , which means “limb” ( www
and are more likely to have cognitive deficits that can . [Link]/faq-en/#12 ). It is estimated that up
persist long after birth. Children who were malnour- to twenty thousand babies were born with disabilities
Watch
ished in the womb are more likely to experience atten- from being exposed to thalidomide. In most countries,
Brain Development
tion deficit disorders and difficulties controlling their victims were able to secure financial support through
and Nutrition
emotions, due to underdeveloped prefrontal cortices class action lawsuits; however, in Canada, the govern-
Simulate and other brain areas involved in self-control (Morgane ment has steadfastly refused to provide much support
Teratogens and Their et al., 2002). Other surprising effects on mental health to victims, who face ongoing severe challenges in
Effects
were illustrated after the citizens of Holland were their lives.
severely malnourished during a famine that struck in More common teratogens are alcohol and
World War II. Babies born during those years experi- tobacco, although their effects differ widely depending
enced a variety of physical problems (Stein et al., 1975) on the volume consumed and when exposure occurs
and, over time, had a much higher risk of developing during pregnancy. First described in the 1970s (Jones
Watch psychological disorders, such as schizophrenia and anti- & Smith, 1973), fetal alcohol syndrome involves
Effects of Prenatal social personality disorder (Neugebauer et al., 1999; abnormalities in mental functioning, growth, and facial
Smoking Susser et al., 1999). development in the offspring of women who use alcohol dur-
Fetal development can also be disrupted through ing pregnancy. This condition occurs in approximately
exposure to teratogens, substances, such as drugs or envi- 1 per 1000 births worldwide, but is probably under-
ronmental toxins, that impair the process of development. reported (Morleo et al., 2011). Alcohol, like many

Dpa Picture Alliance/Alamy

Victims of Thalidomide; this sedative seemed like a miracle drug in the late 1950s, until
its tragic effects on fetal development became apparent.

396 :: Module 10.1 : : Physical Development from Conception through Infancy

other substances, readily passes through the placental
membranes, leaving the developing fetus vulnerable to
its effects, which include reduced mental functioning
(Olson, C., et al., 1997; Streissguth et al., 1999). The
more alcohol the mother consumes, the more likely
these birth defects will appear; nevertheless, there is no
“safe limit”; even one drink per day can be enough to
cause impaired fetal development (O’Leary et al., 2010;
Streissguth & Connor, 2001).
Smoking can also expose the developing fetus to
teratogens, decreasing blood oxygen and raising con-
centrations of nicotine and carbon monoxide, as well as
increasing the risk of miscarriage or death during infancy.
Babies born to mothers who smoke are twice as likely to
have low birth weight and have a 30% chance of pre-
mature birth—both factors that increase the newborn’s
risk of illness or death. Smoking during pregnancy also
increases the risk that the child will experience prob-
lems with emotional development and impulse control
(Brion et al., 2010), as well as attentional problems and
learning deficits (Makin et al., 1991). Babies exposed to
smoke are also as much as three times more likely to die
from SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome; Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2009; Rogers,
2009). Even exposure to second-hand smoke carries the
same risk (Best, 2009).
Clearly, teratogens exact a major cost on society,
causing deficits that range from very specific (e.g., blind- STUART WONG KRT/Newscom
ness), to more general effects on development (e.g., pre- Fetal alcohol syndrome is diagnosed based on facial abnor-
mature birth). malities, growth problems, and behavioural and cognitive
deficits.

brains and lungs, which presents a host of immediate chal-

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC lenges, such as breathing on their own and maintaining an
LITERACY MODEL appropriate body temperature. With modern medical care,
babies born at 30 weeks have a very good chance of surviv-
The Long-Term Effects ing (approximately 95%), although for those born at 25 weeks,
of Premature Birth survival rates drop to only slightly above 50% (Dani et al.,
2009; Jones et al., 2005). Babies born at less than 25 weeks
do often survive, but with very high chances of damage to
Evolution has prepared the mother’s womb to be a close-
the brain and other major organs. Because of these immense
to-ideal environment for a fetus’s delicate brain and body to
costs, medical science sorely needs better procedures for
prepare for life outside the womb. Premature birth thrusts
nurturing preterm infants.
the vulnerable baby into a much less congenial environment;
what effects does this have on development?
How can science
What do we know be used to help
about premature birth? preterm infants?
Typically, humans are born at a ges- Researchers and doctors
tational age of around 40 weeks. have compared different
Preterm infants are born earlier methods for improving survival and normal development
than 36 weeks . Premature babies in preterm infants. One program, called the Newborn Indi-
typically have underdeveloped vidualized Developmental Care and Assessment Program

Physical Development from Conception through Infancy :: Module 10.1 :: 397

 Victoria Boland Photography/Flickr/Getty Images
Kangaroo care—skin-to-skin contact between babies and
caregivers—is now encouraged for promoting optimal infant
Helen Mcardle/Science Photo Library/Corbis development.

(NIDCAP), is a behaviourally based intervention in which program, or which aspects of the treatment itself are responsi-
preterm infants are closely observed and given intensive ble for the effects. These remain questions for future research.
care during early development. To keep the delicate brain
protected against potentially harmful experiences, NIDCAP Why is this relevant?
calls for minimal lights, sound levels, and stress.
Worldwide, an estimated 9% of
Controlled studies suggest that this program works. infants are born preterm (Villar
Researchers randomly assigned 117 infants born at 29 weeks et al., 2003). For these children,
or less gestational age to receive either NIDCAP or stan- medical advances have increased the likelihood of survival,
dard care in a prenatal intensive care unit. Within 9 months and behaviourally based interventions, such as NIDCAP, can
of birth, the infants who received the NIDCAP care showed reduce the chances of long-term negative effects of preterm
significantly improved motor skills, attention, and other birth. This fits with a growing literature on other behav-
behavioural skills, as well as superior brain development ioural interventions that have shown promise in improving
(McAnulty et al., 2009). outcomes for preterm infants. For example, massaging pre-
Longitudinal studies show that these initial gains last for a long term infants for a mere 15 minutes per day can result in a
time. Even at eight years of age, those who were born preterm 50% greater daily weight gain (Field et al., 2006) and reduce
and given NIDCAP treatment scored higher on measures of stress-related behaviours (Hernandez-Reif et al., 2007).
thinking and problem solving, and also showed better frontal Another method called kangaroo care focuses on promoting
lobe functioning, than children who were born preterm but skin-to-skin contact between infants and caregivers, as well as
did not have NIDCAP treatment (McAnulty et al., 2010). encouraging breastfeeding; these practices have been shown
to improve the physical and psychological health of preterm
infants (Conde-Agudelo et al., 2011), and are becoming widely
Can we critically adopted into mainstream medical practice.
evaluate this research?
The chief limitation of this study is
its small sample size (only 22 chil-
dren across the two conditions).
Such a small sample size presents
problems from a statistical perspec-
tive, increasing the likelihood that random chance plays a role
in the results. Small samples also make it difficult to test the
effects of interacting factors, such as whether the effectiveness
of the program would depend on the child’s gender, on family
socioeconomic status, ethnicity, or other factors. This study
also does not identify why the program works, what specific
mechanisms it affects that in turn improves development. It is
not known which brain systems are beneficially affected by the allOver photography/Alamy

398 :: Module 10.1 : : Physical Development from Conception through Infancy

 disease with the vaccine. His research was funded by lawyers Watch
Quick Quiz 10.1b who sued makers of vaccines for damages. In 2010, the origi- Autistic Children
Zygotes to Infants: From One Cell to nal 1998 paper was retracted by The Lancet, the medical jour-
nal that published it. Also, a thorough investigation revealed
Billions
numerous counts of misconduct by Wakefield, and the UK
1 A developing human is called a(n) ________ during revoked his medical licence.
KNOW . . .

the time between weeks 2 and 8. There is no scientific evidence that the MMR vaccine
A embryo C fetus causes autism.
B zygote D germinal

2 In which stage do the skeletal, organ, and nervous

systems become more developed and specialized? Sensory and Motor Development
A Embryonic stage C Germinal stage
in Infancy
B Fetal stage D Gestational stage
Compared to the offspring of other species, healthy
newborn humans are relatively helpless. Horses, snakes,
3 Which of the following would not qualify as a
UNDERSTAND . . .

teratogen? deer, and many other organisms come into the world
A Cigarette smoke with a few basic skills, such as walking (or slithering),
B Alcohol that enable them to move about the world, get food,
C Prescription drug and have at least have a chance of evading predators. But
D All of the above are possible teratogens human infants depend entirely on caregivers to keep
them alive, as they slowly develop their senses, strength,
and coordination. In this section, we shift our focus to
4 Which of the following statements best summarizes Watch
ANALYZE . . .

newborns to find out how movement and sensation Perception

the effects of preterm birth?
A Preterm births are typically fatal. develop in the first year of life.
It’s weird to think about what the world of an infant
B The worrisome effects of preterm birth are
exaggerated. There is little to worry about. must be like. As adults, we depend heavily on our top-
C Preterm birth may cause physical and cognitive
down processes (see Module 4.1) to help us label, cate-
problems. gorize, perceive, and make sense of the world, but infants
D Cohort effects make it impossible to answer this have developed very few top-down patterns when they
question. are born. Their brains are pretty close to being “blank
slates,” and life must be, as William James so aptly put it, a
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
“blooming, buzzing confusion.”
Suprisingly, however, babies have started to make
sense of their world even while in the womb. By month
four of prenatal development, the brain starts receiving
MYTHS IN MIND signals from the eyes and ears. By seven to eight months,
infants can not only hear, but they seem to be actively
Vaccinations and Autism listening. This amazing finding comes from studies in
which developing fetuses were exposed to certain stim-
In the late 1990s, a team of researchers claimed that the uli, and then their preference for these stimuli was tested
combined vaccination for measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) upon birth. In one study, mothers read stories, including
was linked to the development of autism (Wakefield et al., The Cat in the Hat, twice daily during the final six weeks
1998). The MMR vaccination is given to millions of children of pregnancy. At birth, their babies were given a pacifier
at around their first birthday; a second dose is administered that controlled a tape recording of their mother’s voice
at approximately the time they start school. Of course, sci- reading different stories. Babies sucked the pacifier much
entific evidence that such a widespread treatment could lead
more to hear their mothers read The Cat in the Hat com-
directly to autism alarmed many parents, many of whom
pared to hearing stories the moms had not read to them in
refused to have the vaccine given to their young children.
The hypothesis that the MMR vaccine causes autism
the womb (DeCasper & Spence, 1986). Newborn babies
unravelled when other groups of scientists could not repli- also show a preference for their mother’s voice over other
cate the original findings. The knockout blow to the MMR– women’s voices; for example, a study involving researchers
autism hypothesis came when it was discovered that Andrew at Queen’s University showed that babies responded pos-
Wakefield, the doctor who published the original study itively when they heard poems read in their moms’ voice,
in 1998, was found to have financial interests in linking the but not when read by a stranger (Kisilevsky et al., 2003).

Physical Development from Conception through Infancy :: Module 10.1 :: 399

 (But sorry, dads, babies up to at least 4 months old don’t
prefer your voice over other men’s [DeCasper & Prescott,
1984; Ward & Cooper, 1999].)
The auditory patterning of babies’ brains is so sig-
nificant that they have already started to internalize the
sounds of their own native tongue, even before they are
born! Recently, researchers discovered that babies actu-
ally cry with an accent, by analyzing the crying sounds of
60 babies born to either French or German parents. The Face Scrambled Blank
cries of French babies rose in intensity toward the end {fig. 10.3} Experimental Stimuli for Studying Visual
of their cry while German babies started at high inten- Habituation in Infants Infants were shown three types of
stimuli, a face-like stimulus, a neutral stimulus, and a scram-
sity and then trailed off . This difference was apparent at
bled-face stimulus.
only a few days of age and reflects the same sound pat-
terns characteristic of their respective languages (Mampe Babies’ visual responses to the world illustrate a
et al., 2009). So, babies are actively learning about their major theme within psychology, which is that humans
cultural environment even while in the womb. are fundamentally social creatures. By a few days of age,
The visual system is not as well developed at birth, newborns will imitate the facial expressions of others
however. Enthusiastic family members who stand around (Meltzoff & Moore, 1977). Newborns prefer to look at
making goofy faces at newborn babies are deluding them- stimuli that look like faces, compared to stimuli that have
selves if they think they’re interacting with the child; new- all the same features but are scrambled so that they don’t
borns have only about 1/40th of the visual acuity of adults look like faces (see Figure 10.3). Infants also take longer
(Sireteanu, 1999), and can only see about as far away as to habituate to the face-like stimuli, suggesting that the
is necessary to see their mom’s face while breastfeeding human face holds particular importance even for new-
(about 30 cm or less). It takes 6 months or more before borns (Johnson et al., 1991). This social attunement is
they reach 20/20 visual acuity. Colour vision, depth per- dramatically illustrated in one study, which showed that
ception, and shape discrimination all get a slow start as well. within one hour of birth, newborns begin to imitate facial
Colour discrimination happens at about 2 months of age, expressions (Reissland, 1988) that they see!
depth perception at 4 months, and it takes a full 8 months Interestingly, the proper development of the visual
before infants can perceive shapes and objects about as system is not guaranteed to happen; it’s not hardwired
well as adults (Csibra et al., 2000; Fantz, 1961). Neverthe- into our genes. Instead, the visual system develops in
less, even newborns are highly responsive to visual cues if response to the infant experiencing a world of diverse
they’re close enough to see them. They will track moving visual input. Research at McMaster University has
objects, and will stare intently at objects they haven’t seen shown that even though babies possess the necessary
before, although after a while they habituate to an object “equipment” for proper vision, this equipment needs to
and lose interest in looking at it (Slater et al., 1988). be exposed to a diverse visual world in order to learn
how to function effectively (Maurer et al., 1999); it is
the patterns in the world which develop the appropriate
neural pathways in the visual cortex (see Module 4.2).
Contrary to vision, the taste and olfactory systems are
relatively well developed at birth. Similar to adults, new-
borns cringe when smelling something rotten or pungent,
such as ammonia, and they show a strong preference for the
taste of sweets. Odours are strong memory cues for infants
as well. For example, infants can learn that a toy will work
in the presence of one odour but not others, and they can
retain this memory over several days (Schroers et al., 2007).
Newborn infants can also smell the difference between
their mother’s breastmilk and that of a stranger. Infants
even turn their heads toward the scent of breastmilk, which
From A.N. Meltzoff & M.K. Moore, “Imitation of facial and helps to initiate nursing (Porter & Winberg, 1999).
manual gestures by human neonates.” Science, 1977, 198, 75–78.
At just a few days of age, infants will imitate the facial expres- MOTOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE FIRST YEAR
sions of others (Meltzoff & Moore, 1977). Although the motor system takes many years to develop

400 :: Module 10.1 : : Physical Development from Conception through Infancy

 Table 10.2 :: Infant Reflexes
THE ROOTING REFLEX

The rooting reflex is elicited by stimulation to the

corners of the mouth, which causes infants to
orient themselves toward the stimulation and
make sucking motions. The rooting reflex helps
the infant begin feeding immediately after birth.

THE MORO REFLEX

The Moro reflex, also known as the “startle”

reflex, occurs when infants lose support of
their head. Infants grimace and reach their arms
outward and then inward in a hugging motion.
This may be a protective reflex that allows the
infant to hold on to the mother when support is
suddenly lost.

THE GRASPING REFLEX

The grasping reflex is elicited by stimulating the Watch

infant’s palm. The infant’s grasp is remarkably Fine Motor Skills:
strong and facilitates safely holding on to one’s
Grasping
caregiver.

Top: Cathy Melloan Resources/PhotoEdit;

centre: Petit Format/Photo Researchers, Inc.;
bottom: Denise Hager/Catchlight Visual
Services/Alamy

muscular reactions to specific types of stimulation. These

reflexes provide newborns and infants with a set of
innate responses for feeding and interacting with their
caregivers (see Table 10.2).
As the infant begins to navigate the world under
her own power, her perceptual understanding sharpens
as well. This was illustrated in research involving an inge-
nious device—the visual cliff. Originally, researchers in
1960 (Gibson & Walk, 1960) found that infants would
be reluctant to crawl over the deep side, seeming to
understand depth and danger right from birth. However,
researchers eventually discovered that only babies who
Mark Richards/PhotoEdit had some experience crawling showed fear of the deep
The visual cliff. end (Campos et al., 1992).
Over the first 12 to 18 months after birth, infants’ Watch
a high degree of coordination (e.g., good luck getting motor abilities progress through reliable stages—from Gross Motor Skills
an infant to wield a steak knife), the beginnings of the crawling, to standing, to walking (see Figure 10.4). The
motor system develop very early. A mere five months age at which infants can perform each of these move-
after conception, the fetus begins to have control of ments differs from one individual to the next. In con- Watch
voluntary motor movements. In the last months of ges- trast to reflexes, the development of motor skills seems Reflexes
tation, the muscles and nervous system are developed to rely more on practice and deliberate effort, which
enough to demonstrate basic reflexes — involuntary in turn is related to environmental influences, such as

Physical Development from Conception through Infancy :: Module 10.1 :: 401

 change is the myelination of axons, which begins pre-
natally, accelerates through infancy and childhood, and
then continues gradually for many years. In addition,
two key events occur at the level of synapses: synapto-
genesis and synaptic pruning. Synaptogenesis describes
the forming of new synaptic connections, which occurs at
blinding speed through infancy and childhood, and
continues through the lifespan. Synaptic pruning ,
the loss of weak nerve cell connections , accelerates dur-
ing brain development through infancy and childhood
CANAL +/Album/CANAL +/Album/Newscom ( Figure 10.5 ), then tapers off until adolescence (see
Different childrearing practices and expectations result in Module 10.3). Synaptogenesis and synaptic prun-
cultural variations in the rate at which motor skills develop.
ing serve to increase neural efficiency by strengthening
needed connections between nerve cells and weeding
cultural practices. For example, Jamaican mothers typi- out unnecessary ones.
cally expect their babies to walk earlier than British or In summary, the journey from zygote to you begins
Indian mothers, and sure enough, Jamaican babies do dramatically, with biological pathways being formed at a
walk earlier, likely because they are given more encour- breakneck pace prenatally and into the first year of life,
agement and opportunities to learn (Hopkins & Westra, allowing for sensory and motor abilities to connect the
1989; Zelazo et al., 1993). infant to the external world. Most motor abilities require
One area of the body that undergoes astonish- substantial time for the infant to learn to coordinate the
ing development during infancy is the brain. Although many different muscles required, which depends heav-
the major brain structures are all present at birth, they ily on the infant’s interactions with the environment.
continue developing right into adulthood. One key Nature and nurture are inextricably intertwined.

(a) (b)

(c) (d) (e) (f)

Watch Top, left: bendao/Shutterstock; top, right: Bubbles Photolibrary/Alamy; bottom, left: Glow Images; bottom, centre left: OLJ
Motor Development in Studio/Shutterstock; bottom, centre right: Corbis Bridge/Alamy; bottom, right: Eric Gevaert/[Link]
Infants and Toddlers: {fig. 10.4} Motor Skills Develop in Stages This series shows infants in different stages of development: (a) raising the head,
Karen Adolph (b) rolling over, (c) propping up, (d) sitting up, (e) crawling, and (f) walking.

402 :: Module 10.1 : : Physical Development from Conception through Infancy

 Axon

Neurons

Dendrites

1. At birth, the infant’s brain has a 2. During the first year, the axons 3. Over the next few years, active
complete set of neurons but not grow longer, the dendrites increase connections are strengthened, while
very many synaptic connections. in number, and a surplus of new unused connections disintegrate.
connections is formed.

{fig. 10.5} The Processes of Synaptic Pruning

Quick Quiz 10.1c Sensory and Motor Development in Infancy

1 Three main types of processes account for the main 2 The development of infant motor skills is best
KNOW . . .

UNDERSTAND . . .

ways in which the brain develops after birth. These described as

three processes are A a genetic process with no environmental
A myelination, synaptogenesis, synaptic pruning. influence.
B myelination, synaptic reorganization, increased B completely due to the effects of encouragement.
neurotransmitter production. C a mixture of biological maturation and learning.
C synaptogenesis, synaptic pruning, increased D progressing in continuous, rather than stage,
neurotransmitter production. fashion.
D Actually, the brain is fully developed at birth; the
only change afterwards is that new cells are formed Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
while the child’s brain grows (synaptogenesis).

Physical Development from Conception through Infancy :: Module 10.1 :: 403

 Module Summary

Module Now that you have read this module you should
10.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology related to developmental

research methods and prenatal and infant physical
development:
Paul Doyle/Alamy
cohort effect (p. 393) preterm infant (p. 397)
cross-sectional design (p. 393) reflexes (p. 400)
developmental psychology (p. 393) sensitive period (p. 393)
embryonic stage (p. 395) synaptic pruning (p. 402) APPLY . . .
fetal alcohol syndrome (p. 396) synaptogenesis (p. 402)
fetal stage (p. 395) teratogen (p. 396) ● Your understanding to identify the best ways that
germinal stage (p. 395) zygote (p. 394) expectant parents can ensure the health of their
longitudinal design (p. 393) developing fetus. The key to healthy fetal development
is ensuring a chemically ideal environment. The most
important factors are adequate nutrition and avoiding
teratogens. Best nutritional practices include approximately
UNDERSTAND . . .
a 20% increase in the mother’s caloric intake, additional
protein, and ensuring sufficient quantities of essential
● The pros and cons to different research designs in
nutrients, which usually involves taking nutritional
developmental psychology. Cross-sectional designs, in
supplements. Avoiding teratogens involves giving up
which a researcher studies a sample of people at one time,
smoking and drinking alcohol, and getting good medical
have the advantage of being faster, and generally cheaper,
advice concerning any medications that the expectant
allowing research to be completed quickly; however,
mother may be taking.
they may suffer from cohort effects because people
of different ages in the sample are also from somewhat
different historical time periods and, thus, any differences ANALYZE . . .
between them could reflect a historical process and
not a developmental one. Longitudinal designs, in which ● The effects of preterm birth. Health risks increase
a researcher follows a sample of people over a span of considerably with very premature births (e.g., those
time, have the advantage of being able to track changes occurring at just 25 weeks’ gestation). Use of proper
in the same people, thus giving more direct insight into caregiving procedures, especially personalized care that
developmental processes. However, such studies take emphasizes mother–infant contact, breastfeeding, and
longer to complete, thus slowing down the research minimal sensory stimulation for the underdeveloped brain,
process, and they can suffer from attrition, in which people increases the chances that preterm infants will remain
drop out of the study over time. healthy.

404 :: Module 10.1 : : Physical Development from Conception through Infancy

 Inspirestock Inc/Alamy

Module

10.2 Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive

and Emotional Development
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The terminology The cognitive changes that occur The concept of scaffolding How to effectively discipline
After reading associated with infancy during infancy and childhood and the zone of proximal children in order to
this module and childhood development to understand promote moral behaviour
The importance of attachment and
you should how to best promote learning
the different styles of attachment

Many parents have turned to Disney’s “Baby Einstein” line of books, toys, out that the amount of time parents spend reading to their infants is
and DVDs in hopes of entertaining and enriching their children. These related to greater vocabulary comprehension and production. As you can
materials certainly are entertaining enough that children watch them. imagine, these results might give parents pause before they commit to
But a major issue concerns whether they provide the advertised long- using the DVDs.
term benefits of increasing cognitive skills. These products are designed
to help babies explore music, art, language, science, poetry, and nature
through engaging images, characters, and music. The American Academy Focus Questions
of Pediatrics, however, recommends that children younger than two years
1 Which types of activities do infants and young children
do not watch television at all. This recommendation is consistent with
need for their psychological development?
research showing that memory and language skills are slower to develop
in infants who regularly watch television (Christakis, 2009). Furthermore, 2 Given that social interactions are so important,
controlled studies show that the DVDs in question have no effect on which specific abilities are nurtured by them?
vocabulary development (Richert et al., 2010; Robb et al., 2009). It turns

Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development :: Module 10.2 :: 405
 that resulted laid much of the groundwork for the mod-
ern science of cognitive development—the study of
changes in memory, thought, and reasoning processes that occur
throughout the lifespan. In his own work, Piaget focused
on cognitive development from infancy through early
adolescence. In this section, we review his theory and
offer insight into modern work that builds upon it. So,
keep at it! Maybe you too will become a world-famous
psychologist by performing studies on your loved ones . . .
just don’t tell anyone we told you to do it.
Piaget was interested in explaining how different
ways of thinking and reasoning develop. According to
Piaget, knowledge accumulates and is modified by two
processes—assimilation and accommodation. Assimila-
tion is a conservative process, whereby people fit new informa-
tion into the belief systems they already possess. For example,
young children may think that all girls have long hair
Jerry Arcieri/Corbis and, as they encounter more examples of this pattern,
Baby Einstein: A very financially successful line of baby products; but do they really they will assimilate it into their current understanding.
help develop infant brains?
Of course, eventually they’re going to run into girls with
short hair or boys with long hair, and their beliefs will be
Watch Although human infants are relatively helpless for an challenged by this information. They may, at first, misun-
Thinking Like a extended period of time, the complexity of the human derstand, assuming the short-haired girl is actually a boy
Psychologist: Smart brain and behaviour begins to unfold immediately after and the long-haired boy is actually a girl. But over time
Babies by Design birth. The physical, cognitive, and social transitions that they will learn that their rigid categories of long-haired
occur between infancy and childhood are remarkably girl and short-haired boy need to be altered. This process
Watch
Basics: How Thinking
ordered, yet are also influenced by individual genetic and is accommodation, a creative process whereby people mod-
Develops sociocultural factors. In this module, we integrate some ify their belief structures based on experience. The processes
important stage perspectives to explain psychological of assimilation and accommodation continue through-
development through childhood. out our lives, as our belief systems help us make sense of
the world, and then get challenged by information that
Cognitive Changes: Piaget’s doesn’t fit our beliefs; we have to either ignore or deny
the information, or change our minds.
Cognitive Development Theory Piaget’s observations revealed that cognitive devel-
Explore One of the awesome things about getting a psychology opment passes through four distinct stages from birth
Piaget’s Stages degree is that you gain the knowledge required to run through early adolescence: sensorimotor, preoperational,
of Cognitive secret experiments on your friends and family when- concrete operational, and the formal operational stage.
Development ever you want. Jean Piaget (1896–1980) did just that, Passing out of one stage to the next occurs when the
observing and testing his children’s abilities from infancy child achieves the important developmental milestone of
onwards. His extensive personal project and the theories that stage (see Table 10.3).

Table 10.3 :: Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development

STAGE DESCRIPTION
Sensorimotor (0–2 years) Cognitive experience is based on direct, sensory experience with the world as well as motor
movements that allow infants to interact with the world. Object permanence is the significant
developmental milestone of this stage.
Preoperational (2–7 years) Thinking moves beyond the immediate appearance of objects. The child understands physical
conservation and that symbols, language, and drawings can be used to represent ideas.
Concrete operational (7–11 years) The ability to perform mental transformations on objects that are physically present emerges.
Thinking becomes logical and organized.
Formal operational (11 years–adulthood) The capacity for abstract and hypothetical thinking develops. Scientific reasoning becomes
possible.

406 :: Module 10.2 : : Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development
THE SENSORIMOTOR STAGE: LIVING IN THE between the infant and the toy. If the infant stopped reach- Watch
MATERIAL WORLD When we are adults, we under- ing for the toy or looking in its direction, then this infant Fine Motor Skills:
stand that things continue to exist even if they are not would not yet have developed object permanence. Reaching
physically present; the man committing adultery in Notice that this is not a problem for a two-year-old
Vegas knows, in reality, that his spouse exists, even if he is child. He can be very aware that his favourite dinosaur
choosing not to think about her. But he could think about toy awaits him in another room while he has to sit at the
her, and she would exist in his mind as a kind of abstrac- dinner table; in fact, he might not be able to get the toy
tion, a mental representation of his wife. Unlike adults, out of his mind and take revenge on the evil beings who
four-month-old infants do not appear to have the abil- won’t get it for him by screaming throughout the meal.
ity to form abstract mental representations. This explains
why infants will often stare in awe at things that are mun- THE PREOPERATIONAL STAGE: QUANTITY AND Watch
dane to adults, like snow. Imagine if you had no idea what NUMBERS According to Piaget, once children have Sensorimotor
snow was, had no previous experience that mapped onto mastered sensorimotor tasks, they have progressed to the Development
snow and suddenly saw fluffy, white, sparkly . . . things . . . preoperational stage (ages two to seven).This stage
pouring out of the sky! You might stand in awe too. is devoted to language development, using symbols, pretend Watch
Piaget named the earliest period of cognitive develop- play, and mastering the concept of conservation. During this The Preoperational and
ment the sensorimotor stage, from birth to two years, during stage, children can think about physical objects, although Concrete Operational

which infants’ thinking about and exploration of the world are based they have not quite attained abstract thinking abilities. Stage

on immediate sensory (e.g., seeing, feeling) and motor (e.g., grabbing, They may count objects (obsessively) and use numbers,
mouthing) experiences. During this time, infants are completely yet they cannot mentally manipulate information or see Watch

immersed in the present moment, responding exclusively things from other points of view. Conservation of

to direct, sensory input. In some ways this is a great way to Their inability to manipulate abstract information is Liquids

live; little kids enjoy snow and mud puddles more than your shown by testing their understanding of conservation, the
average adult. But in other ways this is highly dysfunctional; knowledge that the quantity or amount of an object is not the Watch

you certainly wouldn’t want to rely on an infant to pick you same as the physical arrangement and appearance of that object. Piaget: Sensorimotor

For example, imagine that a child is presented with two Stage

up at the airport. And if you were married to one, you’d be
pretty worried when she went to Vegas . . . identical rows of seven pennies each, as shown in the bot-
According to Piaget’s logic, as soon as an object is out tom of Figure 10.6. Next, the experimenter spreads out
of sight and out of reach, it will cease to exist (at least in one of the rows so that it is longer, but has the same num-
the minds of young infants). Out of sight, out of mind. ber of coins. If you ask a child, “Which row has more?” a
Thus, the first major milestone of cognitive development three-year-old child would likely point to the row that was
Explore
proposed by Piaget is object permanence, the ability to spread out. The child in the preoperational stage focuses
Infant’s Perceptual and
understand that objects exist even when they cannot be directly per- on the simpler method of answering based on immediate
Cognitive Milestones
ceived. To test for object permanence, Piaget would allow a perception, instead of the answer that would require more
child to reach for a toy, and then place a screen or a barrier sophisticated mental operations.

Doug Goodman/Photo Researchers/Getty Images

Object permanence is tested by examining reactions that infants have to objects when they cannot be seen. Children who have object permanence will
attempt to reach around the barrier or will continue looking in the direction of the desired object.

Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development :: Module 10.2 :: 407
 I. II. Other creative researchers have chal-
lenged Piaget’s pessimism about the abili-
ties of young children, arguing that their
inability to perform certain tasks was a
function of the child’s interpretation of
the task, not their underlying cognitive
(a) (b) (c) (a) (b) (c)
limitations (see Working the Scientific
(a)
Literacy Model, next page). For exam-
ple, when 3-year-old children are pre-
Row A
Row B
sented with a conservation test similar
to the one described previously except
Which has more, row A or row B,
or do they both have the same?
with (1) M&Ms instead of pennies and
(2) fewer M&Ms present in the row that
Row A is spread out, children will pick the tighter
(b)
Row B row, understanding that it contains more
candy—especially if they get to eat the
Now which has more, row A or row
B, or do they both have the same? candy from the row they choose (Mehler
& Bever, 1967). Attempting to trick kids
{fig. 10.6} Testing Conservation
A child views two equal amounts of
out of candy is no joke! They will leap
fluid, one of which is then poured past entire milestones to obtain those tiny
into a taller container. Children who morsels of sugary goodness.
do not yet understand conservation
It is important to note that even (c)
believe that there is more fluid in the
tall, narrow container compared to before children start to use and understand Courtesy of Judy DeLoache
the shorter one. A similar version of numbers, they acquire a basic understand- {fig. 10.7} Scale Errors and Testing for Scale Model
this task can be tested using equal ing of quantity. Very soon after they are Comprehension The children in photos (a) and (b) are making
arrays of separate objects. scale errors. One child is attempting to slide down a toy slide
born, infants appear to understand what it and another is attempting to enter a toy car. Three-year-olds
Watch means to have less or more of something. This suggests understand that a scale model represents an actual room (c).
Conservation Tasks that the infants who chose the longer row of pennies in The adult pictured is using a scale model to indicate the loca-
tion of a hidden object in an actual room of this type. At around
the example above may simply have misunderstood the
3 years of age, children understand that the scale model sym-
question, not the underlying rule of conservation. To bolizes an actual room and will go directly to the hidden object
them “more” could simply have meant “longer.” after viewing the scale model.
Although abstract thinking abilities are a work in
progress for young children, they do begin to understand
some basic [Link] children in Figure 10.7 are com- to 11 years), when children develop skills in logical thinking
mitting scale errors in the sense that they appear to interact and manipulating numbers. Children in the concrete opera-
with a doll-sized slide and a toy car as if they were the real tional stage are able to classify objects according to prop-
thing, rather than miniatures (DeLoache et al., 2004). erties such as size, value, shape, or some other physical
However, by 2 to 2½ years of age, scale errors decline characteristic. Their thinking becomes increasingly logi-
as children begin to understand properties of objects and cal and organized. For example, a child in the concrete
how they are related. At around 3 years of age children operational stage recognizes that if X is more than Y, and
begin to understand symbolic relationships. For example, Y is more than Z, then X is more than Z (a property
3-year-olds understand that a scale model of a room can called transitivity). This ability to think logically about
symbolize an actual room (Figure 10.7). Children who physical objects sets the stage for them to think logically
view an experimenter placing a miniature toy within about abstractions in the fourth and final stage of cogni-
the scale model will quickly locate the actual toy when tive development.
allowed to enter the room symbolized by the scale model
(DeLoache, 1995). Abilities such as this are precursors to THE FORMAL OPERATIONAL STAGE: ABSTRACT
more advanced abilities of mental abstraction. AND HYPOTHETICAL THOUGHT The formal
operational stage (ages 11 to adulthood) involves the
THE CONCRETE OPERATIONAL STAGE: USING development of advanced cognitive processes such as abstract rea-
LOGICAL THOUGHT Conservation is one of the soning and hypothetical thinking. Scientific thinking, such
main skills marking the transition from the preopera- as gathering evidence and systematically testing possibili-
tional stage to the concrete operational stage (ages 7 ties, is characteristic of this stage.

408 :: Module 10.2 : : Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development
 How can science
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC help explain infant
LITERACY MODEL cognitive abilities?
Evaluating Piaget Habituation and dishabitu-
ation have been used to
Piaget was immensely successful at opening our eyes to the measure whether infants understand many different con-
cognitive development of infants and children. Nevertheless, cepts, including abstract numbers—an ability that most peo-
advances in testing methods have showed that he may have ple imagine appears much later in development. For example,
underestimated some aspects of infant cognitive abilities. In Elizabeth Spelke and colleagues conducted a study in which
fact, infants appear to understand some basic principles of 16 infants just two days old were shown sets of either 4 or
the physical and social worlds very shortly after birth. 12 identical small shapes (e.g., yellow triangles, purple circles)
on a video screen. The researchers also sounded a tone
4 or 12 times (e.g., tu-tu-tu-tu or ra-ra-ra-ra-ra-ra-ra-ra-
What do we know ra-ra-ra-ra) at the same time they showed the shapes (see
about cognitive abilities Figure 10.8 ). Researchers varied whether the number of
in infants? shapes the infants saw matched the number of tones they
heard (e.g., 4 yellow triangles and 4 ra-ra-ra-ra tones), or not
The core knowledge hypothe-
(e.g., 12 ra tones and 4 purple circles). The infants were most
sis proposes that infants have inborn Explore
attentive when what they saw and heard matched. In other
abilities for understanding some key Physical Knowledge
words, they looked longer at the shapes when the tone that
aspects of their environment (Spelke in Infancy
accompanied them matched in number, compared to when
& Kinzler, 2007). It is a bold claim
to say that babies know something about the world before
they have even experienced it, so we should closely examine
the evidence for this hypothesis. Watch
Habituation
How can we know what infants know or what they perceive?
One frequently used method for answering this question relies
on the habituation–dishabituation response. Habituation
refers to a decrease in responding with repeated exposure to an
event, something infants are well known for doing. For exam-
ple, if an infant views the same stimulus over and over, she will
stop looking at it. Conversely, infants are quite responsive to
novelty or changes in their environment. Thus, if the stimulus
suddenly changes, the infant will display dishabituation, an
increase in responsiveness with the presentation of a new stimulus.
Lawrence Migdale/Photo Researchers, Inc.
In other words, the infant will return her gaze to the location
A popular method for testing infant cognitive abilities is to
that she previously found boring. Knowing that infants respond
measure the amount of time infants look at events. Research-
to stimuli in these ways allows researchers to devise ways to ers measure habituation and dishabituation to infer what
test infants even younger than Piaget’s tests were able to test. infants understand.

…“da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da”…“bu-bu-bu-bu-bu-bu-bu-bu-bu-bu-bu-bu”…
or
…“daaaaa-daaaaa-daaaaa-daaaaa”…“buuuuu-buuuuu-buuuuu-buuuuu”…

Test (4 trials)

{fig. 10.8} Testing Infants’ Understanding of Quantity In this study, infants listened to tones that were repeated either 4 or
12 times while they looked at objects that had either 4 or 12 components. Infants spent more time looking at visual arrays when
the number of items they saw matched the number of tones they heard.

Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development :: Module 10.2 :: 409
 they did not match. The researchers believe that this finding is much more sophisticated than psychologists have assumed.
is evidence that even very young infants have a rudimentary With each study that examines the cognitive capacities of
appreciation for abstract numbers (Izard et al., 2009). infants, we learn that infants are not just slobbery blobs that
need to be fed and diapered—though it certainly can feel
Can we critically that way when you are a new parent. Instead, infants’ brains
are rapidly developing, and they are procedurally absorbing
evaluate alternative the logic of their world. In other words, infants can begin
explanations? to understand more than we might realize, and their brains
Many of the studies of early cogni- are actively being patterned by the world. Talking to them
tive development discussed in this using diverse vocabulary, exploring rhythms, allowing them
module used the “looking time” pro- to feel different objects, and exposing them to different tex-
cedure, although not all psycholo- tures and sensations are all good ways to use their dominant
gists agree that it is an ideal way of determining what infants modality (sensorimotor) to expand their emerging cognitive
understand or perceive (Aslin, 2007; Rivera et al., 1999). We abilities.
cannot know exactly what infants are thinking, and perhaps
they look longer at events and stimuli simply because these
are more interesting, rather than because they understand
anything in particular about them. Inferring mental states
when the participant cannot validate them certainly leaves
room for alternative explanations. Also, the sample size was
fairly small; in the study of shapes and tones just described,
only 16 infants managed to complete the study. Forty-five
others were too fussy or sleepy to successfully finish the task.
(And can you blame them? Only in the world for two days
and their parents already have them in a psychology lab!)

Why is this relevant?

The key insight provided by
this research is that cognitive
development in young infants Jane Shauck Photography/Alamy

COMPLEMENTARY APPROACHES TO PIAGET proposed that development is ideal when children attempt skills
Piaget’s theories have had a lasting impact on modern and activities that are just beyond what they can do alone, but
developmental psychology. Even so, some details of his they have guidance from adults who are attentive to their prog-
theories have been refuted or challenged in the interven- ress; this was called the zone of proximal development
ing decades. In particular, Piaget generally underestimated (Singer & Goldin-Meadow, 2005). Teaching in order to
Watch
the abilities of infants and their rates of development, and keep children in the zone of proximal development is
Zone of Proximal
his strong emphasis on cognitive tasks overlooked socio-
Development: cultural and biological elements of cognitive growth.
Cognitive The interactions that occur between children and
other people form the sociocultural context in which
Watch cognitive development occurs; children’s abilities are
Zone of Proximal therefore responsive to their social environment. For
Development: Physical example, children who try to master a skill by them-
selves may run into obstacles that would be much eas-
ier to overcome with a little assistance or guidance from
another person. At the opposite extreme, imagine chil-
dren who have everything done for them and who are
not allowed to try things out and work through problems
themselves; their development would be harmed, in this
Gladskikh Tatiana/[Link]
case by excessive involvement. Therefore, it seems logical
Caregivers who are attentive to the learning and abili-
that optimal development occurs somewhere in between ties of a developing child provide scaffolding for cognitive
these extremes. Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky (1978) development.

410 :: Module 10.2 : : Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development
called scaffolding, a highly attentive approach to teaching in 4 A child in the sensorimotor stage may quit looking

APPLY . . .
which the teacher matches guidance to the learner’s needs. or reaching for a toy if you move it out of sight. This
Cross-cultural research on parent–infant interactions behaviour reflects the fact that the child has not
shows that scaffolding is exercised in different ways (Rogoff developed ________.

et al., 1993). For example, in one study, 12- to 24-month- A core knowledge C conservation

old children were offered a toy that required pulling a string B object permanence D to the preoperational
stage
to make it move. Parents from Turkey, Guatemala, and the
United States were observed interacting with their infants
5 Research on newborns indicates that they have

ANALYZE . . .
as they attempted to figure out how the toy worked. All
a sense of number and quantity. What does this
parents used scaffolding when they spoke and gestured to
finding suggest about Piaget’s theory of cognitive
their children to encourage them to pull the string, but development?
mother–child pairs from Guatemala were much more com- A It confirms what Piaget claimed about infants
municative with each other, both verbally and through ges- in the sensorimotor phase.
tures such as touching and using the direction of their gaze B Some infants are born with superior intelligence.
to encourage the behaviour. Interestingly, this increased C Piaget may have underestimated some cognitive
scaffolding results over time in children who are more abilities of infants and children.
seamlessly integrated into the daily life of the family and D Culture determines what infants are capable
community, rather than merely relegated to “play” activi- of doing.
ties using specialized and highly unrealistic toys. In simple Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
terms, this means that children who are appropriately scaf-
folded are able to be useful and self-sufficient at much ear-
lier ages than is normal in contemporary North American
society. This kind of scaffolding approach to everyday life Social Development: Attachment,
tasks is one of the foundational practices in “alternative” Personality, and Reading Others
education systems, such as the Montessori system.
Think of how helpless infants and toddlers are upon being
born. Subject to a chaotic world entirely different from
Quick Quiz 10.2a the one they were in for nine months (wait . . .you mean I
Cognitive Changes: Piaget’s Cognitive don’t have a constant stream of food delivered straight into
Development Theory my stomach?!), they are utterly dependent on their care-
givers in order to survive. This sense that they are being
1 Recognizing that the quantity of an object does not
KNOW . . .

cared for forms the basis of an infant’s feelings of secu-

change despite changes in physical arrangement or
appearance is referred to as ________.
rity. We know from discussing Piaget that infants experi-
A object permanence C conservation ence the world through sensation and movement; it makes
B scale comprehension D number sense
sense, then, that a significant way in which this security
is experienced is through touch, as well as other explicit
physical cues that indicate a caregiver is close enough
2 Parents who attend to their children’s psychological
abilities and guide them through the learning process to respond to their needs, such as vocal reassurance and
are using ________. responsive facial expressions. If this physical responsiveness
A scaffolding is missing, the attachment system can break down quickly,
B tutoring leaving the infant in a state of insecurity, feeling that they
C core knowledge are vulnerable and that key figures in their life cannot be
D the zone of proximal development counted on to respond to their needs.

TYPES OF ATTACHMENT Intense social bonding

3 What is the correct order of Piaget’s stages of
between humans starts with attachment, the enduring
cognitive development?
Watch
A Preoperational, sensorimotor, concrete emotional bond formed between individuals, initially between
Attachment
operational, formal operational infant and caregiver. From an evolutionary perspective,
B Sensorimotor, preoperational, formal safety and survival are the basic needs that give rise to
operational, concrete operational the need for attachment (Bowlby, 1951). Thus, each
C Sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete human child forms a basic sense of security through the
operational, formal operational attachment bonds they form; attachment motivations
D Preoperational, concrete operational, are deeply rooted in our psychology, compelling us to
sensorimotor, formal operational seek out others for physical and psychological comfort,

Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development :: Module 10.2 :: 411
 particularly when we feel stressed or insecure. Infants use
behaviours that are both cute and not-so-cute to seek
attachment, such as crying, cooing, gurgling, smiling, and
screaming, and adults are generally responsive to these
communications.
Watch In the early decades of modern psychology, domi-
Attachment in Infants nant theories of motivation emphasized biological drives,
such as hunger and thirst, that motivated people to satisfy
their basic needs. From this perspective, the reason why
infants seem to love their moms was simple; mom fed
them, reduced their hunger, and through simple condi-
tioning (associating mom with food), they developed a
behavioural interdependence with mom. Such a descrip-
tion of love is never going to fill many books of poetry,
but it seemed “scientific” and “objective.”
In the 1950s, psychologist Harry Harlow became
passionately interested in the topic of bonding and
attachment after noticing that infant rhesus monkeys
Nina Leen/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images
who were being raised without mothers in his labo-
A baby monkey clings to a cloth-covered object—Harlow called
ratory clung desperately to cloth pads that lined their
this object the cloth mother—even though in this case the wire
cages and would panic when these pads were removed “mother” provided food.
for cleaning. Obviously, the pads provided nothing of
value in strict, practical terms; the monkeys didn’t eat rhesus monkeys from birth, and placed them in cages
the pads, after all. This made Harlow start to wonder with two pseudo-parents: one was a cylinder of mesh wire
just how important primary drive reduction was after wrapped with a piece of terry cloth that loosely resembled
all; if the monkeys could be so attached to the cloth an adult monkey; the other was an identical cylinder but
pads, maybe something similar was at work in normal without the cloth covering. Some monkeys were raised in
infants’ attachment to their moms. Maybe it’s not about cages where the “wire mother” also had a bottle affixed to
mom as a food provider; maybe babies just like physical her and thus was the infant’s food source, and other mon-
Watch comfort. keys were raised in cages where the “cloth mother” was the
Classic Footage of Harlow designed an ingenious set of studies, testing food provider.
Harlow’s Monkeys: whether it was physical comfort or primary drive reduc- The question was, who would the monkeys bond
Contact Comfort tion that drove the formation of attachment. He raised with? Would they bond with whoever fed them? Or

Fed on Cloth Mother Fed on Wire Mother

24 24

18 18
Mean Hours per Day

Mean Hours per Day

12
2 12
Cloth mother Cloth mother
Wire mother Wire mother
6 6

0 0

1–5 6–10 11–15 16–20 21–25 1–5 6–10 11–15 16–20 21–25
Days of Age Days of Age

{fig. 10.9} Harlow’s Monkeys: Time Spent on Wire and Cloth Mother Surrogates

412 :: Module 10.2 : : Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development
would they prefer the more comfortable cloth mother
regardless of whether she fed them or not?
The contest between moms wasn’t even close. No
matter who had the bottle, the baby monkeys spent almost
all their time with the cloth mom (see Figure 10.9). To
test the degree of emotional dependence on the pseudo-
mom, researchers arranged experiments in which the
baby monkey would get scared (e.g., surprising them with
a metallic contraption made to look, and sound, like a
vicious monster), and they would watch which mother
the infants would run to for comfort and security. Over
and over again, they ran to the cloth mom. The implica-
tions were clear—attachment is not about reducing fun-
damental biological drives; attachment is based on feeling
secure, which is based on physical comfort. Mother Stranger
Unfortunately, Harlow’s insights were not immedi-
ately adopted into mainstream parenting practice. In fact,
{fig. 10.10} The Strange Situation Studies of attachment
the behaviourist approach to parenting remained domi- by Mary Ainsworth involved a mother leaving her infant with a
nant in North American society for decades, subjecting stranger. Ainsworth believed that the infants’ attachment styles
children to punishments in the form of time-outs (the could be categorized according to their behavioural and emo-
tional responses to the mother leaving and returning.
modern replacement for spankings) and the removal of
privileges (“No TV for the rest of the week!”), and the that infants begin to show toward strangers, at about Simulate
almost-continual use of rewards (“If you eat your broc- eight months of age. Attachment
coli, you can have ice cream for dessert”) and praise Mary Ainsworth (1978) developed a procedure using Classifications in the
(“Good job!”). Raising children as though they are ani- the strange situation as a way of measuring infant attach- Strange Situation
mals learning to perform specific tasks makes a great deal ment by observing how infants behave when exposed to different
of sense from a purely behaviourist perspective, although experiences that involve anxiety and comfort. The procedure
it ignores the emotional reality of the child. involves a sequence of scripted experiences that expose
In fact, parenting “wisdom” that stemmed from the children to some mild anxiety (e.g., the presence of a
behaviourist approach emphasized that children should stranger, being left alone with the stranger), and the poten-
be exposed to very limited bodily contact, in order to tial to receive some comfort from their caregiver (e.g.,
avoid spoiling them. John Watson, one of the pioneers of the return of the caregiver). For example, the child and
behaviourism, advised: “Never hug and kiss [your child], caregiver spend a few minutes in a room with some toys;
never let them sit on your lap. If you must, kiss them a stranger enters, the caregiver leaves, and then the care-
once on the forehead when they say goodnight. Shake giver returns. In each segment of the procedure, the child’s
hands with them in the morning. Give them a pat on the behaviour is carefully observed. Ainsworth noted three
head if they have made an extraordinary good job of a broad patterns of behaviour that she believed reflected
difficult task.” This quote probably made you laugh, but three different attachment styles (see Figure 10.10):
it’s important to appreciate just how radical the research
1. Secure attachment. The caregiver is a secure base that
on attachment would have been on the heels of this
the child turns toward occasionally, “checking in”
sterile view of parenting—even though most of us now
for reassurance as he or she explores the room. The
don’t question the idea that physical affection is good for
child shows some distress when the caregiver leaves,
children. Sadly, gaining this knowledge has meant that
and avoids the stranger. When the caregiver returns,
many children nowadays are deprived of regular hand-
the child seeks comfort and her distress is relieved.
shakes and pats on the head. Hugs and kisses will have
2. Insecure attachment. Two subtypes were distinguished:
to do.
• Anxious/Resistant. The caregiver is a base of secu-
In order to measure attachment bonds in human
rity, but the child depends too strongly on the
infants, obviously it is unethical to raise babies in cages caregiver, exhibiting “clingy” behaviour rather
with fake moms and then scare them half to death to than being comfortable exploring the room
see who they crawl to. Instead, psychologists have devel- on his own. The child is very upset when the
oped methods of studying infant attachment that are caregiver leaves, and is quite fearful toward the
only mildly stressful and mimic natural situations. One stranger. When the caregiver returns, the child Watch
method capitalizes on stranger anxiety, signs of distress seeks comfort, but then also resists it and pushes Stranger Anxiety

Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development :: Module 10.2 :: 413
 the caregiver away, not allowing his distress to be we will learn how this type of parental sensitivity is con-
easily alleviated. nected to the development of self-awareness, as well as
• Avoidant. The child behaves as though she does the awareness of other minds.
not need the caregiver at all, and plays in the
room as though she is oblivious to the caregiver. SELF AWARENESS Between 18–24 months of age,
The child is not upset when the caregiver leaves, toddlers begin to make a major shift in awareness, gain-
and is unconcerned about the stranger. When the ing self-awareness, the ability to recognize one’s individual-
caregiver returns, the child does not seek contact. ity. Becoming aware of one’s self goes hand-in-hand with
3. Subsequent research identified a fourth attachment becoming aware of others as separate beings, and thus,
style, disorganized (Main & Solomon, 1990). What self-awareness and the development of pro-social and
best characterizes disorganized attachment is insta- moral motivations are intricately intertwined, as we dis-
bility; the child has learned (typically through incon- cuss below.
sistent and often abusive experiences) that caregivers The presence of self-awareness is typically tested by
Watch
are both sources of fear and comfort, leaving the observing infants’ reactions to their reflection in a mirror
Self-Awareness Task
child oscillating between wanting to get away and or on video (Bahrick & Watson, 1985; Bard et al., 2006).
wanting to be reassured. The child experiences a Self-awareness becomes increasingly sophisticated over the
strong ambivalence, and reinforces this through his course of development, progressing from early recognition
own inconsistent behaviour, seeking closeness and of oneself in a mirror or on video, to having the ability to
then pulling away, or often simply “freezing,” para- reflect on one’s own feelings, decisions, and appearance. By
lyzed with indecision. the time children reach their fifth birthday, they become
Attachment is important not only in infancy, but self-reflective, show concern for others, and are intensely
throughout one’s life. For example, in adult romantic interested in the causes of other people’s behaviour.
relationships, attachment styles (gained during infancy!) Young children are often described as egocentric,
Watch are still at work (Hofer, 2006). A longitudinal study span- meaning that they only consider their own perspective (Piaget
Egocentrism Task ning more than 20 years showed that people who were & Inhelder, 1956). This does not imply that children are
securely attached as infants were better able to recover selfish or inconsiderate, but that they merely lack the
from interpersonal conflict with their romantic part- cognitive ability to understand the perspective of others.
ners (Salvatore et al., 2011). Our attachment styles hold For example, a two-year-old may attempt to hide by
evolutionary advantages in that they lead us to establish simply covering her own eyes. From her perspective, she
secure and long-lasting relationships, which, in humans,
is an important component of childrearing (Bowlby,
1951; Fraley et al., 2005).
Upon identifying the characteristic attachment
styles, psychologists began to ask how infants developed
their particular style. It may come as no surprise to you
that the way parents/caregivers interact with infants
influences their attachment style. Ainsworth’s research
(Ainsworth, 1978) showed that maternal sensitivity (i.e.,
Watch
being highly attuned to the infant’s signals and commu-
Ross Thompson:
nication, and responding appropriately) is key to devel-
Parent-Child
oping a secure attachment style.
Attachments
While it was initially believed that ideal parent-
ing called for parents to be highly sensitive to the child,
leading to closely coordinated emotional interactions
between them, recent studies have shown that highly
sensitive caregivers actually demonstrate moderate coor-
dination with their children (Hane et al., 2003). Both
under-responsiveness and over-involvement/hyper-
sensitivity to an infant’s needs and emotions are corre-
lated with the formation of insecure attachment styles
(Beebe et al., 2010). The ideal parent does not reflexively Ruth Jenkinson/Dorling Kindersley Ltd
respond to all the child’s needs, but is sensitive to how By two years of age, toddlers can recognize themselves in
much responsiveness the child needs. In the next section mirrors.

414 :: Module 10.2 : : Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development
is hidden. Piaget tested for egocentrism by sitting a child assists children in organizing
in front of an object, and then presenting pictures of that their emotion, helping them
object from four angles. While sitting opposite the child, “know what they feel” (Fonagy
Piaget would ask him or her to identify which image & Target, 1997). As children gain
represented the object from Piaget’s perspective. Many the ability to understand their
children would select the image corresponding to their internal states with greater clarity,
own perspective (Figure 10.11). Piaget concluded that this scaffolds their ability to rep-
children were egocentric through the preoperational resent the mental states of others.
phase (ending around age seven). This helps to explain why it
Modern research indicates that children take the is important that caregivers not
perspective of others long before the preoperational overidentify with a child’s emo-
phase is complete. Perspective taking in young children tions. If their emotional exchange
has been demonstrated in studies of theory of mind— is completely synchronized (e.g.,
the ability to recognize the thoughts, beliefs, and expectations the child experiences fear and {fig. 10.11} Piaget’s Test for Egocentric
Perspective in Children Piaget used the
of others, and to understand that these can be different from the adult also experiences fear) three-mountain task to test whether children
one’s own. Adults may have difficulty putting themselves then the symbolic function of can take someone else’s perspective. The
in another person’s shoes from time to time, but young the caregiver’s sensitive response child would view the object from one per-
children find it next to impossible. Consider the follow- is lost; the child simply gets fear spective while another person viewed it from
a different point of view. According to Piaget,
ing scenario: reinforced, rather than gain- children are no longer exclusively egocentric
ing the ability to understand that if they understand that the other person sees
An experimenter offers three-year-old Andrea a box of
she is feeling fear. There is a the object differently.
chocolates. Upon opening the box, Andrea discovers not
profound difference between
candy, but rather pencils. Joseph enters the room and she
being locked into an emotion, and being able to stand
watches as Joseph is offered the same box. The researcher
back from the emotion somewhat and understand it as
asks Andrea, “What does Joseph expect to find in the
an experience one is having. In a study of how mothers
box?”
behave after their infants received an injection, Fonagey
This is called the false-belief task. If Andrea answers et al. (1995) observed that the mothers who most effec-
“pencils,” this indicates that she believes that Joseph tively soothed their child rapidly reflected their child’s
knows the same thing she does. However, if Andrea tells emotions, but also included displays of other affect in
the experimenter that Joseph expects to see chocolates, it their mirroring, such as smiling or questioning. The
demonstrates that she is taking Joseph’s mental perspec- mother’s “complex” representation of the child’s affect
tive, understanding that he does not possess her knowl- ensured that the child recognized it as related to, but not
edge (Lillard, 1998; Wimmer & Perner, 1983). Children identical to his own emotion. This serves to modulate
typically pass this test at ages four to five, although negative emotions by helping to implicitly build coping
younger children may pass it if they are told that Joseph responses into the experience and understand experi-
is about to be tricked. Of course, the shift away from ences in a more organized, abstract fashion (Fonagy &
egocentric thought does not occur overnight. Older Target, 1997).
children may still have difficulty taking the perspective Therefore, in the early stages of life, these face- Watch
of others; in fact, even adults aren’t that great at it much to-face exchanges of emotional signals help the child’s The Preschool Years:
of the time. As with many milestones of development, brain learn how to understand and “deal with” emotions Egocentrism
theory of mind is not a linear outcome of development, (Beebe et al., 1997).
but rather a continual process.
Converging evidence now indicates that self- PROSOCIAL BEHAVIOUR Being aware of one’s
awareness and theory of mind are dynamic and in con- own emotions, and then understanding the emotions of
stant development right from birth. Our abilities to others, are extremely important parts of prosocial moral
represent our own thoughts and another’s thoughts are motivations and behaviours. However, the basic capac-
intimately tied together and may have similar origins ity for morality is built right into us and manifests long
within the brain (Keenan et al., 2000). Early in chil- before we develop the cognitive sophistication to rec-
dren’s lives, emotions are often experienced as chaotic, ognize “self ” and “others.” Children show a natural pre-
overwhelming, and unintegrated combinations of physi- disposition toward prosocial behaviour very early in their
cal sensations, non-verbal representations, and ideas. As development (Hamlin et al., 2007; Warneken & Tomasello,
caregivers respond to children’s emotions, this provides in press). Even one-day-old infants experience distress
a kind of “mirror,” a “higher order representation” that when they hear other infants cry, exhibiting affective

Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development :: Module 10.2 :: 415
 empathy, which is a spontaneous response to another are unkind to someone who is antisocial (Hamlin
person’s affect. et al., 2011). This leads to a much more optimistic
However, at this point children have not sufficiently view of human nature. It doesn’t seem that humans are
separated others’ distress from their own, and are pre- inherently selfish; in fact, we seem to inherently prefer
dominantly motivated to get rid of their experience of the good.
distress rather than act out of other-oriented concern As children move from infancy to the toddler years,
(Eisenberg, 2005). For example, watching a parent cry is their prosocial behaviours increase in scope and com-
upsetting to a young child, and sometimes the child may plexity. Around their first birthday, children demon-
seek to comfort the parent, such as by offering his teddy strate instrumental helping, providing practical assistance
bear; other times, however, children might just close such as helping to retrieve an object that is out of reach
their eyes and plug their ears, thereby alleviating their (Liszkowski et al., 2006; Warneken & Tomasello, 2007).
own distress. In order for explicitly prosocial motives to By their second birthday, they begin to exhibit empathic
develop, children must learn to attribute their negative helping, providing help in order to make someone feel
feelings to the other person’s distress, thereby becom- better (Zahn-Waxler et al., 1992). In one study, children
ing motivated to reduce the other person’s suffering, not younger than two were observed to be happier when
just their own reaction to it (Mascolo & Fischer, 2007; giving to others over receiving treats themselves, espe-
Zahn-Waxler & Radke-Yarrow, 1990). For this purpose, cially when the giving occurred at a cost to their own
social and communicative support from adults is impor- resources (Aknin et al., 2012).
tant scaffolding for children’s understanding of both In humans, the tension between helping others
their own and others’ intentional states (as explored versus being concerned for oneself reflects a deep ten-
in the previous section); basically, helping children be sion in our own biology. Humans possess two psychobi-
aware of themselves helps them be aware of others, ological systems, the attachment behavioural system,
which motivates and teaches them to be concerned for which is focused on meeting our own needs for security, and
others’ welfare (Carpendale & Lewis, 2004; Ruffman the caregiving behavioural system, which is focused on
et al., 2006). meeting the needs of others. Each system guides our behav-
Recently, amazing work by researchers at the iour when it is activated; however, the attachment system
University of British Columbia and other universi- is primary, and if it is activated, it tends to shut down the
ties has discovered that the roots of moral motivation caregiving system. What this means in everyday experi-
go back much further than we once believed, all the ence is that if a person feels insecure herself, it will be
way to very early infancy. This is truly groundbreaking hard for her to reach out and take others’ needs into
work; the suggestion that children could be innately consideration. However, if attachment needs are fulfilled
moral beings would have been greeted with ridicule and the person is in a state of basic security, then the
for much of our cultural history. Western culture has caregiving system responds to signs of others’ distress,
been strongly infl uenced by the Christian notion of motivating the person to care for others (Mikulincer &
“original sin,” leading to the general belief that peo- Shaver, 2005).
ple are fundamentally selfish, that religion and culture Understanding how these two behavioural systems
are necessary to curb human evil and keep life from function is critically important for understanding why
becoming “nasty, brutish, and short” and that children secure attachment is related to prosocial behaviour. An
are basically “bad” and need proper discipline in order insecurely attached person will often have his own needs
to have their inherent evil beaten out of them; “spare (fear, insecurity, distress) activated, and the attachment
the rod and spoil the child” was parenting wisdom for system then effectively shuts down the caregiving system.
untold centuries. Helping people feel securely attached, then, is important
However, even infants seem to recognize good for building a truly compassionate society. Given that
from bad, and to prefer people (or teddy bears, as the one of the central goals of parents is to raise kind, moral
research shows) who display good, moral behaviour, children, developmental psychology has helped us fully
such as helping (Hamlin et al., 2007, 2010). Five- appreciate how this goal can only be met by helping par-
month-old infants indiscriminately prefer people who ents understand how to raise securely attached children.
help others, showing that even before infants can crawl, One difficult set of conclusions drawn from this research
they are processing kindness in others’ behaviour. By is a deep critique of many aspects of common North
eight months, infants are making complex moral dis- American parenting practices; the hope is that the pre-
criminations; infants prefer others who are kind to vailing wisdom about parenting may change in the years
someone who is prosocial, but they prefer others who to come.

416 :: Module 10.2 : : Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development
 In North American society particularly, the majority
Quick Quiz 10.2b of people are unconcerned about trying to reinforce
Social Development: Attachment, desired behaviour through the use of rewards, such as
Personality, and Reading Others praise, verbal encouragement, or some form of advance-
ment system (e.g., points, levels, ranks). Any amount of
1 The emotional bond that forms between caregiver
KNOW . . .

and child is referred to as ________.

time spent actually interacting with children will make
A a love/hate relationship the benefits of such positive reinforcement unmistakably
B dependence
obvious.
However, children are not merely stimulus-response
C attachment
machines, and this pervasive use of conditional approaches
D transference
sows the seeds for many problems that crop up over
time. One of the almost invisible but highly damag-
2 Marcus is very careful and consistent about how he
UNDERSTAND . . .

raises his daughter, because he doesn’t want to “spoil”

ing problems is that even though rewards do success-
her. When she misbehaves or cries, he gives her a fully produce the desired behaviours in children, these
“time out,” whereas when she does what she is told behaviours don’t tend to persist; the children won’t
to do, he gives her a big smile and enthusiastic “Good keep engaging in the behaviour unless they continue
job!” Marcus’s approach to parenting is heavily guided to receive rewards (Deci, Ryan, & Koestner, 1999). This
by ________.
encourages a whole generation of children to become
A Piaget’s theory of cognitive development
addicted, in a sense, to praise and other rewards, find-
B behaviourism
ing it difficult to motivate themselves or even to explore
C cognitive psychology their passions for the intrinsic interest and enjoyment of
D humanistic psychology the activity.
Another downside to the conditional parent-
3 As you observe a child you know interacting with her ing approach (including positive reinforcement) is
APPLY . . .

parents, you watch the child behaving in a “clingy” and

the impact it may have on children’s self-esteem and
dependent manner, but later you notice that the child
is behaving very independently from her parents and emotional security. Because children learn to associ-
actively rejects their attention. It seems likely that the ate feeling good about themselves with the experi-
child has what sort of attachment style? ence of receiving rewards, their self-esteem becomes
A Secure C Avoidant more dependent upon external sources of validation,
B Anxious/resistant D Disorganized such as the attention or admiration of other people,
or the tendency to compare oneself to others and seek
Answers can be found on page ANS-3. to be “the best.” In addition to the gradual erosion of
children’s motivation discussed above, an overuse of
rewards builds a more conditional sense of self-worth,
making people more dependent on external sources
PARENTING Parenting is a topic of much debate and, of validation or reward in order to feel good about
all too often, intense judgment. Many parenting books themselves.
lining the shelves of bookstores promise a simple, step- Despite their down sides, the immediate and obvi- Watch
by-step method that will get children to behave the way you ous benefits of using rewards and punishments have led In the Real World:
want. Certainly, this makes sense; parents constantly need to their use in virtually every aspect of society, from Parenting Styles and
their kids to get certain things done—get up, eat your families, to schools, to workplaces (think: grades, praise, Socialization

breakfast, get dressed, brush your teeth, brush your hair, candy, commission). Parents doling out praise, affection,
pack your things, get your lunch, go to school. . . . TV, and treats for “good” behaviour, versus time-outs,
The application of operant conditioning to par- anger, removal of privileges, and general withdrawal of
enting, in the form of providing children with rewards affection for “bad” behaviour, is so normal that most of
(e.g., Smarties, physical affection, loving words) and us don’t even think twice about this approach.
punishments (e.g., angry tone of voice, time-outs, criti- Although this may seem fairly normal when it
cism), has provided caregivers many tools for, basically, comes to raising children, think about it for a moment
manipulating the behaviour of children. Although soci- in a different context, such as your romantic relation-
ety has largely moved away from the use of harsh pun- ship. Imagine if you and your partner decided to go to a
ishments (e.g., spankings), the use of both rewards and couple’s counsellor in order to work out some problems
punishments is pervasive in modern parenting practices. in your relationship. Now imagine that the counsellor

Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development :: Module 10.2 :: 417
 him, physically forcing him into a corner for the amount
of minutes equivalent to his age, or taking away one of
his favourite possessions. You also should use rewards as
a way of getting your partner to do things you want—
promise him pie, or physical intimacy, or buy him some-
thing nice.
Our guess is that you would conclude it’s time to
get a different counsellor. Nobody would want to be in
a relationship that operated through such manipulative,
and even abusive, tactics. There are natural social rewards
in relationships, but using them explicitly to manipulate
behaviour just seems, well, manipulative! Nevertheless,
this is often how we raise children.
A mountain of research has revealed the downside
of taking this kind of conditional approach to parent-
ing. One meta-analysis of 128 different studies revealed
that all forms of explicit reward undermined participants’
interest in the activity for which they received the reward .
Even verbal rewards didn’t work (Deci et al., 1999). For
children, feeling controlled is associated with less cre-
ativity and motivation (Grolnick & Apoteleris, 2002).
Furthermore, children who experience their parents’
regard for them as conditional report more negativ-
ity and resentment toward their parents; they also feel
greater internal pressure to do well, which is called
introjection, the internalization of the conditional regard
of significant other s (Assor et al., 2004). The more that
people motivate themselves through introjection, the
more unstable their self-esteem (Kernis et al., 2000),
and the worse they tend to cope with failure (Grolnick
& Ryan, 1989).
So what works better? Research clearly shows that
moral development is associated with more frequent use
of inductive discipline, which involves explaining the con-
sequences of a child’s actions on other people, activating empathy
for others’ feelings (Hoffman & Saltzsein, 1967). Providing
a rationale for a parent’s decisions, showing empathy and
understanding of the child’s emotions, supporting her
autonomy, and allowing her choice whenever possible
Top: Chamille White/[Link]; centre: Kali Nine
LLC/E+/Getty Images; bottom: bonninturina/Fotolia
all promote positive outcomes such as greater mastery of
Rewards and punishments: The use of operant conditioning
skills, increased emotional and behavioural self-control,
approaches in our daily lives better ability to persist at difficult tasks, and a deeper
internalization of moral values (Deci et al., 1994; Frodi
told you that every time your partner behaved in ways et al., 1985).
you didn’t like, you should respond with immediate When it comes to raising moral children, the
negativity, such as withdrawing affection and adopting “golden rule” seems to apply just as well—do unto your
a “cold” tone of voice, speaking sharply and angrily to children as you would have someone do unto you.

418 :: Module 10.2 : : Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development
 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
10.2
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with infancy

and childhood :
accommodation (p. 406) egocentric (p. 414)
assimilation (p. 406) formal operational stage (p. 408)
attachment (p. 411) habituation (p. 409)
attachment behavioural system inductive discipline (p. 418) Inspirestock Inc/Alamy
(p. 416) introjection (p. 418)
caregiving behavioural system object permanence (p. 407)
(p. 416) preoperational stage (p. 407) APPLY . . .
cognitive development (p. 406) scaffolding (p. 411)
concrete operational stage ● The concept of scaffolding and the zone of proximal
self-awareness (p. 414)
(p. 408) development to understand how to best promote
sensorimotor stage (p. 407)
conservation (p. 407) learning. According to Vygotsky, cognitive development
strange situation (p. 413)
core knowledge hypothesis unfolds in a social context between caregivers/teachers
(p. 409) theory of mind (p. 415) and children. Adults who are attuned to the child’s
dishabituation (p. 409) zone of proximal development experience can help to scaffold children’s learning, guiding
(p. 410)
them such that they focus on challenges that lie on the
very edge of their capabilities. This keeps children engaged
UNDERSTAND . . . fully, in the zone of proximal development, maximizing
their skill development and the intrinsic motivation that
● The cognitive changes that occur during infancy and comes with a sense of emerging mastery.
childhood. According to Piaget’s theory of cognitive
development, infants mature through childhood via orderly
ANALYZE . . .
transitions across the sensorimotor, preoperational,
concrete operational, and formal operational stages. This
● How to effectively discipline children in order to
progression reflects a general transition from engaging in
promote moral behaviour. Internalizing prosocial
the world through purely concrete, sensory experiences,
motives comes from children developing a secure
to an increasing ability to hold and manipulate abstract
attachment, and having empathy and inductive reasoning
representations of the world in one’s mind.
taught to them throughout their childhood. Children have
● The concept of attachment and the different styles an innate sense of morality, but this can be interfered with
of attachment. In developmental psychology, attachment if their attachment needs are insufficiently met, and the
refers to the enduring social bond between child and attachment behavioural system takes precedence over
caregiver. Based on the quality of this bond, which the caregiving behavioural system. Therefore, responsive
is dependent on appropriately responsive parenting, parenting that helps the child feel secure lays the
individuals develop an attachment style, which is their foundation for the child to become less self-focused. As
internalized feeling of security and self-worth. Children the child cognitively develops and can more explicitly take
are either securely or insecurely attached, and insecure others’ perspective, inductive reasoning that emphasizes
attachments can be further divided into disorganized, perspective taking and having empathy for how the child’s
resistant, and avoidant styles. behaviour affects others builds the habit of “doing good”
because the child genuinely cares, not because the child
wants approval or to avoid punishment.

Infancy and Childhood: Cognitive and Emotional Development :: Module 10.2 :: 419
 Picture Partners/Alamy

Module

10.3 Adolescence

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology The process of identity formation Your understanding The relationship between brain
After reading concerning adolescent during adolescence of the categories of development and adolescent
this module development moral reasoning judgment and risk taking
The importance of relationships
you should in adolescence
The functions of moral emotions

Do you spend too much time online? Does “screen time” remove you life’s difficulties, much the same as people turn to drugs, alcohol, sex, or
from “real life”? Or is the Internet a healthy part of your social life, and a their career. Even psychologically healthy adolescents can get “hooked”
necessary research tool for your schooling? Many people, including psy- on the Internet, and such pathological use can lead to depression (Lam
chologists, are concerned that spending time on the Internet sets peo- & Peng, 2010).
ple up for social isolation. The image of lonely web surfers “unplugged”
from the real world depicts a social reality that we would want to The Internet may also carry social dangers, such as Internet bullying and
avoid. Research findings linking Internet use, loneliness, and depression public humiliation, as one’s indiscretions can now be posted online and
(Amichai-Hamburger & Ben-Artzi, 2003; Ybarra et al., 2008) certainly haunt people for years to come. In 2012, 15-year-old Amanda Todd from
haven’t helped to alleviate these concerns. On the other hand, Brock British Columbia was cruelly ostracized and humiliated by her peers
University psychologist Dr. Teena Willoughby argues that as the Internet after revealing pictures of her were posted online. Although she switched
has become more of a platform for social networking, at least moderate schools and tried to leave the negativity behind her, she couldn’t escape
use of the Internet is associated with greater social involvement (Gross, the online bullying, and tragically, committed suicide.
2004) and stronger academic motivation (Willoughby, 2008). The Internet has revolutionized society in a single human generation. But
Nevertheless, the Internet has its dangers. One is that use may become we don’t know how it will affect human development, particularly in the
“pathological,” as people turn to the Internet as a way of coping with sensitive period of adolescence when people are forming their identities,

420 :: Module 10.3 : : Adolescence

and often committing some of their biggest mis-
takes. This will undoubtedly be a major focus for
research, and will raise major questions for society
in the years to come. Acne Acne

Beard
Focus Questions Voice change
Underarm hair
1 Does Internet use impair or enhance
social relationships during adolescence? Breast
development
2 Which other psychological
characteristics are major points of Underarm hair,
change during adolescence? chest hair,
muscle development
Rounded body
Pubic hair contours

Enlargement Pubic hair

“It was the best of times; it was the worst of
of penis,
times.” For many people, this pretty much scrotum, Enlargement of
uterus, clitoris,
sums up adolescence, a time of confusion, testes
labia
pimples, and existential angst, as well as hang- Ejaculation Menstruation
ing out with your friends and having greater
interest in intimate relationships. This tumul- {fig. 10.12} Physical Changes That Accompany Puberty in Male and Female Adolescents
tuous time between childhood and adulthood Hormonal changes accelerate the development of physical traits in males and females. Changes
involves many physical changes, increasing involve maturation of the reproductive system (primary sex traits) as well as secondary sex traits
such as enlargement of breasts in women and increased muscle mass in males. Click on this
cognitive sophistication, and strong doses of figure in your eText to see more details.
emotional and social volatility.

Physical Changes in Adolescence traits are changes in the body that are part of reproduction
(e.g., enlargement of the genitals, ability to ejaculate,
The physical transition from childhood to adolescence the onset of menstruation). Secondary sex traits are
starts with puberty, culminating in reproductive matu- changes in the body that are not part of reproduction, such as
rity. Puberty begins at approximately age 11 in girls the growth of pubic hair, increased breast size in females,
and age 13 in boys, although there is a wide range. The and increased muscle mass in males (Figure 10.12).
changes that occur during puberty are primarily caused For girls, menarche —the onset of menstruation—
by hormonal activity. Physical growth is stimulated by typically occurs around age 12. The timing of menarche
the pituitary gland. The hypothalamus begins stimulating is influenced by physiological and environmental fac-
the release of hormones such as testosterone and estro- tors, such as nutrition, genetics, physical activity levels,
gen, which contribute to the development of primary and illness (Ellis & Garber, 2000). Even the absence of a
and secondary sex traits in boys and girls. Primary sex father or the presence of a stepfather during development
is associated with early onset of menarche (Bogaert, 2008).
Boys are considered to reach sexual maturity at sper-
marche, their first ejaculation of sperm, at around age 14.
Interestingly, puberty happens much earlier now
than 100 years ago. American teens in the 19th century
started puberty at 16–17 on average; nowadays, about
one-third of boys show the beginnings of physical matu-
ration at age 9 (Reiter & Lee, 2001), as do almost 40%
of European-American girls, and almost 80% of African-
American girls (Herman-Giddens et al., 1997). This is
probably because of behavioural changes that increase
body fat (e.g., poor nutrition, insufficient exercise), and
increased environmental stresses that increase stress hor-
MLADEN ANTONOV/AFP/Getty Images mones in the body. As the environment changes, our
Amanda Todd: A tragic case of cyber-bullying. biology changes along with it.

Adolescence :: Module 10.3 :: 421

 Teens’ changing bodies bring a host of developmen- In the decades since, research has painted a some-
tal challenges, from feelings of self-consciousness and a what mixed picture of adolescence. On the up side, the
heightened desire to be attractive and “fit in,” to increas- majority of teens keep their forays into debauchery fairly
ing sexual interest and experimentation, to the nega- minimal and do not let their larger lives get unduly
tive moods and adjustment problems that accompany harmed by their experimentation; most also “grow out
hormonal fluctuations (Warren & Brooks-Gunn, 1989). of ” these patterns fairly readily and move into adult-
Adolescents who begin to physically develop earlier than hood relatively unscathed by their teenage experiences
their peers can face extra challenges. Early-developing (Bachman et al., 1997). Navigating adolescence success-
females often have to cope with being teased and having fully leaves teens feeling they know who they are, having
their bodies made into objects of others’ attention. Early- constructed a healthy social identity, and having learned
developing boys tend to have it easier; their masculine to identify at least some of their passions and intrinsically
traits are often regarded positively by both themselves fulfilling goals.
and their peers. Nevertheless, early developers of either However, the emotional road through adoles-
gender run a greater risk of drug and alcohol abuse and cence contains its fair share of bumps. Adolescents
unwanted pregnancies. are prone to experiencing particularly intense and
Recent research has shown that adolescence is a time volatile emotions (Dahl, 2001; Rosenblum & Lewis,
of major brain changes as well. In particular, the frontal 2003), including heightened feelings of anxiety and
lobes undergo a massive shift in myelination, speeding up depression (Van Oort et al., 2009). Learning how to
neural firing by up to 100-fold in those areas (Barnea- regulate their emotions effectively is of critical impor-
Goraly et al., 2005; Sowell et al., 2003). The frontal lobes tance (McLaughlin et al., 2011). Research at Queen’s
also undergo a wave of synaptic pruning, during which University has shown that one key to adolescents
relatively unused synaptic connections are broken, leav- effectively regulating their emotions is to be able to
ing a more efficiently functioning brain. The net result draw flexibly upon a diverse set of self-control strate-
of these changes is an increase in teens’ abilities to exert gies. Adolescents who rely upon a limited number of
self-control. However, during adolescence this process adaptive strategies (e.g., learning to suppress emotions,
is merely under way, not completed, leaving teens often or conversely, learning to always reach out and talk to
struggling with volatile emotional experiences. people about their feelings), and narrowly relying upon
their chosen strategy, are at greater risk for develop-
ing symptoms of anxiety and depression (Lougheed &
Emotional Challenges Hollenstein, 2012). One of the most flexible and pow-
erful strategies for dealing with emotions is cognitive
in Adolescence reframing, whereby we learn to look at our experience
The physical and emotional changes associated with through a different “frame.” For example, failure can be
puberty are widely believed to be connected to each reframed as an opportunity to learn, and a threatening
other. For example, mood swings and experimental high- experience as a challenge to be overcome.
risk behaviours are attributed to “raging hormones.” The ability to reframe is critical to one of the most
But is this characterization of adolescence accurate? Are important skills adolescents need to hone as they move
most teens hormonally supercharged animals, constantly into adulthood—the ability to delay gratification, put-
desiring to hook up with the first attractive person to ting off immediate temptations in order to focus on longer-term
cross their path? goals. For example, should you party with your friends,
The belief that adolescence is tumultuous has held or study for the test next week? Adolescents who master
sway in popular culture as well as in psychology since at this skill are far more likely to be successful in life.
least the early 1900s (Hall, 1904); some theorists even An inability to delay gratification reflects a tendency
believed that the absence of extreme volatility was an to discount the future in order to “live in the moment,”
indication of arrested development (Freud, 1958). How- which lies at the heart of a wide range of dysfunctional
ever, this belief came under fire from cultural anthro- behaviours, from addictions and unsafe sex, to racking
pologists (Benedict, 1938; Mead, 1928), who discovered up credit card debt and leaving everything to the last
that in many non-Western cultures, the transition from minute. Failing to appropriately delay gratification limits
childhood to adulthood happened remarkably smoothly; people’s ability to live up to their potential, setting the
children simply began to take on more and more respon- stage for adulthoods in which they wonder “what might
sibilities, and then moved into their adult roles without a have been.” Of course, people who discount the future
dramatic period of questioning “Who am I?” and “What don’t care about what their eventual future selves might
do I want to be when I grow up?” think. And therein lies the problem.

422 :: Module 10.3 : : Adolescence

 was better adjusted both psychologically and socially at
age 15, and by the end of high school, had higher SAT
scores (Shoda et al., 1990)! (SATs are standardized tests
written by American students at the end of high school,
and are a major part of determining acceptance to col-
lege and university.) Clearly, being able to delay gratifica-
tion is an important skill.
Importantly, this is also a skill that people can learn.
In fact, the challenge of delaying gratification is basi-
cally the same as the challenge of controlling emotions,
and the same strategies are useful, such as cognitive
reframing. Even preschool-aged children can use them;
Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock in the simplest and most literal reframing study, chil-
dren were instructed to simply imagine that the marsh-
mallow was a picture, not a real object, and to do this
Unfortunately, the ability (or inability) to delay grat- by mentally drawing a picture frame around the object;
ification tends to be quite stable throughout childhood incredibly, this simple imagination tactic increased
and adolescence. A brilliant set of studies begun in the the average wait time to a full 18 minutes (Moore
1960s looked at what young children would do if given et al., 1976).
a difficult temptation—they could have a marshmallow The ability to effectively choose reframing strat-
immediately, or if they could wait for 15 minutes, they egies, especially when under the grip of strong emo-
would be given two marshmallows. It’s a pretty simple tions, relies on a sophisticated cognitive control network
choice right? A mere 15 minutes, and the marshmallow involving the frontal and parietal lobes (McClure et al.,
feast doubles in size! However, preschool-aged children 2004). These are precisely the brain areas that are under-
find it excruciating to resist this temptation. In one study going the most development during adolescence. Thus,
(Mischel & Ebbesen, 1970), when the marshmallow was helping adolescents learn self-control strategies is criti-
temptingly placed right in front of the children, they cally important, not only for developing good habits,
could only wait for, on average, one minute! but for helping them to develop the cognitive control
The finding that made these studies famous in psy- systems in their brains. Failing to provide this guidance
chology, though, was that the length of time kids could (which our culture regularly does, with its paucity of
wait for the second marshmallow predicted how well programs for cultivating self-control), is a lost opportu-
adjusted they were many years later, in adolescence. The nity for making a major difference in the lives of today’s
child who could wait longer for a marshmallow at age 4 youth.

Quick Quiz 10.3a Physical Changes and Emotional Challenges in Adolescence

1 One of the changes that occurs in puberty is the 3 The length of time children can wait in the
KNOW . . .

UNDERSTAND . . .

beginning of menstruation for females. This event is marshmallow task is an indicator of

known as ________. A the age at which they begin to develop secondary
A estradiol C a primary sex trait sex characteristics.
B menarche D spermarche B intelligence.
C self-control.
2 One of the major differences between primary and D emotional security.
secondary sex characteristics is that
A primary sex characteristics are directly related to Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
reproductive function.
B secondary sex characteristics are directly related
to reproductive function.
C whether a person is male or female depends on
the secondary sex characteristics.
D primary sex characteristics are unique to human
reproductive anatomy.

Adolescence :: Module 10.3 :: 423

 WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC
LITERACY MODEL
Adolescent Risk and Decision Making

One of the nightmares of every parent is the smorgasbord

of disasters waiting for adolescents as they explore their
increasing independence—sexually transmitted diseases,
drinking, drugs, and the whole panoply of alluring activities
parents wish were never invented (despite their own fond
memories of their younger years . . .). The adolescent says
“Trust me!” and the parent thinks “No way; I know what
you’re going to do once you’re out of my sight!”
[Link]/Fotolia
{fig. 10.13} Extended Brain Development The prefrontal
What do we know cortex (highlighted in blue) continues to develop through ado-
about adolescence and lescence and even into young adulthood. Click on this figure
in your eText to see more details.
decision making?
Parents do have some reason to
fear; adolescents are particularly scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging while
prone to behaving impulsively and they played a betting game. In this experiment, participants
making risky decisions (Chambers had to make a decision between a high-risk, high-reward
et al., 2003; Steinberg, 2007). As a result, driving recklessly and choice (placing a $6 bet with a 25% chance of winning), and
having unsafe sex (Arnett, 1992), drug and alcohol abuse, acci- a low-risk, low-reward choice (placing a $1 bet with a 50%
dents, and violence are more common during adolescence chance of winning).
than during any other stage of life (Chambers & Potenza,
Adolescents who selected the high-risk choice had less brain
2003; Steinberg, 2008).
activity in their prefrontal cortex than those who selected
Watch Why do adolescents often make such bad judgment calls? the low-risk choice (Figure 10.13; Shad et al., 2011). It seems
Special Topics: Risky This is due to a convergence of factors, such as a teenage cul- that choosing the high-risk gamble was, in a sense, easier;
Behaviour and Brain ture that glorifies high-risk activities (e.g., binge drinking, fast those teens simply focused on how much they wanted the
Development driving), increased freedom from parents, and a growing intel- bigger reward, and ignored the higher likelihood that they
lectual ability to critically examine and question the values would lose. On the other hand, making the low-risk choice
and traditions of society. These factors happen to converge at involved some neurological conflict; those teens wanted
the same time as adolescent brains are still developing critical the bigger reward, but restrained themselves by taking into
cognitive control systems, in particular the prefrontal areas, account the probabilities.
although they have well-developed reward systems, located in
This study helps to shed light on adolescent decision
limbic areas (Galvan et al., 2006). This makes them especially
making in general. Compared to adults, adolescents have
responsive to rewards and incentives (Casey et al., 2008),
less-developed frontal lobes, and are therefore more likely to
setting up a tension within their own neurophysiology. The
default to their strong reward impulses, rather than restrain-
reward system acts like the devil on their shoulder, nudging
ing their desires as a result of more sober and complex cal-
them to “Do it! Do it!” while the underdeveloped prefrontal
culations of what would be in their best interest overall. This
areas struggle along like the beleaguered angel, ineffectually
study lends support to the hypothesis that risky decision
pleading “Don’t do it! It’s not worth it!”
making by adolescents has a basis in their still-developing
frontal cortex.
How can science
test the link Can we critically evaluate
between brain this explanation for risky
function and decision making?
decision making in
This brain-based explanation does
adolescents? not, in fact, fully explain adolescents’
Modern technology has enabled researchers to look at the behaviour, in at least two important
actual brain activity of adolescents in the process of mak- ways. First, in this particular study, it’s not clear whether the
ing risky decisions. In one study, adolescents had their brains prefrontal activation reflects teens thinking in more complex

424 :: Module 10.3 : : Adolescence

 strategies for reducing adolescent risk taking should also
3.4
Adolescents consider the important role that situational factors play in
2.9 Young adults adolescents’ decision making.
Adults
2.4
Why is this relevant?
Crashes

1.9
Research on the develop-
1.4 ing adolescent brain helps
explain problems with risk
0.9
and impulse control, which
0.4 could lead to the development of programs that could steer
adolescents toward making better decisions. If we could fig-
ure out how to enhance prefrontal functioning in teens, or
Alone With friends
how to get more of them to engage in practices like medita-
{fig. 10.14} What Drives Teenagers to Take Risks? tion that would do the same thing, we could improve the
One key factor in risk taking is simply other teenagers. emotional control and quality of life of a whole generation
When teens play a driving video game with other teens, of young people.
they crash more than when playing the same game when
alone, and more than adults playing the game (from Stein-
berg, 2007).

ways, or whether it shows that they are effortfully restrain-

ing themselves from following their reward-focused desires.
Is it about complex thought, or is it about self-control?

Second, in everyday decisions, other factors likely influ-

ence teens’ preference for risk, such as size of rewards and
costs, the importance of long-term goals, personality char-
acteristics such as extraversion (which is related to reward-
sensitivity), and the social context in which the decisions
occur. For example, psychologists have found that in some
situations, adolescents are no more likely to engage in risky
behaviour than adults. But when other teens are around,
this propensity changes (see Figure 10.14). Clearly, realistic Rob Crandall/Stock Connection/Glow Images

Cognitive Development: Moral created by Lawrence Kohlberg, after studying how peo-
ple reasoned through complex moral dilemmas. Imagine
Reasoning vs. Emotions the following scenario, unlikely as it may be:
As we have just seen, making wise decisions depends on the A trolley is hurtling down the tracks toward a group of
prefrontal cortex. This area is involved in higher cognitive five unsuspecting [Link] are standing next to a lever
abilities, such as abstract reasoning and logic (what Piaget that, if pulled, would direct the trolley onto another track,
referred to as formal operational thinking; see Module 10.2), thereby saving the five individuals. However, on the second
which also begin to show substantial improvements starting track stands a single, unsuspecting person, who would be
at about age 12. This increase in complex cognitive abil- struck by the diverted trolley.
ity allows people to view problems from multiple perspec-
tives and to think more flexibly. Since Piaget, psychologists What would you choose to do? Would you pull the
have generally believed that the shift to formal operational lever, directly causing one person to die, but saving five
thinking laid the foundation for effective moral reasoning, others? Or would you be unwilling to directly cause some-
allowing a person to consider abstract moral principles, and one’s death and therefore do nothing? Moral dilemmas
take into consideration multiple perspectives when reason- provide interesting tests of reasoning because they place
ing through a problem. values in conflict with each other. Obviously, five lives are
more than one, yet most people are also unwilling to take a
KOHLBERG’S MORAL DEVELOPMENT: LEARN- direct action that would cause a person to be killed.
ING RIGHT FROM WRONG The most influen- But even more important than what you would choose
tial theory of the development of moral reasoning was is why you would choose it. Kohlberg (1984) believed that

Adolescence :: Module 10.3 :: 425

 people’s reasons evolved as they grew up and became (Carpendale, 2000; Haidt, 2001). Knowing that some-
better able to think in complex ways. By analyzing people’s thing is right or wrong is very different from feeling that
reasons for their decisions in these sorts of dilemmas, he it is right or wrong, and in our everyday lives our moral
developed a stage theory of moral development, here orga- decisions are largely based on how we feel, not what
nized into three general stages (see Table 10.4). we think. This led researcher Jonathan Haidt to develop
The shift to postconventional morality is a key the social intuitionist model of morality, which argues that
development, for without this shift, it is unlikely that moral judgments are guided by intuitive, emotional reac-
the individual will rebel against authority or work tions. Generally, we make a decision based on our “gut
against unjust practices, if they are accepted by society reaction” and then afterwards we construct the argu-
at large. Indeed, social reformers always encounter resis- ments that support our judgments. For example, imagine
tance from members of society who hold to “traditional” the following scenario (adapted from Haidt, 2001):
values and think of change as a destabilizing influence
Julie and Steven are brother and sister. They are travelling
to be resisted; reformers must adopt the language of
together in France on summer vacation from college. One
values and rights, whereas those who seek to preserve
night they are staying alone in a cabin near the beach.
the system invoke other values, such as tradition, social
They decide that it would be interesting and fun if they
harmony, and authority.
shared a romantic kiss. At the very least it would be a new
Kohlberg regarded the three stages of moral reason-
experience for each of them. They both enjoy the experi-
ing as universal to all humans; however, because he devel-
ence but they decide not to do it again. They keep that
oped his theory mostly through the study of how males
night as a special secret, which makes them feel even closer
reason about moral dilemmas, other researchers argued
to each other.
that he had failed to consider that females reason about
moral issues differently. Carol Gilligan (1982) suggested How do you react to this scenario? Was what took
that females base moral decisions on a standard of caring place between the two siblings morally acceptable?
for others, rather than the “masculine” emphasis on stan- If you are like most people, you probably didn’t think
dards of justice and fairness that Kohlberg emphasized. carefully through this scenario, consider different per-
Some support has been found for this; women are more spectives, and examine your reasoning before making a
likely to emphasize the importance of maintaining har- decision. Instead, you probably had a gut reaction, like
mony in their relationships with others (Lyons, 1983). On “Brother and sister!?!? Gross! No way!” and made your
Watch the other hand, men and women generally make highly decision almost instantly.
Moral Development: similar judgments about moral dilemmas (Boldizar et al., It is only after making a decision that most people
Preconventional
1989), and both genders make use of both caring and then engage in more thoughtful and reflective reason-
justice principles (Clopton & Sorell, 1993). This has led ing, trying to justify their decision. For some scenarios, it
Watch
other researchers to question the importance of the gen- is easy to come up with justifications, such as “Brothers
Moral Development:
Conventional
der distinction at all (Jaffee & Hyde, 2000). and sisters should not engage in romantic acts, because
However, an even more devastating critique has it could lead to sexual intercourse, which could produce
Watch been made against the moral reasoning perspective in genetic problems for the offspring,” or “They shouldn’t
Moral Development: general, based on extensive research showing that moral do it because if the family found out, it would be dev-
Postconventional reasoning doesn’t actually predict behaviour very well astating, and their responsibility to their family is more

Table 10.4 :: Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Reasoning

STAGE OF MORAL DEVELOPMENT DESCRIPTION APPLICATION TO TROLLEY DILEMMA
Preconventional morality Characterized by self-interest in seeking reward or avoiding “I would not flip the trolley track switch
punishment. Preconventional morality is considered a because I would get in trouble.”
very basic and egocentric form of moral reasoning.
Conventional morality Regards social conventions and rules as guides for “I would not flip the switch. It is illegal to
appropriate moral behaviour. Directives from parents, kill, and if I willfully intervened I would have
teachers, and the law are used as guidelines for moral probably violated the law.”
behaviour.
Postconventional morality Considers rules and laws as relative. Right and wrong “I would flip the switch. The value of five lives
are determined by more abstract principles of justice exceeds that of one, so saving them is the right
and rights. thing to do even if it means I am killing one
person who would otherwise not have died.”

426 :: Module 10.3 : : Adolescence

 systems, and therefore include the functioning of the older
systems. In terms of our moral reasoning, what this means
is that the cognitive systems that reason about right and
wrong grew out of emotional systems that in turn grew out
of systems representing very basic physiological responses of
accepting or rejecting a substance from one’s body. From this
perspective, “good” and “bad” are not moral judgments, per
se, but rather, are emotional judgments on top of which we
have constructed a moral framework.
This surprising theory has been tested in several differ-
ent ways. One creative set of studies first activated physiolog-
ical symptoms of repulsion, for example by getting subjects to
sit at a disgustingly dirty work station, or to smell fart spray
Alex Wong/Getty Images (Schnall et al., 2008); these disgust-inducing experiences led
Emotion is a major component of moral thinking and decision people to make more severe judgments of moral violations.
making.
Also, neuroimaging studies show that certain moral dilemmas
trigger emotional areas in the brain, and this emotional acti-
vation determines the decision that subjects make (Greene &
important than their private desire to share an intimate
Haidt, 2002; Greene et al., 2001).
experience together.” However, it’s not hard to construct
At the other end of the spectrum, consider people who
a scenario that lies outside of such justifications, such as are clinically psychopathic; such people have an almost com-
the brother and sister being infertile and having no other plete disregard for moral considerations, and feel no com-
surviving family members. Faced with such a scenario, punction to refrain from violating the rights of others or
people might be hard pressed to find a justification; often, committing acts of violence (Hare, 1985). Physiologically, psy-
in such situations, people become flustered and confused, chopaths tend to have chronically reduced emotional activ-
and resort to emphatically stating something like “I don’t ity (Blair & Cipolotti, 2000; Lorber, 2004); with no emotional
know—it just isn’t right!” Their intuitive emotional “signal,” psychopaths simply do not feel that what they are
reaction has told them it’s wrong, but their more cogni- doing is wrong.
tive, effortful reasoning process has had a difficult time It is interesting to consider that the development of
explaining why it’s wrong; interestingly, in such situations, key moral emotions, such as empathy, is intimately bound up
with the extent to which one’s social relationships have been
people generally do not change their judgments, instead
healthy right from birth (see Module 10.2). People who are
trusting their intuitive reaction. The feeling of disgust is
regularly socially included and treated well by others are the
stronger than their inability to explain themselves, which same people who develop trust and security, which results in
is another piece of evidence that suggests that it’s not well-developed areas of the prefrontal cortex necessary for
moral reasoning that is important, but moral feelings. good decision making, and well-developed moral emotional
systems. In adolescence, the importance of social relation-
ships is heightened even further, as adolescents seek to build
an identity that helps them to “fit in” to their social world.

BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
PERSPECTIVES
Emotion and Disgust
Social Development: Identity
The social intuitionist perspective on morality describes
moral judgments as being driven primarily by emotional reac- and Relationships
tions. Psychologists believe that these embodied processes It doesn’t take a rocket scientist, or even a psychologist,
draw upon evolutionarily ancient systems that evolved for to understand the importance of friends during adoles-
highly functional reasons. For example, the disgust system
cence. To teenagers, friends are everything—the people
evolved to keep us from ingesting substances that were
who will support your story to your parents about why
harmful to us, such as feces and toxic plants. As we developed
you came home late, who laugh hysterically with you at
into more complex social beings, our judgments of “good”
and “bad” involved neural circuits that were more cognitive 3:00 in the morning, who help you feel that your choice
and conceptual; however, these “higher-level” cognitive sys- of clothing is actually cool. Friends are central to two of
tems evolved after our more basic physiological responses. A the most important changes that occur during adoles-
major insight from psychology over the past decade has been cence—the formation of a personal identity, and a shift
that as the brain evolved, newer systems grew out of older away from family relationships and toward friendships

Adolescence :: Module 10.3 :: 427

 and romantic relationships. These major changes in teens’ PEER GROUPS Friendships are a priority to most
lives are sources of growth and maturation, but are also adolescents, and teenagers typically spend more time with
often sources of distress and conflict. peers while gaining independence from their parents.
Friendships take place within a broader social context of
WHO AM I? IDENTITY FORMATION DURING
small groups or cliques, and the membership and inten-
ADOLESCENCE A major issue faced by adolescents
sity of friendships within a clique are constantly chang-
Watch
is forming an identity, which is a clear sense of what kind
ing (Cairns & Cairns, 1994). Adolescent crowds—often
Peer Pressure of person you are, what types of people you belong with, and
referred to with labels such as “jocks,” “geeks,” “Goths,”
what roles you should play in society. It involves coming to
and “druggies”—are larger than cliques and are charac-
appreciate and express one’s attitudes and values (Arnett,
terized by common social and behavioural conventions.
2000; Lefkowitz, 2005), which are to some degree real-
Adolescents who can’t find their place in social net-
ized through identifying more closely with peers and
works have a difficult time; social exclusion is generally
being included into valued social groups.
a devastating experience. When rejected by peers, some
Adolescents may actually experience numerous iden-
adolescents turn to virtual social networks for online
tity crises before they reach young adulthood. An identity
friendships, or join distinctive sub-groups in order to
crisis involves curiosity, questioning, and exploration of
gain acceptance within the group and to devalue the
different identities. One month a teenage boy might be
“mainstream” from which they feel rejected. Both psy-
interested in playing varsity football and lifting weights,
chologists and the media have given these low-status
and the next month he might ponder abandoning sports
adolescents a great deal of attention because of the wide-
to pursue music. All the while, he may be wondering
spread belief that they are at high risk for committing
where he would best fit in, be most successful, or make
violence and engaging in other antisocial behaviours.
more friends.
One of the most troubling outcomes of social rejec-
The process of exploring different identities, and
tion is the experience of shame, which is a feeling that
enjoying more independence from the family, sets the
there is something wrong with oneself: one is worthless,
stage for potential conflict, particularly with parents.
inferior, defective. Shame-prone individuals have often
Even well-meaning parents may feel somewhat threat-
experienced substantial social rejection, and feeling pow-
ened as their teenage son or daughter starts to establish
erless and in pain, are at increased risk for blaming others
more distance or starts to experiment with identities
for their problems. Many psychologists believe that shame
they feel are unwise. They may feel hurt and want to
and other negative emotions that are connected to social
hold onto their closeness with their child. They may
rejection, bullying, teasing, and being publicly humiliated
also feel concerned and want to protect their child from
can lead to tragic outbursts of violence, such as the school
making mistakes they will later regret. So, parents may
shootings that have become disturbingly frequent recently.
simply be trying to help, but their advice, rules (like cur-
In almost all cases of school shootings, social rejection
few), or insistence that the teen abandon certain goals
is a key factor that precedes the violent outburst (Leary
(“There’s no way you’re giving up math and science to
et al., 2003; Tangney & Dearing, 2002). Just as the security
take drama and music!”) may get interpreted as being
from having one’s belongingness needs satisfied leads to
restrictive or controlling. Net results? Conflict.

Left: Photos 12/Alamy; right: AF archive/Alamy

For decades, television shows and movies have offered glimpses into life within adolescent cliques and crowds. The portrayals
may be exaggerated, but they are often successful because viewers can closely identify with the characters’ experiences.

428 :: Module 10.3 : : Adolescence

the development of empathy and moral behaviours (see approximately 60% of both males and females reported
Module 10.2), the insecurity from having one’s belonging- having experienced psychological aggression against
ness needs brutally unmet can lead to terrible violence, them by their romantic relationship partner. About 40%
sometimes against others, sometimes against oneself. experienced sexual aggression, generally in the form
of being coerced or pressured into having sex (Sears &
ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS In addition to Byers, 2010). In addition, each year in North America,
friendships taking prominence over family, teens’ social millions of teens face the life upheaval of an unplanned
lives also begin to revolve around seeking, or being pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, or simply having
involved in, romantic relationships. This opens up sex they will later regret.
new worlds of exploring both emotional and physical Overall, the emotional upheaval of relationships,
intimacy. from the ecstasy of attraction, to the heartbreak of being
Many people in North American culture may feel rejected or cheated on, to the loneliness one may feel
uncomfortable with adolescents exploring and engaging in the absence of relationships, consumes a great deal of
in sexual behaviour—but teens themselves don’t seem to many teenagers’ attention and resources and is a primary
agree. Between 40–50% of Canadian teens aged 15–19 part of the experience of adolescence.
report having had sexual intercourse (Boyce et al., 2006;
Rotermann, 2008), although the proportion who have
engaged in other forms of sexual acts such as oral sex or Quick Quiz 10.3b
mutual masturbation is higher; for example, more than Decision Making, Moral Reasoning,
80% of American adolescents report engaging in non-
and Social Development
intercourse sex acts before the age of 16 (Bauserman &
Davis, 1996); more than half of Canadian teens in Grade 11 KNOW . . . 1 Rachel believes that it is wrong to steal only
because doing so could land her in jail. Which level
report having experienced oral sex (Boyce et al., 2006).
of Kohlberg’s moral development scheme is Rachel
Some teens turn to oral sex because they see it as less applying in this scenario?
risky than intercourse, both for one’s health and social A Postconventional C Preoperational
reputation (Halpern-Fisher et al., 2005). B Preconventional D Conventional
Same-sex sexual encounters are also very common
and typically occur by early adolescence (Savin-Williams
2 Adolescent decision making is often problematic or
UNDERSTAND . . .

& Cohen, 2004), although contrary to stereotypes, such dangerous because teens have
an experience is not an indication of homosexuality; A underdeveloped limbic areas responsible for
approximately 60% of people who identify as heterosex- reward, and well-developed prefrontal areas.
ual have had at least one same-sex encounter (Remafedi B well-developed limbic areas responsible for reward,
et al., 1992). For many, this is part of the experimen- and underdeveloped prefrontal areas.
tation that comes with figuring out who you are and C only partly moved out of the concrete operations
establishing an identity. stage of cognitive development.

The process by which adolescents come to recog- D poorly formed sets of goals.
nize their sexual orientation depends on many factors,
including how they are perceived by their family and 3 The length of time children can wait in the
peers. Because of some people’s still-existing prejudices marshmallow task is an indicator of

against non-heterosexual orientations, it is not uncom- A the age at which they begin to develop secondary
sex characteristics.
mon for many people who don’t identify as heterosexual
B intelligence.
to experience some difficulty accepting their sexuality,
and thus, to struggle with feelings of rejection toward C self-control.

themselves. However, this process is not always difficult D emotional security.

or traumatic; it largely depends on how supportive their
family and peer relationships are. Nevertheless, despite 4 For most teens, the most devastating experience
would be one of
these extra identity challenges, homosexuals have about
A failing at an important competition.
the same level of psychological well-being as heterosex-
uals (Rieger & Savin-Williams, 2011). B being rejected by their friends.

Although sexual exploration is a normal part of C being rejected on a first date.

adolescence, it can unfortunately be dangerous for many D having a physical injury.

people. Research at the University of New Brunswick Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
has shown that among Canadian teens in Grade 11,

Adolescence :: Module 10.3 :: 429

 Module Summary
Module Now that you have read this module you should
10.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology concerning adolescent

development :
conventional morality (p. 426) preconventional morality
delay gratification (p. 422) (p. 426)
identity (p. 428) primary sex traits (p. 421) Picture Partners/Alamy
menarche (p. 421) secondary sex traits (p. 421)
postconventional morality (p. 426) spermarche (p. 421)
2. Margaret is aware that a classmate has been sending
hostile text messages to various people at her school.
Although she does not receive these messages, and she
UNDERSTAND . . . does not personally know any of the victims, Margaret
reports the offending individual to school officials.
● The process of identity formation in adolescence. Applying Kohlberg’s theory, which type of moral
A major challenge of adolescence is the formation of a reasoning is Margaret displaying?
personal identity, which involves exploring different values
and behaviours, and seeking inclusion in different social
groups. The eventual outcome, if navigated successfully, is ANALYZE . . .
a relatively stable and personally satisfying sense of self.
● The relationship between brain development and
● The importance of relationships in adolescence. adolescent judgment and risk taking. Many problems
Teenagers undergo a general shift in their social with judgment and decision making involve a kind of “tug
attachments as family becomes less central and friends and of war” between emotional reward systems involving
intimate relationships take on increased significance. The limbic areas of the brain and the prefrontal cortex, which
failure to establish a sense of belonging is an important is involved in planning, reasoning, emotion, and impulse
precursor to dysfunctional behaviours and violence. control. Because the prefrontal cortex is still developing
● The functions of moral emotions. Contrary to theories during adolescence, particularly through myelination and
of moral reasoning, recent research on moral emotions, synaptic pruning, it is often not sufficient to override the
such as disgust, suggests that these feelings are what leads allure of immediate temptations, leading to failures to
to moral behaviour, and reasoning generally follows as a delay gratification.
way of justifying the behaviour to oneself.

APPLY . . .

● Your understanding of the categories of moral

reasoning. Read the following scenarios and identify
which term applies to each. Check your answers on
page ANS-3.
1. Jeff discovers that the security camera at his job is
disabled. He decides it is okay to steal because there’s
no way he’s going to get caught. Applying Kohlberg’s
theory, which type of moral reasoning is Jeff using?

430 :: Module 10.3 : : Adolescence

 reppans/Alamy

Module

10.4 Adulthood and Aging

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key areas of Age-related disorders such Effective communication principles The stereotype that
After reading growth experienced as Alzheimer’s disease to the challenge of improving old age is a time
this module by emerging adults your own relationships of unhappiness
How cognitive abilities change with age
you should

“Use it or lose it.” This is one of those sayings that you grow up hearing, more mentally active adults are less likely to develop age-related disor-
and you think, “Yeah, whatever, I’m young and awesome; I’m never going ders such as Alzheimer’s disease.
to lose it.” But time goes by, and like it or not, the day is not far away
So this is good news. And even better news is that exercising your brain is
when may find yourself puffing at the top of a flight of stairs, or standing
actually fun! It’s not like spending countless hours on the brain equivalent
in the kitchen wondering why you’re there. You may wonder, what’s hap-
of a treadmill. Instead, neurological exercisers are those who regularly
pened to me? Why do I feel so old?
solve puzzles and brain teasers, play games, stay socially active, pursue
We all know that if you stay physically active, your body will stay stronger hobbies, and remain lifelong active learners. The take-home message for
and healthier as you age, maintaining better cardiovascular fitness, muscle all of us, young and old, is not a grim “go to the brain gym or get stu-
tone, balance, and bone density. Thankfully, recent advances in neurosci- pider”; instead it’s a joyful message, more like “Play! Learn! Do what you
ence confirm that the same thing is true for the brain. If you use it, you’re love!” This kind of advice makes getting old sound not so bad after all . . . .
less likely to lose it. And unfortunately, brain connections are exactly what
people lose as they age, particularly from their 60s onward, resulting in
less neural connectivity and grey and white matter volume. These neu-
Focus Questions
rological losses are accompanied by gradual declines in some types of 1 What are the key developmental challenges adults face as they age?
cognitive functioning. But not all aging people are doomed to the same
2 How does aging affect cognitive functioning?
rate of cognitive decline, because if they “exercise” their brains, they can
dramatically reduce these neurological and cognitive losses. Furthermore,

Adulthood and Aging :: Module 10.4 :: 431

 Becoming an adult does not entail crossing any spe- authenticity is accepted and encouraged. The domain
cific line. It’s not as clear-cut as adolescence; after all, of new possibilities reflects the greater freedom that
puberty is kind of hard to miss. In Canada, you are emerging adults enjoy to choose activities that better fit
considered to be an adult from a legal perspective at their goals and interests, to broaden their horizons, and
18. Still, it’s questionable whether 18-year-olds are actively search for what they want to do with their lives.
fully-fledged adults; they have essentially the same The domain of personal strength reflects the confidence
lifestyle as 17-year-olds, often at home or in student young adults gain as they confront more serious life
housing, with relatively few responsibilities beyond challenges and discover that “they can handle it.” Taken
brushing their teeth and dragging themselves to together, this growth in three important domains of
Watch work or school. As time goes by, people get increas- life suggests that emerging adulthood is a time of great
What’s in It for Me? ingly integrated into working society, begin careers, opportunity.
Identity usually establish long-term relationships, pay bills (or
fend off bill collectors . . . ), possibly have children,
Watch
and in a variety of ways conform to the expectations Physical Changes in Adulthood
Physical Development
after 40
and responsibilities of adulthood. As they move slowly Physical changes happen fairly slowly in adulthood,
from adolescence toward retirement and beyond, which is good news for 20-somethings who still feel
Explore adults go through a series of roughly defined stages and look young, and 30- and 40-somethings who want
Major Changes in
based loosely on age: Young adulthood spans 18 to to feel and look like they’re still in their 20s. The most
Important Domains of
40 years, middle adulthood from 40 to 65 years, and obvious signs of age-related physical changes in adult-
Adult Functioning
older adulthood from 65 years onward. As they mature hood typically appear at middle adulthood. These
Simulate through these stages, people experience many different include an increased likelihood of weight gain, thinning
Aging and Changes in changes physically, socially, emotionally, cognitively, and and greying of the hair, and a gradual decline in sensory
Physical Appearance neurologically. abilities such as hearing and sight. For healthy adults,
these changes progress slowly and are typically easy to
EMERGING ADULTS: MOVING FROM ADO- manage.
LESCENCE TO ADULTHOOD The undefinable One major physical change affecting women at
no-man’s-land between adolescence and adulthood is a approximately age 50 is menopause, the termination of the
time of great personal challenge and growth. “Emerg- menstrual cycle and reproductive ability. The physical changes
ing adults” confront many adaptive challenges; they may associated with menopause, particularly the reduction
Watch
leave home for the first time, start college or university in estrogen, can result in symptoms such as hot flashes,
Cognitive Changes
or full-time work, become more financially responsible a reduced sex drive, and mood swings. The severity of
Secondary to
for themselves, commit to and cohabit with roman- these symptoms varies widely among individuals. Men,
Menopause in Middle
Adulthood
tic partners, and of course, deal with the endless crises on the other hand, don’t experience a physical change
of their friends. Navigating this challenging time can as substantial as menopause during middle adulthood,
Watch strongly affect people’s feelings of self-worth, compe- although testosterone production and sexual motivation
Stress about the tence, and their ability to handle the complex challenges typically decline.
Future: Amanda, 22 of adulthood. The brain, just like other physical systems, shows
Years Old Researchers at the University of Guelph conducted structural changes and some functional decline with
an in-depth study (Gottlieb & Newby-Clark, 2007) of age. These changes include reduced volume of white
Explore the experiences of these emerging adults, identifying and grey matter of the cerebral cortex, as well as the
Physical Changes in three main areas of personal growth: relationships, new memory-processing hippocampus (Allen et al., 2005).
Late Adulthood possibilities, and personal strengths. Interestingly, these The prefrontal cortex and its connections to subcorti-
map on perfectly to the domains of relatedness, auton- cal regions are also hit hard by aging (Raz, 2000), which
omy, and competence that are widely viewed as key pil- helps to explain much of the cognitive decline typically
lars of healthy development throughout the lifespan. experienced by older adults.
In the relationships domain, the majority of people Some of the most severe consequences of aging are
felt that they had matured in their ability to put effort the neurodegenerative conditions, characterized by loss of
Watch into building lasting relationships, to trust others and nerve cells and nervous system functioning. Demen-
Speaking Out: Alvin:
rely on others for support, and to be able to establish tia refers to mild to severe disruption of mental functioning,
Living with Dementia
strong and intimate connections. This increased intimacy memory loss, disorientation, poor judgment, and decision mak-
is an outgrowth of people learning to “be themselves” ing. Approximately 14% of people older than 71 years of
with others and invest in relationships in which their age have dementia. Nearly 10% of these cases involve a

432 :: Module 10.4 : : Adulthood and Aging

 Normal Healthy Advanced Neurological symptoms
brain Alzheimer’s
disease Neurofibrillary tangles

Amyloid plaques
Neuron

{fig. 10.15} How Alzheimer’s Disease Affects the Brain Advanced Alzheimer’s disease is marked by significant loss of both
grey and white matter throughout the brain. The brain of a person with Alzheimer’s disease typically has a large buildup of a protein
called beta-amyloid, which kills nerve cells. Also, tau proteins, which maintain the structure of nerve cells, are often found to be
defective in the Alzheimer’s brain, resulting in neurofibrillary tangles.

type of dementia called Alzheimer’s disease—a degen- of proteins that clump together in the spaces between
erative and terminal condition resulting in severe damage of neurons, interrupting their normal activity. In addi-
the entire brain. Alzheimer’s disease rarely appears before tion, another type of protein forms tangles within nerve
age 60, and it usually lasts 7 to 10 years from onset to cells, which severely disrupts their structural integrity
death (although some people with Alzheimer’s live much and functioning (Figure 10.15). Many different research
longer). Early symptoms include forgetfulness for recent groups are currently searching for specific genes that
events, poor judgment, and some mood and personal- are associated with Alzheimer’s disease. The genetic
ity changes. As the disease progresses, people experience risk (i.e., the heritability of the disease) is very high for
severe confusion and memory loss, eventually struggling people who develop an early-onset form (age 30–60) of
to recognize even their closest family members. In the Alzheimer’s disease (Bertram et al., 2010). In those indi-
most advanced stages of Alzheimer’s disease, affected viduals with later-onset (age 60+) disease, the genetic
individuals may fail to recognize themselves and lose link is not as consistent.
control of basic bodily processes such as bowel and blad- Alzheimer’s disease illustrates a worst-case scenario
der control. of the aging brain; however, in normal brains, structural
What accounts for such extensive deterioration of changes occur which also cause a variety of cognitive
cognitive abilities? Alzheimer’s disease involves a buildup challenges that increase as the person gets older.

Quick Quiz 10.4a Physical Changes in Adulthood

1 Which of the following is not a symptom of 2 Deterioration of cognitive abilities and memory in
KNOW . . .

UNDERSTAND . . .

Alzheimer’s disease? Alzheimer’s patients may be attributable to

A Memory problems A nonprescription drug usage earlier in life.
B Disorientation B a buildup of proteins that clump together in the
C Obsessive behaviours spaces between neurons, interrupting their normal
activity.
D Personality changes
C normal aging processes that are unavoidable.
D one gene that definitively determines whether the
disease will appear.

Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

Adulthood and Aging :: Module 10.4 :: 433

 effective strategies for making better use of their cognitive
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC resources.

LITERACY MODEL A second possible explanation for reduced cognitive abilities

in older people is that older brains show more general, non-
Aging and Cognitive Change specific brain activation for a given task (Cabeza, 2002). They
may do so either because they are compensating for deficits
How does the normal aging process affect cognitive abilities in one area by recruiting other areas, or possibly because
such as intelligence, learning, and memory? People commonly they are less capable of limiting activation to the appropriate,
believe that a loss of cognitive abilities is an inevitable part specialized neural areas. Involving more widely distributed
of aging, even for those who do not develop dementia or brain areas in a given task would generally result in slower
Alzheimer’s disease. However, the reality of aging and cogni- processing speed, which could help to explain some of the
tion is not so simple. cognitive deficits (e.g., fluid intelligence) seen in older adults.

What do we know Can we critically

about different cognitive evaluate our
abilities? assumptions about
There are many different cognitive age-related cognitive
abilities, including different mem- changes?
ory and attentional abilities. One
useful distinction is made between Although older people show
cognitive tasks that involve processes such as problem solv- declines on laboratory tests of some cognitive functions, we
ing, reasoning, processing speed, and mental flexibility; these should guard against the stereotypic assumption that the
Watch
tasks are said to involve fluid intelligence. Other tasks tap into elderly are somehow less intellectually capable than the rest
IT Video: Stereotypes
crystallized intelligence, which is based on accumulated knowl- of us. In most cultures and for most of history, older people
edge and skills (Module 9.2), such as recognizing famous have been widely respected and honoured as wisdom keep-
people like David Suzuki or Justin Bieber. Although fluid intel- ers for their communities; respect for one’s elders is, in fact,
ligence reaches a peak during young adulthood and then the historical norm, whereas modern Western society’s ten-
slowly declines, crystallized intelligence remains largely intact dency to disregard the perspectives of the elderly, assuming
into old age. that they are out of touch and their opinions are no longer
relevant, is the aberration.

How can science The wisdom of elderly people is evident in their approach
Watch explain age-related not only to emotional well-being, as we discuss later in this
A 92-Year-Old differences in module, but also in how they deal with their own cognitive
abilities. In everyday life, as opposed to most laboratory tests,
Volunteer
cognitive abilities? the decline in cognitive abilities does not necessarily trans-
Researchers have not yet late into decline in practical skills, for at least two impor-
fully solved the riddle of why some cognitive abilities decline tant reasons. The first is that while the episodic memory and
Watch with age. There are many different potential explanations. working memory systems work more poorly, the procedural
Centenarian Neurological studies of brain function suggest two leading and semantic memory systems show a much reduced rate of
possibilities. decline with age; thus, older people’s retention of practical
skills and general knowledge about the world remains largely
The first is that older adults under-utilize neural resources,
intact for most of their lives.
leading to lower levels of activation of relevant brain areas,
which has been repeatedly found (Logan et al., 2002; Mad- The second reason the elderly fare better than might be
den et al., 1996). Interestingly, it may be possible to enhance expected from laboratory tests is that they learn to com-
neural function in older people simply by reminding them pensate for their poorer raw cognitive power by using their
to use effective strategies. For example, Logan and her col- abilities more skillfully. For example, in a chess game, older
leagues (2002) found that, compared to subjects in their 20s, players play as well as young players, despite the fact that
older subjects (in their 70s and 80s) performed worse on they cannot remember chess positions as well as their young
a memory task, and showed less activation of key frontal opponents; they compensate for this reduction in working
lobe areas. However, by giving older adults strategies that memory during a game by more efficiently searching the
would help them more deeply encode the information, older chessboard for patterns (Charness, 1981). Having more
Watch adults were able to activate these brain areas to a greater experience to draw upon in many domains of life gives older
Successful Aging, extent, thus improving their memories for the information. people an advantage because they will be better able to
Independent Lifestyle: This work suggests that a key to helping older adults resist develop strategies that allow them to process information
Thelma, 81 Years Old the decline of their cognitive abilities is to help them learn more efficiently (Salthouse, 1987).

434 :: Module 10.4 : : Adulthood and Aging

 Why is this relevant? plasticity (Mattson, 2000; Molteni et al., 2002). As a society, Watch
providing opportunities and resources for seniors to remain Physical Fitness: Joan
In a society that increas- active, socially engaged, and well nourished will allow them and Bill, Early 70s
ingly relegates its elderly to to enjoy high-quality lives well into old age.
seniors’ residences, largely
removing them from their
families and the larger community, it is important to remem-
ber that older people actually retain their faculties much bet-
ter than might be expected. This is especially true for older
adults who practise specific cognition-enhancing behaviours.
What keeps the aging brain sharp? It’s pretty simple really,
as researchers at the University of Alberta and others have
shown—staying physically active, practising cognitively chal-
lenging activities (and they don’t have to be crosswords and
brain teaser puzzles; intrinsically enjoyable hobbies work
just fine), and remaining socially connected and active (Small
et al., 2012; Stine-Morrow, 2007). In addition, diets low in sat-
urated fats and rich in antioxidants, omega-3 fatty acids, and
B vitamins help to maintain cognitive functioning and neural Imagesource/Glow Images

giraffe, lion, zebra,

PSYCH @ dog, bird, monkey, bear...
giraffe...dog...bird...

The Driver’s Seat

Thanks to technology, the cur-
rent generation of elderly adults faces issues that
previous generations never did. Take driving, for
example. Many older adults depend on their cars to
shop, maintain a social life, and keep appointments.
Research, however, has shown that the cognitive
and physical changes in old age may take a toll on
driving skill. This decline presents a dilemma for
many seniors and their families: How can individu-
als maintain the independence afforded by driving
without endangering themselves and other drivers?
To address this problem, psychologist Karlene
Ball developed an intervention called Useful Field of {fig. 10.16} Memory and Aging Several types of memory systems exist, not all of which
View (UFOV) Speed of Processing training. UFOV are equally affected by age. An older person’s ability to remember events, such as words that
appeared on a list (episodic memory), is more likely to decline than his or her memory for facts
uses computer-based training exercises to increase
and concepts (semantic memory).
the portion of the visual field that adults can quickly
process and respond to. Laboratory studies show
that UFOV actually increases the speed of cognitive processing
for older adults. Records from several states that have studied development. Erikson, who was trained as a psychologist
the UFOV show that drivers who completed the training were by Sigmund Freud’s daughter, Anna, divided the lifespan
half as likely to have had an accident during the study period.
into eight psychosocial stages (see Table 10.5; also note
that earlier stages have been discussed in Modules 10.2
and 10.3 as well). In each stage, the individual’s develop-
Psychosocial Development across ment hinges on whether she successfully resolves a spe-
Watch
cific developmental challenge, or “crisis of development.”
the Lifespan If successfully resolved, the individual becomes better
Classic Footage of Erik
Erikson
Psychologists seeking to understand the general experi- able to rise to the challenges of subsequent stages. If not
ence of aging across the lifespan have been heavily influ- resolved, specific problems result that can interfere with
enced by Erik Erikson’s (1963) theory of psychosocial her subsequent development.

Adulthood and Aging :: Module 10.4 :: 435

 Table 10.5 :: Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development

1 5

Infancy: trust versus mistrust: Developing a Adolescence: identity versus role confusion:
sense of trust and security toward caregivers. Achieving a sense of self and future
direction.
2
6

Young adulthood: intimacy versus isolation:

Developing the ability to initiate and maintain
intimate relationships.
Toddlerhood: autonomy versus
shame and doubt: Seeking 7
independence and gaining
self-sufficiency.

Adulthood: generativity versus

Preschool/early childhood: initiative versus stagnation: The focus is on
guilt: Active exploration of the environment and satisfying personal and family
taking personal initiative. needs, as well as contributing
to society.
4
8

Explore
Erikson’s First Four
Stages of Psychosocial
Development

Explore Childhood: industry versus inferiority: Striving Aging: ego integrity versus despair: Coping
Erikson’s Last Four to master tasks and challenges of childhood, with the prospect of death while looking
particularly those faced in school. Child begins back on life with a sense of contentment and
Stages of Psychosocial
pursuing unique interests. integrity for accomplishments.
Development
1. ClickPop/Shutterstock; 2. Picture Partners/Alamy; 3. Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock; 4. keith morris/Alamy; 5. Tracy
Whiteside/[Link]; 6. OLJ Studio/Shutterstock; 7. Belinda Pretorius/[Link]; 8. Digital Vision/Thinkstock

436 :: Module 10.4 : : Adulthood and Aging

 According to this model, by the time of adulthood Nevertheless, Erikson’s model is often regarded as a Explore
people have already navigated (successfully or not) many useful guide to the key challenges individuals experience Theories of Social
challenges, ideally developing a sense of security, feelings as they go through life, and helps frame our discussion of and Personality

of agency and self-worth, self-confidence in their abili- some of the major aspects of adulthood, including mar- Development

ties in social and general life domains (see Module 10.2), riage, parenting, careers, and the experiences of older
and a coherent identity (see Module 10.3). It is impor- adulthood.
tant to recognize that at each stage, the impact of the
social world is profound; the person’s key relationships
largely determine both the challenges inherent in each Social Development: Intimacy
stage, and the person’s ability to resolve them successfully. and Generativity
The other primary factor is the person’s feeling of being As adolescents transition into adulthood, the nature of
competent and capable, although this is also related to their social relationships begins to change. Intimate rela-
feedback received from the social world. tionships take central stage, and typically, people begin
Intimate relationships take on a central focus as to pair off into long-term committed relationships
people enter into adulthood; the challenge is to estab- (although this is not true for many people, who stay sin-
lish a genuinely intimate, committed relationship with gle for a variety of reasons).
another person. Because true intimacy involves some
degree of compromise, it requires openness, a lack of LOVE AND MARRIAGE Although not all long-term
selfishness, empathy, and even courage in order to risk committed relationships proceed to marriage, it remains
rejection and bring one’s real self into the relationship. the norm, with 67% of Canadian families involving a
As any dismissively attached person well knows, hold- married couple (with or without children). In recent Watch

ing back your “true self ” is an effective defensive strat- years the proportion of married-couple families has been Love Marriage:
Scherazade and
egy that will protect your feelings if you are rejected dropping, however, from 70.5% in 2001, with a simulta-
Roderick—Late 30s
by someone you love. However, in order to create truly neous increase in common-law and lone-parent families,
intimate relationships, one must have the courage to, each of which accounts for about 16% of families (Statis-
as poker players say, “go all in.” If this challenge is not tics Canada, 2012).
met, people may enter relationships that lack true inti- Consistent with Erikson’s theorizing, being able to
macy and openness, leaving their intimacy needs never establish a committed, long-term relationship seems to
fully met; over time this can cause people to push away be good for people, although of course not in all cases,
and deny their need for intimacy and emphasize their such as abusive relationships. On average, however, being
independence. in such a relationship associated with greater health,
As individuals enter middle adulthood, the challenge longer life (Coombs, 1991; Koball et al., 2010), and
shifts to generativity versus stagnation. People become more increased happiness (Wayment & Peplau, 1995). There
focused on giving back to society and producing some- are various reasons why, for example, married couples
thing of value for future generations. Typically, the focus encourage each other to stay active and eat healthier
is on raising children and being productive through diets, are more satisfied with their sex lives (and have sex
work, ideally in a way that the individual feels makes a more frequently than those who stay single, “swinging
meaningful contribution to society. single” myths notwithstanding), and enjoy greater finan-
Erikson’s final major stage of psychosocial devel- cial security (Waite & Gallagher, 2000).
opment, spanning 65 years onward, is ego integrity versus But is it really marriage, per se, that makes people
despair. During this time the older adult contemplates happier? Or is it due to living together in a committed
whether he or she lived a full life and fulfilled major relationship? Until recently, researchers believed that mar-
accomplishments, or looks back and dwells upon disap- riage itself got the credit (e.g., Stack & Eshleman, 1998).
pointments and failures. However, a large international study of relationships across
Despite the huge impact that Erikson has had on 27 different countries (Lee & Ono, 2012) has shown that
theories of development, James Marcia (2002) from the reason people in common-law relationships seem
Simon Fraser University notes that there is sparse less happy, on average, is because of cultural intolerance
research support for some aspects of his theory, such as of these types of relationships. In cultures with more tra-
whether there are clearly defined stages that individuals ditional gender roles, cohabiting outside of marriage
proceed through in sequence, exactly how issues at one is frowned upon, and couples who do so suffer a social
stage affect the person later on in life, and whether indi- cost. This negatively affects women in particular, whose
viduals may be able to compensate fully for not meeting happiness depends more heavily on family relationships
the challenges of a stage. and interpersonal ties (Aldous & Ganey, 1999). In more

Adulthood and Aging :: Module 10.4 :: 437

 250 000 listening and you’re open to
what your partner is saying, and
try to find solutions together
200 000 rather than just “proving” it’s
not all your fault.
The Third Horseman—
150 000 Contempt: “If you were my
Marriages
Number

husband, I’d poison your cof-

fee!” “Yeah, well if you were
100 000 my wife, I’d drink it!” Although
this is a joke, contempt is basi-
cally relationship poison. Con-
50 000
tempt creeps in when one
partner feels superior to the
Divorces
other, feels that what upsets the
0
1926 1932 1938 1944 1950 1956 1962 1968 1974 1980 1986 1992 1998 2004 2008
other is not that big of a deal
Year
and engages in name-calling,
sarcastic retorts, and eye-rolling
{fig. 10.17} Marriage and Divorce Trends in Canada Starting in the 1960s, Canadian divorce rates began rising during a conflict. To avoid con-
quickly. They have been fairly steady for the past 20 years.
tempt, make the choice to focus
on all those things you love and
egalitarian societies, common-law relationships are not appreciate about your partner, and try to understand the
judged as negatively, and consequently, marriage no longer concerns from your partner’s perspective, not yours. Just
makes people happier than simply living together. because something seems like “no big deal” to you, it is
Despite “until death do us part,” about 40% of to them, and they have good reasons for their reactions,
Canadian marriages end in divorce (Statistics Canada, perhaps reaching into painful experiences they’ve had in
2004). Many different factors can lead to divorce, but the past. Instead of judging them, practise empathizing,
decades of behavioural studies of relationships have and instead of focusing on how much they have failed,
shown that a critical factor is how well couples are able focus on how hard they are trying.
to communicate, particularly during conflict. Dr. John The Fourth Horseman—Stonewalling: This one
Gottman has identified what he calls the “Four Horsemen seems straightforward—the stony silence, one-word
of the Apocalypse,” four communication patterns that are answers, going cold and acting like you don’t [Link]’s
toxic to relationships (Gottman & Levenson, 1992, 2002). not straightforward is realizing that what causes stone-
Learning to fight fair requires practising a few simple walling is often that the person feels so emotionally
strategies during conflict, and it can make all the differ- overwhelmed that she or he doesn’t know what to say
ence between maintaining a happy relationship or having or how to respond. But instead of disengaging, it’s better
to start the dating game all over again. to be honest, tell your partner that you don’t know what
If you find yourself having conflicts in your rela- to say, you’re confused or upset or just feeling a lot of
tionship, watch out for the following patterns, and if they
start happening, fix them!
The First Horseman—Criticism: Complaining
about what’s wrong in a relationship is okay, but stay
focused on what you want to see change. Once the
complaint shifts from the problem itself to how it’s all
your partner’s fault, criticism is rearing its ugly head.
Watch out for words like “always” and “never.” This first
horseman is often followed by . . .
The Second Horseman—Defensiveness: “It’s not
my fault! You do x, y, and z too!” When you feel attacked,
it’s natural to want to defend yourself, but it undermines
communication and turns a problem-solving dialogue
Recognizing the Four Horsemen of the (Relationship)
into a war. Instead of defending, take responsibility for Apocalypse—Learning to recognize and change these negative
your part of the problem, let your partner know you’re communication patterns can make many relationships better.

438 :: Module 10.4 : : Adulthood and Aging

emotions, and you need to take a break. It’s a lot easier to
try again once the emotions have settled down, and it’s a
lot easier for your partner to know that you aren’t shut-
ting her or him out.
The up side of this research is that, by changing
communication patterns, people can dramatically improve
their relationships. What was once a climate of contempt
and escalating conflict can again become one of love and
intimacy.

PARENTING Parenting is another major experience

that shapes the young and middle adult years. Parenting
basically takes over your life, especially in the beginning
when children are young and have virtually no indepen-
dence. As people become parents, they often experience
a major shift in identity; not only can they kiss goodbye
to sleeping in on Saturday mornings, but they change
Ariel Skelley/lend Images/Alamy
their whole way of looking at life. Becoming 100%
Although parents may experience sadness or even divorce when their children
responsible for a little bundle of joy, and feeling loved in move out, the general trend is toward an increase in marital satisfaction.
a way you’ve never known before, makes many people
realize that their life is about much more than their own CAREER In addition to parenting, having a satisfying Watch
personal wants and needs. career is a component of generativity in adulthood. In the Real World:
Of course, making this transition, with the exhaus- Erikson believed that generativity involves being engaged Parenting Styles and
tion, stress, and massive changes that accompany it, is in meaningful and productive work, as well as making contribu- Socialization
not easy. As a result, although parenting young children tions to future generations. Failure to fulfill these goals leads
brings unfathomable love and rewards, and marriages to being self-absorbed (see Table 10.5 on page 436).
can be stabilized as parents pull together “for the sake Career choice is a major decision that affects the life-
of the kids,” it also exacts a cost; within the first two style of the majority of adults. Although career changes
years of having children, parents typically report that are very common, most choices that adults make about
marital satisfaction declines (Belsky & Rovine, 1990). their career reflect their own self-concept (Super et al.,
Marital satisfaction is usually highest before the birth 1996)—that is, what people believe about what they can
of the first child, then is reduced until the children do well and what they are happy doing influence the
enter school (Cowan & Cowan, 1995; Shapiro et al., jobs they choose. Several variables influence career hap-
2000), and not uncommonly, remains low until the piness. For example, salary or wage earnings contribute
children actually leave home as young adults themselves to career satisfaction, but other factors such as job inter-
(Glenn, 1990). est and relationships with managers and supervisors are
In fact, the notion of parents suffering in their important as well (Sousa-Poza & Sousa-Poza, 2000).
“empty nest” once their children leave home is largely Most adults who are financially able to do so retire Watch
a myth. Although some parents may take a fresh look at during late adulthood. Primary concerns at this life stage Transitioning to
their relationship once it’s just the two of them again may switch to grandparenting roles, staying healthy, trav- Retirement: Mary and
and discover they really don’t have anything in common elling, and leisure activities. Of course, not all adults are George
anymore, the general trend is the opposite; married older able to enjoy the luxuries associated with retirement,
adults are just as likely to report being “very satisfied” depending on their health and economic resources.
with marriage as are newlyweds (Rollins, 1989). How-
ever, empty nest feelings do occur in some cases, par- EMOTIONAL CHANGES One of the biggest benefits
ticularly for women if they stayed at home to raise the to growing older is that the emotional turmoil of youth
children, if they are not well connected to the extended often (of course not always) gives way to an emotional sta-
family (which is generally rare in all except White, bility and positivity that makes late adulthood particularly
Euro-American cultures), and if they tended to define enjoyable. The famous Buddhist monk Thich Nnat Hanh
themselves largely through their role as “mom” (Bor- has described youth as being like the chaotic mountain
land, 1982). In most other cases though, having children stream tumbling down the mountainside, whereas old
(finally) leave home leads to an increase in both marital age is when the stream has broadened into a serene river
and life satisfaction (Black & Hill, 1984). calmly making the final leg of its journey to the ocean.

Adulthood and Aging :: Module 10.4 :: 439

 growth, a shift in their priorities, a deepened awareness of
Number of image
types recalled their values, a heightened appreciation for other people,
2.5 1.4 and a fresh sense of gratitude for the simple joys and plea-
3.7 Positive
3.1 Negative sures of being alive (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004). Even the
3.75 1.7 Neutral contemplation of death can help people to become more
grateful for life (Frias et al., 2011).
Older adults have had enough experience dealing
Young age group Old age group
with the slings and arrows of life that they’ve learned
how to emotionally cope, how to see the glass as half-
{fig. 10.18} Emotion, Memory, and Aging Younger people have
superior memory for whether they have seen positive, negative, or neu- full rather than half-empty, how to focus on the positives
tral pictures compared with older people. However, notice that younger even as they face the negatives. The active cultivation of
people remember positive and negative pictures equally, whereas older positive emotions has been shown to be a key resource
people are more likely to remember positive pictures (Charles et al., 2003).
that helps people cope with life’s challenges (Cohn et al.,
2009; Garland et al., 2010). For example, groundbreaking
Then again, the older years certainly bring their share research at Kwantlen University has shown that many
of challenges: Older people may experience the death of older people respond even to the loss of their beloved
their spouse, the loss of close friends and acquaintances, spouse by focusing on positive emotions (Tweed &
the fading of their physical capabilities which then brings Tweed, 2011); this enhanced positive focus leads to
the loss of personal freedoms such as driving or living better coping overall, such as less depressed mood, the
without assistance, and the almost inevitable health chal- experience of greater social support, and even the abil-
lenges. Older adults also must, sooner or later, face the ity to provide more support to others in the community.
growing awareness that their time on this earth is draw- This flies in the face of earlier theorists who argued that
ing to a close. It doesn’t take a lot of imagination to grief needed to be “fully processed” in order for people
understand why younger people often assume that the to recover (Bonanno, 2004), and experiencing frequent
elderly are unhappy and depressed as they face the immi- positive emotions while grieving was actually a sign of
nent “dying of the light.” Certainly, depression and even pathology (Bowlby, 1980)!
suicide are not unknown to the elderly, although con- Socioemotional selectivity theory describes how older
trary to the stereotype of the unhappy, lonely old per- people have learned to pay more attention to positive
son, healthy older adults are no more likely to become experiences, and set goals that emphasize positive emo-
depressed than are younger people. The reality is that as tions and meaningful connection (Carstensen et al., 1999).
long as basic emotional and social needs are met, old age The net result of this wiser approach to life is that negative
is often a very joyous time (Charles & Carstensen, 2009). emotions tend to decline with age, while positive emo-
In fact, many of the challenges of growing old that we tions actually increase in frequency (Figure 10.18), result-
noted above bring their own rewards. It is often through ing in greater emotional well-being as people get older
loss, trauma, and difficulty that people experience personal (Charles & Carstensen, 2009).

Quick Quiz 10.4b Cognitive and Psychosocial Changes in Adulthood

1 In Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development, what 2 Which of the following best describes the effects of
UNDERSTAND . . .
KNOW . . .

does generativity refer to? aging on intelligence?

A The desire to generate an income A Fluid intelligence tends to decrease, but working
B The desire to generate knowledge and learning memory tends to increase.
for oneself B Fluid intelligence tends to decrease, but crystallized
C The desire to have offspring intelligence tends to increase.

D The desire to have a positive impact on C Crystallized intelligence tends to increase, but the
the world ability to skillfully use one’s abilities decreases.
D Aging is unrelated to intelligence, except in the
case of brain disorders and diseases such as
dementia or Alzheimer’s.

Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

440 :: Module 10.4 : : Adulthood and Aging

 Module Summary
Module

10.4 Now that you have read this module you should

KNOW . . .

● The key terminology concerning adulthood and aging:

Alzheimer’s disease (p. 433) generativity (p. 439)
dementia (p. 432) menopause (p. 432)
reppans/Alamy

● The key areas of growth experienced by emerging

adults. People making the transition from adolescence to 2. Defensiveness—Often the response to perceived
adulthood face substantial life challenges that contribute criticism, defensiveness is about making oneself
to personal growth in three main areas: relationships blameless; to fix it, focus on taking responsibility for
(i.e., cultivating true intimacy and trust); new possibilities your part of the problem and work together to find
(i.e., exploring what they really want to do with their solutions.
lives and choosing a compatible path that reflects 3. Contempt—This involves seeing the other person
their interests); and personal strengths (i.e., the skills as weaker and inferior to oneself, which leads to not
and competencies that come from successfully facing taking the other seriously anymore or really listening
challenges and learning that “you can do it”). to that perspective; to fix it, focus on empathizing with
your partner and appreciating his or her efforts to
UNDERSTAND . . . change things, rather than any failure to do so in the
past.
● Age-related disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease. 4. Stonewalling—This involves shutting down during
Alzheimer’s disease is a form of dementia that is conflict and ceasing to respond, or even walking out
characterized by significant decline in memory, cognition, and leaving the situation; to fix this pattern, focus on
and, eventually, basic bodily functioning. It seems to be being honest and telling your partner that you are
caused by two different brain abnormalities—the buildup feeling too emotional right now to keep talking, but
of proteins that clump together in the spaces between you’ll try again after the two of you take a bit of a
neurons, plus degeneration of a structural protein that break.
forms tangles within nerve cells.
● How cognitive abilities change with age. Aging adults
typically experience a general decline in cognitive abilities, ANALYZE . . .
especially those related to fluid intelligence, such as
working memory. However, older adults also develop ● The stereotype that old age is a time of unhappiness.
compensatory strategies that enable them to remain Research shows that older adults do face issues that might
highly functional in their daily lives, despite their slow lead to unhappiness—health problems, loss of loved ones,
decline in processing capability. reductions in personal freedom. However, such challenges
often lead to growth and a deepened appreciation for life
and other people; the result is that many older people
APPLY . . .
become skilled at focusing on the positives of life and
● Effective communication principles to the challenge paying less attention to the negatives, leading to an increase
of improving your own relationships. Improving in life satisfaction, not a decrease.
communication in relationships requires being wary of the
“Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” and learning to fix
those destructive communication patterns.
1. Criticism—When complaints focus on the person,
not the issue, and global statements like “always” and
“never” become common, partners should work on
remaining focused on specific issues and how to work
together to change them, rather than making it one
person’s fault.

Adulthood and Aging :: Module 10.4 :: 441

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Cognitive Development

1 What do we know about Piaget’s theory of cognitive

development? 2 How can science help explain cognitive
development?
Table 10.3 on page 406 reviews Piaget’s stage approach to cognitive develop- Research, such as the study on errors of scale illustrated in
ment in children. The discussion on pages 407–408 describes some impor- Figure 10.7 on page 408 and the conservation study
tant milestones achieved in each phase. Piaget’s theory is based on the idea of described in Figure 10.6 on page 408, has provided extensive
developmental milestones—that children transition from one stage to the next support for Piaget’s ideas. More recently, researchers like Eliza-
upon developing a new cognitive skill. Also, two processes supporting cognitive beth Spelke have shown that even infants may actually have
development are the twin concepts of assimilation and accommodation. some appreciation for abstract numbers. Other studies suggest
If you are having trouble telling the difference between the two, it might help that children may be able to take on the perspective of others
to think about learning motor skills in the sensorimotor stage. Once an infant as early as 4 or 5 years of age. The dynamics between caregiv-
learns to grasp an object in one hand, he will soon learn to grasp all sorts of ers and children’s cognitive development have been explored
things—your finger, a pacifier, or a toy. If you give him a new toy, the child can via the idea of scaffolding, and the text on page 411 highlights
quickly assimilate the new object and learn to grasp it with one hand—unless, cross-cultural research on caregiver/child interaction suggest-
of course, that toy happens to be a great big ball that does not fit in one hand. ing that cultural issues might also have a noticeable effect on
In that case, the infant must accommodate the new object by modifying what cognitive development.
he knows about grasping objects. In this case, the task involves devising a tech-
nique that uses both hands.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video
excerpt on how thinking develops. You can
access the video at MyPsychLab or by clicking the
play button in the centre of your eText. If your Dubova/Shutterstock
instructor assigns this video as a homework activ-
ity, you will find additional content to help you in MyPsychLab. 3 Can we critically evaluate theories of cognitive
development?
You can also view the video by using your smart phone and the
Piaget’s early work on cognitive development from infancy through ado-
QR code below, or you can go to the YouTube link provided.
lescence has exerted an enormous influence on developmental psychol-
Once you have read this chapter and watched the video, using ogy, but modern research has raised some questions about when and
specific examples, differentiate between the thinking patterns of how children move through each stage. The possibility that children are
a 3-year-old preschooler and a 9-year-old student, according to born with some innate cognitive abilities and the recent studies on ego-
Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. centrism have added to an already rich discussion. Similarly, evidence of
the link between social influences and cognitive development suggests
that the interplay between cognitive development and sociocultural fac-
tors may be stronger than Piaget originally thought.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]//wor
[Link]/workthemodel
work
kthemo
kth
hemod
de
del
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

442 :: Chapter 10 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 11
Motivation and Emotion
11.1 Hunger and Eating
● Physiological Aspects
of Hunger p. 445
● Psychological Aspects
of Hunger p. 447
● Disorders of Eating p. 450
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
The Effect of Media Depictions of
Beauty on Body Image p. 452
● Module Summary p. 454

11.2 Sex
● Human Sexual Behaviour:
Psychological Influences p. 456
● Human Sexual Behaviour:
Physiological Influences p. 458
● Human Sexual Behaviour:
Cultural Influences p. 461
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Does Sex Sell? p. 463
● Module Summary p. 465

11.3 Social and Achievement Motivation

● Belongingness and Love
Needs p. 467
● Achievement Motivation p. 470
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Framing,Values, and Pro-
Environmental Messages p. 473
● Module Summary p. 476

11.4 Emotion
● Physiology of Emotion p. 478
● Experiencing Emotions p. 480
Dudarev Mikhail/Shutterstock
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: The
Two-Factor Theory of Emotion p. 483
● Expressing Emotions p. 485
● Module Summary p. 489

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 490
 Satchan/Corbis/Bridge/Glow Images

Module

11.1 Hunger and Eating

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology of The biological, cognitive, and social Your knowledge of hunger The role of the media on
After reading motivation and hunger processes that shape eating patterns regulation to better people’s body image
this module understand and evaluate
The major eating and weight-
you should your own eating patterns
control problems people face

It was Janice’s first year of university. She’d made it through the first three Focus Questions
months of the semester with impressive grades, but was now dealing with
her first ever “Finals Week.” After a long afternoon of studying History, 1 What are some ways that our physical and
Janice felt like she was starving. She walked over to the cafeteria and was social environments affect eating?
overwhelmed by the number of options. She saw a friend eating a greasy 2 What makes us feel hungry or full?
pizza, and immediately ordered one for herself (but with a salad, which of
course made the meal healthy). She finished the enormous plate of food
and felt like she couldn’t eat another bite. She crawled back to the library
and began studying for her Chemistry exam that was scheduled for the
next morning. But, despite having just eaten a large meal, Janice found
The study of motivation concerns the physiological and psychologi-
herself munching on candy that she’d snuck into the library (a guilty habit
cal processes underlying the initiation of behaviours that direct organisms
that was now as much a part of studying as her textbooks). The more
toward specific goals. These initiating factors, or motives, include the
anxious she got about this exam, the more she mindlessly moved the
sugary snacks from their bag into her mouth. Janice’s experience shows thoughts, feelings, sensations, and bodily processes that lead to goal-
us that eating isn’t just a simple behaviour we use for survival. Hunger is directed behaviour. For example, when the body’s water levels fall
a biological drive that influences what we pay attention to and interacts below normal, cells release chemical compounds that maintain the
with our past experiences and current mental states such as excitement structure and fluid levels of cells. Receptors in the body respond to
and anxiety. Hunger is a psychological behaviour. the increased concentrations of these compounds, as well as to the

444 :: Module 11.1 : : Hunger and Eating

 Of course, our ability to predict our future Explore
Increased thirst needs is not perfect, which explains why Evolutionary Drive,
psychological variables (e.g., stress, desire to Arousal, Cognitive,

appear attractive, the need to feel “in con- and Humanistic

Cellular messages
of lowered water Drink water Theories of
trol”) can have such a strong influence on
concentration sent Motivation
to the brain behaviours like eating and drinking, which
don’t seem “psychological” at all.
In this module, we will examine how
these physical and psychological factors
Don’t drink Increased water
volume influence our motivation to eat. We will also
examine how social factors can alter our
eating habits in negative and self-destructive
ways.
Decreased thirst

Boston Globe/Getty Images Physiological Aspects

{fig. 11.1} Drives and Incentives Our motivation to reduce a drive, or in
response to an incentive, can lead to the same behaviour.
of Hunger
Hunger is not simply a homeostatic mecha-
lower water volume, and send messages to the brain. The [Link] need to consume enough nutrients so that you
result is the sudden awareness that you are thirsty, which have enough energy to function involves physiological Watch
motivates you to drink water. This process is known as responses as well as more complex cognitive and emo- How Food Impacts the
a drive, a biological trigger that tells us we may be deprived tional factors (Dagher, 2012). The brain areas involved Brain
of something and causes us to seek out what is needed, such with these factors interact with the brain areas that con-
as food or water (Figure 11.1). When a drive is satisfied, trol our appetites.
reward centres in our brains become activated. This rein- The “on” and “off ” switches involved in hunger
forces our behaviour, making it more likely that we’ll can be found in a few regions of the hypothalamus, a
respond to these drives—such as Janice’s decision to eat set of nuclei found on the bottom surface of the brain.
pizza—again in the future. Researchers have found that electrically stimulating the
As you can see from this example, motivation is lateral hypothalamus causes rats to begin to eat; thus, this
essential to an individual’s survival because at its most structure may serve as an “on” switch (Delgado & Anand,
basic level it contributes to homeostasis, the body’s phys- 1952). In contrast, stimulating the ventromedial region
iological processes that allow it to maintain consistent internal of the hypothalamus causes rats to stop eating. Damaging
states in response to the outer environment (see Figure 11.2). the ventromedial region removes the “off switch” in the Explore
However, sometimes humans and animals are motivated brain; in lab animals, this damage leads to obesity because Virtual Brain: Hunger
to engage in behaviours that cannot be explained by the animals don’t stop eating (Figure 11.3). and Eating

homeostasis. Think back to Janice eating candy while The activity of the hypothalamus is influenced by
stressing out about her exams. The experience of anxiety hormones that are released in response to the energy
uses a lot of energy, as does the effort required to control needs of your body. So, your brain influences your body
your emotions. It is also never clear exactly how long and your body influences your brain! A key function
these feelings will be experienced (it’s tough to sched- of the hypothalamus is to monitor blood chemistry for
ule “stress” in your dayplanner). If Janice didn’t
increase her food consumption to meet these new
energy demands, her energy level would quickly Drive Behaviour
dip below the level that homeostasis was trying Water deprivation Drink fluids to
leads to thirst. reduce drive.
to maintain. Her physical and mental well-being
would then suffer. Luckily, there are mechanisms in
our brain that take note of these changes in energy Behaviour Incentive
consumption—particularly those caused by mental Drink fluids to Sweetened
states—and predict how much food should be con- experience incentive. sports drink
sumed to account for this increased need for energy.
In other words, motivation is not only influenced by
{fig. 11.2} Maintaining Balance Homeostasis is the process of maintaining relatively
current needs, but also by the anticipation of future needs stable internal states. For example, this diagram illustrates how homeostasis regulates thirst
(Sterling, 2011). This process is known as allostasis. and the body’s fluid levels.

Hunger and Eating :: Module 11.1 :: 445

 indicators of the levels of sugars and hormones
involved in energy. For example, the hypothala-
mus detects changes in the level of glucose, a
sugar that serves as a primary energy source for the
brain and the rest of the body. Highly specialized
neurons called glucostats can detect glucose
Hypothalamus levels in the fluid outside of the cell. If these
levels are too low, glucostats signal the hypo-
thalamus that energy supplies are low, leading to
increased hunger (Langhans, 1996a, 1996b). After
food reaches the stomach and intestines, sugars
Paraventricular nucleus
of hypothalamus are absorbed into the bloodstream and trans-
ported throughout the body. Insulin, a hormone
Lateral hypothalamus
secreted by the pancreas, helps cells store this cir-
(behind plane of view) culating glucose for future use. As insulin levels
rise in response to consumption of a meal, hun-
ger decreases—but so do glucose levels, which,
Ventromedial nucleus
after a few hours, leads to hunger again.
of hypothalamus We have all experienced the feeling of being
“full.” A full stomach is one cue for satiation—
the point in a meal when we are no longer motivated to
eat. That feeling is caused, in part, by cholecysto-
kinin (mercifully abbreviated to CCK) (Badman
& Flier, 2005). Neurons release CCK when the
{fig. 11.3} The Hypothalamus and Hunger The hypothalamus acts as an on/off switch for
intestines expand. The ventromedial hypothala-
hunger. The lateral region of the hypothalamus signals when it is time to eat, while the ventrome- mus receives this information and decreases
dial and paraventricular regions signal when it is time to stop eating. appetite.
The feeling of satiation can also influence
how rewarding we find a food. For example, have you
Explore
ever eaten a food so many times that you started to
The Effects of the
feel “sick of ” it? Scientists at the Montreal Neurologi-
Hypothalamus on
Eating Behaviour
cal Institute used neuroimaging to investigate the areas
of the brain related to this feeling. In one experiment,
these researchers scanned people’s brains while feeding
them pieces of chocolate. At first, the participants rated
the chocolate as being quite tasty and pleasurable; this
led to activity in the orbitofrontal cortex (the part of
the frontal lobes just above your eyes), a brain area that
judges the reward value of foods (Small et al., 2001).
Activity was also found in the insula, which receives
information about taste, and the basal ganglia, which
respond to physical rewards. But, after participants had
consumed several pieces of chocolate, this formerly
pleasurable food became somewhat aversive. Interest-
ingly, as participants’ ratings of the chocolate became
more negative, the activity in reward centres decreased
and was replaced by activity in other areas of the frontal
lobes. This study shows that a number of different brain
areas are involved when we are motivated to eat—it is
not simply a case of the hypothalamus controlling this
Olivier Voisin/Photo Researchers, Inc.
complex behaviour. It also shows us that our physio-
The rat on the left has swollen to enormous proportions after
researchers created lesions to its ventromedial hypothalamus. logical and psychological motivations to eat influence
Compare it to the more typical rat on the right. each other.

446 :: Module 11.1 : : Hunger and Eating

 on the tongue that are sen- Anterior cingulate
Quick Quiz 11.1a sitive to the fat content of cortex

Physiological Aspects of Hunger food (Figure 11.4). Research

with animals shows that these
1 The __________ region of the hypothalamus is
KNOW . . .

associated with the onset of eating, while the receptors send messages to
__________ region is associated with the offset. the brain that stimulate the
A lateral; ventromedial C anterior; posterior release of endorphins and
B ventromedial; lateral D anterior; ventromedial dopamine, both of which are
responsible for the subjective Orbitofrontal
cortex
2 __________ is a sugar that serves as a vital energy sense of pleasure and reward
source for the human body; its levels are monitored (Mizushige et al., 2007). Simi-
by the nervous system. lar results were found in brain
A Ghrelin C Glucose {fig. 11.4} The Pleasure of Taste When fat
imaging studies with human receptors of the tongue are stimulated, the cingu-
B CCK D Insulin participants (Rolls, 2010). In late cortex—a region of the brain involved in emo-
one study, participants had tional processing—is activated. The orbitofrontal
3 Why do psychologists believe the lateral hypothalamus their brains scanned while cortex is involved in linking food taste and texture
UNDERSTAND . . .

generates hunger signals that contribute to people’s with reward.

they tasted various substances.
motivation to eat?
A This brain structure responds to glucose levels. At different times, the participants tasted either a fatty
B When the lateral hypothalamus is stimulated,
solution (vegetable oil), sucrose (a sweet taste), or a tasteless
laboratory animals eat more. control substance. Brain activity was recorded while these
C Skinny people have smaller nuclei in this area. different taste stimuli were delivered in liquefied form into
D The lateral hypothalamus releases CCK, which
the mouths of the participants through a small plastic tube.
reduces hunger. The participants were also asked to rate the pleasantness
of each stimulus. Overall, the participants rated the fatty
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
substance favourably, and the brain scans showed activity
in regions of the brain associated with pleasure sensations
when they tasted fat (de Araujo & Rolls, 2004).
Psychological Aspects of Hunger In some situations, high-energy food can be a
In the example that started this module, poor stressed- more powerful reinforcer than highly addictive drugs
out Janice ate pizza, salad, and candy. But, humans (Christensen et al., 2008). Some people even report
evolved in environments in which food was not this cravings for a “sugar fix”—a term that seems to imply
plentiful or rich in variety. Sometimes, after a success- that addiction to candy and chocolate bars is compa-
ful hunting expedition, food was abundant; however, rable to an addiction to a drug like heroin. The phrase
at other times, food was quite scarce. Humans quickly “sugar fix” may seem an exaggeration, but is it possible
learned that the best strategy was to “eat while you can” that sugar actually does act like a drug? Sugar and some
because there was no guarantee that another meal would
be forthcoming any time soon. And, given that we need
a great deal of energy to keep our bodies functioning
properly, it would make sense to consume fatty foods, a
very rich source of energy. Over the course of evolution,
our bodies responded to this need with a number of sys-
tems that made the consumption of high-energy foods
pleasurable. In other words, we developed bodies that
were hard-wired to like some foods more than others.
Imagine eating poutine, Quebec’s cardiovascular
equivalent of Russian roulette. It’s clearly bad for you
(there is no diet poutine), yet people still enthusiastically
eat it. Indeed, some of the most popular foods in Canada
are loaded with fats, including red meat, cheese, ice cream,
and anything deep-fried. Psychologists and neuroscien-
studiovitra/Shutterstock
tists are discovering why people can be so driven to con-
Cells in the orbitofrontal cortex respond to perceptual qualities
sume these and other fattening foods. Scientists suggest of food texture, such as the difference between a runny
that we crave fats because we have specialized receptors spaghetti sauce and a thick one.

Hunger and Eating :: Module 11.1 :: 447

 addictive drugs share an interesting similarity. Ordinary unit of sale or portioning is an appropriate amount to consume.
sucrose—plain white granulated sugar—can stimulate In some cases, this assumption works well. A single banana
release of the neurotransmitter dopamine in the nucleus comes individually wrapped and makes for a healthy por-
accumbens, a brain region associated with the rein- tion; it is an ideal unit (Geier et al., 2006). In contrast,
forcing effects of substances such as amphetamines and packaged foods often come in sizes that are too large to be
cocaine (Rada et al., 2005; see Module 5.3). healthy. A bottle of pop today is likely to be 600 mL, but a
So why did Janice have greater cravings for fatty few decades ago the same brand of soda came in a 177 mL
and sugary foods while stressed out? One possibility is bottle. Despite the huge difference in volume, each is seen
that stress modulates ghrelin, a hormone secreted in the as constituting one unit of pop. As a consequence, you are
stomach that stimulates stomach contractions and appe- now likely to consume more than three times as much
tite (Kristensson et al., 2006). Additionally, feeling stressed pop in one sitting as your grandparents would have. Sur-
means that you are viewing a particular situation as being prisingly, the unit bias affects our consumption almost as
threatening in some way, even if you are not in physical much as the taste of the food! In one study, participants
danger. Based on the principle of allostasis discussed above, were given fresh or stale (14-day-old) popcorn in either
if you predict that an upcoming event will be threaten- a small (120 g) or large (240 g) container. When the con-
ing, you will react by stocking up on energy reserves so tainer was large, participants ate more popcorn . . . even
that you are better able to deal with this threat. So, even if it was incredibly stale and tasted like Styrofoam (Wan-
though homeostasis would indicate that Janice should sink & Kim, 2005). A similar effect was found for people
stop eating, her psychological interpretation of her situa- at a Super Bowl party. The larger bowls implied that it
tion will lead her to continue munching away. While such was “normal” for people to eat more (Wansink & Cheney,
a strategy is not good for your health, at the species level, 2005). Researchers have concluded that increasing the size
it did help us survive some very threatening times, when of the dishes increases consumption by 18–25% for meals
exam results were the least of our worries. and 30–45% for snack foods (Wansink, 1996).
This expansion of portion sizes—and waistlines—is
ATTENTION AND EATING The quantity of food being felt worldwide. As North American style fast-food
that we eat is not entirely controlled by the brain or by chains expand into Asia, the prevalence of diabetes has
evolutionary mechanisms. Instead, something as simple as increased (Pan et al., 2012).This is likely why some countries
attention can have a huge effect on how much we con- limit portion sizes and others, such as France, require all fast-
sume. Imagine sitting down to your favourite meal. Many food chains and snack products to have warning labels. But,
of us would eat a lot, but then watching each helping before we beat ourselves up about how greedy our culture
disappear would probably serve as a reminder that it is is, we should get some perspective: This upward trend in the
approaching time to stop. But what if someone (or some size of our meals has been going on for a long time. This
drug) interfered with your ability to keep track of how was demonstrated in a clever study examining the portion
much you had eaten? This scenario is not what we would sizes of food in paintings depicting the same scene from
expect in normal situations, but it would allow for an ideal the Bible (the last supper of Jesus). The study examined
test of how food availability affects how much you will eat. portion sizes in paintings over the last millennium (1000–
Psychologists have created such a situation in the labo- 2000 C.E.). Sure enough, the plate sizes and portion sizes
ratory through a technique known as the bottomless bowl increased over the years (Wansink & Wansink, 2010).
of [Link] were asked to eat soup until they had Given this information about the role of attention,
had enough. In the experimental condition, a tube con- container sizes, and culture, what changes do you think
tinued to fill the soup bowl from the bottom so that it should be made in the food industry to make Canada a
could not be detected by the volunteers. These individuals healthier place?
stopped eating after consuming, on average, over 70% more
than those participants who knowingly refilled their bowls. EATING AND THE SOCIAL CONTEXT In addi-
Even more interesting is what happened—or did not tion to physical and attentional influences, food intake
happen—in terms of feelings and thoughts:The individuals is affected by social motives as well. Have you ever gone
eating from bottomless bowls did not feel any more sati- to a party feeling not a hint of hunger, yet spent the first
ated, nor did they believe they had eaten any more than the hour sampling each of the snacks laid out on the dining
individuals in the control group. It turns out we are not so room table because you were nervous and didn’t know
good at putting on the brakes when we cannot keep track what else to do with yourself? Whether the presence of
of how much we have consumed (Wansink et al., 2005). other people increases or decreases our motivation to
The results of the bottomless soup bowl study can eat is influenced by the social situation (Herman et al.,
be explained by unit bias, the tendency to assume that the 2003). Here are a few examples:

448 :: Module 11.1 : : Hunger and Eating

• Social facilitation: Eating more. Dinner hosts (and grand- known as impression management. For example, you
mothers) may encourage guests to take second and probably know that it is polite to chew with your
even third helpings, and individuals with a reputa- mouth closed. Similarly, the minimal eating norm sug-
tion for big appetites will be prodded to eat the most. gests that another aspect of good manners—at least
Perhaps the strongest element of social facilitation is in some social and cultural settings—is to eat small
just the time spent at the table: The longer a person amounts to avoid seeming rude (Herman et al., 2003).
sits socializing, the more likely he or she is to con- • Modelling: Eating whatever they eat. At first exposure to
tinue nibbling (Berry et al., 1985). a situation, such as a business dinner, a new employee
• Impression management: Eating less. Sometimes people may notice that no one eats much and everyone takes
self-consciously control their behaviour so that oth- their time. The newcomer will see the others as mod-
ers will see them in a certain way—a phenomenon els, and so he too will restrain his eating. Later, he may
drop by his friend’s family reunion where everyone is
having a second or third helping and undoing their
belts so their stomachs can expand more. In this case,
he will be likely to eat more, even if he is already feel-
ing full (Herman et al., 2003).
Clearly, eating is not just a matter of maintaining
homeostasis. It is best described as a behaviour motivated
by biological, social, and individual psychological factors.

Quick Quiz 11.1b

Psychological Aspects of Hunger
1 The minimal eating social norm is the observation that
KNOW . . .

people tend to
A eat as little as possible in just about every social
situation imaginable.
B view eating reasonably sized portions as the polite
thing to do.
C encourage one another to eat too much.
D eat as much as possible to flatter the cook.

2 Sometimes being around others can

UNDERSTAND . . .

A lead you to eat more than you normally would.

B lead you to eat less than you normally would.
C both a or b, depending on what others were doing.
D neither a nor b; others do not influence our eating.

3 In Europe, the typical container of fruit and yogurt

APPLY . . .

is roughly 177 mL. In North America, the same food

item is usually packaged in 237 mL containers. The unit
bias suggests that
A a German person visiting Canada would be likely
to eat the entire container, even though it contains
25% more than the typical German serving.
B a Canadian visiting Germany would almost
certainly miss the extra 50 mL of yogurt.
C a German person visiting Canada would carefully
Top: Image Source/Corbis; bottom: Akg-images/Newscom
evaluate the differences in packaging to ensure that
Compare a modern soft drink serving (top) to the historical
he or she does not consume more than usual.
serving size (bottom). Despite the massive increase in volume,
modern consumers still consider the unit of packaging as a D all people would be unsatisfied with the 177 mL
normal-sized serving. serving in Germany.

Hunger and Eating :: Module 11.1 :: 449

 Some refer to this phenomenon as an epidemic which
4 How do evolutionary psychologists explain our desire

ANALYZE . . .
to eat particular foods? has spread across the world. Over the last 15 years,
A We eat fatty foods because they are most surveys have consistently shown that approximately
accessible. 20% of Canadians had a height and weight ratio that
B The foods we now find pleasurable are often would classify them as obese; over 60% of Canadian
high-energy foods that would have enhanced our adults could be classifi ed as overweight (Figure 11.5 ;
chances for survival in the past. Statistics Canada, 2010). Obesity rates were lowest in
C People who consume sugar-free food have less Quebec, and highest in Atlantic Canada, the Territo-
energy and are less likely to reproduce, thus ries, and Saskatchewan (Dutton & McLaren, 2011).
making them less evolutionarily fit.
So, why are obesity rates so high? There is no simple
D People have adapted our food intake to match our answer to this question. One issue is the huge variety
current North American lifestyle.
of foods available. As you read above, if we eat the same
Answers can be found on page ANS-3. foods a lot, we desire them less. So, if there are a large
number of different foods to choose from, we are less
likely to grow tired of any of them. (Think about this
the next time you walk into a food court at a mall.) A
Watch
Disorders of Eating second issue relates to our discussion of the evolution-
In the Real World:
Eating Disorders Our dietary habits are influenced by biological disposi- ary need to crave fatty foods, and to store the excess
tions, our beliefs and perceptions about eating and our energy in our bodies in case no food is available later.
bodies, and sociocultural factors. Unfortunately, these We still crave fatty and energy-rich foods—however,
motivational systems do not always lead us to good for most people, there are few periods of time in which
health. we are going hungry. The result is that the excess food
is stored as fat. Another factor is economics. In devel-
OBESITY Obesity is a disorder of positive energy bal- oped countries like Canada, obesity tends to affect the
ance, in which energy intake exceeds energy expenditure . poor more than the rich (Evans et al., 2000) because
unhealthy, energy-dense foods are less expensive than
healthy ones (Darmon et al., 2004). Fast-food out-
Obesity Trends Among Canadian Adults lets are also more numerous in low-income neigh-
CCHS, 2003 bourhoods than in richer areas (Hemphill et al.,
2008). As the number of people who are struggling
economically increases, so will the obesity rates.
Sadly, obesity is linked to health problems, which
will make it more difficult (but not impossible!) for
these individuals to earn enough money to aff ord
healthy food (see Module 14.1).
All of these factors combine to explain our dif-
ferent motivations to over-eat. However, in some
individuals, hunger-related motivations move in
the opposite direction—leading them to under-eat.
While skipping dessert at Dairy Queen might not be
a bad idea, avoiding or restricting the consumption of
healthy food is obviously problematic. In the next sec-
tion, we discuss some of the motivations underlying
these behaviours.

ANOREXIA AND BULIMIA The two most com-

mon forms of eating disorders are anorexia nervosa
and bulimia (see Table 11.1 ). Anorexia nervosa
is an eating disorder that involves (1) self-starvation,
No Data <10% 10%–14% 15%–19% ≥20%
(2) intense fear of weight gain and dissatisfaction with one’s
body, and (3) a denial of the serious consequences of severely
{fig. 11.5} Obesity Rates in Canada The rates of obesity differ from province to
province. For more information about Canadian obesity rates, go to the Canadian Community low weight. In contrast, bulimia nervosa is an eating
Health Survey [Link]/daily-quotidien/110621/[Link]. disorder that is characterized by periods of food deprivation,

450 :: Module 11.1 : : Hunger and Eating

 Table 11.1 :: Statistical Characteristics of Eating Disorders

Lifetime prevalence of anorexia Women: 0.9% Men: 0.3%

Lifetime prevalence of bulimia Women: 1.5% Men: 0.5%
Women and Men combined
Percentage of people with anorexia who are receiving treatment 34%
Percentage of people with bulimia who are receiving treatment 43%
Average duration of anorexia 1.7 years
Average duration of bulimia 8 years

Source: Hudson et al., 2007.

binge-eating, and purging. The periods of binging involve as from teasing and nasty remarks when an individual Watch
short bursts of intense calorie consumption. These are doesn’t live up to the idealized (thin) standards depicted Eating Disorders
followed by purging (generally self-induced vomiting), in the media (Levine et al., 1994). In fact, numerous
fasting, laxative or diuretic use, and/or intense exercise. pro-anorexia websites have emerged over the past
Both disorders usually occur during mid- to late adoles- decade offering “thinspiration” for people engaging in
cence and have been on the rise during the 20th century extreme dieting; similar messages are now appearing
(Hudson et al., 2007). on social media sites such as Pinterest. By posting pho-
Studies of these disorders have found that buli- tographs and messages on these sites, individuals with
mia is marked by a tendency to be impulsive, whereas eating disorders create a much larger peer group than
anorexia is not (Matsunaga et al., 2000). Bulimics are also before, making dangerous eating disorders seem nor-
much more likely to enter treatment programs because mal. This is a worrisome trend. Families are also a major
they find the binge-purge cycle disturbing. Anorexics, influence on individuals with eating disorders. They
on the other hand, often appear indifferent to the nega- often compliment anorexic girls for being slim and
tive effects the food deprivation is having on their health praise their self-control. This serves as a source of rein-
(Polivy & Herman, 2002). Although there are clear dif- forcement for the eating disorder (Branch & Eurman,
ferences between anorexia and bulimia, both involve 1980). Bulimic patients reported that their families were
changes in the motivation to eat and both are dangerous. competitive, prone to jealousy, and tended to intrude in
A critical question, then, is why eating disorders develop each other’s lives (Rorty et al., 2000). Importantly, ado-
in some people but not others. lescent girls whose families allow them to have some
One factor is stress. Patients with eating disorders autonomy (i.e., control over their own lives) tend to
report greater levels of premorbid (before the disorder have lower rates of eating disorders, suggesting that
began) life stress than do age- and gender-matched indi- control is a major factor in these conditions (Polivy &
viduals without eating disorders (Schmidt et al., 1997). Herman, 2002).
These life stresses tend to make people feel as though So, how do stress, peer pressure, and family issues Watch
they have no control over their lives. However, stress lead to eating disorders? Researchers suggest that some College Students and
alone isn’t enough to create an eating disorder. Instead, people use eating disorders as a coping mechanism to Eating Disorders: Sue
the perceived loss of control interacts with psychologi- deal with their difficult-to-control lives (Troop, 1998). Mineka
cal variables such as depression, guilt, anxiety, and perfec- By making weight and eating the primary focus of one’s
tionism (Vohs et al., 1999); low self-esteem (Button et al., life, individuals gain some feelings of security (both
1996); and/or suppressed anger (Geller et al., 2000). This physical and emotional) as well as a feeling of being in
combination of stress and psychological vulnerability dra- control of some aspect of their life. Indeed, after bing-
matically increases the chances of developing an eating ing in the laboratory, individuals with bulimia reported
disorder (Ball & Lee, 2002; Raffi et al., 2000). feeling less anxiety, tension, and guilt, although feelings
There are also a number of social factors that can of depression remained the same (Kaye et al., 1986). In
lead to eating disorders. Peer influence is often viewed contrast, when these feelings of control are reduced,
as the number one cause of these conditions (Stice, studies have shown that individuals with eating disor-
1998). Adolescents, particularly females, learn attitudes ders become more pessimistic and report feeling fatter
and behaviours from their friends. This learning comes than before (Waller & Hodgson, 1996). Evolutionary
in the form of examples and encouragement as well psychologists have suggested that this need for control

Hunger and Eating :: Module 11.1 :: 451

 extends to the woman’s reproductive system as well.
The reproduction suppression hypothesis states that females
who believe they have low levels of social support from
romantic partners and family members are more likely
to engage in dieting behaviour (Juda et al., 2004). This
change in food intake can influence ovulation (Frisch
& Barbieri, 2002) and lead to a loss of menstrual peri-
ods (amenorrhea), making it less likely that the woman
will become pregnant. Such data again suggest that eat-
ing disorders are an attempt to gain control over com-
plex and stressful lives (Wasser & Barash, 1983).
Males, although less prone to these problems than
females, also develop eating disorders. Adolescents and
young men may starve themselves during periods of
high exercise to lose weight and achieve muscle mass
(Ricciardelli & McCabe, 2004). Ironically, although they
have positive views of their own bodies, these men with
“reverse anorexia” are just as obsessive and perfectionis-
tic about their bodies as people with anorexia (Davis & TIFFANY BROWN/WPN/Photoshot
Scott-Robertson, 2000). And, both groups are particu- People with anorexia experience severely distorted views of
their body. Although dangerously underweight, they continue
larly sensitive to media depictions of “perfect bodies”
to both fear and feel being fat. Both males and females may
that, for almost everybody, are unattainable. become anorexic.

Watch
Body Image and Eating WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC clothing is a fashion “fail” (Crumpton, 1997). The result is that
people who are not unnaturally thin may view their bodies
Disorders LITERACY MODEL as being ugly. But, do these media depictions of “perfection”
The Effect of Media Depictions of Beauty influence how girls and women view themselves?
on Body Image
How can science
One concern regarding eating disorders is the role that explain the effect
culture plays in their onset. Specifically, people with regular of the media on
exposure to Western culture are more likely to develop buli- people’s body
mia than members of cultures without such exposure (Keel image?
& Klump, 2003).
The average North American woman is 163 cm (5’4”) and
weighs 64 kg (140 lb); the average model is 180 cm (5’11”)
What do we know and weighs 53 kg (117 lb) (National [U.S.] Eating Disorders
about the effect of Association, 2002). Studies have shown that increased expo-
media depictions of sure to media (TV, magazines, Internet) is related to decreased
satisfaction with one’s body (Hofschire & Greenberg, 2002); it
beauty on body image? is also related to a greater internalization of the slender ideal
We often don’t critically analyze for female body shape (Stice et al., 1994). Researchers at Wil-
the effects that media depictions frid Laurier University found that females were more likely to
of beauty can have on people, compare themselves to unrealistic popular culture figures than
particularly on sensitive teenagers. In the 1950s, Marilyn were men when they were describing their own bodies; they
Monroe—who was busty and had big hips—was consid- did not do so when describing their social skills (Strahan et al.,
ered gorgeous. Today, A-list actresses are pressured to have 2006). When the prominence of cultural norms was increased,
body shapes that are virtually impossible: a very thin body all participants (female and male) were more likely to compare
and large breasts. Failure to meet this standard will lead to themselves with a model and felt worse after doing so. These
mockery in magazines and on gossip websites. For example, in results suggest that women are more consistently exposed
People magazine’s “Worst Dressed” section, the writers freely to media depictions of “perfect bodies,” but that men are
use weight-related words when discussing why an article of also sensitive to these pressures. In a follow-up study, female

452 :: Module 11.1 : : Hunger and Eating

participants were either exposed to commercials containing Why is this relevant?
attractive and thin women or to neutral stimuli. The results
indicated that viewing media depictions of beauty decreased Understanding the relation-
women’s satisfaction with their own bodies and made them ship between the media and
more concerned with what other people thought of them disorders of body image allows
(Strahan et al., 2008). teachers, parents, and health-care practitioners to design pro-
grams to help image-conscious individuals. Several programs are
now being instituted in Canada, with the goal of teaching people
Can we critically to deal with social pressures and to have a realistic body image
evaluate this research? (McVey et al., 2009; Yuile & McVey, 2009). Importantly, knowl-
It is easy to say that participants edge about media influences can reduce its [Link] public
in psychology studies are simply school students completed activities that contested the idea
answering the way they think the that women needed to be thin and beautiful and men needed
experimenter wants them to. How- to be tall and muscular in order to succeed, the influence of
ever, the studies described above are consistent with recent media depictions decreased substantially (Strahan et al., 2008).
brain-imaging data as well. Individuals with anorexia showed Not everyone needs to keep up with the Kardashians.
increased activity in the amygdala, a brain area related to fear
and emotional arousal, when they were shown negative words
related to body image; neutral words did not have this effect
(Miyake et al., 2010). Women with bulimia had greater levels
of activity in medial frontal lobe regions related to emotional
processing during the viewing of overweight as opposed to thin
bodies; non-bulimic women did not show this activity. Finally,
when women with eating disorders were shown images com-
paring themselves to idealized (model) bodies, the insula—a
brain region related to disgust—fired (Friederich et al., 2010).
Together, these studies corroborate the questionnaire-based
results that idealized media depictions of beauty have negative
emotional consequences on vulnerable individuals. OLGA ILYINA/Shutterstock

Quick Quiz 11.1c Disorders of Eating

1 What is one difference between anorexia and 2 Why do psychologists believe that obese people
KNOW . . .

UNDERSTAND . . .

bulimia? respond differently to food reinforcement than do

A Anorexia involves periods of self-starvation, people of normal weight?
whereas bulimia does not. A Obese people typically have less exposure to
B Bulimia involves purging (such as self-induced diverse food groups.
vomiting), whereas this is less characteristic in B Brain-imaging studies show less activity in obese
anorexia. individuals’ brains in response to food compared
C Anorexia occurs in females only, whereas bulimia to the brains of people of normal weight.
occurs in both females and males. C Brain-imaging studies show greater activity in
D Anorexia and bulimia are actually two terms for obese individuals’ brains in response to food
the same disorder. compared to the brains people of normal weight.
D Obese people do not respond differently to food
reinforcement than people of normal weight.

3 Which of the following is the most likely predictor of

APPLY . . .

someone’s chances of developing an eating disorder or

obesity?
A Activity of the parietal somatosensory cortex
B Decreased sensitivity to the reward value of food
C Exposure to idealized versions of body type and
thinness
D Fat receptors on the tongue
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

Hunger and Eating :: Module 11.1 :: 453

 Module Summary

Module Now that you have read this module you should
11.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology of motivation and hunger :

allostasis (p. 445) homeostasis (p. 445)
anorexia nervosa (p. 450) motivation (p. 444)
bulimia nervosa (p. 450) obesity (p. 450) Satchan/Corbis/Bridge/Glow Images
drive (p. 445) satiation (p. 446)
glucose (p. 446) unit bias (p. 448)
eating norm would suggest? Or do you check to ensure you
are getting an appropriate serving size? Try this activity to
UNDERSTAND . . .
find out exactly how you eat. Starting first thing tomorrow,
keep a food diary for the next three days. In other words,
● The biological, cognitive, and social processes that keep a record of everything you eat over this period,
shape eating patterns. Energy is delivered through the recording when you ate, what you ate, and what made you
bloodstream in the form of glucose found in food; the feel like eating. It is important to be honest with yourself
hormone insulin helps the cells throughout the body store and to be reflective: Did you eat because your stomach
this fuel. CCK signals fullness (satiety). These substances rumbled, because you were craving something, or perhaps
are monitored by the hypothalamus, which signals because the food was just there? It is okay to list more than
hunger when not enough glucose is available to the cells. one reason for each entry in your food diary. At the end of
You should also have an understanding of the effects of the three-day period, tally how often each reason for eating
psychological cues, such as the unit bias and the variety of appeared in your diary. Make note of what proportion of the
available foods, as well as social cues, such as the minimal time you ate for each reason. Ask yourself: Are the results
eating norm. surprising? Do they make you want to think more about
the reasons you eat? (Note: You can also try to work from
● The major eating and weight-control problems people memory and recreate a food diary from the past three or
face. This module discussed issues related to obesity and four days, but the results might not be as accurate).
the difficulties that individuals face when trying to slim
down. For example, restricting food intake may actually
increase the reward value of food. Other problems include ANALYZE . . .
anorexia and bulimia, both of which involve periods of
self-starvation and a fear of gaining weight. Bulimia also ● The role of the media on people’s body image.
includes purging, such as through vomiting or the use of A number of studies using different methodologies—
laxatives. questionnaires and brain scanning—have shown that the
media’s idealized depictions of beauty have a negative
APPLY . . . influence on people’s body image (and happiness). With
this knowledge, you should be able to identify these
● Your knowledge of hunger regulation to better misrepresentations of what a normal body should look like,
understand and evaluate your own eating patterns. Do to recognize that the motivation to eat is important, and to
you finish an entire package of a food item, as the minimal see that beauty is not necessarily Size 2.

454 :: Module 11.1 : : Hunger and Eating

 Somos Images/Alamy

Module

11.2 Sex

Learning
KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives
The key terminology Similarities and differences in sexual Information from surveys Whether sexual imagery
After reading associated with responses in men and women to understand your own influences consumer behaviour
this module sexual motivation views of sexuality
you should

Why do humans have sex? Psychologists Cindy Meston and David Buss Although we will never know for sure, birds, bees, and meerkats likely
have asked just this question in their research on human sexual motivation. have sex to reproduce (a reason that was far down the list for college
Specifically, they asked American college students why they have sex and students). The motivation to have sex naturally has its complex, under-
tabulated the many different responses offered by both males and females lying physiology. As we will see in this module, however, human sexual
(Meston & Buss, 2007). There are so many possible answers to this very motivation is expressed and experienced in diverse ways—at least 237
open-ended question—how many do you think they came up with? Cer- different ways, according to Meston and Buss’s research.
tainly more than if we asked the same about why birds, bees, or meerkats
have sex. Here are some of the reasons the students came up with:

• “I wanted to get back at my partner for cheating on me.” Focus Questions

• “Because of a bet.” 1 How do psychologists explain the diverse
• “I wanted to end the relationship.” sexual motivations of humans?
• “It feels good.”
• “I wanted to show my affection toward the other person.” 2 How do psychologists explain variations in sexual orientation?
• “I wanted to feel closer to God.”

Sex :: Module 11.2 :: 455

 Imagine seeing an attractive person walking along sexuality by interviewing his students about their sexual
the beach, a toned body glistening in the hot summer histories. Between 1938 and 1952, Kinsey and his col-
sun. Then you and the object of your desire make eye leagues at Indiana University interviewed thousands
contact and it is clear that the interest is mutual. Your of people and published their results in a pair of books
initial response will seem like a white-hot biologi- known informally as the Kinsey Reports (1948, 1953).
cal drive. This is your libido—the motivation for sexual By modern standards, Kinsey’s methods were quite
activity and pleasure. But, whether you act on this moti- flawed and rather controversial. Kinsey tended to make
vation is dependent upon a number of factors, not sweeping generalizations about his findings that were
just “hotness.” As researchers delve into the complex based on very limited samples. Despite these practices,
topic of sexual behaviour, it is becoming increasingly Kinsey’s work on sexuality continues to influence dis-
clear that our motivations are shaped by physiological, cussion on sexual behaviour and motivation.
psychological, and social factors, and that these fac- The fact that Kinsey dared to apply science to sex-
tors interact with each other diff erently in diff erent uality was offensive to many people at the time. Dur-
people. ing an era when the phrase “sexual orientation” did not
even exist, Kinsey reported that 37% of the males whom
he interviewed had at least one homosexual experience
Human Sexual Behaviour: resulting in orgasm; this was absolutely shocking at the
Psychological Influences time. (The corresponding figure for females in his stud-
Humans have many motives for pursuing and hav- ies was 13%.) Contrary to the conventional thinking of
ing sex, and one notable observation is that sex fre- his time, Kinsey believed that heterosexuality and homo-
quently occurs without an end goal of reproduction. sexuality fell on a continuous scale.
In other words, sex serves many purposes other than His studies opened up further opportunities for
what seems to be its primary biological purpose. But current researchers to find out what motivates human
sex is not unique in this regard; people eat when they sexual behaviour. Since Kinsey conducted his inves-
are not hungry and drink when they are not thirsty, tigations, however, the methods used for such research
without considering the nutritional purpose of their have changed—to include more representative samples,
behaviour. However, sex for pur poses other than for example—and the extensive interviews have been
reproduction appears to be rare in nonhuman spe- largely replaced with anonymously completed question-
cies. Interestingly, masturbation occurs in some pri- naires that encourage participants to provide more can-
mate species, and the bonobo chimpanzee engages in did responses.
frequent genital contact, touching, and other sexual The questionnaire method of studying human
behaviours without actually copulating (de Waal & sexual motivation has continued since Kinsey’s time. At
Lanting, 1997; Starin, 2004). the beginning of this module, we introduced a study
By comparison, among humans, expressions of sex- conducted by psychologists Cindy Meston and David
ual motivation are vast and diverse. Sexual themes are Buss, who asked more than 1500 U.S. college students
common in television, movies, humour, advertising, and to identify their reasons for having sex. We listed a few
other media, and discussions of sex and sexuality influ- reasons provided by the students—some conventional
ence social life, the workplace, and politics. Obviously, (to express affection) and others perhaps more surprising
sex is a very important and relevant topic for psychology, (to feel closer to God). We return to this study to discuss
but it is also one of the most challenging to study. Sex some general themes that emerged—notably, the four
generally happens in private, and many people prefer to shown in Figure 11.6.
keep it that way. Nonetheless, psychologists use a vari- As you can see in Figure 11.6, physical, personal,
ety of methods to understand the complexities of human and social factors underlie sexual motivation. For the
sexual behaviour, including interviews, questionnaires, respondents in Meston and Buss’s study, physical rea-
physiological measures, and even direct observations of sons were related to pleasure of the sex itself as well as to
behaviour. Interviews and questionnaires are (obviously) orgasm. Many respondents used sex for what might be
the least intrusive techniques and, therefore, are the most described as instrumental reasons—sex was a means of
commonly used. accomplishing a goal such as financial or personal gain,
or revenge. Students were also motivated by emotional
PSYCHOLOGICAL MEASURES OF SEXUAL reasons and because of feelings of insecurity (although
MOTIVATION One of the first scientists to tackle the there is little evidence to suggest that sex leads to any
topic of human sexual behaviour was zoology profes- long-term improvements in this regard). Reproduction
sor Alfred Kinsey. Kinsey began his research on human ranked very far down the list. But, can you think of a

456 :: Module 11.2 : : Sex

 1. For physical reasons.
3. For emotional reasons.

“The person’s physical

“I realized I was in love.”
appearance turned me on.”
“I wanted to intensify
“I want to achieve an orgasm.”
my relationship.”

2. To help attain a goal.

4. Because of insecurity.
“I wanted to get a raise.”
“I felt obligated to.”
“I wanted to hurt an enemy.”
“I wanted to be nice.”

Michaelpuche/Shutterstock
{fig. 11.6} Why Have Sex? Self-reported reasons for having sex by undergraduate students (Meston & Buss, 2007).

MYTHS IN MIND
Sex after Sixty?

Living in a culture that emphasizes youth can make it difficult

to talk about—or even think about—the sexual lives of older
people. Sex often seems like something that only younger
people care about, starting with the surge of hormones in
adolescence and lasting until parenthood. However, surveys
indicate that the motives of middle-aged women are the same
as women aged 18 to 22 years: pleasure, love, and commitment

The Washington Times/ZUMAPRESS/Newscom

There are also reasons for avoiding sex. Each year thousands
of teenagers experience unplanned or unwanted effects of
sexual behaviour, such as pregnancy, sexually transmitted
diseases, or being in a relationship that may be abusive or
simply too complex for a younger person to handle. Sexual
abstinence clubs have been cropping up across high school
and college campuses across the U.S.; fewer such clubs are
found in Canada. Can you think of a reason why?

limitation of this study? The fact that the study surveyed

students, most of whom are the same age and at the same
level of education, means that the data don’t necessarily
apply to the entire population. To do so, it would be nec-
essary to interview people from a number of different
ethnicities, economic backgrounds, education levels, and, Fancy/Alamy
most importantly, age groups. Research confirms that many senior adults remain sexually active.

Sex :: Module 11.2 :: 457

 (Meston, Hamilton, & Harte, 2009). A recent wave of advertise- what we pay attention to and how we respond to it;
ments showing older couples discussing sexual intimacy sug- in other words, it can influence our feelings of desire
gest that sex is a common motivation in older populations as (Pfaus & Scepkowski, 2005). Although several decades
well. Since sexuality is such an important part of life, it is worth of research have helped identify many of the biological
asking what happens to sex and sexuality as people age.
processes associated with sexual motivation, it is impor-
In one survey (Lindau et al., 2007), almost three-fourths
tant to remember that all of these biological processes are
of the 57- to 64-year-old respondents reported sexual con-
influenced by a person’s psychological state.
tact with a partner in the past year, as did half of the 64- to
75-year-olds and one-fourth of the respondents between ages William Masters and Virginia Johnson performed
75 and 85 (a fact that might make your next family reunion some of the earliest studies of sexual behaviour in the
awkward for you). Sexuality does not always require a part- 1950s. These researchers described the human sexual
ner: Almost half of the men and one-fourth of the women in response cycle based on their observations of 27 male
the survey reported masturbating within the past year. and 118 female prostitutes who agreed to masturbate or
Does sexuality decline in the senior years? It seems that to have intercourse while under observation (Masters &
for many people, it does. Nevertheless, these data clearly show Johnson, 1966). Participants were monitored with heart
that many seniors remain sexually active into their [Link] sex- rate and blood pressure equipment, as well as with more
uality is not without problems; approximately 40% of women in peculiar devices such as the penile plethysmograph or
the survey cited lack of desire as a problem, and almost the
vaginal photoplethysmograph, which are designed to
same percentage of men reported erectile problems.
measure blood flow to the genitalia in men and women,
respectively. Masters and Johnson’s initial study allowed
The survey and interview methods discussed to this them to develop their methods and work with partici-
point have provided a rich set of data about human sex- pants who, according to the researchers, were less likely
uality. Other researchers have approached this topic from to be sexually inhibited than non-prostitutes. Masters
a biological standpoint by looking at the physiological and Johnson followed up this study with observations of
and brain basis of sexual motivation (Pfaus et al., 2012), a hundreds of men and women to characterize the physi-
topic we will consider in the next section of this module. ological changes that occur during sex.
Figure 11.7 summarizes Masters and Johnson’s (1966)
observations of human sexual responding in males and
Quick Quiz 11.2a females. The sexual response cycle describes the phases
Human Sexual Behaviour: Psychological of physiological change during sexual activity, which comprises
Influences four primary stages: excitement, plateau, orgasm, and resolution.
Dividing the sexual response cycle into phases allowed the
1 __________ refers to one’s motivation for sexual
KNOW . . .

behaviour and pleasure. researchers to describe the cascade of physiological changes

A Libido that occur during sexual behaviour. The cycle applies to
B Excitement both male and female sexual responses, although there are
C Orgasm differences between sexes in how these stages are experi-
D Cybersex enced and their duration. The work of Masters and John-
son and those who have followed in their footsteps reveals
a complex picture of male and female sexual responses.
Watch
2 According to research on sexual motivation in college
students, which of the following is not a primary One topic of particular interest is how males and
Sexual Arousal in
reason students offer for having sex? females differ in their patterns of orgasm. In one study,
Women
A Emotional reasons 21% to 32% of women reported that they did not expe-
B Physical reasons rience orgasm during masturbation or sexual intercourse
C Social reasons (Dunn et al., 2005), whereas only 2% of men did not
D Reproduction experience orgasm. Men usually experience a single
orgasm followed by a refractory period, a time period
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
during which erection and orgasm are not physically possible.
In contrast, some women experience multiple orgasms
Human Sexual Behaviour: without a refractory period.
What about the subjective experience of orgasm?
Physiological Influences Do women and men feel differently during orgasm?
PHYSIOLOGICAL MEASURES OF SEX Our physi- This challenging question was taken up by a group of
ological and psychological motives for having sex are not researchers who asked American college students to
separate. Sexual arousal (a biological state) can influence write detailed descriptions of their orgasm experiences.

458 :: Module 11.2 : : Sex

 Line A
Orgasm
Line B
Line C

Plateau

Refractory period
Re

Res

Reso
so

Resolutio
Res
lu

o
Excitement tio

lutio
n

lutio
o
lutio

n
n

n
(a) The male sexual response cycle (b) The female sexual response cycle

{fig. 11.7} Sexual Response Cycles (a) Masters and Johnson’s studies showed that males typically experience a single orgasm
followed by a refractory period—a time during which orgasm cannot be physically achieved again. Then they experience resolu-
tion, unless they continue sexual activity. (b) Women typically have a more varied sexual response profile than men. Here are a few
examples. Line A indicates a woman who has multiple orgasms, Line B a woman who does not experience orgasm, and Line C
a woman who has a single orgasm. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.

Researchers removed clues to the sex of each writer by SEXUAL ORIENTATION: BIOLOGY AND ENVI-
changing terms such as “penis” or “vagina” to “genitals.” RONMENT Although the research discussed thus
Then, male and female physicians, psychologists, and far has shed light on many aspects of sexual behaviour,
medical students judged whether each description came there are still questions that have not been answered. A
from a male or female. The judges were no better than topic that has garnered considerable interest is sexual
chance at guessing the gender of the authors, and neither orientation, the consistent preference for sexual relations
female nor male judges were any better than the other at with members of the opposite sex (heterosexuality), same sex
guessing (Vance & Wagner, 1976). This outcome suggests (homosexuality), or either sex (bisexuality). Current defini-
that, to some degree, males and females have similar sub- tions of sexual orientation focus on the psychological
jective experiences during orgasm. aspects of sexuality (e.g., desire, emotion, identification)
Although sexual activity involves the whole body, rather than strictly behavioural criteria (Bailey et al.,
researchers have recently focused on brain activity in 2000). For example, a person can have a sexual orien-
women who experienced orgasm while being monitored tation but never have sexual contact throughout his or
by functional MRIs (Komisaruk et al., 2005). Stimulation of her life. Psychologists have long struggled to find a sat-
the breasts, nipples, and vaginal areas causes sensory nerves isfactory explanation for variations in sexual orienta-
to send signals to the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus, in tion. Sigmund Freud (1905) advanced the theory that
turn, stimulates the pituitary gland to release a hormone male homosexuality could be traced to the presence
called oxytocin, which plays a role in orgasm and post- of a domineering mother and a weak father figure. As
orgasm physiology as well as in the feeling of trust (Zak, recently as 1987, Ellis and Ames argued that homosexu-
2008). Blood levels of oxytocin surge just after orgasm and ality could be caused by experiencing seduction from an
may remain elevated for at least five minutes (Carmichael older sibling or playmate. Both theories lack scientific
et al., 1994). Oxytocin is released during orgasm in males evidence to confirm their validity. An ongoing debate is
as well (Murphy et al., 1990). In addition, the dopamine- now considering why a significant number of humans
rich reward centres of the brain become highly active prefer emotional and sexual relationships with members
during orgasm (Holstege et al., 2003). However, once of the same sex. Researchers question whether sexual
ejaculation has taken place, dopamine levels in the brain’s orientation is based on choices people make or on bio-
reward centres decrease and serotonin levels in parts of the logically related factors such as genetics or differences in
hypothalamus increase (Lorrain et al., 1997). This suggests brain anatomy. Thus, modern scientific explanations of
that, as with hunger, the brain’s activity changes dramati- homosexuality focus on interactions between biological
cally once that motivation has been satisfied. and sociocultural factors.

Sex :: Module 11.2 :: 459

 purportedly homosexual men whom LeVay studied
died of complications associated with HIV, which
could have accounted for the differences in their brains.
Although its results are not considered definitive, LeVay’s
study stimulated considerable scientific curiosity and
debate about links between the brain and sexual orienta-
tion. Incidentally, research using animal subjects (sheep)
has shown that 8% to 10% of rams show preferences
for mounting other rams. The only difference research-
ers have found between male-preferring and female-
preferring rams is a smaller region of the hypothalamus
(Roselli et al., 2004).
Other research suggests that sexual orientation may
be influenced by a combination of genes. Evidence for
this comes from twin studies that have identified higher
genetic correlations between identical twins compared
with fraternal twin pairs. Several twin studies examining
the genetic basis of sexual orientation have been con-
ducted. Genetic correlations between .30 and .60 for
homosexuality have been reported for both men and
BananaStock/Thinkstock women, suggesting that approximately half of the indi-
Sexual orientation is not exclusively determined by patterns vidual differences found in sexual orientation are due
of sexual behaviour. It also includes aspects of identity and
emotional connection. Scientists are discovering that sexual
orientation is an outcome of complex gene and environmental
interactions.

In the early 1990s, neuroscientist Simon LeVay

compared the brains of deceased gay and heterosexual
males. In his work, he found that an area of the hypo-
thalamus was, on average, smaller in gay men compared
to heterosexual men (Figure 11.8; LeVay, 1991). LeVay’s
results created a storm of controversy among both scien-
tists and the public. Many people incorrectly interpreted
his findings as proof that homosexuality was biologically,
and therefore genetically, determined. In fact, the dif-
ferences in the hypothalamus could have been due to
environmental factors—LeVay’s study was not designed
to test either conclusion. As with many other topics you
have encountered in this text, disentangling the “nature
versus nurture” issues in relation to sexual orientation Medial preoptic
area
is a challenge that many researchers are now address-
ing. Modern research on the brain has shown how envi- Hypothalamus
ronmental factors, even those occurring in the prenatal
environment, contribute to anatomical and functional INAH3
differences in the brain (Roselli & Stormshak, 2009).
Scientists have been skeptical of LeVay’s results, Third ventricle
in part because they have proved difficult to replicate
(Lasco et al., 2002). The region of the hypothalamus he
identified was only smaller on average in gay men versus
heterosexual men, and the ranges in size were overlap- {fig. 11.8} Sexual Orientation and the Brain An early
study of the brain basis of sexual orientation found that homo-
ping, with some gay men having a larger hypothalamic sexual males had a smaller subregion (INAH3) of the hypothal-
region than some heterosexual men. In addition, the amus within the medial pre-optic area (LeVay, 1991).

460 :: Module 11.2 : : Sex

 3 Brain differences between homosexual and

ANALYZE . . .
Fraternal twins Identical twins

Percentage of co-twins who are gay

60 heterosexual adults should be interpreted as
A a result of both genetic and environmental factors.
50
B due solely to inherited, genetic differences.
40 C proof that the brain structure between homo-
sexual men and heterosexual women is identical.
30 D due solely to environmental factors.

20 Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

10

0
Males Females Females
(1993 study) (2000 study)
Human Sexual Behaviour: Cultural Simulate
{fig. 11.9} Genetics and Sexual Orientation Twin stud- Perceptions of
ies tend to show consistently higher genetic correlations for Influences Attractiveness
sexual orientation between male identical twins compared to
fraternal twins. This finding indicates that male homosexuality How is an 18-year-old woman “supposed to” act
has a genetic basis. Results of studies comparing female iden- when she is interesting in having sex? How about an
tical and fraternal twins are not as consistent.
18-year-old guy? Although we’d all love to say that
people should act any way they want, gender roles ,
to genetic factors (Figure 11.9; Bailey & Pillard, 1995; the accepted attitudes and behaviours of males and females
Bailey et al., 1993; Kirk et al., 2000). This result tends to in a given society, exist. These gender roles are flexible
hold true for gay men across multiple studies. In con- over time, however. Your great-grandmothers were
trast, studies have failed to confirm a genetic relationship unlikely to wear revealing clothing or have “hook ups”
between genes and homosexuality in women (Bailey or “friends with benefi ts”; this norm changed across
et al., 2000; Långström et al., 2010).Thus, genes appear to generations. Indeed, across generations, there have been
play at least some role in sexual orientation, particularly significant changes in male and female sexual scripts,
for men. However, this statement does not mean that the set of rules and assumptions about the sexual behaviours
sexual orientation is determined by genetics. The brain of males and females. As you read in Module 3.1, for most
and endocrine system are remarkably sensitive to the of human history, male sexual behaviour was based on
environment, and they interact with a variety of socio- competition. Men would value sexual conquests and
cultural factors (Meston & Ahrold, 2010). More research the physical attractiveness of females. Females, on the
investigating these interactions is clearly necessary. other hand, would be taught to be less promiscuous
and to focus on developing a stable relationship before
engaging in sexual intercourse. There are a number of
reasons for this difference. First, females have a limited
Quick Quiz 11.2b supply of eggs that can be fertilized. They therefore
have to be careful about which male does the fertil-
Human Sexual Behaviour: Physiological
izing (Trivers, 1972; see Module 3.1). Because children
Influences require resources (food, clothing, shelter, money, etc.),
1 In what order do the phases of the sexual response and females were not traditionally in the workforce,
KNOW . . .

cycle occur? it was important to be certain that a potential mate

A Plateau, orgasm, resolution, excitement would be a good provider. Males, on the other hand,
B Excitement, plateau, orgasm, resolution have a seemingly unlimited supply of sperm that can
C Orgasm, resolution, excitement, plateau be replenished quickly. If their evolutionary goal is to
D Excitement, orgasm, resolution, plateau pass on their genetic information to as many people as
possible, males are able to do this by impregnating as
2 The male sexual response cycle includes a(n) _______ many women as possible (whereas women would have
UNDERSTAND . . .

during which erection and orgasm are not physically to give birth a large number of times, which is much
possible, whereas the female sexual response cycle more difficult). Although this might not be the stated
most often does not. goal of most men, the sexual motivation to have sex
A plateau C oxytocin release with large numbers of women still exists. Additionally,
B refractory period D sensitive period males have higher levels of testosterone, a hormone that

Sex :: Module 11.2 :: 461

 is involved in the development of sex characteristics and the decrease for individuals who become more involved
motivation of sexual behaviour. Thus, there are social, evo- with mainstream Western culture, suggesting that a
lutionary, and hormonal reasons for the sexual scripts in number of social and cultural factors influence sexual
our culture. motivations (Brotto et al., 2005).
But, this evolutionary explanation is only part of Sexual scripts also exist in homosexual relationships.
the explanation for gender roles and sexual scripts. For Indeed, researchers in this field have highlighted the
a large part of human history, societies were set up in a butch (traditionally masculine) and femme (traditionally
way that gave men greater power than women. Indeed, feminine) gender roles of some lesbians (Munt, 1998).
in many cultures, women were viewed as possessions— However, research suggests that these sexual scripts are
first of their fathers and then of their husbands. Limit- more flexible than in heterosexual relationships, possibly
ing the sexual expressiveness of women limited their due to the fact that many individuals do not follow gen-
ability to feel empowered, and allowed the “status der roles to the same degree as do heterosexual individu-
quo” of the patriarchy (male-dominated society) to als (Kurdek, 2005).
continue.
But, as we noted, these scripts are changing. Why do SEX AND TECHNOLOGY What type of sexual
you think that is? Although there are dozens of potential scripts would develop if people could engage in sexual
explanations, there are three that are particularly impor- behaviour anonymously without having to physically
tant. The first is the emergence of the Women’s Rights interact with another person? Although your grandpar-
Movement over the last 130 years. This movement chal- ents would have considered that question to be science
lenged the core values of the patriarchal society and put fiction pornography, in the past two decades, electronic
pressure on lawmakers to allow women to have equal media such as the Internet, text messaging, instant mes-
economic and political rights such as voting. The result saging, and social networking sites have become com-
was that women were perceived as people rather than mon outlets for sexual expression. Electronic media are
possessions. A second, related, cause was the increasing often used for viewing pornography, having online sex-
presence of women in the workforce. This economic ual encounters, and meeting others for sex offline (i.e.,
independence meant that females could take care of in the real world). Adolescents, as well as both single and
themselves if they became pregnant. Therefore, they married adults, may engage in cybersex—that is, the
didn’t need to be as careful about who they had sex with. use of the Internet and computer equipment for send-
The third reason for changing sexual scripts was “the ing sexually explicit images and messages to a partner.
Watch pill.” The U.S. Federal Drug Administration approved the An estimated one in three adults today has engaged in
Online Dating Advice drug Enovid for use as a contraceptive on June 23, 1960 cybersex (Daneback et al., 2005).
(Marks, 2001); the pill was legalized in Canada in 1969. Unplanned pregnancy and STDs are obviously not
This allowed women to have control over when they an immediate risk of cybersex. However, people tend
were going to become pregnant, thus giving them much to communicate with less inhibition via digital media
more control over their sexual behaviours. The impor- compared to face-to-face encounters. This opens up
tance of birth-control pills cannot be overstated. Imagine the possibility for impulsive behaviour such as sending
how people’s lives would be changed if pregnancy was a sexually explicit pictures and messages (“sexting”). Many
strong possibility every time someone had sex. teens have suffered rather harsh legal consequences for
Of course, it is important to note that not all sexting. Some U.S. states consider sexting to be a form
females or males follow the same sexual scripts. Differ- of underage pornography and those convicted could be
ent ethnicities or religious backgrounds have their own required to register as sex offenders. The Supreme Court
scripts as well. For instance, researchers at the Univer- of Canada has indicated that under-aged teens can pos-
sity of British Columbia found that Chinese women sess sexual images of each other assuming it is consen-
(born in China or Taiwan, but living in Canada) sual; however, the distribution of such images is illegal
reported more conservative sexual attitudes (Woo et (R. v. Sharpe, 2001 SCC 2; [2001] 1 S.C.R. 45 (January
al., 2010) and lower levels of sexual desire than Euro- 26, 2001)).
Canadian women (Woo et al., 2012). Why would this Regardless of your opinions of, or experience with,
occur? Researchers have found that sex guilt , nega- cybersex, it is impossible to ignore the fact that sexual
tive emotional feelings for having violated culturally accepted imagery is becoming increasingly common in our soci-
standards of appropriate sexual behaviour , is a major fac- ety. What is less clear is how this sexuality will affect our
tor in these differences. Interestingly, these differences day-to-day behaviours.

462 :: Module 11.2 : : Sex

 2003 in popular magazines such as Esquire, Playboy, Newsweek,
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC Time, Cosmopolitan, and Redbook found that the proportion
LITERACY MODEL of sexual ads increased from 15% in 1983 to 27% in 2003
(Reichert et al., 2012). Sexual imagery was most often used
Does Sex Sell? to sell health and hygiene products (38%), beauty products
(36%), medicine (29%), and clothing (27%). This trend leads
to the obvious question: How is sex being used to influence
The American Apparel ® advertisement showed a topless
our buying behaviour?
model with her back to the camera, her nylon-clad buttocks
thrust provocatively toward the viewer. Needless to say, this
ad got noticed, as did several other (equally subtle) ads by the How can
same company. But American Apparel isn’t alone in using sex scientists explain
to sell its products. H&M® features giant billboards displaying the effect of
David Beckham in his underwear. Soft drink companies have
sexual imagery
young and attractive people drink their products in com-
mercials. And, in a sure sign of the Apocalypse, Paris Hilton
on advertising
wore a skimpy swimsuit, soaped herself up, and writhed on success?
a car in order to sell Carl’s Jr.® hamburgers. The ad’s caption Some advertisements use sexual imagery to attract atten-
was, “She tells you size doesn’t matter. She’s lying.” Although tion to a product. For example, an attractive model stand-
there is no doubt that such ads attract attention, are they ing next to a car or eating a bowl of cereal will make
effective in changing consumers’ brand preferences? Does us pay more attention to that image than we otherwise
sex really sell? would. Such image-product pairings are not always effec-
tive. Although the consumer might remember the ad, they
are less likely to remember the brand that is being adver-
tised (Reichert & Alvaro, 2001); after Paris Hilton’s ham-
burger ad, Carl’s Jr. experienced a 1.7% increase in sales . . .
but archrival Hardees had a similar increase! However, if sex-
uality is an integral part of the brand’s identity or if the
sexuality in the ad is related to the product’s function (e.g.,
condoms), then sexual imagery will enhance our mem-
ory for that product (Richmond & Hartman, 1982). This
effect is likely due to the sexual imagery being a memory
retrieval cue for that product.

Sex has another interesting effect on how we perceive

advertisements: It interferes with our ability to think ratio-
nally about persuasive material (Riechert et al., 2001). A
Gregory Holmgren / Alamy
recent brain-imaging study compared neural responses to
advertisements containing sexual or emotional images with
What do we know responses to advertisements in which an image of the prod-
about sex uct was presented alongside factual information about the
and advertising? product. The researchers found that sexual ads generated
smaller neural responses in several areas of the frontal lobes
There are a number of examples (Cook et al., 2011). These results suggest that sexual images
of companies being saved by may lead to less analysis of an ad’s contents than a purely
sexual advertising. Woodbury’s fact-based appeal, making us more vulnerable to persuasive
Facial Soap was near bankruptcy material. (This research would certainly make election ads
in 1910; however, when a new ad campaign depicted roman- more interesting. . . . )
tic couples and promised that using the product would lead
to greater intimacy, sales skyrocketed (Reichert, 2003, 2012).
Jovan Musk Oil, a fragrance for men, had advertisements that
Can we critically
suggested that it would increase a user’s sexual attractive-
ness; revenue from Jovan’s Musk increased from $1.5 million
evaluate this evidence?
in 1971 to $77 million in 1978. Based on these, and many Although the psychology research
more, success stories, the frequency of sexual imagery in ads investigating whether sex sells
has increased substantially in the past three decades. A study is interesting, we do have to be
of 3343 full-page ads that were published in 1983, 1993, and cautious in interpreting it. That’s

Sex :: Module 11.2 :: 463

 because the stimuli are being used in a way that differs Why is this relevant?
from how they will be used in the real world. Most televi-
sion or radio ads are seen or heard numerous times; in an The results of numerous stud-
experiment, they are often presented only once. Addition- ies show that sex can sell, in
ally, most ads are targeted at specific demographic groups certain situations. But, if psychol-
(e.g., females aged 18–25). Therefore, we, as consumers of ogists and marketers wish to use sex to sell a product, they
research, need to be sure that the experimenters paid atten- have to be extremely careful about when and where these ads
tion to the same variables as the marketers. Otherwise, their are going to be displayed, and how sex is depicted. If they fail to
data don’t buy us much. do so, then their sexy ad campaign might end up being a bust.

We also have to remember that not all participants in a

study are alike in their sexual views, a fact that was over-
looked in many early studies on this topic. Overall, women
are less accepting of sexual ads than men, likely due to the
fact that most sexual ads are targeted toward heterosexual
males (Monk-Turner et al., 2008). Women with more liberal
views toward sexuality respond similarly to men—they are
much more likely to accept unnecessary sexual imagery than
more conservative women (Sengupta et al., 2008). Addition-
ally, women are more likely to accept a sexual advertise-
ment if sex is depicted in a way that is respectful, focusing
on devotion rather than on primitive biological urges (Dahl
et al., 2009). Daniel_Dash/[Link]

Quick Quiz 11.2c Human Sexual Behaviour: Cultural Influences

1 The accepted attitudes and behaviours of males and 3 Future computers will likely include face-recognition
KNOW . . .

ANALYZE . . .

females in a given society are known as software that keeps the computer screen lit up when
A sexual orientation. C gender roles. you’re looking at it (this technology is already found in
B sex guilt. D sexual scripts. some smart phones). This technology may also make it
more difficult for users to remain anonymous in social
networking sites or chat rooms. Based on what you’ve
2 Sexual content in advertisements can be effective in all
UNDERSTAND . . .

read in this module, what effect will this have?

of the following cases EXCEPT A The loss of anonymity will make people more
A when the viewers are liberal-minded males. inhibited because the sexual scripts will become
B when the sexual content is related to the purpose similar to those found in face-to-face encounters.
or function of the product being advertised. B The loss of anonymity will change the gender roles
C when paired with a logical argument for buying for males and females, making them more similar.
the product. C Social networking sites will become even more
D when the viewers are conservative-minded popular and sexualized once everyone can see
females. everyone else.
D From an evolutionary perspective, the loss of
anonymity will influence male sexual behaviour, as
it will be possible for them to identify a larger
number of potential mates.

464 :: Module 11.2 : : Sex

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
11.2
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with sexual motivation:

Somos Images/Alamy
gender roles (p. 461) sexual orientation (p. 459)
libido (p. 456) sexual response cycle (p. 458)
refractory period (p. 458) sexual scripts (p. 461) 5. It is okay to have ongoing sexual relationships with
sex guilt (p. 462) testosterone (p. 461) more than one person at a time.
6. Sex as a simple exchange of favours is okay if both
UNDERSTAND . . . people agree to it.
7. The best sex is with no strings attached.
● Similarities and differences in sexual responses in men
8. Life would have fewer problems if people could have
and women. The similarities in sexual response cycles
sex more freely.
found in men and women can be explained by a common
reproductive physiology in both sexes. However, males 9. It is possible to enjoy sex with a person and not like
experience a distinct phase called the refractory period, that person very much.
during which erection or orgasm is not physiologically 10. It is okay for sex to be just a good physical release.
possible. Both males’ and females’ sexual behaviours are
also influenced by gender scripts and sexual roles, factors Once you have assigned a number to each item, average
that are affected by the culture in which the sexual your responses to get your overall score. In one study of
behaviours are taking place. slightly more than 200 university students, men averaged a
score of 3.63 and women averaged a score of 4.47 on this
APPLY . . . scale (Hendrick et al., 2006). How do you compare? Given
what you have learned about the biological and cultural
● Information from surveys to understand your own views factors that influence sexuality, are you surprised by the
of sexuality. People express sexuality for many different gender difference? Which other factors might influence
reasons, in different ways, and with varying frequency. How the norms?
do you feel about sexuality? You can apply what we have
learned from research to understand if you take a generally
permissive attitude (people have the right to do what ANALYZE . . .
they want) or a more conservative one. Respond to each
of the items below by assigning a score on a scale from ● Whether sexual imagery influences consumer behaviour.
1 (strongly agree) to 5 (strongly disagree). Note that it is Depictions of sex and sexuality have occurred throughout
not necessary to be sexually active to complete this scale— the history of advertising. However, the frequency of this
simply respond to the general principle of each item. type of content has increased dramatically in the last two
decades. Although most people believe that “sex sells,”
1. I do not need to be committed to a person to have sex research indicates that specific limitations do exist. The
with him or her. sexuality must be linked with a product’s identity (e.g., a
2. Casual sex is acceptable. perfume) or function (e.g., condoms), and the sexual acts
depicted must be respectful. If these conditions are not met,
3. I would like to have sex with many partners.
consumers may remember the advertisement but forget
4. One-night stands are sometimes enjoyable. the brand being advertised, a result that marketers would
not find sexy at all.

Sex :: Module 11.2 :: 465

 Nikita Buida/Fotolia

Module

11.3 Social and Achievement Motivation

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology of social How people experience Theories of motivation to Claims that a sense of belonging
After reading and achievement motivation a need to belong understand your personal is something people need
this module motivation to achieve in versus something they want
How we can harness the
you should school or your career
power of intrinsic motivation

Michelle sat at the end of the gymnasium, watching the varsity girls’ Focus Questions
basketball team warming up for their game. She was younger than most
of the women on the team, but still desperately wanted to be a part of 1 How critical are external rewards in motivating us to achieve?
it. She loved playing basketball with her friends, a couple of whom made 2 How is achievement motivation influenced by the
the team, and decided that if she was going to be a part of it next year, amount of control we have over our actions?
she would have to practise every day. She would also have to work on
the skills that were currently weaknesses, so that she could become a
better player.

This story is very familiar—all of us know someone who vowed to work

hard in order to make a team or to improve their position in an orga-
nization. The over-arching question of this module is “Why do we try to In addition to satisfying basic biological drives, motivation entails
achieve these goals?” What is motivating Michelle to work hard to be on meeting our complex social and personal needs. In this module, we
the high-profile basketball team with her friends? And, what factors will explore our motivation to feel as though we belong as well as our
make it more or less likely for Michelle to succeed? motivation to achieve.

466 :: Module 11.3 : : Social and Achievement Motivation

Belongingness and Love Needs
Everyone acknowledges that humans need to
satisfy needs for food, water, clothing, and shel-
ter in order to survive. Each of these needs is Self-
actualization
associated with a motivation, some sort of psy- needs: to find
chological process that will cause us to perform self-fulfillment and
realize one’s potential
a particular behaviour. The need for food would
lead to the behaviour of eating; the need for
Aesthetic needs:
water would lead to the behaviour of drink- symmetry, order, and beauty
ing. But, humans have many different types of
needs, some of which are less straightforward Cognitive needs: to know,
than the need to eat. These involve social pro- understand, and explore
cesses, as well as our need for meaning and a
purpose in life. In this module, we discuss some Esteem needs: to achieve, be competent,
gain approval and recognition
of these social and achievement needs, and try
to understand the psychological processes that Belongingness and love needs: to be with others,
accompany them. be accepted, and belong

Safety needs: to feel secure and safe, out of danger

HIERARCHY OF NEEDS When we think
about our different needs, it seems like common
Physiological needs: hunger, thirst, fatigue, etc.
sense that some things are more important than
others. Eating would obviously be more impor-
tant than having high self-esteem, for example. {fig. 11.10} Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs According to Abraham Maslow, human needs are
In an early attempt to understand the different organized as a hierarchy, with basic needs at the bottom, and personal fulfillment and other
uniquely human characteristics at the top. Click on this figure in your eText to see more
motivations that drive human behaviour, Abra- details.
ham Maslow (1943, 1954) described a “hierar-
chy of needs,” with needs associated with our getting along and that the community, not just the indi-
basic physiological survival being more important than vidual, was successful.
social or achievement needs (see Figure 11.10). Accord- However, although the hierarchy element of Maslow’s
ing to Maslow, once survival needs are met, then we can model may be inaccurate, his work has highlighted the
move to higher-level needs such as belonging or the fact that human motivation extends to a number of dif-
need for self-esteem. At the highest point of this model ferent areas rather than being simply a matter of eat-
lies self-actualization, the point at which a person reaches ing, sleeping, and reproducing. Later researchers have
his or her full potential as a creative, deep-thinking, and noted that we have a number of needs that can, at times,
accepting human being. feel as pressing as a grumbling stomach. For example,
Although Maslow’s depiction of human needs and research suggests that humans have a fundamental need Explore
motivations seems logical, numerous researchers have to belong (Baumeister & Leary, 1995), which motivates
Maslow’s Hierarchy of

criticized this model. First, the idea that we must fulfill us to affiliate with other people and to seek meaningful,
Needs

one need before moving on to the next (a way that is long-term bonds.
similar to levels of a video game) is simplistic (Wahba
& Bridwell, 1974).You know from your own life that it BELONGING IS A NEED, NOT A WANT The need
is possible to have multiple motivations simultaneously— to belong (sometimes known as affiliation motivation)
you can be striving to self-actualize while also experi- is the motivation to maintain relationships that involve pleas-
encing the need to achieve at school. A second criticism ant feelings such as warmth, affection, appreciation, and mutual
was that the hierarchy appeared to be biased toward concern for each person’s well-being. In addition, an individ-
an individualistic (Western) culture (Hofstede, 1984). ual must have the sense that these feelings are part of a
Self-actualization, the peak state of Maslow’s model, permanent relationship, such as a friendship, kinship, or
consists of a number of characteristics that put the shared group membership (Baumeister & Leary, 1995). A
individual’s needs or goals first, sometimes at the expense strong sense of belonging brings more than warmth and
of humanity as a whole. In collectivistic (primarily happiness; it appears to be fundamental in the same way Watch
Eastern) cultures, such needs would be much less that food and shelter are needs—these are all things that What’s in It for Me?:
important than acting to ensure that everyone was humans cannot survive without. Meeting Our Needs

Social and Achievement Motivation :: Module 11.3 :: 467

 AF archive/Alamy
George Clooney’s character in Up in the Air shunned all
permanent relationships, opting instead for brief, passing
encounters. He was soon confronted with his own need to
belong.
Blend Images/[Link]
Psychologists hypothesize that close, permanent relationships are as important as
food and water are for normal psychological functioning.
social interaction—it is the sense of belonging that counts
(Hawkley et al., 2003). Even very simple indicators such
as living alone or an individual’s rating of the statement “I
Although we all probably want to have pleasant feel lonely” predict chances of survival after heart attacks
interactions, it is the second part of the definition—a and bypass surgeries (Herlitz et al., 1998; Rozanski et al.,
sense of permanence—that is most important for our 1999). Given that belonging is important for our health
well-being. Specifically, an individual who has many and happiness, it makes sense that so much of our life is
positive social interactions with a series of different indi- focused on friends, family, and romantic partners.
viduals does not enjoy the same satisfaction and other
benefits as an individual who interacts with only a few LOVE In some cases, the feeling of belonging that
people, but regularly and for a long period of time. For accompanies your friendship and family bonds becomes
example, an executive who flies all over the continent a form of love. You’d be willing to make great sacrifices
may have fascinating conversations with fellow passen- for these lucky people and you know they would do the
gers every week, yet feel extremely lonely. Meanwhile, same for you. You trust them, look forward to spending
imagine a couple living on a rural farm who see only a time with them, and genuinely cheer for them as they
few neighbours during the week, but see the same people go through life. Of course, this isn’t the only type of love
frequently and know them very well. The permanence that we experience. As you stumble through your teen-
of their family and community is significant, and they age years and enter early adulthood, many of you will
will probably be much more satisfied with their sense desire and experience romantic relationships. Some of
of belongingness over the long run than will the high- these will produce an intense feeling that we think of as
flying executive. Indeed, a substantial number of stud- romantic love.
Watch ies have shown that lonely people like the executive are What is romantic love? This is a question that has
Relationships and Love more likely to feel depressed than are socially connected permeated our culture for thousands of years. Armies of
individuals like the rural farmers (Cacioppo et al., 2006); anemic English poets have worked furiously, desperately
this leads to substantially lower ratings of happiness and trying to find the perfect words to describe this wonder-
life satisfaction (Cacioppo et al., 2011). ful feeling. For most of our history, love has not been
In addition to its effects on mental health, psycholo- seriously discussed in scientific circles. However, this
gists have found that social connectedness has a dramatic has changed in the last 40 years. In 1974, Berscheid and
effect on physical health as well. Research has demon- Walter proposed the first scientific model of love, one
strated that loneliness is a risk factor for illnesses such that is still widely accepted today (Fehr, 2003). These
as heart disease and cancer (Cacioppo et al., 2003). It psychologists suggested that love is composed of two
also elevates a person’s risk for having hypertension, a main components: passionate love and companionate
weaker immune system, and high levels of stress hor- love. Passionate love is associated with a physical and emo-
mones. This relationship holds true even when lonely tional longing for the other person. We feel passionate love at
and non-lonely individuals have the same amount of the beginning of a relationship, when we are just getting

468 :: Module 11.3 : : Social and Achievement Motivation

 is similar (but obviously not identical) to hunger and
sex drives. To test this hypothesis, these researchers per-
formed fMRI scans on 17 people who were in love.
While in the scanner, these participants viewed images of
their special someone, as well as photographs of a famil-
iar person. The brain responses to images of the loved
one were stronger in dopamine-rich areas that are part
of the reward system. Even better, activity in some parts
of this system correlated with the participants’ responses
on a passionate love questionnaire (see Figure 11.11).
Activity in other parts of the reward system correlated Watch

with the intensity of their reported love and with ratings IT Video: Finding a
berc/Fotolia of facial attractiveness. Importantly, many of these brain Mate

areas contain many receptors for oxytocin, a hormone Watch

related to feelings of trust and the desire to be close to Dating and Finding a
someone (Aron et al., 2005). Mate: Ralf, 33 Years

It’s important to note that this motivational view of Old

love is still consistent with the passionate-companionate Watch

theory of love. In fact, it adds a mechanism that can Dating and Finding a
explain why we seek out passionate love in the first place: Mate: Stephanie,

a reward state similar to many other types of motivations. 31 Years Old

LOVE AND COMMITMENT There are obviously

numerous reasons to seek out love; however, as many of
you are painfully aware, love does not always last forever.
Watch
In fact, in many cases, loving relationships become stale
Darren Baker/Fotolia Triangular Theory of
and people feel the desire to leave. Why do you think
Love: Robert Sternberg
this happens?
to know the other person and everything is new. Recent According to researchers, there are a number of fac-
brain-imaging research has shown that feelings of pas- tors influencing commitment. One is the initial strength
sionate love are associated with activity in areas of the of the attraction; this could include the happiness asso-
brain related to physical rewards as well as the insula, a ciated with companionship and finding someone simi-
region that is sensitive to internal bodily feelings such lar to yourself, the enjoyment of sex, and the economic
as having “butterflies in the stomach” (Bartels & Zeki, benefits of being in a stable relationship (Levinger, 1965).
2004; Beauregard et al., 2009). A second factor is the number of barriers to leaving the
Companionate love, on the other hand, is related relationship; these include children, religious convic- Explore

to tenderness, and to the affection we feel when our lives tions, and social and economic pressures. These positive Passionate Love Scale

are intertwined with another person (Hatfield & Rapson,

1993). Although passionate love is certainly more
exciting, companionate love appears to have a greater Correlation
a = 0.60
Activity in the right

influence on the long-term stability of a relationship.

caudate nucleus

Undergraduate research participants viewed increases

in companionate features of love to be more indica-
tive of a loving relationship than passionate features of
love. Decreases in companionate love suggested that the
relationship was in trouble (Fehr, 1988), and may sug-
gest that the people do not feel as committed to each 7 8 9
other as they once did. Score on the passionate
love scale
Love, therefore, seems to be a very pleasant state.
But, what motivates people to seek it out? Art Aron and {fig. 11.11} Love as a Motivational System (Left) Neuroimaging data show
his colleagues (2005) have suggested that “love is a mam- that viewing images of your beloved (as opposed to someone else) activates
the caudate nucleus (the green structures in the above image), an area in the
malian drive to pursue preferred mates” (p. 327). In other brain related to experiencing rewards. (Right) People who felt greater levels of
words, love may be a goal-oriented state in a way that passionate love showed larger reward responses.

Social and Achievement Motivation :: Module 11.3 :: 469

 and negative factors must be weighed by people who are
4 What point did Maslow intend to communicate when he

ANALYZE . . .
considering leaving a relationship. The decision to stay placed belonging in the middle of his hierarchy of needs?
or leave a relationship will be, to a large degree, depen- A Individuals generally must take care of physiological
dent upon how much weight an individual gives to each needs first, but must satisfy belonging needs before
of these variables. However, there is a third factor that developing healthy self-esteem.
comes into play: the availability of alternatives (Thibault B Belonging is not an essential human need.
& Kelley, 1959). If people think that there are few alter- C Individuals generally must first have a healthy self-
natives, then they are more likely to remain committed. esteem before one can satisfy the need to belong.
Of course, there aren’t many pop songs about that. D Belonging is more important than physiological
Incidentally, researchers have examined brain activ- needs.

ity in people whose partners had left the relationship Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
(i.e., people who had been dumped). These participants
viewed images of their ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend
along with images of a familiar person. The results con-
firmed a motivational view of love. Responses to images
Achievement Motivation
of a former partner activated brain areas in reward At the beginning of this module, you read about Michelle,
centres—this activity was very similar to that shown a student who desperately wanted to be on the varsity
by drug addicts who were craving a drug (Fisher et basketball team. Part of that desire was likely related to
al., 2010). However, the researchers noted that as the the need to belong, to be part of a team with her friends.
number of days after the break-up increased, the activ- But, that can’t explain why she vowed to practise every
ity in brain areas related to craving decreased. In other day so that she would make the team next year. It would
words, the attachment decreased over time. So, if you’ve be much easier to join a team in a lower-level basket-
recently experienced a break-up and are upset, listen to ball league, or to have her friends put together a team
your friends when they say that you’ll feel better after in a different sport. But, these solutions weren’t part of
some time [Link] brain will one day agree. Michelle’s story. Instead, she wanted to improve her bas-
ketball skills so that she could be part of the competi-
tive and prestigious league. In other words, she wanted to
achieve a specific goal.
Quick Quiz 11.3a Achievement motivation is a very strong force
Belongingness and Love Needs in human behaviour, and refers to the drive to perform
at high levels and to accomplish significant goals. But, this
1 Affiliation motivation is
KNOW . . .

motivation isn’t as simple as it sounds. There are a

A the drive to have as many friends as possible.
number of reasons why Michelle could be motivated
B the desire to be around other people as often as
to achieve. For example, Michelle might want to make
possible.
the team in order to receive more respect and attention
C the need to have at least a few permanent
meaningful relationships.
from her fellow students; she might also really enjoy
the game and could have a desire to play it as much as
D the desire to be isolated from others.
possible. In both cases, Michelle would be attempting
to achieve an approach goal, an enjoyable and pleasant
2 Which of the following factors increases an individual’s
incentive that a person is drawn toward, such as praise, finan-
risk for illness, heart disease, and even cancer?
A Self-actualization C Happiness cial reward, or a feeling of satisfaction. But, what if Michelle
B Loneliness D Low self-esteem were motivated to make the team in order to avoid
the embarrassment of being “cut” from the team this
year? That’s a very different mindset than an approach
3 Why do people leave relationships that were once
UNDERSTAND . . .

loving and supportive? goal. Instead, her behaviour would be motivated by an

A There are too many alternative relationship avoidance goal, an attempt to avoid an unpleasant out-
partners to cope with. come such as shame, embarrassment, losing money, or feeling
B The level of companionate love is not sufficient emotional pain.
to maintain the relationship. If achievement motivation were this simple, we
C There are too few barriers for leaving the could explain most of our behaviour in terms of seek-
relationship. ing a reward and/or avoiding suffering. Although both
D The levels of passionate love are not increasing are elements of our behaviour, our motivation to achieve
at a fast enough rate to be satisfying.
is also influenced by numerous other factors, including

470 :: Module 11.3 : : Social and Achievement Motivation

(but not limited to) personal preferences, values, the set- ability has on motivation is known as self-efficacy, an
ting we are in, and whether we feel that we actually have individual’s confidence that he or she can plan and execute a
the ability to achieve our goal. In the rest of this module, course of action in order to solve a problem (Bandura, 1997).
we will discuss how these different factors can influence When people experience high levels of self-effi cacy,
our motivation to achieve our goals, and will provide their performance improves and they are motivated to
examples that will allow you to apply what you learn in choose more challenging tasks to perform (Eccles &
this module to the real world (if you feel motivated to Wigfield, 2002). So, if you believe that you can com-
do so). petently do something, you will be more motivated to
attempt to do so.
SELF-DETERMINATION THEORY When we think A theme running through all three of our uni-
about achieving our goals, we can’t help but think about versal human needs—relatedness, autonomy, and
making up to-do lists or pro-and-con lists that will help competence—is the need to feel in control of your life
us organize our lives. But, while these techniques pro- and your decisions. We want to be able to choose who
vide us with a practical way of examining the choices we we associate with and the form those relationships are
face, they don’t really tap into the deeper motivation for going to take (relatedness), control the decisions that
why we are, or are not, performing a behaviour. Recent aff ect our lives (autonomy), and be in control of the
psychological research has attempted to fill this void by actions necessary to carry out those decisions (compe-
examining what researchers refer to as universal needs, tence). These themes are part of self-determination
needs that (almost) all humans experience. Our attempts theory , a theory that states that an individual’s ability
to satisfy these needs likely influence our motivation to to achieve their goals and attain psychological well-being is
perform one behaviour or another, and can therefore influenced by the degree to which he or she is in control of the
have a huge effect on how we act. One universal need behaviours necessary to achieve those goals (Ryan & Deci,
is relatedness, feeling connected with others. This need is 2000). So, if we are able to achieve this control, or at
satisfied by forming meaningful bonds with other peo- least feel like we have control, then we will be more
ple, such as family members, teammates, or colleagues motivated to perform the actions necessary to achieve
at school or work. A second need is that of autonomy, that goal. We will also be happier. Self-determination
the need to feel in control of your own life (Deci & theory has been used to explain a number of behav-
Vansteenkiste, 2004). If you have no control over ele- iours ranging from the likelihood of successfully
ments of your life, you will feel less motivated to succeed learning a second language (Noels et al., 2000), the
in them. For example, if your boss “micro-managed” motivation to exercise (Wilson et al., 2008), the estab-
every single thing you did while you were putting lishment of healthy identities (La Guardia, 2009), and
together a presentation, would you feel more moti- the ability to adapt to life as an international student
vated to do a great job than if you controlled how it studying in Canada (Chirkov et al., 2007, 2008). In
was put together? Probably not. But, if your boss were each case, increasing feelings of competence, autonomy,
kindly teaching you the presentation software so that and relatedness increased motivation.
you would know how to do the work on your own next But, at this point in our discussion, our explanation
time, you might feel differently. This leads to the third for why we are motivated to achieve goals only explains
universal need, competence, or the ability to perform a task very general, deep-seated needs. To more thoroughly
at a skill level that is satisfying to the individual. Most explain our behaviours, we need to look more closely at
of you are quite computer savvy, but likely have elderly specific factors that could influence motivation.
relatives who think that “phishing” is a spelling [Link]
would therefore have a greater feeling of competence EXTRINSIC AND INTRINSIC MOTIVATION One
than these relatives when it comes to computers. way to examine the question of “Why do we try to
But, our motivation isn’t necessarily influenced by achieve a goal?” is to determine whether our motivation
how competent we are. Instead, it is influenced by how is externally or internally generated. If you wanted to be
competent we think we are. If a very skilled basketball on a basketball team in order to be popular, you would
player didn’t think she was good enough, she wouldn’t be experiencing extrinsic motivation (or a perfor-
practise as hard as she would if she believed in her mance motive), motivation geared toward gaining rewards
abilities. (In contrast, watch some of the awful sing- or public recognition, or avoiding embarrassment (Deci, 1971;
ers making the judges’ ears bleed on American Idol-type Vansteenkiste et al., 2006). This form of motivation is
shows; they believe they are good, so they continue not always the most effective, as it requires a person to
to sing . . . sometimes even while security drags them give up some autonomy. If you play basketball to seem
away.) The effect that your perception of your own cool, then you must rely on other people’s reactions to

Social and Achievement Motivation :: Module 11.3 :: 471

 determine if you succeeded in your goal (i.e., other peo-
ple control if you are viewed as “cool”).Taken to its most
extreme, people can become amotivational, a feeling of
having little or no motivation to perform a behaviour. If your
parents forced you to play basketball against your will,
you might stop trying putting forth any effort. In this
case, neither the feelings of autonomy nor competence
would be met.
Luckily, not all of our motivation is controlled by
outside forces; sometimes we do things simply because
we enjoy doing them. For example, what if you wanted
to become a better basketball player simply for the joy of
playing and improving yourself? In this case, the motiva-
Radius Images/Alamy
tion to improve came from within yourself rather than
This person is clearly procrastinating—there is a good chance
from some external source. This would be an example of that his work is a performance-avoidance goal.
intrinsic motivation (or mastery motive), the process
Simulate of being internally motivated to perform behaviours and over-
Survey: What coming challenges (e.g., a genuine desire to master a task rather easily and performed more poorly. Just under 70% of
Motivates You? than being motivated by a reward). these students selected performance/extrinsic goals
A study of Grade 5 students shows the profound when given a list of options. In contrast, only 10% of
effect that intrinsic and extrinsic motivation can have the students who were praised for their effort chose
on how we respond to challenges and to failures. Chil- performance/extrinsic goals when asked what moti-
dren were given sets of puzzle problems and were vated them. Instead, they focused on working hard,
asked to complete them independently. After success- overcoming challenges, and learning from their mis-
fully solving the first set of puzzles, some of the stu- takes. Even more stunning was the fact that the students
dents were praised for their intelligence (e.g., “You praised for being smart were three times more likely to
must be smart to do these problems”) while others lie about their results to other people. Almost 40% of
were praised for their work ethic (e.g., “You must the “smart” students lied about their results, compared
have worked hard at these problems”). The psychol- with only 13% of the “effort” students. In summary, the
ogists then gave the children another, more diffi cult, students praised for intelligence felt incredible pressure
set of problems to complete. This time, the researchers to live up to that label and went to great extents to
told the children that they had scored lower on these preserve that image, including selecting easier questions
questions. Finally, the children were asked to select and lying about their results. Based on this study, what
the goals that they tended to work toward. This list parenting techniques do you think would help kids
included performance/extrinsic goals such as choosing become well-adjusted?
easy questions to avoid getting many wrong, as well as
mastery/intrinsic goals such as selecting problems that A CONTINUUM OF MOTIVATION It is impor-
one could learn from. tant to note that intrinsic and extrinsic motivation are
The results of the experiment were remarkable. not completely separate. Rather, intrinsic motivation,
The children praised for being smart tended to feel less extrinsic motivation, and amotivation can be placed on
pleasure during learning and instead tended to worry a continuum that depicts how much self-determination
about how well they were doing. They gave up more an individual might feel for those behaviours (see
Figure 11.12). Critically, where a given behaviour lies
on this continuum can change over time or
across situations. For instance, if you give some-
Extrinsic Intrinsic
Amotivation
Motivation Motivation
one a reward (other than verbal praise) for an
intrinsically motivated behaviour, the intrin-
sic motivation decreases, as does the frequency
of the behaviour. This change in motivation is
Nonself-determined Self-determined known as the over-justification effect (Lepper et
al., 1973). This decrease in motivation is likely
{fig. 11.12} The Continuum of Self-Determination Theory On this continuum, amotiva-
tion would reflect very low levels of self-determination. Intrinsic motivation, on the other hand, due to the change from being internally moti-
would reflect a high degree of self-determination. vated (high autonomy) to being dependent

472 :: Module 11.3 : : Social and Achievement Motivation

upon a reward (low autonomy). So, if you loved bas- basketball player gains autonomy over this behaviour,
ketball, but then started receiving money from your because she is the one motivating it, not some external
parents for each basket, you would actually feel less source like a coach. Internalized behaviours are more
motivated to play than you did before! This effect has likely to be performed—and performed well—than
profound implications for parenting, education, and the extrinsically motivated behaviours that are not inter-
business world. For example, if a good student were nalized. The challenge, therefore, is to find a way to
given rewards for getting good grades, it might reduce increase the likelihood that behaviours will undergo
how much she identified herself with learning. Busi- this transition. In other words, how do you harness the
nesspeople who work in the hopes of getting a bonus power of intrinsic motivation?
monetary reward will be less likely to identify with the To answer this question, we have to remember that
projects or products they are working on. In both cases, intrinsic motivation is, in many ways, about a behaviour
the rewards have moved their motivation along the having some sort of meaning to an individual. Intrinsi-
continuum from intrinsic toward extrinsic. This isn’t to cally motivated behaviours are generally consistent with
say that rewards should never be given; sometimes this your values, are enjoyable, and are part of your image
is the only option to motivate someone. However, as of your future self (Sheldon et al., 2003). When you
we learn more about the over-justification effect, it is encounter a new situation, your motivational response
becoming increasingly clear that we need to more care- will therefore change depending upon whether it has
fully consider the effects of rewards on behaviours that meaning to you. For instance, most of us like to be fru-
were already intrinsically motivated. gal with our money. So, if you were asked to drive less
A different, but potentially more powerful, change and use public transportation more, you would be more
along the continuum can occur for behaviours that likely to internalize the idea of being a public transpor-
were initially extrinsically (externally) motivated. Gen- tation user if you thought about it in terms of saving
erally, these behaviours are not associated with much yourself money. In contrast, abstract ideas such as reduc-
passion, as some outside motivation (e.g., money or ing greenhouse gas emissions are less likely to grab your
another person) is stimulating this behaviour. But, attention because they are more difficult to attach a con-
over time, it is possible that some of these behaviours crete meaning to (Schultz & Zelezny, 2003).
will become internalized so that they are part of a per- But if personal meaning has a powerful effect
son’s identity. A basketball player might begin working on intrinsic motivation, could we alter motivation if
out because it will increase the odds that she will be we made a behaviour more or less meaningful? If we
recruited to play for a team and will become popu- wanted to influence other people’s motivation, could we
lar. Over time, however, she might become enthusias- tailor messages in such a way that we could increase their
tic about exercising for its own sake, and could make intrinsic motivation? And, could these changes allow us
that part of her identity long after her basketball career to convince people to behave in a way that would ben-
ended. By making exercising part of her identity, the efit not just themselves, but society as a whole?

in terms of energy conservation (Hayes, Young, & Sciortino,

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC 2012). How can psychology be used to motivate people to
LITERACY MODEL act in the environmentally friendly ways that Canadians claim
they value?
Framing,Values, and Pro-Environmental
Messages
What do we know
Although not all of you are avid campers who love to be about framing
covered in mud, it’s safe to assume that most of you want pro-environmental
the environment to be preserved and protected. Polls indi-
messages?
cate that a large proportion of Canadians are concerned
about air and water pollution, climate change, and the use Although most Canadians are sym-
of toxic chemicals (Environics, 2005a, 2005b). These people pathetic to environmental mes-
also agree that we have a responsibility to do everything we sages, there is little evidence that concern for the environment
can to address environmental issues (Ekos, 2003). That said, is linked to any consistent behaviour change (Oskamp et al.,
in July 2012, Canada was ranked 11 out of 12 wealthy nations 1991). Some experiments using extrinsic rewards have shown

Social and Achievement Motivation :: Module 11.3 :: 473

 short-term changes in behaviours (Geller et al., 1982); how- in an eco-friendly way increases people’s feelings of compe-
ever, as you would have guessed based on what you’ve read tence and autonomy, which makes them more likely to act.
in this module, these changes tend to disappear as soon as
Researchers have also found that framing a message in a way
the reward does (Aronson & Gonzales, 1990; Lehman & Gel-
that is congruent with a person’s values can influence the
lar, 2004). In order to maintain pro-environmental behavioural
likelihood that people will become intrinsically motivated. In
changes, psychologists have focused on framing messages in
one study, U.S. researchers asked 898 people from different
ways that promote intrinsic motivation.
political affiliations (Republican, Democrat, or independent
The framing effect states that when the correct course voters who were not linked to either party) whether they
of action is not obvious, the different phrasing of the question would support paying a surcharge for the carbon dioxide
or problem can produce different results (Tversky & Kahneman, emissions. However, they framed this question in two ways:
1981; see Module 8.2). Generally, if a situation is framed in as a “tax” or as an “offset.” The framing did not affect the
a positive way (e.g., “Reducing pollution will make our riv- Democrats. Republicans and independents, on the other
ers clean”), people choose the less uncertain option. This is hand, strongly opposed the same behaviour when it was
likely because positive emotions make the situation seem labelled a “tax” but were in favour of it when it was labelled
less threatening; therefore, there is less motivation to change an “offset.” The reason was that taxes are a value-laden term,
things. In contrast, if a situation is framed negatively (e.g., with Republicans in particular opposing, on principle, any tax
“If we don’t reduce pollution, then our streets will be filled (Hardistry et al., 2010).
with streams of deadly toxic waste”), then people choose
the most uncertain option because it appears that larger Can we critically
changes are needed (Piñon & Gambara, 2005). This tendency
is magnified when there is a particularly pressing need or
evaluate this evidence?
threat (Mishra et al., 2012). Note that both examples of mes- The idea of framing messages is
sages dealt with the same behaviour: reducing pollution. But, quite intuitive—advertisers, politi-
how the messages were conveyed differed dramatically and cians, and kids in trouble with their
could produce different results. Therefore, if people want to parents frame messages all the time.
create rapid behavioural change, this research would suggest But, to critically evaluate the effects of framing, we have to
that focusing on how environmental problems could have examine what the researchers are actually manipulating. In
frightening effects on humanity would influence how people the tax vs. offset study, a few words in a persuasive sentence
thought about these issues. were changed. This change then tapped into the participants’
values and past experiences, which then triggered some sort
How can science of emotional response (at least in Republicans and indepen-
dents). The result of this emotional response was a motiva-
explain the tion to support or oppose the proposed charge for carbon
framing of pro- use. Given the role that emotion appears to have on the sub-
environmental sequent behaviour, a critical evaluation of these effects has to
messages? examine whether the framing of an idea really does elicit dif-
ferent emotions. Brain-imaging research suggests that this is
Rothman and Salovey (1997) found that framing the message
the case. Framing a gambling decision in terms of how likely
in a threatening manner (e.g., driving your cars will create
you are to lose money activates fear centres in your brain
harmful greenhouse gas emissions) attracts more atten-
(De Martino et al., 2008). Emily Falk and colleagues (2010)
tion than framing messages in terms of benefits to society
have also shown that neural activity in the medial (close to
(e.g., using public transportation reduces greenhouse gas
the middle) region of your prefrontal cortex occurring in
emissions). But, framing messages in a fear-inducing manner
response to a persuasive message is linked with whether you
appears to lose its effect quickly; people tend to build up
will actually act on that message over the next week; this
defensive reactions (e.g., ignoring the message) after a while
same region is involved with a number of emotional func-
(Leventhal, 1970). So, given that so many Canadians are
tions. Although more research needs to be performed on
already aware of environmental dangers, this type of mes-
this topic, the existing evidence does suggest that framing,
sage framing will be unlikely to lead to increased motivation
emotion, and the motivation to act are related processes.
to perform pro-environmental behaviours.

Instead, researchers have focused on using self-determination Why is this relevant?

theory to promote environmentally friendly behaviours
(Pelletier et al., 1998). If people are already aware of a dan- Psychologists have noted that
ger, then approach-related messages that focus on a positive people who are intrinsically
outcome appear to be more effective, especially when the motivated to engage in pro-
message also explains the benefits of changing a behaviour environmental behaviours will continue to act this way even
(Pelletier & Sharp, 2008). This information about how to act if it is difficult to do so (e.g., having to drive recycling to a

474 :: Module 11.3 : : Social and Achievement Motivation

depot rather than having curbside pick up; Green-Demers
et al., 1997). The challenge for environmentalists, then, is to
increase the number of people who are intrinsically moti-
vated. Given that such a large proportion of Canadians are
concerned about the environment, the use of framing tech-
niques could motivate people to act on their emotions and
to internalize that motivation. But, as you read earlier in this
module, the message must include some information about
how a person can solve the problem (Gollwitzer, 1999). By
providing a person with possible actions that he or she can
perform to help solve an environmental problem, it increases
that person’s autonomy and feelings of competence because
they are able to do something; but, they aren’t being forced
into doing it (De Young, 2000). Goodluz/Fotolia

Quick Quiz 11.3b Achievement Motivation

1 If a student is a pre-med major because he is curious 3 What method would be most effective in helping
KNOW . . .

about how the body works and how it recovers from APPLY . . .
someone stop smoking?
disease, psychologists would say that he has ________ A Explain the dangers of smoking and provide photo-
motives. If the student is studying pre-med only graphs of its effects on a person’s body.
because he thinks this major will impress people, then
B Increase the extrinsic motivation she would feel
psychologists would say that he has ________ motives.
about stopping smoking.
A mastery; performance C performance; avoidance
C Give her encouraging messages as well as a list of
B performance; mastery D avoidance; mastery
specific ways to stop smoking.
D Have her run up and down hills until she coughs
2 An individual’s belief that he or she will be able to
and feels shame.
complete a task is known as
A implicit motivation. C approach motivation. Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
B self-efficacy. D avoidance motivation.

Social and Achievement Motivation :: Module 11.3 :: 475

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
11.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology of social and achievement

motivation:
achievement motivation (p. 470) intrinsic motivation (p. 472)
amotivation (p. 472) mastery motive (p. 472)
approach goal (p. 470) need to belong (p. 467) Nikita Buida/Fotolia
avoidance goal (p. 470) passionate love (p. 468)
companionate love (p. 469) performance motive (p. 471) APPLY . . .
extrinsic motivation (p. 471) self-determination theory (p. 471)
framing effect (p. 474) self-efficacy (p. 471) ● Theories of motivation to understand your personal
motivation to achieve in school or your career. How
would you describe your motivation for school? Are you
just trying to earn good grades, or do you find yourself
UNDERSTAND . . .
motivated because you are interested in learning? Complete
the four brief questionnaires included in Table 11.2 to see
● How people experience a need to belong. Psychologists
how your motives stack up relative to other students.
have discovered a number of ways in which people are
motivated to enter into personal relationships. People
seek out friendships, romantic relationships, and group ANALYZE . . .
membership to satisfy this need.
● How we can harness the power of intrinsic motivation. ● Claims that a sense of belonging is something people
Intrinsic motivation can be a powerful tool in our need versus something they want. Although belonging
attempts to achieve our goal. If we can make behaviours may not be the most basic type of need on the hierarchy
that used to be extrinsically motivated part of our identity, of needs—those positions are usually assigned to food,
a process known as internalization, then we are more water, and shelter—it is a significant need nonetheless.
likely to continue to perform those behaviours. A number Research has shown that living without a feeling of
of factors can influence this process including whether the belonging has some drastic consequences. Not only is
behaviour fits with a person’s values, is fun, is consistent loneliness related to depression, but it is also associated
with a person’s view of him- or herself, and has a clear with a reduced life [Link] fact that belonging is essential
behaviour associated with it (which will tap into a person’s to good health and longevity provides strong support for
need to feel competent). classifying it as a need, not just something people want.

Table 11.2 :: Application Activity

Thinking about your Psychology course, respond to each statement by assigning a score on a scale of 1 (“Not at all true of me”) to 7 (“Very true of
me”). Then find your average response for each set of three questions. Compare your scores to the averages for each score.

MASTERY PERFORMANCE
1. I want to learn as much as possible from this class. 1. It is important for me to do better than other students.
2. It is important for me to understand the content of 2. It is important for me to do well compared to others in
this course as thoroughly as possible. this class.
APPROACH 3. I desire to completely master the material presented 3. My goal in this class is to get a better grade than most of
in this class. the other students.
Average score: 5.52 Average score: 4.82
1. I worry that I may not learn all that I possibly could in 1. I just want to avoid doing poorly in this class.
this class. 2. My goal in this class is to avoid performing poorly.
2. Sometimes I’m afraid that I may not understand the 3. My fear of performing poorly in this class is often what
AVOIDANCE content of this class as thoroughly as possible. motivates me.
3. I am often concerned that I may not learn all that
Average score: 4.49
there is to learn in this class.
Average score: 3.89

Source: These items and the averages are provided in Elliot & McGregor, 2001.

476 :: Module 11.3 : : Social and Achievement Motivation

 Matteo photos/Shutterstock

Module

11.4 Emotion

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology How the nervous system Your knowledge of theories What purpose(s) do facial
After reading associated with emotion responds to emotions of emotion to new examples expressions serve
this module Cultural similarities and differences
you should in emotional expressions

Imagine the following scenario: You are sitting in your bedroom watch- feel fear. However, if it is a well-armed spider, then your initial emotional
ing television. Suddenly, you notice something moving beside one of your response may be appropriate.
textbooks. Your heart rate increases slightly and your palms begin to
This example illustrates the key parts of an emotional experience: We
sweat as you move closer to the moving object.
detect an emotional item, we have an initial emotional reaction preparing
At this point—before we know how this story resolves itself—it is us to respond, and then, after we analyze the situation, we increase or
important to examine some details about your emotional response. decrease that response. In this module, we will take a closer look at these
First, the “you” in this story was very quick to locate and pay attention different parts of our emotional responses in an effort to better under-
to a potentially threatening stimulus; nothing else in your environment stand the emotions that we experience every day.
seemed to matter for that instant. The moving object could have been a
leaf or clump of dust that was being moved by the air conditioning in your
house. Or, it could have been a spider or, worse yet, a spider with a knife.
Focus Questions
What is important to note is that before you were even able to con- 1 What role does the brain play in our emotional experiences?
sciously identify what the object was, your body was preparing itself to
2 How do the labels we give our emotions, such as fear, happiness,
act. You were afraid, and your body responded with an increase in heart
and sadness, relate to their corresponding physical sensations?
rate, sweating, and muscle tension. Once you’ve determined whether the
moving object was dangerous or not, you can either increase or decrease
your emotional reaction. If it is just a “dust bunny,” you don’t need to

Emotion :: Module 11.4 :: 477

 Watch THE INITIAL RESPONSE The human brain shows
The Big Picture: emotion-dependent responses within approximately
Motivation and 150 ms of seeing or hearing a potential threat (Pizzagalli
Emotion et al., 2002). The goal of this early activity isn’t to con-
sciously identify an emotional stimulus. Instead, the pur-
pose of this initial brain activity is to tag or highlight
that stimulus so that it receives extra processing by brain
structures at later stages of perception. For an example of
this phenomenon, look at Figure 11.13. There are many
different objects in this scene, yet you likely paid more
attention to the snake than to anything else. Why does
this happen? How does your brain make some stimuli
Darren Greenwood/Vibe Images/Alamy
more important than others, and what consequences fol-
Children who are born both deaf and blind show the same
low from that?
facial expressions and emotions as people who see and hear.
This is one of many pieces of evidence that our emotions have A critical brain area involved in this process is the
a strong biological basis. amygdala, a group of nuclei in the medial portion (near
the middle) of the temporal lobes in each hemisphere of
Simulate Like most concepts in psychology, the term “emo- the brain. The amygdala fires when we perceive stimuli
Transfer of Emotions tion” can mean a number of different things. Common that are emotionally arousing, and is especially sensitive to
convention in psychology is to define an emotion fear-relevant images and sounds. However, the firing of
as being a behaviour with the following three components: the amygdala on its own does very little—it is the amyg-
(a) a subjective thought and/or experience with (b) accom- dala’s projections to other brain structures that lead to the
panying patterns of neural activity and physical arousal and observable behaviours that we think of as being emotional
(c) an observable behavioural expression (e.g., an emotional [Link] the amygdala receives input about a stim-
facial expression or changes in muscle tension). Although ulus that might be emotionally meaningful or threatening,
this definition still includes thoughts and feelings, it it stimulates activity in sensory areas so that they fire more
also shows that our current understanding of emotion than they would for a non-emotional stimulus. So, when
encompasses other elements as well. In particular, it you see a spider or hear a dog growling, your amygdala
shows us that the emotions we experience include a will help to increase the activity in your visual and audi-
biological response. tory cortices, [Link] result is that we end up pay-
ing more attention to these potentially emotional stimuli.

Physiology of Emotion T H E AU TO N O M I C R E S P O N S E : F I G H T O R
In the example at the beginning of this module, FLIGHT? An emotional response obviously involves
we noted that emotional behaviours are actually quite more than simply perceiving a threat—we need to
complex and involve a number of different
components or stages. Each of these stages
uses a distinct set of brain regions. The brain
regions are connected to each other in such a
way that the firing associated with one stage
of an emotional response will influence the
patterns of firing associated with subsequent
stages of that response. Importantly, your
emotional system also allows for later stages to
provide feedback to earlier stages. This allows
you to modify your emotional responses as
you learn more about your situation. In this
section, we will discuss the different areas of
the nervous system that are involved in emo-
tions and will show how different areas work
together to produce the emotional behaviours Roy Toft/National Geographic/Getty Images
that have allowed our species to survive in a {fig. 11.13} An Example of How Emotional Elements of a Scene
dangerous world. Attract Our Attention

478 :: Module 11.4 : : Emotion

prepare our body to physically respond to the emo- Parasympathetic Sympathetic
tional stimulus, if necessary. Importantly, this preparation
needs to occur instinctively and as rapidly as possible. Pupils constricted Eyes Pupils dilated

The autonomic nervous system (ANS) specializes in such Salivating Mouth Dry
responses. As you read in Module 3.3, the ANS consists
of two systems: (1) the sympathetic nervous system, which No goose bumps Skin Goose bumps
helps recruit energy to prepare you for a response, and
Dry Palms Sweaty
(2) the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps pre-
serve energy and calms you down if no response is nec- Constricted
Lungs
Dilated
essary (Figure 11.14). Think back to the example at the passages passages

beginning of this module. If the moving object were Decreased rate Heart Increased rate
a large and angry spider, the sympathetic nervous sys-
tem would mobilize resources so that you had enough Directed toward
Directed to
internal organs Blood
energy to either do battle with this threatening crea- muscles
and muscles
ture or to run away from it. If you discovered that you
Decreased Adrenal Increased
weren’t in immediate danger (e.g., a moving object is a activity glands activity
leaf, not a spider), the parasympathetic nervous system
would become active in an attempt to return you to a Stimulated Digestion Inhibited
normal level of emotional arousal.

THE EMOTIONAL RESPONSE: MOVEMENT If

your body is going to mobilize its energy resources dur-
ing an emotional response, it also needs to plan for what
it is going to do with them. In other words, the nervous
system needs to prepare your body to make a movement
in response to the emotion you are experiencing (e.g., {fig. 11.14} The Autonomic Nervous System and Emotional Responding The
ANS is involved in emotional responding. The sympathetic division prepares the body
squishing the spider). The problem for us is that even
to respond to stress, and the parasympathetic division restores the body to normal
the simplest of movements requires the coordination of conditions.
a number of different parts of your nervous system so
that the muscles move in the appropriate order. Research regions of the spinal cord (Smith & Kornelsen, 2011).
in the last couple of years has found that emotional This activity suggests that our nervous system is becom-
stimuli—particularly threatening emotional stimuli— ing prepared to make a movement if one is necessary—
trigger an increase in activity in brain areas related to this preparation likely increases the speed and efficiency
planning movements (Pereira et al., 2010) and in several of our emotional responses.

Left: Art_man/Fotolia; right: Radius Images/Alamy

Would a snarling dog startle you? How about the prospect of speaking in front of your Psychology class? Autonomic arousal
prepares the body to respond to real or perceived threats.

Emotion :: Module 11.4 :: 479

 Slow Pathway (running away from the spider), the amygdala and ANS
influence the frontal lobes; in the second situation, the
frontal lobes send feedback that reduces the intensity of
Other cortical areas the initial emotional response. This constant communi-
Sensory cortex (detailed processing) cation between brain regions is an important charac-
teristic of our emotional system (Mayberg et al., 1999),
Fast Pathway and explains why we can sometimes feel emotionally
out of control and at other times feel “cool, calm, and
collected.”
Thalamus Amygdala

Quick Quiz 11.4a

Physiology of Emotion
1 The ________ influences the firing of your visual and

KNOW . . .
Fear Response
(facial expression, auditory cortex.
muscle tension, A hippocampus C amygdala
autonomic
nervous system B hindbrain D hypothalamus
activity)
2 After narrowly avoiding a car accident, your arousal

UNDERSTAND . . .
returns to a baseline state because of activity
Stimulus
in the ________.
{fig. 11.15} Emotion and the Amygdala The amygdala is a key brain structure in A sympathetic nervous system
the processing of emotion. Neuroscientist Joseph LeDoux has described this process- B parasympathetic nervous system
ing as functioning through both “slow” and “fast” pathways. Fast pathways are routed
from sensory areas of the brain through the amygdala and directly to the autonomic C hypothalamus
nervous system for quick action. The slow pathway is routed through the cortex where D amygdala
the situation is processed at a higher level of awareness.

3 Elizabeth has a form of epilepsy that cannot be

APPLY . . .

controlled by medications. In an effort to stop

Watch EMOTIONAL REGULATION As we saw in the her seizures, doctors removed the amygdala from
Emotion Processes example at the beginning of this module, it makes sense both sides of her brain. How should that affect her
and Aging: Susan from a survival standpoint to have rapid emotional experience of fear?
Charles
responses and then to decide if the responses are correct A She should have difficulties with emotional
regulation.
or not. However, this final, evaluative stage of emotional
B Her parasympathetic nervous system should no
responses is the most complex and involves a number of
longer function properly.
areas within our frontal lobes. The frontal lobes receive
C She should have a smaller initial reaction to
information directly from the amygdala and from sen-
emotional images.
sory areas whose activity is influenced by the amygdala
D She should be unaffected by this surgical
(see Figure 11.15 ). As a result, the frontal lobes have procedure.
access to highly detailed information about a stimulus
or situation. The frontal lobes must determine whether Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

the instinctive emotional response produced by earlier

stages of processing is the best one for that given situ-
ation. In some cases, the frontal lobes will analyze the
Simulate
situation and agree that an emotional response is neces- Experiencing Emotions
Emotion and
Motivation sary. It will then generate a behaviour that is appropri- Try this: hold a pencil or straw in your mouth sideways
ate for that situation (e.g., you should continue to run without letting your lips touch it—just your teeth. Wait
away from the spider). In other cases, the frontal lobes for a few seconds. How do you feel? Happy? Sad? Afraid?
will analyze the situation and decide that a stimulus is Why do you think you feel this way?
not emotional (e.g., the moving object was just dust When we think of the term emotion, we rarely think
or a leaf, not a spider). In this case, it is necessary to about complex interconnected responses in our brains.
decrease the emotional responses so that the ANS is not Instead, we think of the subjective, personalized feel-
depleting the body’s resources. So, in the first situation ings that we experience such as happiness or fear. For

480 :: Module 11.4 : : Emotion

example, we’ve already discussed how seeing an uniden- They noted that some of the internal organs involved
tified moving object in your bedroom can trigger activ- in emotional feelings could not respond quickly
ity in a number of physiological systems leading to the enough to be the first step in an emotional response.
firing of millions of neurons in your brain and in the They also suggested that the feedback from the body
autonomic nervous system throughout your body. But, was not specific enough to create the different emo-
you would think of that experience as a feeling of fear. tions that we experience. Instead, the Cannon-Bard
How are the physiological response and the psychologi- theory of emotion suggested that the brain interprets
cal feeling related? Which comes first and, importantly, a situation and generates subjective emotional feelings, and
how would one test this question? that these representations in the brain trigger responses in the
The earliest scientific theory of emotions was body. This theory suggests that these emotional pro- Watch
independently developed by William James, one of the cesses occur very quickly, so that the steps occur almost Basics: Theories
founders of psychology in North America, and a Dan- simultaneously. of Emotion and

ish researcher named Carl Lange. Now known as the For several decades, the Cannon-Bard theory Motivation

James-Lange theory of emotion, this view suggested was the most widely accepted view of our emotional Explore
that our physiological reactions to stimuli (e.g., a racing heart) behaviours. However, as clever researchers examined Physiological,
precede the emotional experience (e.g., the fear). In other emotions in more detail, this “common-sense” theory Evolutionary, and
words, your subjective feelings such as happiness or fear began to show its limitations (another example of Cognitive Theories of
follow your physiological responses. But, the James- scientific knowledge evolving). In fact, there is more Emotion
Lange theory goes one step further, claiming that your empirical support for the James-Lange theory than for
feeling of fear is determined by how your body responds. the Cannon-Bard theory. This is likely due to the fact
According to this theory, emotion would be experi- that some of the bodily feedback involved in emotional
enced in the following way: (1) based on your initial responses is caused by facial responses that have direct
perception of a stimulus, your heart starts to race, connections to the brain rather than by slow responses
(2) your brain receives feedback about that response, from internal organs. Indeed, the facial feedback
and then (3) the brain decides that based on the feed- hypothesis is a key feature in modern interpretations
back it has received, you should feel fear. This sequence of the James-Lange theory (see Figure 11.17 ). This
of events may contradict your own common sense hypothesis suggests that our emotional expressions can influ-
experience of emotion. If so, you are not alone. Some ence our subjective emotional states. So, if your lips are smil-
prominent researchers from the same era disagreed ing, you will feel happier. Did you feel happier when
with James and Lange. you held your pencil or straw in your teeth a few min-
Walter Cannon and Philip Bard developed an alter- utes ago? Research participants who performed this
native to the James-Lange theory (see Figure 11.16). action were essentially smiling whether they meant

Sensory Stimulus Emotional Emotional Sensory Stimulus Emotional Emotional

stimulus perceived expression and experience stimulus perceived expression and experience
physiological (fear) physiological (fear)
response response

James-Lange theory Cannon-Bard theory

{fig. 11.16}Competing Theories of Emotion What is the correct order of events when it comes to emotional experiences?
The James-Lange and Cannon-Bard theories differ in their predictions. Click on this figure in your eText to see more details.

Emotion :: Module 11.4 :: 481

 Additional studies in support of the James-Lange
theory note that physical touch can influence our emo-
tional experiences (Hertenstein et al., 2006). In one
such study, researchers had participants hold a warm
cup of coffee or a cup of iced coffee while describing
another person. Participants in the warmth condition
used “warmer” terms to describe the target individual
(e.g., generous and caring) than did participants in the
iced coffee condition (Williams & Bargh, 2008). In
another study examining bodily sensations and emo-
tions, researchers watched National Basketball Asso-
(a) (b)
ciation (NBA) games involving 294 players from a
{fig. 11.17} The Facial Feedback Hypothesis Psychologists have found that number of different teams. It turns out that the teams
inducing a facial expression, such as a frown or a smile, can have mild effects and players who do the most interpersonal touching—
on how people feel. This lends support to the facial feedback hypothesis.
fist-pumping, high fives, chest-bumping, etc.—are more
cooperative, score more points, and are more likely to
win (Kraus et al., 2010). These results, among many
to or not. As the facial feedback hypothesis predicted, others, suggest that how our body feels influences how
the participants reported elevated levels of happiness our brain responds.
(Strack et al., 1988).
What is a potential alternative explanation
for this result? If you tried this example in front
of other people, the answer would become readily
apparent:You look and feel silly. In order to rule out
the possibility that making any artificial face would
improve your mood, researchers had participants
make a different facial expression. Hold the pencil
sideways in your mouth using only your lips—don’t
let your teeth come into contact with the pencil.
The result is a slight pout. This is an experimental
method of producing a sad face and, sure enough,
it leads to a less positive mood (Larsen et al., 1992).
Research support for the facial feedback
hypothesis has been mixed. In support of this
hypothesis is a study by researchers who tested the
effect of BotoxTM injections on emotions (Havas et
al., 2010). Botox interferes with the movement of
muscles by inhibiting the release of the neurotrans-
mitter acetylcholine, which is found at the junc-
tions between muscles and nerves (see Module 3.2).
Less movement of the skin leads to fewer wrin-
kles. Although Botox injections can make some
people look younger, they also reduce the per-
son’s ability to move his or her face. Research
has shown that this impairment in facial move-
ment can slightly dampen emotional experiences.
However, the facial feedback hypothesis is not
supported by all studies. Researchers have shown
that surprise is not as affected by facial feedback
as other emotions (Reisenzen & Studtman, 2007). Peter Jones/Reuters/Corbis
Therefore, we need to be cautious about over- Players who engage in more interpersonal contact such as chest-
bumping and flying shoulder bumps play more cooperatively. Their
generalizing this hypothesis to all emotions and teams are also more likely to win. Can psychology improve the
all situations. Raptors?

482 :: Module 11.4 : : Emotion

 How can science
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC explain the
LITERACY MODEL two-factor theory?
The Two-Factor Theory of Emotion To t e s t t h i s t h e o r y,
Schachter and Singer per-
To this point, our discussion of emotions has focused on formed a study in which participants were given different
physical reactions. However, our emotional feelings also cognitive labels for the same physical feeling. These research-
involve thoughts, memories, beliefs, and interpretations of ers injected three groups of volunteers with adrenaline (epi-
different stimuli and situations. How do these different fac- nephrine), a stimulant that increases a person’s heart rate,
tors interact to produce our emotional experiences? In the causes sweating, and makes a person’s face feel warm and
1960s, two researchers developed a theory of emotion that flushed. So, all participants experienced the same physical
addressed this question. symptoms. However, the cognitive explanation for those
symptoms was manipulated by the experimenters. One
group of participants was correctly informed about the
What do we know symptoms (the Informed Group). Another group was pro-
about the two-factor vided no information at all; they were (politely) called the
theory of emotions? Ignorant Group. The third group of participants was given
incorrect information about the injection; these people
Researchers Stanley Schachter and
were told that adrenaline leads to numbing, itchiness, and
Jerome Singer (1962) agreed with
a slight headache (the Misinformed Group). Thus, only the
James and Lange that our physical
Informed Group had a correct cognitive explanation for
reactions give rise to our emo-
their physical feelings. A final group of participants was
tional experiences. However, they also pointed out that many
injected with a saline solution; this was the control condition.
different emotions can elicit physiological arousal. How do
The experimenters then had each participant sit in a room
we choose which emotion goes with this arousal? Schachter
with another participant who, in reality, was an actor paid to
and Singer suggested that it is our interpretation of why we
create an emotional scene. In one version of the study, the
are aroused that creates the emotional experience. Their
experimenters told the participants that they would have to
theory, the two-factor theory, holds that patterns of physical
wait for 20 minutes before receiving a vision test, and that
arousal and the cognitive labels we attach to them form the basis
they could doodle on the papers left in the room. After the
of our emotional experiences. Physical arousal is the first factor
experimenter left the room, the actor began to behave in an
to come into play (as James and Lange predict) and along
excited fashion, playing basketball with crumpled up paper
with this comes a cognitive label for the experience, such
and playing with props that had been left in the room (e.g.,
as “I am sad.” Combining the two factors, the physical and
hula-hoops). In other words, the actor was behaving euphori-
cognitive, gives rise to the emotional experience of sadness
cally (extremely happily). In other version of the study, the
(see Figure 11.18).
participants were asked to fill out questionnaires during the
20-minute delay period. The questions were quite personal
in nature, and oftentimes mildly offensive (e.g., “With how
many men (other than your father) has your mother had
extramarital relationships? 4 and under _____, 5–9 _____,
10 and over _____”). After reading these questions, the actor
became quite angry and tore up the sheet of paper while
swearing.
The question the experimenters wanted to answer was
whether the participant’s response to the actor was affected
by the cognitive explanation they had been given for the
Stimulus Cognitive Conscious effects of adrenaline. Presumably, if you knew that you were
perceived appraisal feeling going to have your heart rate increase due to a drug, then
accompanied by of fear
physiological response you would attribute any changes in your heart rate to the
drug, not to the actor. In contrast, if you didn’t know about
the effects of adrenaline, then you would assume that your
Schachter’s theory heart was racing because you were having an emotional
response to the actor. As predicted, in both the eupho-
ria and the anger conditions, the participants’ emotional
{fig. 11.18} Two-Factor Theory of Emotion According to responses were influenced by their ability to explain their
Schachter and Singer, emotions are experiences composed of physical symptoms. When people understood the adrenaline
physiological responses and the cognitive labels we give them. was going to make their heart race, they reported smaller

Emotion :: Module 11.4 :: 483

 Behavioural Indicators of Anger in
Schachter & Singer (1962)
3.5

2.5

Angry Behaviours
1.5

0.5

–0.5
Informed Ignorant Placebo
–1.5

–2.5
Condition

{fig. 11.19} Results from Schachter and Singer’s Study If

participants knew that their racing heart was due to a drug
injected by the experimenter, their emotional responses to the
actor in the study were smaller. This graph depicts the number
of angry statements and acts performed by participants in the
angry condition of the experiment.

emotional reactions to the actor than when they were igno-

rant of the drug’s effects (see Figure 11.19). This classic study
provided the first evidence that our cognitive interpretation
of an emotional event can have a dramatic effect on how we
experience that situation.

Can we critically
evaluate these findings?
One criticism of Schachter and
Sutton’s experiment is that it
might not apply to the real world.
Very few of us are given injections
Bill Aron/PhotoEdit
of adrenaline and made to watch someone acting in an
An example of the Thematic Apperception Test stimuli used
emotionally extreme manner. In order to test the gener-
in the Capilano bridge experiment. Males in the high-arousal
alizability of these results, Donald Dutton and Arthur Aron condition produced stories that included more sexual imagery
(1974) from the University of British Columbia performed than did participants in the control condition.
an innovative study that provided strong support for the
two-factor theory. In this study, a female experimenter told
male participants that she was investigating the effects of
scenic attractions on creative expression. Participants in the experimental condition included significantly more
were asked to cross a bridge before completing the The- sexual imagery in their stories than did participants in the
matic Apperception Test, an open-ended test in which par- control condition. The explanation for this result is that
ticipants create stories to go along with a set of pictures. the participants experienced stronger emotions when
The independent variable of this study was the bridge the crossing the bridge, but misattributed the arousal to the
participants crossed. In the control condition, individu- pictures. Stronger support for this explanation came from
als crossed a solid wooden bridge that was approximately an interesting addition to the study. After the participants
3 metres above a small, shallow stream. In the experimental had completed the Thematic Apperception Test, the female
condition, individuals crossed the Capilano Canyon Suspen- experimenter tore off a sheet of paper and wrote down
sion Bridge, which, as the name would suggest, crosses “her number” (a fake phone number set up by the experi-
the Capilano Canyon near Vancouver. This bridge was menters). Only 12.5% of the control participants phoned
120 metres long and had a tendency to sway, which created the woman’s number; 50% of the experimental participants
the impression that one was about to fall over the edge. The phoned the same woman. When participants experienced
bridge was 75 metres above rocks and rapids. Needless to emotional arousal, they interpreted it as attraction to the
say, the experimental condition would produce greater lev- experimenter. Keep this result in mind the next time some-
els of emotional arousal. Interestingly, participants who were one wants to take you to a scary movie for a first date.

484 :: Module 11.4 : : Emotion

 Why is this relevant?
Studies of the two-factor the-
ory of emotions show us that
although we do have rapid
physiological responses to emotional situations, it is our inter-
pretation of those events that leads to our emotional expe-
riences. This obviously doesn’t mean that you will never be
upset. But, knowing that you can control how you interpret
the emotional (or even the aggravating day-to-day) events of
your life means that you can try to reduce the negative effects
that emotional situations can have on you. So, ironically, a
study involving an injection of adrenaline and the induction of
Alison Wright/Alamy
angry emotions may help you become happier. It’s up to you.

Sudden changes in these levels suggest that the person is

Quick Quiz 11.4b experiencing stress, and may be hiding something. How-
Experiencing Emotions ever, after extensive testing, the polygraph was shown to be Watch
an inaccurate measure of lie detection; evidence gathered
1 Which of the following is a weakness of the James- Special Topics:
UNDERSTAND . . .

Lange theory of emotion? using this technique is not admissible in Canadian courts. Detecting Lies

A Cognitive appraisal is not a component. Fortunately, psychologist Paul Ekman and his col-
B The theory does not address the subjective feeling leagues (Ekman et al., 1999) have developed a new tech-
of emotion. nique for lie detection. Using videotapes of several research
C The theory ignores the role of physiological participants, Ekman and colleagues found that our faces
reactions. give us away when we try to lie. Although we can fake an
D Awareness always precedes physiological reactions emotional expression within a fraction of a second, our
during emotions. real emotional response can be seen on our faces before
this mask is in place. Ekman called these brief expressions
2 Raj’s mother tells him to smile more if he wants to feel
APPLY . . .

of our true feelings microexpressions, and is training police

better. She is applying the _______ theory of emotion. officers to detect them in order to catch criminals. But,
A Cannon-Bard C James-Lange
use your critical thinking skills for a moment: What do
B two-factor D slow/fast path microexpressions really tell you? Yes, the face is express-
ing someone’s inner state, and yes, it appears that a person
3 Nguyen is paralyzed from the neck down and does
is concealing how they are feeling. But, microexpressions
not experience the autonomic responses that usually
accompany fear. Despite this injury, he continues
cannot tell you why they are doing so. Instead, police offi-
to experience fear. Which theory of emotion is cers have to make assumptions about the person’s motives
contradicted by this observation? based on the microexpressions on his or her face.
A Cannon-Bard C James-Lange theory This all sounds very dramatic, but we make assump-
B Two-factor theory D Physiological theory tions about other people’s feelings and motives all the time.
It is quite rare for someone to tell you exactly how he or
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
she feels. Instead, you observe other people’s faces and body
movements in order to make an educated guess about what
thoughts and feelings are going on inside their heads. And,
Expressing Emotions they do the same with you. In this section of the module,
Are you a good liar? Can you tell when someone else is we will examine these processes, as well as how culture can
lying to you? How confident are you in your lie detection influence how emotions are expressed and interpreted.
abilities? Although most of us believe we are quite good at
spotting someone else’s deception, the truth is that our EMOTIONAL FACES AND BODIES Our primary
accuracy is quite poor. In order to fix this problem, research- method of communicating our emotional feelings is
ers attempted to create a lie detector test that measured the through our facial expressions. Each of these expressions
responses of our autonomic nervous [Link] machine, a has its own unique combination of muscle movements, Watch
polygraph, measures whether heart rate and sweating increase such as the crinkling of muscles near the eye (orbicularis IT Video: Basic
when a person responds to different events or questions. oculi) and the movement of the mouth (zygomatic major) Emotions

Emotion :: Module 11.4 :: 485

 during smiling. But why are certain combinations of
muscle movements associated with particular feelings?
Although researchers are still trying to solve parts of this
puzzle, researchers at the University of Toronto have high-
lighted some important characteristics of expressions of
fear and disgust. Imagine changing a really stinky diaper—
something even dung beetles would walk away from. The
powerful odour feels like it’s crawling up your nostrils.
Your natural reaction is to make a disgusted face, which
involves scrunching up your nose. This expression isn’t just
Paul Ekman, Ph.D./Paul Ekman Group, LLC for show, however. It also reduces airflow into your nos-
The meaning behind facial expressions changes with subtle trils, thus limiting the amount of the disgusting substance(s)
modifications. For example, one version of smiling is genuine,
that can enter your body (Chapman et al., 2009; Susskind
while another is reserved for social graces. Genuine smiles,
known as Duchenne’s smiles, involve a crinkling of muscles & Anderson, 2008). This makes evolutionary sense, as some
at the corner of the eye. Fake smiles tend not to have this disgusting substances could threaten a person’s health. In
crinkling (unless you practise, which is mildly creepy). contrast, when we experience fear, our eyes open wide
However, even if you learn to fake your emotions, your face
can give you away. Psychologist Paul Ekman (pictured above) and we tend to inhale deeply (Susskind et al., 2008). This is
Explore
has shown that our real emotional responses appear on our likely due to the fact that when we’re afraid, we are being
Recognizing Facial faces for a fraction of a second before being covered up with threatened and therefore need to be able to take in as much
Expressions of our social mask.
information as possible in order to develop the best plan
Emotions
of action to keep ourselves safe. These results show that
the strange facial geometry that makes up our emotional
expressions is not random—our expressions have a purpose
that will enhance our ability to survive (see Figure 11.20).
Importantly, these expressions appear all over the
world, suggesting that they are an innate part of being
human. Charles Darwin (1872) was the first person to
recognize that facial expressions of emotion were univer-
sal. During his extensive travels, he noted that people from
different cultures formed similar facial expressions and
were able to understand the emotions of others. In the
late 1960s, Paul Ekman performed cross-cultural studies
that supported Darwin’s hypothesis. Ekman and his col-
leagues photographed North Americans expressing six
basic emotions—fear, happiness, disgust, anger, surprise,
and sadness. They then travelled to an isolated region of
35
Fear Papua New Guinea (an island country north of Australia)
25 Disgust to see if individuals who were unfamiliar with Caucasian
Volume (mm3) minus

faces could still recognize the emotions they displayed.

neutral ± s.e.m.

15
Sure enough, tribesmen from the Fore ethnic group were
3

5 able to accurately identify the emotions of the actors

(Ekman & Friesen, 1969). The researchers then asked the
–5 tribesmen to make their own facial expressions for each
emotion. As would be expected, research participants in
–15
the U.S. were able to recognize these emotions as well.
–25 But, facial expressions aren’t our only way of commu-
nicating our emotional states. Imagine that you are sitting
{fig. 11.20} Nostril Airflow Associated with Disgust and
Fear The images depict the opening of nasal passageways dur-
across a table from someone that you find attractive. Or,
ing the experience of disgust (left), a neutral emotion (centre), what if you found the person annoying and really wished
and fear (right). Note that the passageways are constricted your friend would return from the washroom so that
during disgust, but opened wider during fear. This difference is
you could leave? Even if you didn’t express any emotion
reflected in the volume of airflow breathed in during each facial
expression. with your face, your body would likely give away what
Source: Image from Susskind et al. (2008). Nature Neuroscience, 11, p. 846. you were feeling in both situations. Body language provides

486 :: Module 11.4 : : Emotion

Paul Ekman Group, LLC
Individuals in isolated areas of the world were able to identify
Biomotion Lab, Queen’s University. Published in: Troje NF (2002) Journal of
the emotions expressed by these faces, suggesting that these
expressions are universal. Vision 2:371–387. [Link]
Point-of-light technology can be used to infer a number of characteristics from a
person’s biological motion, including his or her emotional state. See [Link]
.[Link]/Demos/[Link].
almost as much emotional information as facial expressions;
it also activated a number of similar brain areas (de Gelder
& Hadjikhani, 2006). Researchers at Queen’s University about embarrassing situations. In North America, we tend
have created a novel method of examining body language to blush and look away when embarrassed. In Japan, on the
and biological motion. Experimental stimuli are created other hand, people tend to smile. They aren’t happy, but do
by attaching motion capture sensors to different parts of their best not to show embarrassment. As another example,
people’s bodies and having them make different move- think about funerals. The British norm is to “keep a stiff
ments such as walking. By averaging the types of move- upper lip” and to limit the emotions one shows. At Irish
ments across a number of individuals, it is possible to see funerals, people are singing and very few beer mugs are
the different body movement patterns of men and women, empty. The people at both types of funerals are equally
happy and sad people, and nervous or relaxed people (Troje upset, but express their grief in different ways. Culture-
2002a, 2002b, 2008). Importantly, like the recognition of specific display rules such as these can be found the world
faces, detecting characteristics of body language and body over and show us that we need to be cautious about over-
motion appears to be universal, as many of the effects were generalizing the meaning of different displays of emotions
observed in Mundurucu indigenous people in Amazonian (Elfenbein et al., 2007).
regions of Brazil (Pica et al., 2011). In addition to trying to understand which emotion
is being displayed, people also must attempt to figure out
C U LT U R E , E M O T I O N , A N D D I S P L AY why a person is expressing that emotion. How this inter-
RULES Despite the universality of many aspects of emo- pretation is performed seems to differ across cultures.
tion, people raised within a specific culture show character- Some cultures (e.g., Western countries) focus on the per-
istics that are specific to their region (Elfenbein & Ambady, son expressing the emotion; people in other cultures (e.g.,
2003). Put simply, cultural groups have unique emotional Asian countries) tend to also pay attention to those around
dialects, or variations across cultures in how common emotions the person expressing that emotion. So, do these differ-
are expressed. For example, people from North America and ent ways of looking at a situation translate into differences
from Gabon (a country in West Africa) both experience in how people of various cultures interpret emotions? To
contempt. However, North Americans are more likely to answer this question, psychologists asked students from
lower their brow, and Gabonese people are more likely to both Western and Asian universities to judge the emotion
raise their upper lip when expressing this emotion. of the central figure in the scenes depicted in Figure 11.21.
The situation or context is a major factor in determining Western students tended to focus on the facial expression Watch
when members of different cultures express specific emo- of the central figure. Thus, if the individual was smiling, Interview: Shinobu
tions. Display rules refer to the unwritten expectations we have they would report he was happy, and they did not inter- Kitayama
regarding when it is appropriate to show a certain emotion. Think pret his happiness with respect to how the surrounding

Emotion :: Module 11.4 :: 487

 {fig. 11.21} How is the man in the middle of these pictures feeling?

Americans Japanese

50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100
Ratio of the attention to the centre figure

{fig. 11.22} East–West Differences in Interpreting

Emotion In comparison to Asian people, Westerners spend
more time looking at the focal individual in a scene and inter-
pret his or her emotions without reference to surrounding indi-
viduals (Masuda et al., 2008).

DDAA/ZOB WENN Photos/Newscom

Even in the most formal occasions, and even among royalty, it can be impossible to
stifle emotions. Web surfers were thrilled to catch England’s Prince Harry succumbing
to a fit of laughter during this formal state ceremony. What could have been so funny?
Quick Quiz 11.4c
Expressing Emotions
1 A(n) ________ refers to when it is appropriate to
KNOW . . .

people appeared to feel. In contrast, Asian students inter-

show a specific emotion.
preted the central figure’s emotion in reference to what
A emotional dialect C context rule
people in the background might be feeling (Masuda
B display rule D display dialect
et al., 2008). So, in the right panel of Figure 11.21, a West-
erner might report that the central figure was happy, while
2 Which of the following is an example of an emotional
UNDERSTAND . . .

an Asian person might assume that the central figure was dialect?
happy at the expense of the other people.
A Experiencing anger
The tendency for Asian students to focus on people
B Avoiding laughter in church
in the background was further confirmed in two differ-
C Raising one’s chin in contempt
ent ways. First, Asian students were more accurate than
Western students in remembering whether they saw spe- D Smiling as a sign of happiness
cific individuals in the background. Also, using a device
that tracks the eye movements of the participants, the 3 Which of the following is an example of a display rule?
A Biting one’s lip in embarrassment
researchers discovered that Asian students spent more time
actually looking at the entire picture, rather than just the B Dropping one’s jaw in surprise

central character (Figure 11.22; Masuda et al., 2008).These C Suppressing anger during a debate

results indicate that although the perception of emotional D Expressing happiness to a loved one
expressions is universal, the interpretation of why those Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
expressions are being displayed is very culture-dependent.

488 :: Module 11.4 : : Emotion

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
11.4
KNOW . . .

• The key terminology associated with emotion:

amygdala (p. 478) facial feedback hypothesis
Cannon-Bard theory of emotion (p. 481)
(p. 481) James-Lange theory of emotion Matteo photos/Shutterstock
display rules (p. 487) (p. 481)
emotion (p. 478) two-factor theory (p. 483)
emotional dialects (p. 487)

UNDERSTAND . . .

● How the nervous system responds to emotions. Our

biological responses to emotions occur in many different
parts of our nervous system. Our brain has a rapid-
response system involving the amygdala, which can fire
within a few hundred milliseconds. This system triggers
activity in other brain areas and influences how much
attention a stimulus will receive. Our sympathetic nervous
system also responds quickly. Soon after, brain and spinal
cord areas related to movement become active in order
to prepare us for a response. Finally, frontal lobe regions
examine the situation to determine whether we should {fig. 11.23} Application Activity
continue the emotional response or change our behaviour
to conserve energy.
● Cultural similarities and differences in emotional expres- What is important about this exercise is not which
sions. Emotions such as fear, anger, happiness, sadness, figure you chose; rather, it is the application of emotion
surprise, and disgust appear to be human universals—all theories to the problem. Consider the facial feedback
people experience them regardless of culture. At the study, and try to explain how the head movements could
same time, we cannot completely explain human emotions potentially influence one’s preference for a symbol. This
without references to cultural variation in the form of module provided examples of what researchers have
dialects and display rules. found using similar techniques.

APPLY . . .
ANALYZE . . .

● Your knowledge of theories of emotion to new examples. ● What purpose(s) do facial expressions serve? Facial
Try this exercise. Spend 10 seconds looking at the Sanskrit expressions allow us to show the outside world what we
figure on the left in Figure 11.23 while slowly nodding are feeling. But, they serve other functions as well. For
your head. Now, spend about 10 seconds looking at the instance, facial expressions of disgust actually restrict the
figure on the right while slowly moving your head from amount of air entering the body, possibly to protect us
side to side. from contaminants. Expressions of fear serve to increase
Now, imagine that you had to choose one image to the amount of sensory information available to us, thus
display on the wall of your home. Which one would you helping us to select the more appropriate response to
choose—the one on the left or the one on the right? that stimulus or situation.

Emotion :: Module 11.4 :: 489

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Emotion

1 What do we know about theories of emotion?

Figures 11.16 (p. 481) and 11.18 (p. 483) review the three major
2 How can science help explain emotional
responses?
theories of emotion covered in this chapter. If you are trying to differentiate As discussed on page 481, research on the facial feedback
between them, it may help to remember that they vary in the order of the vari- hypothesis supports the idea that our emotional responses are
ous responses. According to the James-Lange theory, if you saw an aggressive dog influenced by the bodily processes that precede [Link] we
(stimulus), your heart would race (physiological response) and you would feel smile, mood can be elevated and when we frown, mood can be
fear (emotional response). But according to the Cannon-Bard theory, you would dampened. Brain-imaging studies suggest that all of the emotions
see the aggressive dog (stimulus), and then experience a racing heart and a feeling we feel regularly involve components of the nervous system, and
of fear simultaneously (physiological and emotional response). In the cognitive cat- that certain areas of the brain are more active depending on the
egory, Schachter-Singer’s two-factor theory holds that the dog (stimulus) would emotion being experienced. There is also evidence that cells in
cause your heart to race (physiological response); you would label that response our spinal cords show increased activity in response to emo-
“I am afraid” (cognitive response) and then feel fear (emotional response). tions, suggesting that our bodies are preparing to respond.
A common thread running through these theories is the agreement on the Emotional experience is also influenced by cultural factors.
biological basis for emotional responding. The amygdala is a key player in the Scientists have observed some emotions across all cultures,
body’s initial response to a stimulus, and specialized structures in the brain although emotional dialects and display rules alter how and
stimulate the body by sending messages to the autonomic nervous system when they are expressed.
(Figure 11.14 on page 479)

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video
excerpt on the theories of motivation and
[Link] can access the video at MyPsychLab
or by clicking the play button in the centre of Dudarev Mikhail/Shutterstock

3
your eText. If your instructor assigns this video
Can we critically evaluate claims about emotional
as a homework activity, you will find additional content to help
responses?
you in MyPsychLab. You can also view the video by using your
smart phone and the QR code below, or you can go to the You- While the facial feedback hypothesis provides some support for the
Tube link provided. James-Lange theory of emotion, the fact that some emotions can be
experienced in the absence of facial expression seems inconsistent with
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, imagine
the theory. Also, research investigating the usefulness of a polygraph, a
you are walking alone late at night and hear footsteps behind you.
“lie detector test” that relies on responses from the autonomic nervous
Think about your emotional reaction to this situation. Consider
system, suggests that physiological responses do not always predict emo-
the major theories of emotion: James-Lange theory, Cannon-Bard
tional responses. Finally, the fact that patients with damage to the spinal
theory, and Schachter-Singer theory. From the perspective of
cord can still experience some emotions despite not having much feed-
these major theories of emotion, describe how each would pre-
back from the body suggests that this feedback might not be necessary
dict the sequence of events that would occur as you experience a
for emotional experiences (although it may still play a supporting role
reaction to this situation.
in these experiences). These results imply that the James-Lange theory
might only be a part of the full explanation for how we feel emotions.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]//wor
[Link]/workthemodel
work
kthemo
kth
hemod
de
del
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

490 :: Chapter 11 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 12
Personality
12.1 Contemporary Approaches to
Personality
● The Trait Perspective p. 493
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Right-Wing Authoritarianism
at the Group Level p. 498
● Behaviourist and Social-
Cognitive Perspectives p. 502
● Module Summary p. 505

12.2 Cultural and Biological Approaches

to Personality
● Culture and Personality p. 507
● How Genes Affect Personality p. 511
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
From Molecules to Personality p. 512
● The Role of Evolution
in Personality p. 514
● The Brain and Personality p. 517
● Module Summary p. 520

12.3 Psychodynamic and Humanistic

Approaches to Personality
● The Psychodynamic
Perspective p. 523
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Perceiving Others as a Projective Test p. 530
● Alternatives to the Psychodynamic
Approach p. 532
● Humanistic Perspectives p. 533
● Module Summary p. 535

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 536
ollyy/Shutterstock
 Patrick Sheandell O’ Carroll/Glow Images

Module

12.1 Contemporary Approaches to Personality

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology The behaviourist The Big Five personality The personality roots of violence and prejudice
After reading associated with contemporary and social-cognitive traits to understand The relative roles of personality
this module approaches to personality views of personality your own personality traits and psychological and physical
you should states in determining behaviour

What does your living space say about you? That alphabetized bookshelf superficial details about yourself. For example, your book collection and
and bathroom full of grooming products suggest conscientiousness. The most treasured belongings may be very revealing, but what about the
photos of Mount Everest and major European cities reveal an openness clothing strewn all over the floor? Does it mean that you are a lazy slob?
to experiencing new and exciting things. The three pet cats and extensive Or that you are ambitious and live a busy life? Or simply that you are
DVD collection? Possibly signs of an introverted homebody. enjoying the freedom of not living with your parents? Which is more
appropriate as an explanation: the dispositional (i.e., rooted in the kind of
It might sound like we are just making assumptions here, but scien- person you are) or the situational (i.e., external, circumstantial factors)?
tific research backs up the notion that personality can be measured by A key challenge for personality psychologists is figuring out how our per-
examining the details of our dwellings. Psychologist Sam Gosling and his sonalities and circumstances work together in shaping our behaviour. This
students have, with permission, closely scrutinized people’s offices and raises many important questions, to be addressed later in this module.
bedrooms for clues about their personality (Gosling, 2008; Gosling et al.,
2002). Teams of seven or eight observers entered people’s bedrooms and
offices and rated the personality types of the occupants with a standard- Focus Questions
ized personality test. Not only did the observers reach close consensus
1 What are the basic traits that make up human personality?
on many measures of personality, but their ratings also matched up with
how the occupants rated their own personality. 2 To what extent are our preferences, thoughts,
and behaviours determined by situational factors
If you look around your own room, some parts of it may symbolize versus more stable personality traits?
the “core” of who you are, whereas others reflect less “deep,” more

492 :: Module 12.1 : : Contemporary Approaches to Personality

What is personality? Psychologists describe personality what types of people are more or less likely to engage in
as a characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and behaving that certain behaviours, which is an important step toward
is unique to each individual, and remains relatively consistent being able to change behaviours of societal importance,
Explore
over time and situations. Psychologists have long searched such as substance abuse or energy conservation. Approaches to
for a theory of personality that would describe and The key to nomothetic research is to identify the Personality
explain how people develop these patterns. One major important personality traits that are related to whatever
challenge for the field has been to develop measures of it is that you are interested in understanding.
people’s personalities, which has resulted in two broad
approaches to personality measurement: the idiographic
approach and the nomothetic approach. The Trait Perspective
When you try to figure out the people you know So, who are you anyway? What kind of person are you?
very well, you probably intuitively adopt an idiographic Try to answer these questions. Seriously—stop
approach, focusing on creating detailed descriptions of a spe- reading right now, take out a piece of paper, and try
cific person’s unique personality characteristics. So, when you to describe the kind of person you are. Write down
are “trying to figure yourself out,” trying to understand “I am . . .” and complete the sentence 10 times.
why your cousin Bobby is so weird, or why your friend Okay, now take a look at your list. If you’re like most
Alexis keeps making such terrible relationship choices, people, your list probably has quite a few personal-
you are taking an idiographic approach. ity traits—words like extraverted or introverted, funny,
Idiographic approaches are helpful not only for ambitious, lazy, anxious, and easy-going. A personality
understanding yourself and your social world, but also trait describes a person’s habitual patterns of thinking, feel-
can be applied to the full range of human experience, ing, and behaving; how that person is “most of the time.”
from the most disturbed to the healthiest and most highly Trait descriptors are useful as short-cuts to understand-
functioning individuals. For example, criminal profilers ing people. Traits summarize a great deal of information
may focus on a detailed study of a serial killer in order to about a person, and help to predict how that person will
help police in their investigation. At the other extreme, behave across a range of different situations. For example,
Abraham Maslow wanted to understand the people an “extraverted” person is more likely to be comfortable
who had lived up to their fullest potential, who were in in social situations, go to parties, and have a large num-
Maslow’s terms, “self-actualized.” Accordingly, Maslow ber of friends than someone who is “introverted.”
performed detailed analyses of the biographies of famous As you can imagine, many different traits could be used
people who were widely regarded as being wise and fully to describe people, such as “shy,” “cheerful,” “outgoing,” and
functioning (Maslow, 1970). Maslow’s findings launched “adventurous.” The first systematic attempt to identify all
decades of work trying to uncover what makes human possible traits (in the English language) was made in the
beings thrive and develop to their maximum potential. 1930s by Gordon Allport, who tallied nearly 18 000 English
In contrast, psychologists who take a nomothetic words that could be used to describe an individual’s physi-
Watch
approach examine personality in large groups of people, with cal and psychological attributes (Allport & Odbert, 1936). Classic Footage of
the aim of making generalizations about personality structure. (Perhaps Allport himself would be described as “patient,” Gordon Allport on
Rather than trying to understand a specific person, psy- “methodical,” and “weird to talk to at a party.”) Allport then Personality Traits
chologists taking a nomothetic approach may want to developed a theory of personality structure by organizing
understand the factors that predict certain behaviours these words into traits, launching a strong trend in person- Watch

across people in general. ality psychology that continues to this day—attempting to Thinking Like a
Psychologist:
There are many examples of nomothetic research in identify and measure the key personality traits.
Measuring Personality
Canadian universities. Dr. Gordon Flett at York Univer- To accomplish this, trait researchers have devised a
sity has examined personality predictors of alcohol, drug variety of personality tests. Some tests present a list of
use, and depression in university students (e.g., Flett et al., trait labels and ask an individual to rate how well the
2009; Goldstein et al., 2009; Goldstein & Flett, 2009). Dr. trait describes him or her. Other measures present spe-
Lawrence Walker at the University of British Columbia has cific behaviours that represent traits. Items on these
sought to identify the “moral personality,” seeking the per- kinds of personality tests might, for example, ask you to
sonality factors that predict courage and heroism (Walker rate your agreement with statements such as “I like to
& Frimer, 2007; Walker et al., 2010). Dr. Jacob Hirsh at the meet new people” to assess how outgoing you are. These
Rotman School of Management in Toronto has examined approaches have spawned countless “personality scales.”
the personality predictors of pro-environmental motiva- Some, like the ones used in psychology research and
tions (Hirsh, 2010; Hirsh & Dolderman, 2007). Taking a described later in this chapter, are rigorously evaluated.
nomothetic approach allows psychologists to examine Others, like the ones you find in popular magazines, are

Contemporary Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.1 :: 493

 of questionable value. For example, Cosmopolitan regu- of questionable validity are so widely believed, as well as
larly includes “personality scales” in which you can dis- horoscopes, astrologers, psychics, and the like.
cover all sorts of things about yourself; while it is possible In contrast, rigorous empirical research over the
that Cosmo has a team of highly qualified psychologists past several decades has narrowed the many potential
Listen rigorously designing these scales, we do recommend that personality traits into a small number of factors. The sta-
Psychology in the you not base your life decisions on your results to the tistical technique called factor analysis is used to group
News: Theories “Are You Enough of a Bad Girl?” quiz. items that people respond to similarly; for instance, the terms
of Personality—
It is clear that people love to know “what kind of per- friendly, warm, and kind have similar meanings, and can be
Personality Tests
son they are.” However, it is often easier to make people grouped in a cluster, referred to as a factor.
believe that you are measuring their personality than it is to
Watch
actually measure it. In fact, it is remarkably easy for people THE FIVE FACTOR MODEL Using factor analysis,
In the Real World:
Popular Personality
to be convinced that a personality profile describes them psychologist Raymond Cattell (1946) narrowed the list
Assessments well. Surprisingly, this can occur even when the profile is of key personality traits to 16, thereby simplifying and
patently false and was not generated to describe them at all. standardizing the number of dimensions psychologists
This is popularly known as “the Barnum effect,” after the needed to describe the composition of personality. Forty
circus showman P. T. Barnum, due to his apparent state- years later, McCrae and Costa (1987) created the Five
ment “there’s a sucker born every minute.” (Ironically, P. T. Factor Model, a trait-based theory of personality based on
Explore Barnum never actually said this quote, which is widely the finding that personality can be described using five major
The Five Factor attributed to him [Saxon, 1989].) The Barnum effect hear- dimensions ; this model has become the most popular
Model kens back to the late 1940s, when psychologist Bertram trait-based approach for academic personality research-
Forer gave research participants a personality test and then ers, and has been cited in hundreds of research articles.
generated a description of subjects’ personalities, which they To understand the Big Five traits, consider what char-
believed was based on their test responses. Participants found acteristics are associated with people high and low on that
the profiles very convincing; when asked to rate how well [Link] are the “kinds of people” described by each trait
the profile described them, on a scale ranging from 0 (very (see Figure 12.1):
poor) to 5 (excellent), the average rating was an impressive Openness: Individuals high in openness (high Os) are
4.26. Astonishingly, however, every participant was given the dreamers and creatives; they tend to be more “open”
the exact same personality description (Forer, 1949)! to new things (no big surprise there . . .)—ideas, opinions,
As you can see from the profile Forer used below, and perspectives that differ from theirs, and new ways of
the statements were fairly general and most could apply seeing a problem that they had not considered. They are
to most people, at least some of the time. It is easy for more open to new experiences, tending to be curious
people to see themselves in statements such as “While and appreciative of art and unusual ideas. As a result, they
you have some personality weaknesses, you are gener- often hold beliefs that would be considered “unconven-
ally able to compensate for them,” and of course, just tional.” High Os are also likely to think more abstractly
about everybody tends to be extraverted sometimes and and to be more sensitively aware of their emotions.
introverted other times, or to have unrealistic goals. The Individuals low in openness (low Os) are the defend-
Barnum effect may be a key reason why personality tests ers of the system, preferring the conventional, the tried
and true. They avoid the unknown and find security in
the known. They prefer things that are tangible rather than
symbolic, priding themselves on being “practical.” Low Os
You have a great need for other people to like and admire you. You have a tendency prefer things to be straightforward and generally dislike
to be critical of yourself. You have a great deal of unused capacity that you have not subtlety and complexity. They approach new information
turned to your advantage. While you have some personality weaknesses, you are gen- somewhat defensively—preferring to learn about things
erally able to compensate for them. Your sexual adjustment has presented problems
they already believe in, and paying less attention to infor-
for you. Disciplined and self-controlled outside, you tend to be worried and insecure
mation that challenges their perspective. Low Os tend to be
inside. At times you have serious doubts as to whether you have made the right
decision or done the right thing. You prefer a certain amount of change and variety
resistant to change and suspicious of their emotions, placing
and become dissatisfied when hemmed in by restrictions and limitations. You pride more emphasis on the attempt to be rational and logical.
yourself as an independent thinker and do not accept others’ statements without Conscientiousness: Highly conscientious people (high
satisfactory proof. You have found it unwise to be too frank in revealing yourself to Cs) are the organizers—efficient, self-disciplined, and
others. At times you are extroverted, affable, sociable, while at other times you are dependable. They are the ones who meet deadlines, plan
introverted, wary, and reserved. Some of your aspirations tend to be pretty unrealis- ahead to achieve their goals, and are comfortable with
tic. Security is one of your major goals in life. schedules and lists, although at the expense of being
flexible and spontaneous at times. High Cs are great

494 :: Module 12.1 : : Contemporary Approaches to Personality

 OPENNESS

EXTRAVERSION CONSCIENTIOUSNESS

PERSONALITY

NEUROTICISM AGREEABLENESS

Characteristics of Characteristics of
Factor
High Scorers Low Scorers

Creative, artisitic, Conventional,

OPENNESS curious, imaginative, down-to-earth
nonconforming

Ambitious, Unreliable, lazy, casual,

CONSCIENTIOUSNESS organized, reliable spontaneous

Social, enjoy high Reserved, enjoy

EXTRAVERSION low levels of
levels of stimulation
stimulation

Rude, uncooperative,
Good-natured, trusting,
AGREEABLENESS irritable, hostile,
supportive
competitive

Worried, insecure, Tranquil, secure,

NEUROTICISM anxiety-prone emotionally stable

{fig. 12.1} The Big Five Personality Dimensions A widely used measure of personality is the NEO-PI-R. Individuals rate
themselves on multiple questions that reflect the traits of openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroti-
cism. (To help you remember the Big Five, note that the first letters of the traits spell out OCEAN.)

employees and students, tending to achieve more in their meeting deadlines. Although they may want to perform
careers due to their achievement orientation and ten- well at a task, they have difficulty disciplining themselves
dency to get things done on time. They also live longer, enough to actually get things done. Low Cs feel uncom-
perhaps because they are more likely to engage in the fortable with schedules and detailed plans, preferring to
positive health behaviours (e.g., eating well and exercis- “be in the moment.” Although low Cs suffer somewhat in
ing regularly) that the less conscientious among us never life due to their lack of self-discipline, they benefit by not
quite get around to doing. . . . being as stressed about details and able to still enjoy them-
Low Cs are the easy-going ones, fun to hang out with, selves when things don’t go according to plan.
but not so great as collaborators on a project. Low Cs tend Extraversion: Extraverts (high Es) are the socializ-
to be disorganized, careless with details, and have difficulty ers and sensation seekers. They are comfortable in more

Contemporary Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.1 :: 495

 stimulating environments, and thus love the company of makes these feelings persist, and persist, and persist. As a
others, being seen as outgoing and energetic. Extraverts result of their difficulties regulating negative emotions,
tend to be more assertive, talkative, and enthusiastic, pre- high Ns are the most vulnerable to anxiety and depres-
ferring high levels of stimulation and excitement much sive disorders.
of the time. They are fun to be around, but sometimes Low Ns, on the other hand, are the prototypical
take things too far, as their love of stimulation puts them mentally healthy people. They tend to be secure and
at higher risk for dangerous activities such as substance confident, let go of negative emotions easily, and are
abuse. highly resilient to stress. Rather than “blowing things out
Introverts (low Es) are the quiet ones. Although they of proportion,” the low Ns take the good with the bad,
like social contact, introverts also need time for solitary and deal with problems as they arise, but feel no need to
activities and “recharging their batteries.” They can be create problems where there aren’t any, or to obsessively
overwhelmed by the high levels of stimulation preferred look for problems until they find them. Low Ns are
by extraverts, so while the extraverts party it up and excellent at managing their emotions, and are regarded
compete for all the attention, the introverts sit on the by others as “stable.”
couch in the corner having great conversations with a Taken together, the Big Five factors are extremely
friend or two. Introverts tend to be more cautious and useful for understanding people’s behaviours, thoughts,
reserved, and they are great when you need someone to and emotions, and predicting why people do the things
really talk to. that they do. And that’s what we really want to know,
Agreeableness: If highly agreeable people (high As) right? That’s what this whole psychology business is
were dogs, they would be golden retrievers. These warm all about, figuring out why people do the things they
and friendly people are easy to like, easy to be friends do. Nevertheless, despite the usefulness of the Big Five,
with, easy to have as part of your group. They are kind, psychologists often find that there are other personality
compassionate, empathetic, and tend to be helpful and traits, outside of the Big Five, that are useful for under-
altruistic. They place strong value on getting along with standing certain things, such as why people do things
people and are generally willing to put their own inter- that are “evil.”
ests aside in order to please others or avoid conflict.
Agreeable people are the ones who make it really hard to BEYOND THE BIG FIVE: THE PERSONALITY OF
choose what movie to watch, because they always want EVIL? Most people struggle when they think about
to know what movie YOU want to watch. . . . As you truly negative human behaviours: prejudice, hatred, vio-
might expect, they make great team members, but their lence, child abuse, wartime atrocities, the Holocaust,
leadership skills often suffer because they are unwilling 9/11. The more horror we allow ourselves to contem-
to assert their opinion. plate, the more we must ask why? Why do people do
Low As are the type who “put themselves first.” such terrible things?
They value being authentic more than pandering to Following World War II, such questions were a
other people’s needs, making them more likely to assert major focus in personality psychology, as the world
their opinions and engage in conflict if necessary. Low wanted to understand the rise of fascism and Hitler’s
As suffer socially somewhat, as they tend to be seen as ability to mobilize millions of people to carry out his
cold, unfriendly, uncooperative, and unkind. They are plans of destruction. Early research by Theodore Adorno
often skeptical of other people’s motives, and tend to be suggested that a key personality type, the authoritarian
less trusting of human nature in general. As you might personality, was a big piece of the puzzle. Authoritarians
expect, low As don’t experience much empathy, and tend were theorized to be rigid and dogmatic in their think-
to be self-interested rather than altruistic. ing, to separate their social world into strict categories of
Neuroticism: To be called “neurotic” is not gener- Us and Them, and then to believe strongly in the supe-
ally considered a compliment. Indeed, people high in riority of Us and the inferiority of Them. As a result,
neuroticism (high Ns) are often difficult to deal with, as authoritarians were more likely to endorse and engage
their emotional volatility and general tendency to expe- in prejudice and violence, particularly toward people in
rience negative emotions makes them not much fun to the “them” category (Adorno et al., 1950). At first glance,
be around. High Ns tend to be quite sensitive and expe- this sounds like people low in openness, but over the past
rience strong reactions to stressful situations; as a result, several decades, personality researchers have discovered
they often interpret situations as overly threatening and important personality traits that extend the Five Factor
magnify small frustrations into major problems. When Model and help to shed light on the problem of human
they experience negative emotions, they have difficulty “evil.” Three lines of research (all by Canadian research-
relaxing and “letting go” of their negative feelings, which ers, incidentally) are particularly important.

496 :: Module 12.1 : : Contemporary Approaches to Personality

 Honesty–Humility First, Michael Ashton at study showed that high Ps became aggressive when they
Brock University and his colleagues have developed the felt physically threatened, but high Ns responded aggres-
HEXACO model of personality, a six-factor theory that sively when their self-esteem was threatened. High Ms
generally replicates the five factors of the FFM and adds one addi- responded to neither type of threat; it seems the Machia-
tional factor: Honesty–Humility. Individuals scoring highly vellian individuals only become aggressive when it serves
on this factor (high HHs) tend to be sincere, honest, faith- their goals (Jones & Paulhus, 2010).
ful, and modest, whereas those with low scores (low HHs) Considering all three traits together is important
are deceitful, greedy, and pompous (Ashton & Lee, 2007). because they strongly predict anti-social tendencies;
Whereas high HHs are more likely to perform altruistic, people characterized by all three of the Dark Triad traits
pro-social behaviours, low HHs harbour more selfish, anti- are substantially more likely to commit harm to others,
social, and violent tendencies (Ashton & Lee, 2008; de Vries having little empathy or other constraints to prevent
& van Kampen, 2010). Low HHs are also more likely to be them from doing so.
materialistic and to “do whatever it takes” to get what they Right-Wing Authoritarianism In a third line of
want, using flattery to manipulate others, being more will- research, Bob Altemeyer at the University of Manitoba
ing to break the rules, even being unfaithful to relationship has identified Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA)
partners (Bourdage et al., 2007). Interestingly, low HHs feel as a highly problematic set of personality characteristics that
a strong sense of self-importance and a feeling of entitle- involve three key tendencies:
ment, like they deserve to have their desires fulfilled.
1. obeying orders and deferring to the established authorities
The Dark Triad One important set of personality
in a society;
factors that are related to Honesty–Humility has been
2. supporting aggression against those who dissent or differ
labelled the Dark Triad by researchers at the University of
from the established social order; and
British Columbia. The Dark Triad refers to three traits—
3. believing strongly in maintaining the existing social order
Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and narcissism—that describe
(Altemeyer, 1996).
a person who is socially destructive, aggressive, dishonest, and
likely to commit harm in general (Paulhus & Williams, 2002). At the centre of the RWA personality is a strong
Machiavellianism is a tendency to use people and to tendency to think in dogmatic terms, where, metaphori-
be manipulative and deceitful. Individuals scoring high cally speaking, everything is either black or white, with
in Machiavallianism tend to lack respect for others and no shades of grey. RWAs tend to hold strong beliefs
focus predominantly on their own self-interest. As a and are highly resistant to changing them. In order to
result, they treat others as means to their own desired maintain their rigid beliefs, RWAs process information
ends and approach relationships strategically, in terms of in highly biased ways, ignoring or rejecting evidence
“what’s in it for me?” that contradicts their views and uncritically accepting
Psychopathy, on the other hand, is a general tendency evidence that is consistent with their beliefs. As a result,
toward having shallow emotional responses. Thus, indi- RWAs rarely encounter information that challenges their
viduals scoring high in psychopathy veer toward highly views, leading them to hold their opinions with com-
stimulating activities and tend to feel little empathy for plete certainty (Altemeyer, 1996).
others. They often get a thrill out of conflict, exerting A person high in RWA is likely to be seething
control, or even harming others, and feel little remorse with prejudice. Because RWAs see “their way” as right,
for their actions. they tend to judge people harshly who have differ-
Narcissism reflects an egotistical preoccupation with ent perspectives. Drawing strict boundaries between
self-image and an excessive focus on self-importance. social groups, they see a world of Us vs. Them. This sup-
The extreme narcissist is “full of himself ” (or herself). ports strong prejudices against people in the “them”
In Greek legend, the hunter Narcissus was filled with category—people who are members of cultural “out-
excessive pride and adoration toward himself. This was groups” (see Module 13.2). As a result, RWAs are likely
his fatal flaw, however, as he was so transfixed by his to advocate a harsh stance—social rejection, aggression,
own gaze reflecting in a pool of water that he died by even arrest and detention—toward people who deviate
the poolside, still staring at his reflection. Narcissists can from the established social order, such as political activ-
often be charming, but are difficult to have as relation- ists, feminists, atheists, and members of ethnic minorities
ship partners because they tend to always put themselves (Goodman & Moradi, 2008; Haddock et al., 1993; Narby
first rather than considering their partner’s needs. et al., 1993). High RWAs also play problematic roles as
Considering these traits separately yields some citizens of a society. Given their unquestioning accep-
important insights; for example, people high on different tance of authority figures, they are more likely to agree
traits may become aggressive for different reasons. One with unethical decisions made by leaders (Son Hing

Contemporary Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.1 :: 497

 et al., 2007). They also are more likely to have positive in the future helping to maintain repressive dictatorships,
attitudes toward corrupt governments and the violation problematic business practices, and unhealthy family
of civil liberties by the state, such as the use of illegal structures. According to Altemeyer, the various “short-
wiretaps (Altemeyer, 1996). falls of authoritarian thinking eminently qualify them to
As a result of these tendencies, high RWA individu- follow a would-be dictator. As Hitler is reported to have
als were likely instrumental in the rise of fascism that said, ‘What good fortune for those in power that people
led to World War II, and will likely play important roles do not think’” (Altemeyer, 2006, p. 75).

scored very low on the RWA scale, and once with 68 people
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC who scored very high. Each simulation covered 40 years of
LITERACY MODEL time into Earth’s future. The results were astonishing.

Right-Wing Authoritarianism In the low RWA group, there were no wars or military build-
at the Group Level up over the 40-year time period. Instead, regions steadily
downsized their militaries and diverted the money into
humanitarian and environmental projects. They also collec-
What do we know tively resolved challenges through international meetings and
about RWA? cooperation. At one point, a global crisis occurred due to a
threat to the Earth’s ozone layer; players responded by hold-
As we discussed above, person- ing a group meeting, and agreeing to make large investments
ality researchers have identified in technology development so that they could collectively
RWA as a cluster of characteris- solve the problem. By the end of the game, food, health ser-
tics that make society a less warm vices, and jobs were provided for almost all people on Earth,
and friendly place, being related resulting in a peaceful, stable world.
to generally harmful tendencies such as holding prejudiced
views against other groups and an excessive and closed- In the high RWA group, players tended to interpret the
minded allegiance to societal conventions plus a tendency to actions of others as aggressive, and responded in kind.
obey orders unquestioningly. Militaries quickly grew and war ensued, leading to a global
nuclear war that killed every person on the planet. At this
One would expect that the more RWAs in a society, the point, the players were given a second chance to play, start-
more intolerance and inter-group aggression will plague that ing at a point prior to the nuclear war. Despite having the
society. However, most of this research has focused on indi- chance to learn from their earlier mistakes, the players nev-
viduals. But what happens when RWAs get into groups? ertheless were incapable of getting along with each other.
When the ozone crisis occurred, no international summit
How can science was called and no region except Europe took action to avert
determine how the crisis. Instead of cooperation, players remained suspi-
RWA affects cious of each other and rapidly developed their militaries.
One major military conflict killed 400 million people, and
groups?
players poured so much money into military expenses that
In one fascinating and highly devastating social and environmental problems were never
disturbing study, Altemeyer selected high and low RWAs to dealt with. At the end of the 40-year period, the world was
play a complex role-playing simulation of the Earth’s future, again divided into armed camps on the brink of all-out war.
called the Global Change Game. This game is generally
Obviously, this simulation suggests that high vs. low RWAs
played by 50–70 people who are organized into groups that
may have a huge impact on the way that our society behaves
represent different regions of the world; these groups then
as a whole.
make decisions about how their region behaves on the inter-
national stage. For example, participants decide how their
region will deal with problems such as environmental deg- Can we critically
radation, poverty, overpopulation, and military threats. The evaluate this research?
simulated conditions of the Earth change depending on the
actions of the players, thus providing a realistic simulation of There are several methodological
the challenges of governance in the international community. limitations to this study that should
be taken into consideration when
In order to test how RWAs play the game, Altemeyer ran evaluating the findings. First, there
through the game two times, once with 67 individuals who

498 :: Module 12.1 : : Contemporary Approaches to Personality

are external validity concerns; for example, playing a game time when intolerance and intergroup hostilities are rampant
with no real consequences does not necessarily indicate and when ideological fundamentalism and fanaticism are hav-
how people would respond in a real-life situation. It is pos- ing a major impact on politics in many countries. Understand-
sible that in a real situation, people would be more sensi- ing the potential roots of intergroup hostility in individuals’
tive to the consequences of their actions, and would not be personalities is urgently needed at this time, as it may help us
so willing to risk human lives. Furthermore, the simulations to understand how best to counteract such tendencies and
were only performed on one night with each group; there- to recognize the role they may play on the political stage.
fore, results could have been due to chance factors, such
as particular individuals having a strong impact on the out-
comes. Also, because only university students participated in
the study, the results may not generalize to the rest of the
population.

Why is this relevant?

This research illustrates the
highly destructive impact that
authoritarian personalities
can have in group settings, and
sounds a clear bell of warning in the 21st century. We are
living in a time in which our world faces unprecedented chal-
lenges requiring international cooperation, yet this is also a LilKar/Shutterstock

(Yamagata et al., 2006). Thus, our genes predispose us to

PSYCH @ forming a certain lifelong personality.
In child development studies, researchers have found
Test Yourself!
that infants possess different temperaments right from birth,
Personality researchers have developed online suggesting that the seeds of our personalities are present
tests of the personality attributes discussed in this module so right from the [Link] are relatively rudimen-
that you can learn more about your own personality tenden- tary; infants do not have the same complexity of person-
cies. Go to MyLab to find links for personality tests online! alities as adults, but they do vary on characteristics such
as activity level, mood, attention span, and distractibility
(Rothbart & Bates, 2006; Thomas & Chess, 1977). As
P E R S O N A L I T Y T R A I T S OV E R T H E L I F E most parents of more than one child can attest, kids come
SPAN Have you ever looked back on something you “hard-wired” to be a certain way. Some infants are gener-
wrote several years ago, perhaps in your diary, and won- ally active and happy, whereas others are more tranquil,
dered, “Who was that person who wrote these things?” and still others are easily upset. So, if you happen to be a
Or have you ever considered someone you once dated parent of an easy-going child and you think, “This par-
and wondered, “Who was I when I chose to date that enting thing isn’t so hard,” don’t pat yourself on the back
person? It certainly wasn’t ‘me’!” One of the most fasci- too much and walk around judging those exhausted-
nating issues in personality psychology is whether we are looking parents who “must be doing something wrong.”
the same people as we get older, or whether our funda- Your next kid might just show you that you had it easy
mental personalities tend to change. the first time. And if you’re a parent pulling your hair out
A mountain of research from different areas within with your chronically distressed child who seems impos-
psychology has revealed considerable stability in our per- sible to deal with, don’t judge yourself too harshly (or
sonalities. In fact, given the large genetic contribution to listen to the grandparents who tell you that they never
personality factors, our personalities start even before we had such problems with their babies!). Remind yourself
are born (Plomin & Caspi, 1999). Research on mono- that infants have different temperaments and your power
zygotic and dizygotic twins in Canada, Germany, and as a parent is small compared to the power of their genes.
Japan found clear genetic contributions to personality Thus, temperament seems to represent an innate, bio-
structure that were similar across these different cultures logical foundation upon which personality is built. This,

Contemporary Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.1 :: 499

 combined with the genetic research, suggests that per- the more they train their brains to be good at that skill.
sonality traits should be stable over time. To some extent, Similarly, the more that people practise being extraverted,
research confirms that this is the case: Infant temperament or open-minded, or conscientious, or neurotic, etc., the
predicts the adult personality traits of neuroticism, extra- more they train their brains to function in that [Link]
version, and conscientiousness (Evans & Rothbart, 2007). can also be seen as a positive feedback system; personality
One amazing study that followed the same children structures influence patterns in the person’s life and build
from age 3 until adulthood showed that temperament at networks in the person’s brain in ways that reinforce them-
3 years of age was strongly predictive of behavioural ten- selves, leading personality to be quite stable over time.
dencies, personality, and life outcomes many years later This seems to have been understood by William
(Caspi, 2000). Three main temperaments were identi- James, who asserted over 100 years ago that “. . . in most
fied: well-adjusted (capable of self-control, confident, not of us, by the age of thirty, the character has set like plas-
overly upset by new people or situations); under-controlled ter, and will never soften again” (James, 1890, p. 121).
(impulsive, restless, distractible, emotionally volatile); and Indeed, people’s personalities are much more labile when
inhibited (socially uncomfortable, fearful, easily upset by they are young and tend to become more “fixed” as we
strangers). Just over 10 years later, children of different age; researchers analyzing the results of over 150 studies
temperaments had developed quite different behaviour involving almost 50 000 participants showed that per-
patterns. The under-controlled children (relative to the sonality stability is lowest for young children and highest
other groups) had become much more likely to engage for people over 50 (Roberts & DelVecchio, 2000).
in externalizing behaviours (fighting, bullying, lying, dis- However, research has shown that James may have
obeying) and somewhat more internalizing behaviours been a little too pessimistic. For example, young adults
(worrying, being fussy, crying easily). The inhibited chil- tend to experience fewer negative emotions than do
dren had also developed strong internalizing behaviour adolescents, reflecting decreases in neuroticism. Also,
patterns. By age 18, their emerging adult personalities conscientiousness, agreeableness, and social dominance
were reflections of their temperaments at age 3. By age 21, (an aspect of extraversion) all increase in early adulthood
the formerly under-controlled children were showing seri- (Roberts et al., 2006; see Figure 12.2).
ous relationship difficulties. Both their relationships with Nevertheless, even these data describe a kind of
roommates and romantic partners were filled with con- personality stability, in that although people’s personal-
flict and tension, and their romantic relationships espe- ity traits may fluctuate over time, their rank ordering in
cially suffered low levels of intimacy and trust. the population remains very stable. That is, people who
In general, a person’s personality tends to reinforce are more extraverted than others at time one also tend
itself and exhibit remarkable stability over time (Heather- to be more extraverted than others at time two, even
ton & Weinberger, 1994).Your personality conditions how though the overall level of extraversion may change over
you tend to feel, perceive, interpret, and behave; this sets in that time period (McCrae & Costa, 1990).Thus, although
motion processes that feed back to reinforce the original individuals may change over time, their personal charac-
personality structure. Take the personality factor of consci- teristics relative to other people remain remarkably stable.
entiousness as an example. As we discussed earlier, highly Take a moment and consider why personalities change
conscientious people will tend to be organized, punctual, in these systematic ways over time. What could be causing
and dependable; they are therefore more likely to succeed, these changes? One likely explanation is that, over time,
be respected by others, and create professional opportuni- our environments change as well as the roles we play in
ties for themselves. As they experience success, this feeds those environments. For example, adults have to be more
back to reinforce those qualities. On the other hand, peo- conscientious than children, because they have so many
ple low in conscientiousness are likely to be disorganized, more responsibilities—like taking care of their unconscien-
unreliable, and have difficulty meeting deadlines. As a result, tious children! Or, in the case of emotional stability, which
their professional accomplishments will tend to suffer, their increases from childhood to young adulthood, there may be
lives will increasingly spiral out of their control, and they psychological changes that occur, such as increased sense of
will feel constantly overwhelmed by the looming crises identity—knowing who you are—which could help young
that are bearing down on them. As you can see from this adults feel less insecurity and therefore experience fewer
example, our personality tendencies are likely to reinforce negative emotions. Or, perhaps young adults have greater
themselves in the myriad ways they play out in our lives. choice over their activities than teenagers and children; as
A simpler way of understanding how “personality is a result, they rarely find themselves in situations in which
destiny” is to consider the basic insight of neuroscience: that they are unsure of themselves, whereas children regularly
neurons that fire together wire together. One consequence end up having to perform in a domain in which they feel
of this is that the more that people practise a certain skill, incompetent (one of your authors is remembering art class

500 :: Module 12.1 : : Contemporary Approaches to Personality

 1.2

Increase in scores (by standard deviations)

1

0.8

0.6

0.4
Social dominance
Agreeableness
0.2
Conscientiousness
Emotional stability
0
Openness to experience

-0.2
10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Age

{fig. 12.2} Personality Stability and Change over the Lifespan Average scores of Big Five traits change over the life span.
Generally, most traits become more positive through adulthood, although there are anomalies. Social dominance (an aspect of
extraversion) remains stable after age 40. Conscientiousness does not begin rising until after the college years. Openness to expe-
rience only rises up to the college years, then remains largely stable until old age, when it declines (Roberts et al., 2006).

in elementary school, and shuddering . . . ). The point is, waiter brings him the wrong dish he loudly protests.
over time there are many changes—in our environments, Definitions of personality typically include an element
our roles, the amount of choice and power we have, the of consistency, but this does not mean that people are
sophistication of our thinking processes, our bodies and always consistent in the ways they behave. In contrast to
brains themselves, and many other things—so there may be a personality trait, a state is a temporary physical or psy-
many reasons why personalities change over time, which is chological engagement that influences behaviour. Perhaps your
a current focus of personality research. normally calm friend lashed out at the waiter because
he was hungry to the point of irritability. In this case, the
PERSONALITY TRAITS AND STATES Trait labels
may go a long way toward describing what people are
like. However, many psychologists are quick to point
out that no matter how useful traits may seem, people’s
behaviour is also determined by situational factors and
context. You may know someone whom you would
describe as very calm and tranquil, yet when the restaurant

RimDream/Shutterstock Monkey Business/Fotolia

Children are regularly placed in activities at which they are not Adults have the ability to choose activities that play to their
yet very competent. strengths and skills.

Contemporary Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.1 :: 501

 situation motivated his behaviour more than his usual
2 One reason for going beyond the Big Five, such as the

UNDERSTAND . . .
calm demeanour. Even people who seem highly consis- three lines of research on Honesty–Humility, the Dark
tent in how they express their neuroticism, agreeable- Triad, and Right-Wing Authoritarianism, is
ness, or extraversion will not behave in the same way A they predict anti-social tendencies, such as violence
and prejudice, better than the Big Five traits.
across all situations, and this observation has led to some
strong criticisms of trait theories of personality (Mischel, B they are idiographic approaches, which supplement
the nomothetic approach taken in the Five Factor
1968; Mischel & Shoda, 1998).
Model.
How states and situational factors influence our
C these three theories account for states and situ-
behaviour is a challenging topic. How many different ational factors, whereas the Big Five does not.
situations or states do you find yourself in during any
D these three theories can be used to diagnose per-
particular day? You can be awake or asleep; confident sonality disorders that could justify preventative
or unsure; you may have money or no money; and you action, such as incarcerating “dangerous” personali-
may be in a crisis situation or completely relaxed. The ties before they are able to commit any crimes and
list could go on forever—and as you might have guessed, cause harm to others.
psychologists have tried to see just how long it goes. In
one study, 77 college students were asked to describe 3 You are the type of person who tends to go to the

APPLY . . .
as many situations as they might encounter. Their total same restaurant and order the same thing, sticking
reached more than 7000. Perhaps you can now see why to your daily [Link] have even turned down
opportunities to travel to new destinations. Which of
many psychologists would rather focus on five person-
the Big Five factors would account for this description
ality dimensions. Fortunately, Saucier and colleagues of your personality?
(2007) took these 7000 situations and reduced them to
A Agreeableness C Openness
four general aspects of situations that are most likely to
B Conscientiousness D Neuroticism
influence our behaviour:
1. Locations (e.g., being at work, school, or home)
4 Your friend, who is normally introverted, is outraged

ANALYZE . . .
2. Associations (e.g., being with friends, alone, or with at the taxi driver who is trying to overcharge you.
family) He is cursing at the driver in a verbal altercation. This
3. Activities (e.g., awake, rushed, studying) event is most likely due to his ________.
4. Subjective states (e.g., mad, sick, drunk, happy) A temperament
B subjective state
These situations influence how and when our per-
sonality traits are expressed. Identifying these situations is C idealized self

important because they contribute to our psychological D Big Five personality traits
states, and they interact with personality traits to deter-
mine our behaviour. 5 The theory that our personalities consist of a stable
set of traits is very useful to psychologists, but there
are some notable problems with trait theories. Which
of the following is not a problem?
Quick Quiz 12.1a A Trait theories typically rely on self-reported behav-
The Trait Perspective iours, rather than actual observed behaviours.
B Situational factors, in addition to personality traits,
1 Which of the following statements best describes the
KNOW . . .

also determine our behaviour.

difference between the nomothetic and idiographic
approaches to personality? C Factor analysis is not considered a valid technique
in the study of personality.
A The nomothetic approach focuses on traits found
across large groups, whereas the idiographic approach D Historically, psychologists have not agreed on the
focuses on individuals. traits that make up someone’s personality.
B The idiographic approach focuses on traits found Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
across large groups, whereas the nomothetic ap-
proach focuses on individuals.
C The idiographic approach relies on measures such
as the Big Five, whereas the Big Five is of no use to Behaviourist and Social-Cognitive
a nomothetic approach.
D The idiographic approach allows psychologists to
Perspectives
ask questions about the genetic and cultural basis You probably didn’t have much trouble understanding
of personality traits. the trait perspective to personality; indeed, using traits

502 :: Module 12.1 : : Contemporary Approaches to Personality

to describe ourselves and others is something we do both affecting and being affected by environmen-
regularly, particularly in Western cultures. However, the tal circumstances. One of Bandura’s central ideas was
trait approach does tend to reinforce certain assumptions the theory of reciprocal determinism, which posits
that other psychologists have called into question. Most that behaviour, internal (personal) factors, and external (situ-
importantly, the trait approach reinforces the assump- ational) factors interact to determine one another, and that
tion that we carry our personality characteristics around our personalities are based on interactions among these three
inside us; traits are these “things” that we “have,” which aspects (see Figure 12.3). From this perspective, person-
then influence our thoughts, feelings, and behaviours. ality is not something “inside” the person, but rather
Psychologists with a behaviourist perspective would exists “between” the person (their thoughts, feelings, and
not adopt the same assumptions. To a behaviourist, it behaviours) and the environment.
is unnecessary to posit the existence of some sort of For example, the classic trait perspective would pre-
internalized trait; instead, the behaviourist would seek dict that people who are high on neuroticism are likely
to understand the relationship between specific envi- to view the world as threatening, and therefore are likely
ronmental stimuli and an observed pattern of behav- to notice negative information and to accentuate the
iour. Notable psychologist B. F. Skinner, for example, potentially threatening aspects of situations they are in.
believed that “personality” is simply a description of the The behaviourist would emphasize the environment
response tendencies that occur in different situations. For that led to these neurotic behaviours—perhaps the per-
example, if you find yourself hanging out with a group son experienced a great deal of negativity in their lives,
of people, your behavioural responses to that situation and learned that when they let their guard down, they
might include dominating the conversation, asking a lot end up getting hurt. But adding a social-cognitive per-
of questions, laughing along at other people’s jokes, or spective to this situation reveals a huge amount of com-
generally remaining silent. Presumably, the behaviours plexity and richness that is otherwise missed.
Explore
you engage in are based on your past experiences; if you In this example, a social-cognitive theorist like Ban- Behavioural versus
tend to dominate the conversation and laugh at people’s dura would emphasize the neurotic individual’s beliefs Social Learning
jokes, then you were likely reinforced for those behav- and behaviour, and how these then influence what they Theories of
iours in the past. A behaviourist might note that using experience back from the world. For example, one way Personality
the personality dimension of “extraversion” is an unnec-
essary addition—it is just a label that does not help us
understand the simple relationship between stimulus and
response. Thus the behaviourist perspective emphasizes
the importance of the stimulus-response associations that
Environment Behaviour Consequences
are learned through exposure to specific situations, rather
than emphasizing internalized, relatively stable personal-
(a)
ity traits (Figure 12.3).
One major point of agreement between the behav-
iourists and other psychologists was the emphasis on Environment
how learning contributes to personality. However, most
modern theorists have gone beyond the behaviourist
account to develop more holistic and integrated models Personal/cognitive
factors
of how personality functions and develops. One promi- Behaviour
Beliefs, expectancies,
nent psychologist, Albert Bandura, advanced a social personal dispositions
cognitive theory of personality in order to emphasize the
role of beliefs and the reciprocal relationships between (b)
people and their environments. According to Bandura,
{fig. 12.3} (a) Behaviourist Account of Personality. Behaviourists
environmental stimuli do not automatically (in most thought that what psychologists call personality was an expression of
cases) trigger specific behaviours; instead, environmen- relationships between behaviour, rewards, and punishment. Behaviour-
tal stimuli, such as rewards or punishments, inform indi- ists avoided referring to personality traits and dispositions, but rather
focused on how past experiences predict future behaviours. For example,
viduals’ beliefs about the world, and in particular, their whether someone tends to be pessimistic might be based on past experi-
beliefs about what consequences are likely to follow ences of feeling a lost sense of control. (b) Reciprocal Determinism and
from certain behaviours. the Social-Cognitive Approach. According to Albert Bandura and col-
leagues, personality is a product of dynamic interactions between behav-
Furthermore, people are not affected by their envi-
iour and reinforcement, and, importantly, the beliefs, expectancies, and
ronments in a strictly one-way causal process; instead, dispositions of the individual. Click on this figure in your eText to see
people exist in a relationship with their environments, more details.

Contemporary Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.1 :: 503

 that a neurotic person could deal with anxiety could be their anxiety and leads them to try to control things
to attempt to control people and events. When they suc- even more. As this pattern develops in their lives, they
cessfully exert control, things go according to plan and may suffer social costs as a result of excessively trying to
they are reinforced for exerting control. But as a result manage other people and continually finding fault in the
of their regular exercise of control, they also develop behaviours of those around them; these social costs and
higher expectations that people will meet their standards experiences of rejection then further reinforce the anxi-
of approval, and that events will turn out as they want ety that underlies neuroticism.
them to. Unfortunately for them, life is full of surprises, According to Bandura, people’s personalities and
and other people generally do not like being controlled their environment are interdependent in many differ-
and will act in ways that assert their own independence ent ways, linked together in feedback loops that connect
(which is not what the neurotic person wants them to their perceptions, cognitions, emotions, behaviours, the
do). Thus, the neurotic person continually experiences ways they structure their environments, and the ways
things not going according to plan, which then reinforces that their environments, in turn, structure them.

Quick Quiz 12.1b :: Behaviourist and Social-Cognitive Perspectives

1 Which of the following concepts developed by 3 Alternative approaches to personality such as the
KNOW . . .

ANALYZE . . .
Bandura refers to interactions that occur among behaviourist and cognitive approaches complement
behaviour, internal factors, and external factors as an trait theories of personality because
explanation for personality? A these alternative approaches help to account for
A Reciprocal determinism C Intersubjectivity how traits interact with behaviour and personal
B Positive psychology D Egocentrism experience.
B trait theories focus on the negatives of personality.
C it is easier to observe behaviour than to ask some-
2 Kaitlin describes herself as unmotivated. She has not
UNDERSTAND . . .

felt rewarded by her attempts to succeed at school one to fill out a personality inventory.
or work and, therefore, has given up trying. How D trait theories focus only on the positive aspects of
might a psychologist who adopts a strict behaviourist personality.
approach account for Kaitlin’s behaviour?
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
A Kaitlin believes that she cannot succeed and, there-
fore, avoids putting herself in situations where she
might fail.
B Kaitlin has a history of not being reinforced for try-
ing to succeed and, therefore, has stopped trying.
C Kaitlin focuses too much on negatives and does
not have a positive outlook on life.
D Kaitlin has low levels of the trait known as
extraversion.

504 :: Module 12.1 : : Contemporary Approaches to Personality

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
12.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with contemporary

approaches to personality:
the Dark Triad (p. 497) personality (p. 493)
factor analysis (p. 494) personality trait (p. 493)
Five Factor Model (p. 494) reciprocal determinism (p. 503) Patrick Sheandell O’ Carroll/Glow Images
HEXACO model of personality Right-Wing Authoritarianism
(p. 497) (RWA) (p. 497)
idiographic approach (p. 493) state (p. 501) ANALYZE . . .
nomothetic approach (p. 493)
● The personality roots of violence and prejudice .
Canadian researchers have identified three sets of
UNDERSTAND . . . factors that predict violence and prejudice that are not
fully captured by the Five Factor Model. The first is the
● The behaviourist and social-cognitive views of Honesty–Humility dimension of the HEXACO model of
personality. A strict behavioural account of personality personality. The second is the Dark Triad of Psychopathy,
identifies the stimuli that control a person’s responses. Machiavellianism, and Narcissism. The third is Right-Wing
From a behaviourist perspective, there is little need for Authoritarianism. Research has found that these traits
trait terminology, such as neuroticism or conscientiousness, predict many dysfunctional patterns of thoughts, emotions,
and no reference to cognitive factors such as beliefs or and behaviours. Understanding the causal underpinnings
thoughts. The social-cognitive approach to personality also of these traits and developing strategies to help individuals
accounts for situational factors and behaviour, but adds a with such personality traits would be a key advance in
cognitive element that interacts with the environment in promoting a healthier and more peaceful society.
such a way that situations, behaviour, and thoughts are
determined in reciprocal fashion. ● The relative roles of per sonality traits and
psychological and physical states in determining
behaviour. The debate over whether personality traits
APPLY . . .
influence behaviour or whether situational factors play
● The Big Five personality traits to understand your own a bigger role in behaviour has been ongoing in the field
personality. Psychologists usually describe individuals of personality psychology. In reality, both sets of factors
based on their scores on personality tests involving the are important. Personality traits can be remarkably
Big Five traits, such that someone might rate high, medium, consistent, yet the situations we find ourselves in can lead
or low on each trait. Use Table 12.1 to describe your to unexpected behaviour.
own personality in terms of the Big Five, and cite examples
of specific behaviours and habits that correspond to each
trait. Before you begin this exercise, review Figure 12.1
(p. 495), which outlines some of the major characteristics
of high and low scores on each of the five factors.

Table 12.1 Applying the Five Factor Model

For each trait, try to determine if you would score low, medium, or high if you were to complete a test based on the Five Factor Model.
Cite specific examples of behaviours and preferences that support your ranking.
FACTOR LOW, MEDIUM, OR HIGH? SPECIFIC EXAMPLES
Openness

Conscientiousness

Extraversion

Agreeableness

Neuroticism

Contemporary Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.1 :: 505

 Randy Faris/Glow Images

Module

12.2 Cultural and Biological Approaches

to Personality

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology associated How evolutionary Your knowledge to understand Claims that males and
After reading with cultural and biological theories explain personality differences females have fundamentally
this module approaches to personality personality between cultures different personalities
you should
The genetic basis of personality

Apparently, if you’re backpacking in Europe, it’s a good idea to highlight We often reason this way about our social world, feeling like we gain
your Canadian heritage. Or even pretend to be Canadian if you’re not. insight into other people simply by knowing what country they call home.
Sewing the Canadian flag onto one’s backpack is so well known that it has
become a cliché. But why has this become so popular? We see personality differences at smaller levels of scale as [Link] believe
there are differences between people of different regions within a country
Well, because Canadians are nice, eh? Polite! Friendly. A little backwards (e.g., the urban Torontonian and the rural Manitoban), and even differences
maybe, eh? But good people. So when you’re travelling, show off the between the personalities of cities (e.g., think of “what type of people” tend
maple leaf and people will like you. to live in Calgary or Montreal, Vancouver or St. John’s). Residents of one
neighbourhood or small town feel that they are different from “those peo-
Are these beliefs about Canadians true? More generally, are there per-
ple,” who live in a different place. In the TV show The Simpson’s, the people
sonality differences between different countries? Is there a “national char-
of Springfield assumed that the townspeople of neighbouring Shelbyville
acter”? There certainly seem to be certain types of people from certain
were particularly disagreeable and untrustworthy types.
countries. Just try this—imagine the prototypical Swedish person. Now
notice what came to your mind. The manic Swedish chef? Icy blond Although some of these examples may seem harmless, even humorous,
supermodels drinking vodka in a snowbank and looking at you with cool many examples of group-based stereotypic thinking obviously are neither.
disdain? What are you basing your assumptions on? Now think about a All too readily, we split the world into Us vs. Them, overemphasizing any
Japanese person? American? Australian? Iraqi? Jamaican? Greek? In each possible differences between groups of people, and underemphasizing the
case, probably some images and basic character traits pop into your head. ways in which we are similar and interdependent. Nevertheless, in some

506 :: Module 12.2 : : Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality

cases there are real differences between people in different Europe—it is possible that the Five Factor Model only
groups, and it is important to understand both these differ- accounts for personality in WEIRD populations, and
ences as well as the similarities. may not extend to the rest of the world.
Personality psychology researchers have looked extensively To find out whether the Big Five traits are truly
at cultural differences and similarities in personality, helping universal, an enormous team of psychologists (there
us to understand how culture, the environment, and people were 127 authors on this single article) measured the Big
shape each other across time. In this module, we will explore Five dimensions in more than 17 000 people speaking
personality from cross-cultural, evolutionary, and biological 28 different languages and inhabiting 56 countries on
perspectives. 6 continents (they did not visit Antarctica). In all cul-
tures that were studied, the Big Five factors were reli-
Focus Questions ably found. Despite the many differences that may exist
between cultures, the people in those cultures share the
1 Does culture influence the types of personality same basic personality structures (McCrae et al., 2005;
traits we find across human societies?
Schmitt et al., 2007). This is an incredible finding, sug-
2 How do evolutionary and biological approaches gesting that the basic systems in the human personality
add to our understanding of personality? are, in a sense, deeper than culture; although individual
personalities differ enormously, the basic machinery of
the human personality system is universal.

Culture and Personality PERSONALITY STRUCTURES IN DIFFERENT

Would you say Americans are WEIRD? Of course you CULTURES The study described above is ground-
would! They’re very WEIRD! But we’re not pointing breaking in its global scope, but a key methodological
fingers—Canadians, Western Europeans, Australians, and challenge remains. Because the Five Factor Model was
others are WEIRD too. In this context,WEIRD stands for originally created by factor-analyzing personality adjec-
“Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic,” tives in the English language, the kinds of questions that
outlining key characteristics of certain cultures (Henrich are asked on Big Five questionnaires are designed to mea-
et al., 2010). Do you think it is likely that people from sure the Big Five factors, and no others. Thus, when the
WEIRD cultures differ in important ways from people in scale is given to people from other cultures, the scale itself
the rest of the world’s cultures? Would it matter if they do? brings the biases of Western culture and the English lan-
One troubling fact that was uncovered recently puts guage right along with it. What if other languages used
this in perspective; researchers at the University of British different types of adjectives to describe personality? What
Columbia calculated that 96% of psychology studies have if other cultures had different personality traits than the
been conducted on people from WEIRD cultures. Now ones that emerge in the West? Re-analyzing personality
consider that the entire population of WEIRD cultures from different linguistic starting points might reveal new
accounts for a mere 12% of the earth’s population (Hen- personality factors that lie outside of the Big Five.
rich et al., 2010). So, 96% of our knowledge in psychology Researchers have begun to address this limitation,
is based on studying samples that represent only 12% of analyzing personality structure using personality descrip-
humanity. What does this mean? At the very least, it means tors in other languages; this work has already revealed
we should be cautious in making inferences about “human unique personality factors not captured in the Big Five
nature” when extrapolating from the findings of psychol- (Heine & Buchtel, 2009). For example, Cheung et al.
ogy studies to the human species at large. And it means that (1996) factor-analyzed indigenous Chinese personal-
we need to better understand the similarities and differ- ity traits, looking for patterns among the personality
ences between people in different cultures. For example, descriptors used in Chinese, rather than English. They
in terms of personality, there may be important differences, found 26 new personality traits in total, and when they
on average, between the WEIRD and the non-WEIRD. factor-analyzed all the traits including these 26 new ones,
they found a quite different structure from the Big Five.
UNIVERSALS AND DIFFERENCES ACROSS Instead of five traits, these researchers found four:
CULTURES: THE BIG FIVE The Five Factor Model dependability, social potency, individualism, and interper-
of personality centres around five personality dimen- sonal relatedness. The first three traits were very similar
sions: neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience, to three of the Big Five traits (neuroticism, extraversion,
agreeableness, and conscientiousness. However, because and agreeableness, respectively), but the fourth, Inter-
these factors were discovered by researchers work- personal Relatedness, was unique. Interpersonal Relat-
ing in WEIRD places—the United States, Canada, and edness is a combination of characteristics concerning

Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.2 :: 507

 social harmony, tradition, and an emphasis on one’s One striking cultural difference that researchers
social relationships. This may reflect a distinct personality struggled to understand is also illustrated in the results
dimension in the Chinese psyche, emphasizing the more below. Isn’t it interesting that a single country, Japan,
socially interdependent nature of the self in this culture. ranked lowest of all countries on three out of the five
Other researchers have added to our multicultural traits (openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness)?
understanding of personality, factor-analyzing the person- Given the general desirability of these traits, that is a
ality traits found in Filipino, Spanish, and Greek languages, fairly critical evaluation of the Japanese personality!
and seeking a more integrated cross-cultural theory of In fact, people from the entire South Asian part of the
personality (Benet-Martinez & John, 1998; Church, 2001; world rated their own personalities relatively negatively.
Saucier et al., 2005). Each analysis has revealed new fac- Are these differences real? Is such a vast swath of human-
tors that seem to be independent of the Big Five. ity really so different from the rest of the world?
Cross-cultural work on personality is still in its infancy,
and clearly, many questions remain. At this point, most psy- CHALLENGES IN CROSS-CULTURAL RESEARCH
chologists would agree that the Five Factor Model captures Researchers attempting to answer these questions face two
important and perhaps universal dimensions of personal- central challenges: how to translate measures of personal-
ity, but also might miss important cultural-specific qualities ity such that they will mean exactly the same thing in dif-
that can only be understood by analyzing personality from ferent languages, and how to ensure that people are using
that culture’s own perspective. the exact same reasoning process when answering them.
The translation challenge is somewhat easier to overcome,
COMPARING PERSONALITY TRAITS BETWEEN although researchers have to be constantly on guard that
NATIONS Despite the difficulties noted above, one unintended nuances of meaning do not sneak into a scale
important advantage of personality scales that have been item when it is translated into another language.
translated into different languages is that psychologists The second challenge, ensuring that people use the
can test for personality differences across cultures. Many same kind of reasoning process when answering the ques-
such differences have been found. For example, consider tions, is much more difficult to overcome and occupies
the countries with the highest and lowest averages on a great deal of attention in cross-cultural studies of per-
each of the Big Five traits in Table 12.2 (Schmitt et al., sonality. For example, it is possible that people from dif-
2007). (Interestingly, Canada falls roughly in the middle ferent cultures have different response styles—characteristic
in each case.) ways of responding to questions; these response styles can
What do these differences really mean? Do they be strongly influenced by cultural norms. For example,
reflect actual personality differences between the peo- in one culture it may be more socially acceptable to say
ple in those countries? Or could other things account highly positive things about yourself, whereas in another
for the findings? Many of the personality differences culture the same behaviour may be considered rude or
do seem puzzling. For example, why are Argentinians boastful. Indeed, researchers at the University of Brit-
so neurotic, compared to people from the Democratic ish Columbia have shown that there are such norms in
Republic of the Congo? Why are the Japanese so much South Asian cultures, discouraging people from emphasiz-
less conscientious than Ethiopians? In fact, many of the ing their strengths and successes, and instead encouraging
findings in these large-scale cross-cultural studies defy people to be modest, humble, even self-critical (Heine,
cultural stereotypes (Terracciano et al., 2005), and it is a 2003; Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Mezulis et al., 2004).
huge challenge for researchers to understand whether or As a result, people from South Asian cultures would
not these differences are real. tend to answer personality questions more modestly,

Table 12.2 :: Cultural Differences in the Big Five Personality Traits

HIGHEST LOWEST
Extraversion Serbia, Croatia Bangladesh, France

Openness Chile, Belgium Hong Kong, Japan

Agreeableness Jordan, Democratic Republic of the Congo Japan, Lithuania

Conscientiousness Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of the Congo Japan, South Korea

Neuroticism Japan, Argentina Democratic Republic of the Congo, Slovenia

508 :: Module 12.2 : : Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality

especially when compared to North Americans, who
self-enhance practically every chance they get. Ironi-
cally then, South Asian people could be the most well-
adjusted population in the world, but their self-eff acing
culture would tend to hide that fact and even make them
appear maladjusted! Clearly, it is important to understand
the possible impact of cultural norms and response styles
when interpreting the findings of this research.
A further critique concerns the problem of essen-
tializing cultural differences. To essentialize a cultural
difference is to attribute that difference to something
fundamental to the cultures, some sort of basic difference
between the “essences” of each culture. Essentializing
Corbis/PhotoLibrary
in general is a challenge for our sciences and culture to
Psychologists find many commonalities in personality dimensions
overcome, because we create and accentuate differences from people of diverse cultures. However, there may be some
between what are simply human beings living on this culturally unique personality dimensions.
planet. As soon as we start essentializing groups and attrib-
uting specific qualities to the essences of those groups, we
start seeing the world in terms of Us and Them, and we cultures are not sufficiently strong to justify beliefs in
are one step away from justifying inequalities favouring national character. “No convincing evidence has dem-
Us over Them. The tendency to essentialize cultural dif- onstrated that beliefs about national character” have any
ferences lies at the heart of prejudice, inequality, and social basis in fact, “despite their wide adoption and resistance
injustice (Allport, 1954; Levy et al., 2006). Furthermore, to change” (Schmitt et al., 2007).
focusing on average differences between cultures tends to While acknowledging the methodological limitations
overlook the fact that there are vast individual differences discussed above, the overall cross-cultural research on the
within each culture, generally much bigger than the aver- Big Five suggests that there is a great deal of cross-cultural
age difference between cultures. Therefore, it is important consistency in the basic structure of personality (McCrae,
not to over-emphasize small average differences between 2001). Personality theorists argue that the Big Five traits
groups and unduly reinforce group-based stereotypes. are built into the human organism in a fundamental way,
Interestingly, despite all of the emphasis placed on which is reflected in our biology, such as our genes and
cultural differences in personality, the authors of the neural systems (e.g., DeYoung et al., 2010). Examining the
huge study discussed earlier finally concluded that the biological processes underpinning personality has become
differences found in average trait ratings in different a major focus of researchers in the 21st century.

BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
PERSPECTIVES
How Culture Shapes Our Development:
Cultural Differences in the Self
During the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia, two gold-
medal–winning athletes were being interviewed about their
success. In explaining her success during the race, Misty Hyman,
who won the 200-metre butterfly for the United States, said, “I
think I just stayed focused. It was time to show the world what
I could do. I am just glad I was able to do it. I knew I could beat
Suzy O’Neil, deep down in my heart I believed it, and I know
this whole week the doubts kept creeping in, they were with
me on the blocks, but I just said, ‘No, this is my night.’”
In contrast, Naoko Takahashi, after winning the mara-
thon for Japan, said, “Here is the best coach in the world, the
best manager in the world, and all of the people who support
JEFF HAYNES/AFP/Newscom Reuters/Corbis

Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.2 :: 509

 me—all of these things were getting together and became a emphasize their positive qualities (“I love to really challenge
gold medal. So I think I didn’t get it alone, not only by myself” myself, like doing triathlons and extreme mountaineering.
(Markus et al., 2006). Yes, and I’m going on tour next month to promote my new
This striking example illustrates how people’s behaviour book. . . . ”). And as with Misty Hyman, when things turn out
can be shaped by broad cultural factors. Misty Hyman, from the well for them, they take most of the credit themselves. On
individualistic United States, seems to be more self-promoting, the other hand, if the individualist fails, they are pretty good
explaining her success as being due to her own characteris- at finding other circumstantial factors to blame (Heine, 2003;
tics, her willpower, and belief in herself. Naoko Takahashi, from Markus & Kitayama, 1991).
collectivistic Japan, takes her moment of Olympic glory as an The influence of culture can even be seen in the brain.
opportunity to highlight the ways in which she was assisted by In one study (Chiao et al., 2009), participants were put into
so many people in her life, de-emphasizing her own contribu- fMRI scanners to monitor their brain activity while they made
tion in favour of honouring others. judgments about different sentences. In order to manipulate
Whether a culture predominantly emphasizes individual- whether subjects were thinking of themselves in a more indi-
ism or collectivism has many effects on personality, affecting vidualistic or collectivistic manner, researchers asked subjects
how people see themselves and how they behave in many to make different types of judgments about the sentences. For
situations. Researchers have found that when describing them- some sentences, they judged the degree to which it described
selves, predominantly individualistic people use more personal them in general (individualistic self task), whereas for others
adjectives (e.g., “I am extraverted”; “I have a good sense of they judged how well it described them when they were with
humour”). Predominantly collectivistic people tend to describe their mothers (collectivistic self task). Amazingly, their brain
themselves more relationally, in terms of their connections to scans were able to tell the difference between individualists and
other people (“I am a son”; “I am a sister”), and their affiliations collectivists. In the brain, part of the medial prefrontal cortex is
with specific social groups (“I am Canadian”; “I am a Trekkie”). involved when processing information related to the self. This
This difference in self-definition results in differences in area was most active for individualistic participants when they
the stability of personality across different [Link] indi- were making judgments about themselves in general, whereas
vidualistic person is the same across most situations, whereas collectivists showed the greatest amount of activation in this
the more collectivistic person feels that who you are depends area when making judgments about their selves in relation to
on who you’re with; the self that you are emerges within a their mothers. Thus, to individualists, the individualistic task was
social context and is attuned to that context. processed by their brains as most self-relevant, whereas for col-
Perhaps because they define their self-concepts more lectivists, it was the collectivistic task that was most self-relevant.
rigidly, individualistic people are more likely to be defensive This study provides direct evidence that different cogni-
in specific ways. To the collectivistic person, the self is fluid tive processes are considered self-relevant for individualists
and changeable from situation to situation; thus there is not and collectivists. This is like having a neurological fingerprint
the same need to defend a single specific self-concept. But that can predict which culture a person is from. In other
to the individualist, the self is supposed to exist as a sepa- words, culture is built right into our brain matter. Much current
rate “thing,” one that persists from situation to situation, and research in personality, such as this study, addresses questions
as a result, individualists have a stronger need to maintain a at multiple levels of analysis, seeking to understand the connec-
positive view of their self-concepts. Individualists are likely to tions between biological functioning, personalities, and culture.

Quick Quiz 12.2a Culture and Personality

1 What does the WEIRD acronym refer to? 3 Results from applying the Big Five personality traits in
ANALYZE . . .
KNOW . . .

A Psychologists’ preoccupation with abnormal other countries reveal that

personalities A people all over the world are identical in the
B A single, specific group on which major perspec- patterns of their personality traits.
tives and theories of personality are based B people all over the world are radically different in
C A database that compiles personality profiles from the patterns of their personality traits.
people of all walks of life C there are some cross-cultural differences as well
D The application of personality to the various as many similarities in the patterns of people’s
cultures from East Asia personality traits.
D the Big Five was not understood in other parts
2 Psychologists have primarily relied on ________ to of the world because of language translation
measure personality traits in other cultures. problems.
A behavioural C the Cannon-Bard
observations theory Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

B interviews D the Big Five trait

theory

510 :: Module 12.2 : : Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality

How Genes Affect Personality twins who were identical (monozygotic) to twins who
were fraternal (dizygotic) allowed researchers to esti-
Do you have your mother’s eyes? Your father’s nose? You
mate the influence of genetic factors on personality.
may have at some point heard friends and relatives com-
Research on the Big Five personality traits of twins has
menting on the physical resemblance you share with
shown that identical twins show a stronger correlation
your parents or siblings. But what about personality?
for each personality trait than do fraternal twins. The
Can you be born with your grandpa’s sense of humour,
correlations for identical twin pairs are approximately
or your grandma’s tendency to lose her temper? If you
.50 for all five factors, significantly higher than the cor-
catch yourself behaving like your mom or dad, should
relations for fraternal twin pairs (who average approxi-
you conclude that “it must be genetic”?
mately .20). This implies that the increased similarity in Watch
Or do you believe more in the role of the environ-
the personalities of identical twins is due to their shared Special Topics: Twins
ment in shaping your personality? Like many psycholo-
genes. and Personality
gists, you may assume that if you have certain traits, like a
propensity for alcoholism, or for being friendly and out-
going, then you must have picked these up from other
people (e.g., Mischel, 1981). Indeed, if you had been
raised in an Amish village, a Toronto highrise, a working-
class neighbourhood in the north end of Halifax, or as a
member of the royal family, then obviously, you would
turn out quite differently in each case.
We know that nurture matters. And to be honest,
most of us love that! It gives us comfort, because if the
environment shapes us, then we can shape our own des-
tinies. We can decide for ourselves the kind of people
we are going to be. And we can help other people shape
their own future selves. But we know that nature mat-
ters too; mountains of research findings over the past AP Photo
few decades lead to the overwhelming conclusion that Gerald Levey and Mark Newman are identical twins who were
genetic factors contribute substantially to personality reared apart. When they eventually met it turns out they had
many similarities—for example, both chose the same profes-
(Plomin & Caspi, 1999). Exactly how much of who we sion, loved John Wayne movies and The Three Stooges, and
are is determined by nature, and how much remains had a fondness for professional wrestling.
under the control of nurture, has profound implica-
tions. For example, how would you make sense of your-
self if you found out that the home you grew up in is
much less important than the genes you inherited at the
moment of conception?

TWIN STUDIES Researchers attempting to tease

apart the contributions made by our genes and our envi-
ronments faced a key challenge, which was that fami-
lies share not only genes, but also many environmental
factors. For example, if you were to observe a behav-
iour pattern that runs in families, such as alcoholism or
anxiety, you might be tempted to conclude that because
of the strong family inclination toward this pattern,
there must be genetic roots. But family members also
often live in the same home, spend much of their time
ZAK BRIAN/SIPA/ZAK BRIAN/SIPA/Newscom
together, share many common experiences, and share
Paula Bernstein and Elyse Schein are identical twins who were
other similarities. How then do you know if the pat- separated at birth, and upon uniting at age 35 discovered they
tern you observe is due to the shared genes or the shared shared some uncanny similarities. They were editors for their
environments? high-school newspapers, chose to study film in university,
sucked their fingers but not their thumbs as toddlers, have an
The use of twins as research subjects was a bril-
odd habit of typing into the air, and share very similar tastes in
liant way of overcoming this challenge. Comparing books, among other similarities.

Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.2 :: 511

 But you might ask, how do researchers know that parents have no influence on the personality character-
it’s the increased genetic similarity of identical twins istics of their adopted children. Although it may be hard
that is responsible for their similar personalities? Maybe to believe, siblings who are adopted (i.e., not genetically
identical twins also tend to share more similar environ- related) and raised in the same household are no more
ments than fraternal twins, and this is the reason for their similar in personality than two people picked randomly off the
personality similarity. Identical twins are often treated street (Plomin & Caspi, 1999). The genetic influences on
in very similar ways, especially during their younger personality are strong indeed.
and formative years. If this is true, then the strong cor- It is important to note that this does not mean
relations between identical twin pairs might be environ- that parents are incapable of influencing their chil-
mentally based. dren’s personality development. Obviously, parents
An impressive line of research directly examines this who abuse their children, or on the positive side, par-
question. The Minnesota Study of Twins Reared Apart ents who put extraordinary efforts into cultivating
located over 100 sets of twins and triplets who were raised positive personality traits in their children, are likely
in separate households, and compared them to those raised to have an impact on their children’s personalities. The
in the same household. Amazingly, identical twins raised genetic evidence just discussed simply implies that
in different households nevertheless were quite similar in most parents do not do these things; most parents do
many ways, more similar than fraternal twins raised in the not expose their children to experiences so far outside
same household; this is amazing when you consider how the norm that they are likely to shape their children’s
important a person’s family is in general, and yet, family personalities in a strong way. The conclusion, then, is
does not have a stronger impact than genes when shap- that most of the time, the infl uence of parenting on
ing personality. Identical twins raised in different house- personality is overshadowed by the contributions made
holds are about as similar to each other as identical twins by our genes.
raised in the same household! Studies such as these argue One further challenge of this research is to move
strongly that in terms of basic personality characteristics, beyond estimating the overall heritability of traits, and
your genes are indeed more important than your home begin to uncover which specific genes are linked to per-
Watch (Bouchard et al., 1990; Tellegen et al., 1998). sonality outcomes. New advances in gene sequencing
Twins Separated at Other studies of adopted children support these techniques and molecular genetics methods are allowing
Birth, Reunited findings. On average, the personalities of adoptive scientists to do just that.

to personality. For example, one of the genes that codes

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC for serotonin activity has been found on human chromo-
some 17. Specifically, this gene codes for proteins that trans-
LITERACY MODEL port serotonin molecules within the tiny spaces (synapses)
From Molecules to Personality between nerve cells. Many of our genes are polymorphic
(poly = “multiple”; morph = “form”), meaning that there are
different versions of the same gene that lead to different
It’s pretty mind-blowing to know that who you are was
physical or behavioural characteristics. Two possible varia-
determined to a fair degree before you were even born, by
tions of the “serotonin transporter gene” have been identi-
whatever genes you happened to inherit from your parents.
fied: a short copy and a long copy.
Researchers are just beginning to piece together which spe-
cific genes influence which traits.
How do scientists
What do we know study genes and
about specific genes personality?
and personality? To study genes and person-
Although scientists have not iden- ality, one method is to com-
tified a specific gene or genes pare responses on self-report questionnaires of people who
involved in the expression of spe- have inherited different copies of a specific gene. People who
cific personality factors, such as inherit short copies of the serotonin transporter gene from
neuroticism or agreeableness, they have discovered genes one or both parents seem predisposed to anxiety, shyness, and
that code for specific brain chemicals that, in turn, are related experiencing negative emotional reactions in interpersonal

512 :: Module 12.2 : : Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality

situations (Battaglia et al., 2005; Lesch et al., 1996). However, Negative Image Positive Image
other researchers have suggested that these differences may
depend on which of the many different varieties of self-report
questionnaires are used (Schinka et al., 2004).

Another method for studying genes and personality is to

conduct experiments and compare the responses of people
with different copies of a gene. In one study, participants
provided a hair sample so researchers could extract DNA
to determine which combination of serotonin transporter
genes they had inherited. The participants completed a task
that monitored their attentional focus to pictures of posi-
tive (e.g., a smiling infant), negative (a black widow spider),
or neutral (a kitchen table) stimuli. Previous research has
shown that people who have problems with anxiety focus
their attention on threatening stimuli more than nonanx-
Adam inherited two long copies Becky inherited one short and
ious people (Bar-Haim et al., 2007). Researchers found that of the chromosome 17 allele. He one long copy of the chromosome
participants who had inherited two long copies of the gene prefers looking at positive images 17 allele. She has no preference for
and avoids negative ones. positive or negative images.
were biased toward looking at positive images more fre-
quently and for longer periods of time. On the other hand,
people who inherited one or two short versions of the gene {fig. 12.4} Genes, Serotonin, and Personality People who
inherit two copies of the long version of the serotonin trans-
spent more time looking at negative images (Figure 12.4; Fox porter gene fixate on positive images and avoid looking at
et al., 2009). It seems that inheriting short copies of this gene negative images. People who inherit the short version of this
increases anxiety levels in general, and seems to steer people gene are not biased toward attending to positive imagery.
toward giving excessive attention to negative and threaten-
ing information.

Can we critically and depression. This work raises some interesting possi-
evaluate this evidence? bilities, such as the potential to screen individuals to assess
It is important to keep in mind their risk of developing a disorder. In turn, at-risk individuals
that, in most cases, there is no might be better helped with early detection and treatment.
single gene causing a single out- Also, knowing about the genetic underpinnings of personality
come in a person. Most phenom- is highly informative to theorists seeking to understand how
ena are understood to be caused our personality traits, and the variability of traits across cul-
by multiple genes interacting with the environment. At tures, evolved in the first place.
this point the general consensus is that a vast number of
genes, each of which has only a very small effect, account
for individual differences in personality (Terracciano et al.,
2010). It is also important to note that these are corre-
lational studies, and inferring causality from such data is
highly problematic.

Why is this relevant?

Knowledge about how genes
and personality are related
can help psychologists iden-
tify risk factors for developing
mental disorders. As we will see in other parts of this text,
genetic studies of personality help us better understand the
biological basis of psychological disorders such as anxiety GoGo Images Corporation/Alamy

Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.2 :: 513

 in numerous nonhuman species. For example, scientists
Quick Quiz 12.2b have studied one particular species of bird (Parus major)
How Genes Affect Personality that lives in Europe and Asia. These birds display two dif-
ferent patterns of behaviour when they encounter new
1 ________ refers to the tendency to define the self in

KNOW . . .
terms of one’s personal identity, goals, and attributes, environments, corresponding to a “fast-exploring” or
whereas ________ describes the tendency to define the “slow-exploring” personality type. The fast-exploring
self in terms of group memberships and relationships types are aggressive, bold in their exploration of new
with other people. environments, and tend to rely more on routine ways
A Motivation; agreeableness of responding to the environment rather than being
B Individualism; collectivism responsive to external cues. The slow-exploring types are
C Autonomy; dependence passive, shy when confronted with new environments,
D Collectivism; individualism and are more responsive to the external environment,
changing their behaviour more readily to suit changes in
2 Even when identical twins are reared apart, they still the environment. These two personality types are known
UNDERSTAND . . .

tend to be very similar in personality. How is this to have a strong genetic basis. Which of the two person-
strong evidence that genes contribute to personality? ality types is adaptive depends on what kind of year the
A Identical twins who were reared apart were most birds are having. If there are limited resources, aggres-
likely treated in very similar ways.
sive, fast-exploring females, and timid, slow-exploring
B The similarities remain, even though there were
males have greater reproductive success. In years where
probably significant differences in how the siblings
were raised.
resources are plentiful, it is the opposite—slow-exploring
females and fast-exploring males have greater success.
C There are fewer similarities when twins are reared
together. There are complex reasons why males and females have
D Actually, identical twins who are raised apart show personality factors that are oppositely adaptive to the
very little similarity. environment, but the important point is that the basic
personality dimension of aggressiveness vs. passivity is
represented in these birds and has been clearly tied to
3 Which of the following statements best describes
the birds’ adaptive advantage in different environments
what psychologists now know about the genetic basis
of personality? (Dingemanse et al., 2004).
A Hundreds of genes have been identified that are The suggestion that animals have personalities may
directly linked to specific personality traits. not strike you as all that surprising. Many people who
B Technology is not sophisticated enough to link have had close and extended experience with animals,
genes and personality characteristics. from farmers to pet owners, would say that animals have
C Some genes have been identified that are related to personalities. For example, dog lovers don’t feel that their
certain aspects of personality function.
pet is a totally incomprehensible beast; instead, they attri-
D Genes do not contribute to personality bute qualities, emotions, and personality quirks that are
characteristics.
very “human” to the beloved animal. This may merely
Answers can be found on page ANS-3. illustrate our tendency to anthropomorphize the living
world, seeing other species through our own egocentric
lens, but it may also reflect our shared genetic heritage
with other species.
The Role of Evolution in Personality Researchers who wish to study animal personalities
Evolutionary psychologists emphasize that our person- face a daunting task, particularly considering that non-
ality structures are built right into our species because human animals are usually not very adept at filling out
they conferred selective advantages to humans possessing personality scales. To overcome this problem, individuals
certain traits. But the human species is related to other who are familiar with the animals rate their behaviours
species as well, and so one would expect that we may according to the five factors. Typically, observers strongly
share at least some aspects of our personalities with other agree on their ratings of extraversion and neuroticism
species. in the animals studied (Gosling, 2001). In fact, several of
the Big Five personality traits have been found in a rich
ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR: THE EVOLUTIONARY diversity of species—such as rhinos, primates, hedge-
ROOTS OF PERSONALITY One compelling argu- hogs, and even ants (Gosling, 2001)! In one study of
ment for the usefulness of the evolutionary perspec- chimpanzees, our closest primate relatives, a list of adjec-
tive on personality is the presence of personality traits tives was taken from the Big Five test and people who

514 :: Module 12.2 : : Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality

Left: poeticpenguin/[Link]; centre: Rena Schild/[Link]; right: dmvphotos/[Link]
Psychologists are finding that measures of human personality are applicable to diverse species such as hyenas, octopuses, and chimpanzees, among
many others.

were familiar with the chimpanzee subjects rated how the other hand, extraverts tend to be risk takers and sen-
well the adjectives applied to each chimp on a 1 to 7 sation seekers, and it would therefore be desirable to off-
scale. Of the Big Five traits, extraversion, conscientious- set these qualities with a healthy proportion of introverts
ness, and agreeableness were reliably found in the chimps in a group.
(Weiss et al., 2007). People high in conscientiousness would be reliable
The presence of basic personality dimensions may and dependable, and others would learn to count on
be extremely widespread in the living world; some them to get things done, clearly desirable qualities in a
researchers even argue you do not need a backbone mate. However, the person low in conscientiousness may
to have a personality! Researchers at the University of be an attractive partner to mate with for other reasons,
Lethbridge, Alberta, have shown that octopuses show such as their spontaneity and willingness to not always
stable individual differences in measures of activity, reac- take life too seriously.
tivity, and avoidance (Mather & Anderson, 1993). People low in neuroticism would be the emo-
tional stalwarts of the community, the people who
WHY THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENT PERSON- didn’t crack under pressure but kept a level head and
ALITIES: THE EVOLUTIONARY EXPLANATION could be counted on in crises. However, being high in
David Zuroff of McGill University argues that evo- neuroticism could pay off at times; for example, groups
lutionary perspectives can make a major contribu- may benefit from having some highly neurotic people
tion to our understanding of personality, helping us around, because they would be more attuned to danger
to go beyond the Five Factor Model. According to and act as the voice of caution that keeps others from
Zuroff, the FFM has answered the “content” ques- making dangerous decisions.
tion of personality quite well, outlining the key fac- People high in agreeableness would be the friends
tors that compr ise personality. However, it leaves who are there for you when you need them, and they
largely unaddressed the “process” questions, such as would generally help to promote harmony and solidar-
why we acquired the specific traits that we did (Zuroff ity as groups work together on larger projects; whereas
et al., 2010). those low in agreeableness may be useful for providing a
Evolutionary perspectives can help us to understand critical perspective and ensuring that the group doesn’t
why humans have evolved the particular personality make rash decisions.
traits that we have. To the extent that the Big Five traits People high in openness would be imaginative and
are built right into our biology, these traits must have creative, helping to build bridges between members of
been selected for by being adaptive in past evolutionary different subgroups in the community, and challenging
epochs, helping to promote our survival and reproduc- ideas so that the community doesn’t rigidify into dogma
tive success. and closed-mindedness. On the other hand, those low
For example, individuals high in extraversion would in openness may be useful for preserving traditions, and
be more likely to rise in social hierarchies, playing lead- helping to identify a coherent sense of identity within
ership and social networking roles in a community; on the community.

Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.2 :: 515

 et al., 2008). The authors argue that economic development
MYTHS IN MIND allows people to express the “true” gender differences that
exist whereas a lack of development imprisons people in
Men Are from Mars, Women Are their social roles, artificially narrowing what is considered to
from Venus be acceptable behaviour for men and women.
Much is often made about apparent differences in how men The conclusion seems to be that men and women actu-
and women think and behave. This comparison can some- ally are from Mars and Venus, so to speak; they do have differ-
times get stretched pretty far, such as the implication inher- ent personalities on average. Nevertheless, the differences are
ent in the title of the 1992 self-help book Men Are from Mars, so small that Mars and Venus must be pretty similar places. A
Women Are from Venus (Gray, 1992). The notion that men and good title will sell a lot of self-help books, but does little to
women may as well be from different planets is strongly rein- inform the general public about what scientific studies truly
forced by the popular media. reveal about human behaviour.
To what extent does science back up this hypothesis
when it comes to personality? On the one hand, there is
strong evidence that men and women differ on their Big Five
personality ratings. Women generally report higher levels of
extraversion, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and neuroti- Quick Quiz 12.2c
cism than men. This finding has been noted in comparisons
made across dozens of cultures (Schmitt et al., 2008). On the
The Role of Evolution in Personality
other hand, these gender differences are quite small, and are 1 What is an important piece of evidence supporting an

APPLY . . .
vastly overwhelmed by the variability within each gender. In evolutionary basis of personality?
other words, there are a lot of men who seem like they’re A Changes in personality can be seen over generations.
from Venus, and a lot of women who seem like they’re from B Personality traits are stable in the sense that they
Mars. So, even though there is a gender difference in person- are common among humans and can be found
ality, it is so small as to hardly allow the characterization that in nonhuman species.
men and women are fundamentally different from each other. C Personality traits are not stable and cannot be
In an interesting twist, however, this research also found found in nonhuman species.
that the gender differences are related to economic factors. D No valid evidence supports an evolutionary
Specifically, the countries showing the largest gender differ- approach to personality.
ences in personality also have greater access to resources
such as health care, education, and wealth. Men and women in
2 According to evolutionary psychologists, there is great
ANALYZE . . .

countries with fewer social and economic resources tend to

diversity in human personality because
be more similar in their self-reported personality scores. This
phenomenon may occur because a lack of resources tends to A certain personality traits (e.g., extraversion) were
most adaptive and were therefore selected for
constrain the behaviours and social roles of individuals, thus
over our evolutionary history.
making people more similar to each other at the expense of
their personal individuation. On the other hand, abundant B different traits are most adaptive in different
situations.
prosperity opens up more opportunities for personal expres-
sion and allows individual differences to flourish (Schmitt C a person with a diverse personality is best able to
adapt to different situations.
D some personality traits are most adaptive for mating,
whereas others are more adaptive for survival.

3 Which of the following statements best summarizes

personality differences between men and women?

A Averages of some traits such as extraversion

and neuroticism tend to differ between men and
women, but these differences are very small.
B Males and females inherit separate sets of genes
that cause their differences in personality.
C Research shows that men and women really do not
differ in personality.
D Males are generally agreeable, whereas women are
Jupiterimages/Brand X Pictures/Thinkstock
generally conscientious.
Men and women tend to differ in some personality dimensions.
However, these differences are often greatly exaggerated— Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
especially in the pop psychology industry.

516 :: Module 12.2 : : Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality

 As you can see, being either high or low in each Big
Five trait could be desirable, depending on the situation.
Thus, the complex blends of personality types across
society evolved because different traits were desirable in
different circumstances. Just as there are different niches
to which animal species adapt in an ecosystem, there
are different social niches to which people can adapt in
society. The extravert and the introvert, the neurotic and
the secure, the conscientious and the careless gravitate
toward the respective niches they best fill.

The Brain and Personality

Modern biological approaches for investigating the brain
and behaviour build on many ancient traditions of medi-
cine that connected the mind to the body and sought to
understand the person in terms of bodily processes. For
example, for much of the past 2000 years, Western medi-
cine was guided by the theory of humourism, which
explained both physical illnesses and disorders of personality
as resulting from imbalances in key fluids in the body—the
four “humours,” including blood, phlegm, black bile, and
yellow bile. For example, too much black bile resulted
in melancholy and irritability; too much yellow bile
resulted in becoming hot-tempered and prone to anger.
By the late 1700s, physicians began looking more Classic Image/Alamy
specifically at the brain for clues to people’s personalities. Phrenologists believed that different personality traits were
The initial attempts weren’t exactly high-level person- housed in different regions of the brain.
ality neuroscience, because scientists of the day did not
have access to the biological research technologies nec- extraversion , arguing that extraversion is determined by
essary for studying the brain. One influential German people’s threshold for arousal; according to this theory, peo-
doctor, Franz Gall, attempted to overcome this deficit by ple high in extraversion (i.e., extraverts) have a higher
carefully measuring the shape and contours of the outer threshold for arousal than people low in extraversion (i.e.,
skull, and inferring the size of the brain areas inside. Gall introverts). As a result, extraverts generally seek greater
developed phrenology—the theory that personality charac- amounts of stimulation, whereas introverts seek to limit
teristics could be assessed by carefully measuring the outer skull; the amount of stimulation they experience so as to not
the specific dimensions of the skull indicated the size of become overwhelmed with excessive arousal. One brain
the brain areas inside, which in turn corresponded to system, the ascending reticular activating system
specific personality characteristics. Phrenology held sway (ARAS), plays a central role in controlling this arousal response.
well into the 1800s. Ironically, phrenologists were on the Eysenck initially proposed that extraverts have a lower
right track in postulating that different psychological resting baseline of activation of the ARAS than introverts;
functions were localized in specific regions of the brain; that is, extraverts are in a chronically lower state of arousal
however, it turns out that measurements of the skull do than introverts and therefore can handle a greater “kick”
not correspond meaningfully to the size and power of before becoming over-aroused. It turns out that it’s not
different brain areas, nor does the shape of the skull have the average level of arousal of the ARAS, but its reactiv-
anything to do with personality. ity that differentiates extraverts from introverts. Put simply,
for a given “kick,” introverts have a stronger response.
EXTRAVERSION AND AROUSAL By the mid-20th Another influential model of the brain-personality
century, researchers working at the nexus of the bio- relationship was proposed by Jeffrey Gray, whose
logical and psychological sciences began convincingly approach/inhibition model of motivation (Gray, 1991)
linking personality characteristics with specific brain sys- describes two major brain systems for processing rewards
tems. One of the most influential pioneers in this field, and punishments: the behavioural activation system and
Hans Eysenck (1967), proposed an arousal theory of the behavioural inhibition system.

Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.2 :: 517

 The behavioural activation system (BAS) is relationships between personality and the brain. Neuro-
a “GO” system, arousing the person to action in the pursuit scientists have tested whether each of the Big Five per-
of desired goals. This system is responsive to rewards and sonality traits is associated with a different brain region,
fairly unresponsive to possible negative consequences; and whether these regions correspond to the behaviours
greater BAS activation therefore is associated with associated with these traits. The general conclusion has
greater positive emotional responses and approach moti- been that indeed, there are many relationships between
vation. The other system, the behavioural inhibition personality traits and the size of specific brain areas.
system (BIS), is more of a “danger” system, motivating the Extraversion: Extraverts have a larger medial orbi-
person to action in order to avoid punishments or other nega- tofrontal cortex (part of the PFC; DeYoung et al., 2010),
tive outcomes. The BIS is therefore associated with greater and generally have less activation in the amygdala (Canli
negative emotional responses and avoidance motivation. et al., 2002). The medial orbitofrontal cortex is involved
As you might expect, the BIS/BAS systems are in processing reward, which is consistent with extraverts’
related to personality as well. Studies show that several greater reward sensitivity. The amygdala, on the other
of the Big Five factors are correlated with activation of hand, is involved in processing novelty, danger, and fear,
the BIS/BAS systems. The most consistent finding is which extraverts tend to pay less attention to, hence their
that extraversion is especially related to BAS activation, under-active amygdalae (see Figure 12.5).
whereas neuroticism is related to BIS activation (e.g., Neuroticism: Neuroticism is associated with the
Gomez et al., 2000). Research studies at many different size of various brain areas, such as a smaller dorsomedial
levels of analysis back this up. At the behavioural level, prefrontal cortex, a smaller hippocampus, and a larger
people high in extraversion tend to act impulsively when mid-cingulate gyrus (an area right above the corpus
presented with the possibility of rewards, even ignoring callosum; DeYoung et al., 2010). Each of these areas is
the risk of punishment (Patterson & Newman, 1993). At involved in abilities that are central to neuroticism.
the neurochemical level, extraverts show a stronger dopa- The dorsomedial prefrontal cortex is involved
mine response to rewarding stimuli (Depue & Collins, in controlling emotions (Ochsner & Gross, 2005),
1999). At the emotional level, extraverts tend to experi- the hippocampus in controlling obsessive negative
ence more positive affect in a range of situations (Ashby thinking (Gray & McNaughton, 2000), and the mid-
et al., 1999; Lucas et al., 2000). Thus, a trait measure of cingulate gyrus in detecting errors and perceiving
extraversion reflects the functioning of many different pain—whether physical or emotional pain (Carter
systems, providing a great example of the integration of et al., 1998; Eisenberger & Lieberman, 2004). These
science across many different areas of study. are the kinds of processes that define highly neurotic
people. They have difficulty controlling their emotions,
C O N T E M P O R A RY R E S E A R C H : I M AG E S O F often fall prey to obsessive negative thinking, and are
PERSONALITY IN THE BRAIN Moder n-day highly sensitive when they make mistakes, or when
researchers use brain-imaging technology to test for they feel pain.

Extraversion Conscientiousness

Middle frontal
gyrus

Medial
orbitofrontal
cortex

DeYoung, C. G., Hirsh, J. B., Shane, M. S., Papademetris, X., Rajeevan, N., & Gray, J. R. (2010). Testing predictions from
personality neuroscience, Brain structure and the big five. Psychological Science, 21(6), 820–828. Reprinted by Permission of
SAGE Publications
{fig. 12.5} Measuring Personality and Brain Anatomy People’s self-ratings of the Big Five traits correspond to their brain vol-
ume in specific regions. Here we see two (among several) regions of the brain where size is positively correlated with ratings of
extraversion and conscientiousness (DeYoung et al., 2010).

518 :: Module 12.2 : : Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality

 Agreeableness: People high in agreeableness show Although the ability to link brain regions to per-
less brain volume in an area called the left superior tem- sonality processes at such a fine-grained level has only
poral sulcus (DeYoung et al., 2010), which is activated become possible recently, neuroscientists are beginning to
when one is interpreting another person’s actions or find brain regions that differ reliably between people with
intentions (Pelphrey & Morris, 2006). They also show different personality traits. This does not mean that these
greater volume in an area called the posterior cingulate differences cause the personality differences, but it does sug-
cortex, which is involved in empathy and perspective- gest that these brain regions are involved in serving neuro-
taking (DeYoung et al., 2010). These brain areas match logical functions that are related to personality processes at
the tendency for people high in agreeableness to be some level. The causal connections might be indirect and
more socially attuned and to have more empathy for highly varied, challenging us with incredible complexity,
others. both of personality itself but also complexity of the neuro-
Conscientiousness: People high in this trait have logical architecture of the brain. This complexity reminds
larger brain volume in the middle frontal gyrus in the us that in most cases, there will be no specific brain area
left prefrontal cortex (DeYoung et al., 2010), which is involved uniquely in a personality trait; for example, there
involved in working memory processes and in carry- is no “centre of extraversion” in the brain. Any trait plays
ing out actions that you have planned. These functions itself out through many different thoughts, feelings, and
are implicated in effective self-control, which is a key behaviours, each of which involves many different brain
strength of the highly conscientious person. systems. What ends up manifesting as a stable pattern that
Openness to Experience: Individuals high in we identify as a personality trait therefore represents pat-
openness to experience have been shown to have greater terns of activation across many different brain systems.
activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, which is So we may never be able to point at a single region
involved in creativity and intelligence, as well as other (or even a few regions) and declare it to be the centre
brain systems involved in the integration of the self and of any single personality trait. That said, we have come a
the environment (Adelstein et al., 2011). These systems long way from the days when personality was described
reflect the tendencies for people high in openness to be in terms of the four humours of blood, phlegm, and
creative, integrative thinkers. black and yellow bile.

Quick Quiz 12.2d The Brain and Personality

1 An outdated approach claiming that behaviour and 3 You are looking at an fMRI brain scan of a subject
APPLY . . .
KNOW . . .

personality were based on the sizes of various regions in a research study. The scan shows that the person
of the skull surface was called generally has greater activation in the dorsolateral
A magnetic resonance imaging. prefrontal cortex, and less activation in the amygdala.
B alchemy. Based on this information, what guess would you make
about the person’s personality profile?
C phrenology.
A Low on extraversion, high on conscientiousness
D humourism.
B High on extraversion, high on openness to
experience
2 Hans Eysenck believed that extraversion was tied
C Low in neuroticism, high on extraversion
most closely to the functioning of the
A kimbic system. D Low in neuroticism, high on conscientiousness
B parasympathetic nervous system. Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
C ascending reticular activating system.
D amygdala.

Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.2 :: 519

 Module Summary

Module Now that you have read this module you should
12.2
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with cultural and bio-

logical approaches to personality:
arousal theory of extraversion behavioural inhibition system
(p. 517) (BIS) (p. 518) Randy Faris/Glow Images
ascending reticular activating humourism (p. 517)
system (ARAS) (p. 517) phrenology (p. 517)
behavioural activation system ANALYZE . . .
(BAS) (p. 518)
● Claims that males and females have fundamentally
different personalities . Claims of major gender
UNDERSTAND . . . differences in personality are sometimes made to support
popular-book sales. In reality, the general consensus in
● How evolutionary theories explain personality .
psychological science is that males and females are more
Evolutionary psychologists theorize that personality traits
alike than different when it comes to personality. Both, of
evolved because they solved environmental and social
course, share common personality dimensions. Although
problems encountered by our distant ancestors. Although
females tend to be, on average, more conscientious,
this hypothesis is difficult to test directly, different sources
agreeable, extraverted, and neurotic than males, these
of evidence lend support to [Link] widespread occurrence
differences are very small, and there is no evidence to
of these personality traits among different species
support claims that men and women are fundamentally
indicates that they are adaptive.
different in personality.
● The genetic basis of personality. Heritability studies
APPLY . . . show that personality traits are substantially predicted by
genetic variation. Studies of twins and adopted children
● Your knowledge to understand how arousal is related also back this up, showing that identical twins are far
to extraversion. Although extraversion is commonly more similar in personality than fraternal twins, and
interpreted to indicate how sociable and friendly people that the home in which people grow up has much less
are, it is more fundamentally related to how reactive influence over their personalities than the genes they
people are to stimulation. Highly extraverted people have inherited from their biological parents. However, despite
less reactive ascending reticular activating systems (ARAS), this evidence for genetic influences on personality, one
which means that they don’t get as big of a “kick” out of a cannot conclude that personality is “hard wired” and
given level of stimulation; this causes them to prefer more therefore unchangeable. Personality emerges through the
stimulating environments, relative to introverts, who have interaction of genes and the environment; thus, a given
more reactive ARASs, and therefore prefer lower levels of genetic make-up can express itself differently in different
stimulation so that they do not feel overwhelmed. environments.

520 :: Module 12.2 : : Cultural and Biological Approaches to Personality

 blas/Fotolia

Module

12.3 Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches

to Personality
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology related How people use defence mechanisms to Both psychodynamic Whether projective tests are
After reading to the psychodynamic and cope with conflicting thoughts and feelings and humanistic valid measures of personality
this module humanistic approaches perspectives to
The developmental stages Freud used The strengths and weaknesses
you should to personality to explain the origins of personality explain personality of psychodynamic perspectives

Have you ever wondered, are you living your life as well as you possi- He argued that the more we open ourselves to our inherent goodness,
bly could? Are you the most empowered, vibrant self you could possibly the more we will see reality clearly, rather than through our biases; the
be? Have you reached the pinnacle of what is possible for a human to more we will be empowered and able to confront life courageously, rather
become? To paraphrase the old U.S. army recruiting slogan, are you being than shrinking from challenges because of our insecurities; and the more
all that you could be? we can focus on helping others rather than tending to our own needs
and wants. The end result of pursuing personal growth is to become fully,
If you are being honest, your answer is probably no. And that’s okay. Seriously,
vibrantly alive.
who has “reached the pinnacle of human development”? Almost all of us
haven’t developed our personalities to their utmost [Link] have short- “Laboring under the effects of deficiency motivation is like looking at the
comings and flaws, and live decidedly less-than-ideal [Link] is this? What is world through a clouded lens, and removing those effects is like replac-
holding us back? What would we be like if we did “reach the pinnacle”? ing the clouded lens with a clear one. Self-actualizing persons’ contact
Abraham Maslow was fascinated by questions like these. He was inspired with reality is simply more direct. And along with this unfiltered, unmedi-
by the potential he believed that human beings possess to become fully ated directness of their contact with reality comes also a vastly height-
developed, or “self-actualized.” In striking contrast to much of the cynicism ened ability to appreciate again and again, freshly and naively, the basic
of the 20th century, Maslow believed that although we have the capacity goods of life, with awe, pleasure, wonder, and even ecstasy, however stale
for great evil, at the very foundation of our being we are inherently good. those experiences may have become for others.” (Maslow, 1968)

Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.3 :: 521

 Is it possible to live such a life? Maslow thought so, and stud- Sigmund Freud does not get much respect in our society
ied the biographies of people who he deemed to be “self- today. Many of his theories have not stood the test of
actualized,” people like Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, time and are now largely ignored. Some of his theories
Eleanor Roosevelt, and Aldous Huxley. Despite this rather are even regarded as ridiculous by most people (e.g., the
unscientific approach, his study revealed a host of characteris-
Oedipus complex, which we discuss later in this mod-
tics that seemed universal among the self-actualized, including
ule). He was a passionate user and advocate of cocaine
the following:
before its addictive and destructive properties were
They are attuned to reality as it is, rather than engaging known. He is said to have been a tyrant in some ways,
in wishful thinking or filtering their experiences through allowing his followers little freedom to dissent from his
their wants and needs. views. He has been critiqued as having an obsession with
Rather than bowing to social pressures or fearing the sex, to have created unfalsifiable and therefore unscien-
judgment of others, they strive to be “authentic,” to tific theories, and to have created grand theories of the
present their true selves to the world. psyche based on studying an extremely narrow cross-
They tend to be spontaneous and creative, responding section of humanity (mostly women seeking counselling
freely and naturally to their circumstances. in Victorian-era Europe).
They ground their awareness firmly in the present However, despite the criticisms, Sigmund Freud is
moment, not dwelling on the past or dreaming of a one of the most influential psychologists in history. Freud
brighter future for themselves. was a pioneer in the study of personality and the treat-
They possess a profound capacity for gratitude, apprecia- ment of psychological disorders, and many of his ideas
tion, and wonder, taking great delight in the world around about human consciousness continue to resonate with
them. many psychologists, and are widely accepted and used
They experience a strong, universal sense of connection in contemporary society. When a drug addict admits to
and empathy for all of humanity. being “in denial” of his addiction, an abuse survivor talks
They frequently seem to have “peak experiences”—moments about how she “repressed” her memories and feelings
of ecstasy, wonder, awe, and feeling “one with the universe.” for many years, or someone accuses you of “projecting”
your anger onto other people, they are hearkening back
Maslow hoped that his work would help people learn how to Freud.
to cultivate these qualities within themselves. His optimistic Interestingly, Freud was not trained in psychology,
vision of human nature was a major break with the psy- but was instead a neurologist. The launch of his scientific
chology of that time, which was dominated by behaviourism
career was anything but glamorous; he spent many hours
and Freudian psychoanalysis. To the behaviourists, “person-
peering through microscopes at tissue samples, search-
ality” was an unnecessary concept, because behaviour was
ing for the elusive testicles of the male eel. Scientists of
merely the result of a complex accumulation of rewards
and punishments that had been conditioned into the person the day had not yet been able to locate the eel’s testicles,
over the course of her lifetime. And as we discuss below, but Freud’s extraordinary attention to detail allowed him
to the Freudians, personality was a battleground between to eventually make the discovery, after dissecting many
opposing forces in the psyche, as people struggled to defend hundreds of eels. Which might make you ask, what kind
themselves against the negativity that loomed in their of person exhaustively searches for eel testicles? Freud-
unconscious. ian theorists would have an interesting answer to that
Simulate Although neither Freudian psychoanalysis nor Maslow’s
question.
What Has Shaped humanistic theories have retained their once-prominent posi- After leaving his scientific career to be trained as
Your Personality? tions in psychology, they remain highly influential approaches a physician, Freud began to accept clients who sought
in society at large, and have inspired and guided generations his help for psychological diffi culties. Initially, Freud
of people to more fully live their lives. In this module, we believed that their issues could be resolved through
explore these exciting approaches that tried to get right to investigating their physiology and isolating the bio-
the heart of what it means to be human. logical factors that contributed to their problems.
However, after thoroughly examining some of his
Focus Questions patients, he realized that their emotional struggles
often could not be understood at the physiologi-
1 How do the psychodynamic and humanistic cal level; instead, he had to delve into the mysterious
approaches give you insight into your own personality? depths of the mind. This led him to begin trying to
2 How do people use psychological defences to protect understand the personalities of his patients, and the
themselves from emotionally troubling events? psychological dynamics that led to the problems they
were experiencing.

522 :: Module 12.3 : : Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality

 Over time, his observations and ideas coalesced into entire iceberg, while most of its bulk lurks beneath the Watch
his psychodynamic theory, which isn’t really a “theory” at surface; similarly, the conscious mind is a small fraction Basics: Personality
all, but rather an evolving family of different theories and of the entire psyche, while most of the psyche lurks Theories

ideas that share many key features, which we discuss in beneath the surface of our awareness in the depths of
this module (also, see Westen, 1998). the unconscious.
Because the unconscious is fairly inaccessible to
consciousness and is much more powerful than the con-
The Psychodynamic Perspective scious mind, it is the primary driver of our behaviours.
A universal assumption of psychodynamic theories is Even seemingly trivial behaviours, such as slips of the
that personality and behaviour are shaped by powerful tongue, reflect the workings of the unconscious. In fact,
forces in consciousness, a great deal of which is hidden these slips, famously called “Freudian slips,” are very use-
from our awareness in the mysterious unconscious. By ful to the observant person, because they offer a glimpse
emphasizing the unconscious, Freud threw into doubt into the otherwise inaccessible workings of the uncon-
many of our common feelings and beliefs. For example, scious. When people make a Freudian slip, their con-
we like to feel like we are in control of ourselves and our scious mind intends to say something appropriate to the
behaviour reflects conscious choices that we make. We circumstances, but their unconscious mind leads them
believe that we know why we do the things we do, that to say what they were “really thinking.” One of the most
our behaviour makes sense to us. We also like to believe famous in recent cultural history occurred during a TV
that when we do something embarrassing, immoral, or wedding on Friends between Ross and Emily. You may
just plain stupid, that we were somehow “out of control” remember the fateful, “I, Ross, take thee, Rachel. . . . ”
or that it was a mistake. Freud believed fervently in the value of these
From a psychodynamic perspective, however, there “psychopathologies of everyday life” and developed
are no mistakes, and we have very little control over our- several techniques that psychoanalysts could employ
selves, and remarkably little insight into the reasons for to use these small hints to gain access into the nether-
our own behaviours. Everything we think, feel, and do world of the unconscious. (We revisit this later in this
results from psychological dynamics that are so deeply module.) These techniques were necessary because
buried in our unconscious that we have no direct access understanding the relationship between the conscious
to them; our mind is a “black box,” even to ourselves. and unconscious minds was thought to give important
To understand the implications of Freud’s psycho-
dynamic theory, we will explore its key concepts and
how they apply to personality psychology.
Conscious
UNCONSCIOUS PROCESSES AND PSYCHODY- Contact with
NAMICS Freud grounded his theories on a model outside world Ego

of consciousness that distinguished between different

levels of mental life, most importantly between the
conscious mind and the unconscious. The conscious Superego
mind is your current awareness, containing everything you
are aware of right now . The unconscious mind is a
Unconscious
much more vast and powerful but inaccessible part of your Difficult to retrieve
Id
consciousness, operating without your conscious endorsement material; well below
the surface of
or will to influence and guide your behaviours. The uncon- awareness
scious mind houses your full lifetime of memories and
experiences, including those that you can no longer
bring into conscious awareness, such as emotional
patterns that were created in early childhood or even
infancy. It also contains your preferences and desires,
thus powerfully influencing your motivations, but usu-
ally so subtly that you are not even aware of it. The {fig. 12.6} The Freudian Structure of Personality A popular depiction
relationship between these two levels of conscious- of how Freud viewed personality features an iceberg, with the unconscious
mind residing below the surface and conscious awareness at only the tip
ness is often described using an iceberg metaphor of
of the iceberg. The id is completely submerged, whereas the ego and the
consciousness ( Figure 12.6 ). With icebergs, the part superego operate at both unconscious and conscious levels. Click on
you can see above the surface is a small fraction of the this figure in your eText to see more details.

Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.3 :: 523

 insights into human personality. Freud and other psy- and “proper” through being praised or punished by our
choanalysts argued that much of what manifests as per- caregivers, and we eventually internalize this praise and
sonality reflects patterns that emerge from individuals’ punishment until we apply it to ourselves. Thus, when
attempts to resolve conflicts within themselves, conflicts we behave immorally, the superego chastises us, similarly
that are played out through the interactions between the to how our parents may have done, thereby encouraging
conscious and unconscious minds. How does this occur? us to “do the right thing.”
How do the conscious and unconscious minds interact In between the devilish id and the angelic super-
with each other? ego sits the beleaguered ego, the decision maker, frequently
under tension, trying to reconcile the opposing urges of the id
THE STRUCTURE OF PERSONALITY Have you and superego. So, instead of hitting someone when we are
ever done something you knew at the time was wrong? angry, we find more socially acceptable ways of express-
Like eating that brownie when you were trying to ing it, like being sarcastic and telling them off , or wait-
improve your diet? Losing your temper? Hooking up ing until we get home so we can yell at our pillow or
with that attractive person even though they have a boy- phone up a friend and vent our frustrations. The ego has
friend or girlfriend (or you do)? It’s a cliché that desire to be plugged into reality; if it listened to the id all the
and our conscience often are at odds with each other; time, we would be hedonic deviants, instantly gratifying
think of the cartoon images of the devil sitting on one ourselves at every turn, but if it listened to the superego
shoulder urging you to “do it!” and the angel on the all the time, we would cut ourselves off from much of
other pleading with you not to. our raw passion and zest for life. The ego seeks to bal-
To explain this all-too-common conflict, Freud ance the two forces, pulled by the tension between the
hypothesized that the human psyche consists of three id’s need for instant gratification, and the superego’s urg-
basic structures, which are often in conflict with each ing to do what is appropriate or moral. Thus, the ego
Explore other: the id, the ego, and the superego (Figure 12.6). operates according to the reality principle, still interested
The Id, Ego, and The id represents a collection of basic biological drives, in gratifying its desires, but striving to postpone it until
Superego including those directed toward sex and aggression. Freud the appropriate situation.
believed the id was fuelled by an energy called libido. According to Freud, personality arises out of the
Although this term is more commonly used in reference interactions among these three different systems in the
to sexual energy, the libido also controls other biological mind. The id, ego, and superego are in constant tension,
urges such as hunger. The id operates according to the the id urging “Yes! Do it now!,” the superego admonish-
pleasure principle, motivating people to seek out experi- ing “No, that is inappropriate,” and the ego mediating
ences that bring pleasure, with little regard for the appro- this dispute between the two, seeking an acceptable res-
priateness or consequences of their realization. Because olution. The tension between these three systems gives
the id represents our basic animal desires, it is present rise to personality in two key ways.
right from birth and is the predominant force control- One is that different people will have deep per-
ling our actions in the earliest stages of our lives. The id sonality differences because of the relative strengths of
gets us into trouble though, and increasingly so as we get their id, ego, and superego. You can imagine the differ-
older and society frowns on us hitting people in a rage ence between a person guided by an extremely strong
or touching ourselves “down there” while we’re in the superego, and a person guided by an extremely strong
living room with our family (a not uncommon activity id. The purist and the carnal are a far distance apart
for very young children to engage in, until they realize it indeed. In this deep, structural sense, individuals’ per-
is considered “bad”). Because society imposes constraints sonalities are patterned by their own particular ego,
on our behaviour, the id must be restrained from its ani- as it figures out a way through the unfriendly tension
mal nature; and that is where the ego and superego come between the id and superego; each system helps shape
into play. the other two, giving rise to each individual’s particular
The superego is comprised of our values and moral personality.
standards. Our superego tells us what we ought to do, The second key dynamic that generates much of
whereas the id tells us what our animal body wants to our personality is how we react to anxiety. Anxiety plays
do. Freud believed that the superego forms over time as a huge role in psychodynamic thought, because anxiety
we become socialized into our family and larger com- is the experiential—what we feel—result of the tension
munity, and we are taught the values and norms of our between the id, ego, and superego. When these systems
society. The superego represents a process of internaliza- are out of balance, we experience the deprivation of one
tion, through which we initially learn what is “right” system as a kind of basic anxiety. This drives negative

524 :: Module 12.3 : : Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality

thoughts and feelings, which ideally would serve as a DEFENCE MECHANISMS Oftentimes, the ego is
messenge to us, a signal that “something is wrong; this unable to resolve the anxieties that plague it. Instead, it
system is not in harmony.” falls back to a defensive position and focuses merely on
We experience anxiety about the profound as well protecting itself from excessive anxiety, seeking some
as the mundane and everyday; it is important to real- way of minimizing or avoiding the negativity it is expe-
ize that anxiety can be huge and overwhelming in the riencing. Imagine a young child caught between Mom
moment, or it can be a kind of small threat that one has and Dad screaming at each other, but having no way
to pay attention to and deal with. For example, you can to resolve their conflict, he plugs his ears and hides in
feel anxiety over ways that you were mean to some- the closet. The child can’t resolve the negativity, so he
one in the past; perhaps you were a bully, or cheated directly tries to escape it. This is what the ego does when Explore
on your partner, or even killed people during a war. it employs its defence mechanisms, unconscious strate- Defence Mechanisms
You feel guilty over your past, fearing that maybe you gies the ego uses to reduce or avoid anxiety (Freud, 1936; see
are not the good person you once believed you were. Table 12.3). In fact, the literal acts of plugging one’s ears
Dealing with those negative feelings is a challenge for and running into the closet are examples of denial, which
the ego. is a very common defence mechanism.
But the ego is also engaging in more minor anxiety- Defence mechanisms play key roles in many impor-
defence throughout our days. When we are afraid we tant social phenomena, such as prejudice and discrimi-
failed, we experience anxiety. When we don’t answer nation. For example, imagine a CEO of a company
the phone call from our mom because we are too choosing not to hire a member of an ethnic minority;
busy listening to our id’s urgings to pay attention to the CEO may protect himself or herself from admitting
the attractive person in our apartment, we experience the possibility that the choice was racially motivated by
anxiety. Similarly, if we do decide to answer the phone engaging in rationalization, reasoning that the applicant
(because our superego tells us to), our id screaming at didn’t seem as impressive, professional, or “like she will
us, “No, you dummy, don’t do it!” also creates anxi- fit into our team.” You can imagine the thought, “It had
ety. And when we’re caught in the middle, unable to nothing to do with race, of course! I just want to hire
choose what to do, the result is, not surprisingly, more the best person for the job, and I felt that she wasn’t the
anxiety. From Freud’s perspective, the psyche is a con- right fit. After all, I have a lot of experience in this com-
stant battleground, with the ego trying to keep both pany, and I trust my sense of who is going to work out
the id and superego happy, while protecting itself from and who isn’t.” You can see how easily a person’s own
anxiety. reasoning process can be hijacked by the ego in order to

Table 12.3 :: Examples of Some Major Defence Mechanisms

DEFENCE MECHANISM DEFINITION EXAMPLE

Repression Keeping distressing infor- Many people believe that victims of abuse or violence are sometimes able to repress
mation out of conscious memories, essentially “forgetting” that the violence occurred. Of course, the impact of
awareness by burying it in what they experienced nevertheless conditions them in many different ways, driving
the unconscious. their characteristic thoughts, emotions, and behaviour patterns. In some cases, these
memories seem to resurface, coming back into the person’s conscious awareness.
Denial Refusing to acknowledge People in relationships often deny to themselves the many ways in which they them-
unpleasant information, selves contribute to the problems in their relationship. It’s not just their partner’s fault!
particularly about oneself. They themselves may be excessively critical, judgmental, or sarcastic. They may subtly
control their partner through their own negative emotions such as anger or anxiety.
They may be defensive or jealous or become angry when disagreed with. But they may
simply refuse to consider these negative aspects of themselves, and find other explana-
tions for the problems in their relationship.
Rationalization Attempting to hide one’s People who are prejudiced against certain types or groups of other people may not see
true motives (even from themselves as racist, but may instead believe that the group they are prejudiced against
oneself!) by providing actually does possess certain negative qualities. By believing that people from the disliked
what seems like a rea- group are hostile, or lazy, or unintelligent, the person never has to confront their preju-
sonable explanation for dice. It is important to note with an example such as this that of course the rationaliza-
unacceptable feelings or tion does not need to be true or even reasonable; it simply must feel like a reasonable
behaviours. explanation to the person using it.

Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.3 :: 525

 protect itself, and the line between what is true and what For example, someone with a great deal of hostil-
merely appears to be true can so easily be blurred. ity and aggressive tendencies may become a football
player, whereas someone with intense sexual desire
• Displacement—transforming an unacceptable impulse
may become an artist. (Which puts an interesting
into a less unacceptable or neutral behaviour. For
twist on the dilemma of whether to date jocks or
example, if you have ever stomped to your bedroom
artsy types . . .) Freud believed that sublimation was
and slammed the door instead of telling your par-
one of the cornerstones of civilization, the mecha-
ents off , you have engaged in displacement. Ditto for
nism by which base human desires were harnessed to
throwing a plate at the wall or swearing at your cat.
give rise to great works of art, invention, and scien-
• Identification—unconsciously assuming the charac-
tific advance.
teristics of a more powerful person in order to reduce
feelings of anxiety or negative feelings about the self. Unfortunately, although defence mechanisms may
By expressing those qualities oneself, the insecure or keep us from feeling anxiety in the moment, they are
anxious person makes himself feel like a stronger, more ultimately dysfunctional, for a variety of reasons. One is
competent, more worthy person. For example, some- simply that undesirable tendencies are not confronted
one who was bullied when she was young may begin to and problems are not dealt with; instead, immense energy
adopt the characteristics of the bully, especially when she is devoted to maintaining the defence mechanisms and
is with a less powerful person. In this way, the child bul- trying to feel okay. For example, alcoholics (and often
lied by an abusive parent often becomes a bully in other their families) sometimes go to great lengths to avoid
contexts, or with his or her own children eventually. having to admit that they have a problem, which only
• Projection—keeping yourself unaware of undesirable worsens the impact of alcohol on their lives. Freud’s (and
qualities that you possess by instead attributing those others’) work on defence mechanisms remains influen-
qualities to other groups or people. For example, the tial to this day, particularly in the mental health field,
particularly selfish person may tend to see other peo- where defence mechanisms often play important roles in
ple as selfish and aggressive, believing that we live in therapy for psychological disorders.
a “dog-eat-dog” kind of world, where everybody is
looking out for themselves. PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT: THE PSYCHO-
Explore
• Reaction formation—altering an impulse that one finds SEXUAL STAGES Freud also proposed a theory of
Freud’s Five
personally unacceptable into its opposite. For example, personality development based on psychodynamic prin-
Psychosexual
Stages of Personality
men who are homophobic show greater penile arousal ciples. To Freud, the infant is a bundle of impulses, ruled
Development (compared to non-homophobic men) when looking by the id; it is only through experience that the ego
at pornography of males engaging in sexual acts with and superego can emerge. He believed that childhood
other men (Adams,Wright, & Lohr, 1996). could be divided into a series of important stages, which
• Sublimation—transforming unacceptable impulses occur mostly in the first five years of life (as summa-
into socially acceptable or even pro-social alternatives. rized in Table 12.4). At each stage, the libido manifests

Table 12.4 :: Freud’s Stages of Psychosexual Development

STAGE PLEASURE FOCUS KEY DYNAMICS

Oral (0–18 months) Actions of the mouth—sucking, This stage is about the very foundation of the ego. Fixation at this stage represents a
chewing, swallowing basic lack of self-confidence and “ego-strength,” leaving the person more vulnerable,
and more dependent on outside supports, such as relationships or even addictions.
Anal (18–36 months) Bowel elimination, control This stage is about the development of a sense of control, and competence. Fixation
at this stage leads to “anal retentive” personality or “anal expulsive” personality, mani-
festing either as an obsession with cleanliness, order, and control, or as a disorganized
slacker with utter disregard for order.
Phallic (3–6 years) Genitals The key personality challenge is the Oedipus complex, through which a person further
develops the superego, due to the internalization of values from the parents. Fixation at
this stage leads to problems with jealousy, and obsessions with power and sex.
Latency (6 years until External activities Ideally, this stage is fairly conflict-free. People focus on developing themselves, discover-
puberty) ing their interests through sports, arts, school, and general activities. Fixation at this
stage was not considered to be a big concern.
Genital (puberty to Sexual activities with others Ideally, this stage is also fairly conflict-free. People focus on fully entering the world as
adulthood) themselves, further developing and expressing their mature, adult personality, provided
they are not fixated at earlier stages.

526 :: Module 12.3 : : Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality

 restrictions start getting placed on you. With your
increased mobility and ability to get more objects into
your mouth, you start getting scolded more and more
often for putting things in your mouth. This is a major
adjustment!
Because infancy lays the basic foundation of expe-
rience upon which consciousness is built, what happens
in infancy has a profound effect on the rest of one’s life.
Infants who are fixated at this stage fail to fully develop
their ego. As a result, the orally fixated adult is somewhat
more vulnerable, less capable at adjusting to social real-
ity (i.e., impaired in following the reality principle), and
less able to deal with anxiety through the use of defence
mechanisms. Freud might explain that habits such as bit-
ing your fingernails or excessive gum chewing stem from
unresolved conflict during the oral stage. But these are just
behavioural clues as to what might be happening in the
Stockbyte/Getty Images personality. The orally fixated nail biter is likely, in Freud’s
Psychodynamic theories of personality emphasize early
view, to be the kind of person who struggles with over-
childhood development, especially in terms of emotion. In indulgence of many forms (e.g., overeating, addiction) and
particular, the dynamic between parent and child is thought to being orally aggressive (i.e., “mouthing off ” to others),
determine how personality develops.
envious, and generally demanding, among other things.
The anal stage: This stage occurs during the tod-
in particular areas of the body, depending on what areas dler years (2–3), during which toilet training and the
are most important for providing the person with plea- control of bowel movements takes up a lot of the tod-
sure; the id therefore focuses on these areas, attempting dler’s awareness. Freud believed that if these bathroom
to derive as much pleasure as possible from them. Thus, skills were learned successfully and positively with sup-
each of these important regions becomes a battleground port and encouragement from caregivers, the result was a
pitting the child’s id against the restrictions of the adult sense of competence and confidence that would lead the
world. toddler to develop into a well-adjusted and productive
In order for proper development to occur, the indi- adult. But if parents were too strict and critical of tod-
vidual must learn to transition from one stage to the dlers, making them feel bad about “having an accident”
next, which can be helped or harmed by the
behaviours of one’s caregivers. Children who fail
to make this transition effectively are said to expe-
rience fixation, becoming preoccupied with obtaining
the pleasure associated with a particular stage. Fixation
can occur either because of conflict and exces-
sive parental interference (e.g., criticizing the
child for making mistakes during toilet training),
or because the child is allowed to overindulge in
that form of pleasure-seeking behaviour (e.g., the
Simpsons character, Maggie, is in serious danger of
developing an oral fixation).
The oral stage: An oral fixation can occur
if the infant fails to transition out of the oral stage
(0–18 months). For babies, life is all about sen-
sations of the mouth. Imagine being an infant—
in the beginning, life is sweet; you don’t have to
do anything, get fed whenever you are hungry,
Left: Jupiterimages/Thinkstock; right: Exactostock/SuperStock
and you get to suck on whatever you can reach,
According to Freud, during the oral stage of psychosexual development pleasure is derived
including things that feed you. But as time goes from actions of the mouth—particularly breastfeeding. Later, during the anal stage, attention
on and infancy fades into toddlerhood, more turns toward potty training.

Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.3 :: 527

 and putting too much pressure on them, they could be pretty much exactly what it sounds like. As a result, girls
fixated at this stage. Eventually, they would become “anal redirect their sexual interest to their fathers, and subse-
retentive” adults, a rather rigid personality excessively quently men in general, because having a child with a
concerned with cleanliness and order, with a high need man (a boy, that is) provides the girl with a penis (sort
for control and not a great deal of emotional openness. of), which she never completely stops envying. (It’s safe
Or the parents might be too lenient and provide too to assume the critiques of Freud’s ideas about women
little support for toilet training. This would produce an are painfully obvious at this point; indeed, these critiques
“anal expulsive” adult who exhibits opposite qualities of of the phallic stage, as well as its general inaccuracy as
slovenliness, disorganization, and general irresponsibility. a description of the psychological experiences of most
The phallic stage: Ages 3–6 are a monumentally people, have been devastating to this part of Freud’s
important time in the child’s development. Bodily atten- theories.)
tion shifts to the genitals as children become aware of The importance of the phallic stage is that, at its res-
the differences between boys and girls and start to heav- olution, the child has formed a healthy relationship with
ily identify with one gender. Boys go through the now- the parents, resulting in the internalization of parental
infamous Oedipus complex, during which they become values, which completes the formation of the super-
sexually attracted to their mothers. However, they also ego. Successfully transitioning out of this stage leaves
realize that they are in competition with their fathers for the child well prepared as a moral being. On the other
their mothers’ affections; this creates resentment toward hand, becoming fixated at this stage has striking negative
their fathers, and in the wonderful logic of young chil- consequences. People become plagued with jealousy and
dren, they want to kill the fathers. During this time, boys preoccupied with sex, seduction, competitiveness, and
struggle with highly conflicted feelings toward their power.
fathers, feeling both attached to and hostile toward them. Freud believed that girls never entirely resolve
This is an excruciating time emotionally, as boys are torn their Oedipus complexes (the term Electra complex was
between such strong feelings and longings. Freud repre- coined by Carl Jung, and rejected by Freud), leaving
sents this anguish with the Greek tragedy of Oedipus Rex women with somewhat less well-developed superegos
(by Sophocles); in this story, the main character, Oedi- and thus, a less reliable morality. To the extent that Oedi-
pus, kills his father without knowing he has done so, and pal issues remain, the woman will seek to control and
ends up marrying his mother. When he eventually learns dominate men, because of course, men have the penises
what he has done, he is so overcome with horror that he that women envy, and one way of possessing them is to
stabs his own eyes, blinding himself. (The ancient Greeks dominate men. According to Freud, women dominate
were fairly intense.) men through their sexuality or through manipulative
Freud used highly sexual language to describe the submissiveness.
phallic stage, although it is important to remember that The latency stage: After the lurid sexuality and
the literal descriptions can also be understood to provide emotional drama of the phallic stage, the latency stage
metaphoric insights into personality. According to Freud, is downright boring. Between ages 5 and 13, the ego
little boys are quite distressed to learn that their moth- and superego have achieved a degree of general calm.
ers do not have penises; they reason that something must The sexual nature of the libido is deemphasized, and it is
have happened to cut them off . And if that happened instead directed into more productive activities than try-
to their mothers, it might happen to them! Further- ing to mate with and murder one’s parents, such as edu-
more, it stands to reason that it was the powerful father cation, hobbies, and hanging out with friends. This is a
figure who did the nasty deed, thus causing a great deal period of rich personal development for children, during
of castration anxiety, the fear of castration by one’s father. which they gain many of their intellectual, social, artistic,
(Metaphorically, castration anxiety is the fear of emas- and physical skills. Interestingly, people don’t get fixated
culation.) Boys resolve this fear, and thus the Oedipus at this stage, because personality is largely formed by the
complex, by learning to identify with the father, devel- end of the phallic stage. If the previous three stages are
oping a close bond with him, while repressing sexual successfully navigated and people are not fixated at an
feelings for the mother. earlier stage, they become relatively free to pursue their
For girls, the logic was considerably more compli- interests.
cated and Freud revised his theories somewhat over time. The genital stage: The onset of puberty marks
Basically, Freud believed that girls also want to sexually the beginning of this stage, which continues through-
possess their mothers, and are in competition with their out adulthood. This is the time during which the per-
fathers. However, discovering that they themselves are son emerges into a mature adult personality, with a fully
lacking a penis, girls experience penis envy, which is, well, developed capacity for productive work and satisfying

528 :: Module 12.3 : : Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality

and loving relationships. However, those who remain Freud also refined methods, such as dream analysis and
fixated at previous stages will suffer from underdevel- free association, which were believed to reveal uncon-
oped adult personalities, which cause any number of scious material by side-stepping the conscious mind.
problems in their subsequent adulthoods. For example, dream analysis was based on the belief that
Modern psychodynamic psychologists generally the material in the unconscious, although not acces-
agree that Freud’s stages of psychosexual development sible to the conscious mind, nevertheless was depicted
are not an accurate view of personality development. in our dreams. However, because much of the uncon-
However, even this is not entirely clear; clinical psychol- scious operates without language, dreams would not be
ogists often report observing patterns that are consistent literal, but symbolic representations of the contents of
with Freud’s observations of each stage of psychosexual the unconscious. Thus, the dream analyst had to learn
development (Westen, 1998). For example, one study to properly interpret the symbolic meaning of dreams
reported that young children are more likely to show in order to understand what could be learned from the
affection to the same-sexed parent and aggression toward unconscious.
the opposite-sexed parent (Watson & Getz, 1990). This Since Freud’s time, psychodynamic psychologists Explore
is reminiscent of the Oedipus complex, although the have attempted to develop more standardized techniques Personality
underlying mechanisms are not necessarily the same (i.e., for probing the unconscious. One popular approach is to Assessment
notice there is no reference to sexual attraction or mur- use projective tests, personality tests in which ambiguous
derous intent toward the parents). images are presented to an individual to elicit responses that
A huge challenge faced (and never fully sur- reflect unconscious desires or conflicts. They are called “pro-
mounted) by Freudian thinkers was how to empirically jective” because the image can be interpreted in different
measure many of the concepts and processes described ways, and the particular interpretation a person chooses
in Freud’s theories. For example, how exactly does one is thought to be a projection of her unconscious.
measure the contents of the unconscious? How can One of the most familiar projective tests (see Figure 12.7)
we measure something that, by definition, people are is the Rorschach inkblot test, in which people are asked to
unaware of? describe what they see on the inkblot, and psychologists inter-
pret this description using a standardized scoring and interpre-
EXPLORING THE UNCONSCIOUS WITH PRO- tation method (Exner, 1991). Another projective test is the
JECTIVE TESTS As discussed earlier in this module, Thematic Apperception Test (TAT), which asks respon-
Freud devised a number of techniques for peering into dents to tell stories about ambiguous pictures involving various
the inner workings of the unconscious, such as analyz- interpersonal situations (Figure 12.8). For example, a pic-
ing the “psychopathologies of everyday life” for evi- ture might show a man and woman looking at each other
dence of defence mechanisms and hidden motivations. with blank expressions. Subjects are asked to tell a story

Equinox Imagery/Alamy
{fig. 12.7} The Rorschach Inkblot Test Some psycholo- Ken Karp/Pearson Education
gists attempt to measure personality characteristics by analyz- {fig. 12.8} The Thematic Apperception Test In this projective test, the
ing the verbal responses clients use to describe what they see individual is asked to tell a story about what is happening in the image. The
in an inkblot such as this. Click on this figure in your eText to responses to this task are believed by some to give important insights into an
see more details. individual’s personality.

Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.3 :: 529

 about the picture. Who are these people? What emotions
are they feeling? Why are they looking at each other that
way? The details in the story that a person makes up are
thought to be a projection of their personality function-
ing, and thus, a way of illuminating their unconscious.
Unfortunately for proponents of projective tests,
they have not fared well in empirical research, receiving
criticism for low reliability and validity. Low reliability
indicates that the test will not give the same measure-
ment on subsequent assessments of the same person. Low
validity indicates that the test does not actually measure {fig. 12.9} Figure Drawing as a Projective Test Figure
drawing is another projective technique used by many psy-
what it purports to measure. For example, although pro- chologists. The content of the drawings is analyzed and inter-
jective tests are supposed to measure personality func- preted by the therapist. It turns out that these drawings are
tioning, in some cases, such as the figure-drawing test somewhat related to artistic ability and intelligence, but not
personality (Lilienfeld et al., 2000). Click on this figure in your
shown in Figure 12.9, they actually measure a combina- eText to see more details.
tion of artistic ability and intelligence (see Lilienfeld et
al., 2000). Time and again, research has indicated serious
limitations regarding the reliability and validity of pro- psychiatrists made frequent use of projective tests (Watkins
jective tests (Garb et al., 2005; Lilienfeld et al., 2000). et al., 1995). More recently, a survey of school psychol-
Despite criticisms from some researchers, many ogists showed that the TAT and Rorschach were used
clients and therapists claim that they have experienced by 30% and 14% of these professionals, respectively,
significant breakthroughs toward understanding per- but their popularity appears to be declining (Hojnoski
sonality by using projective tests. A survey in the mid- et al., 2006). However, researchers continue to look for
1990s estimated that 43% of clinical psychologists and projection in other areas.

of Machiavellianism provides a great example. People who

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC exhibit this trait are generally willing and able to manipulate
LITERACY MODEL and deceive others to get what they want. Interestingly, they
are more likely than the general population to see others as
Perceiving Others as a Projective Test being cynical and selfish (Christie & Geis, 1970). Thus, psy-
chologists suggest that the degree to which an individual sees
people as selfish and cynical is, to an extent, a projection of
There are clearly problems with the reliability and validity
his own Machiavellianism (Wood et al., 2010).
of some projective tests, but the basic idea of projection
remains compelling to many psychologists. Could there be
some way to measure projection with greater accuracy? How can scientists
One promising direction is to look at how people make study how
judgments about what other people are like. projection relates
to personality?
What do we know
Although projection was
about the way people initially a psychodynamic idea, contemporary researchers
perceive others? have begun to apply it to other approaches, such as the trait
People have a seemingly natural approach. In one study, a research team had participants rate
inclination to make assumptions their own personality according to the Big Five personality
about what others are like, even factors, narcissism (i.e., excessive self-importance), and symp-
if only very limited information is toms of depression. They found several correlations showing
available. We may judge people we hardly know as friendly, that the way people view themselves is, in fact, related to
aggressive, selfish, or trustworthy, for example. But with vir- how they view others. The researchers identified a general
tually no information to guide us, how do we make these trend in which people who view themselves positively (as
judgments? One possibility is that we make guesses as to agreeable, intelligent, and satisfied with life) are likely to view
what other people are like by using our own self-concepts others the same way (Wood et al., 2010). In other words,
as a guide. With no other information to go on, we tend how people perceive others appears to be a projection of
to assume that most people are kind of like us. The trait how they perceive themselves.

530 :: Module 12.3 : : Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality

 Can we critically Apperception Test are fraught with problems and contro-
versy. It would be unheard of for modern medical doctors
evaluate this research?
to diagnose disorders using procedures that are as unreli-
The results of this study indicate able and of as questionable validity as these tests. Thus it is
that self-ratings and ratings of oth- important to search for new and better methods that might
ers are correlated. However, the reveal meaningful information about the individuals taking
correlations themselves are not them. Psychology need not necessarily abandon projective
very large, meaning that psycholo- tests altogether, as the benefits of adding rigour and scrutiny
gists cannot make precise predictions about a rater’s person- to them has shown that they can be of value (e.g., Schultheiss
ality based on that individual’s ratings of others, but rather & Brunstein, 2001).
can make only general statements. Furthermore, this study
does not provide evidence that projection is actually occur-
ring in which people actually use their own self-concepts to
guide their impressions of others. It could be the case that
people are simply positive or negative in general, such as
being optimistic or pessimistic. The positive, optimistic per-
son would tend to see herself and others positively, and the
negative, pessimistic person would do the opposite. Thus, the
correlation between ratings of self and other simply reflects
a general disposition, not a specific process of projection.

Why is this relevant?

Standard projective tests
such as the Rorschach ink-
Martin Barraud/Alamy
blot test and the Thematic

Quick Quiz 12.3a The Psychodynamic Perspective

1 According to Freud, the ______ is the personality 4 A defence mechanism would be employed
KNOW . . .

UNDERSTAND. . .

component that is responsible for seeking to A by the id to create anxiety.

immediately satisfy basic biological needs.
B by the superego to reduce or avoid anxiety.
A id C superego
C by the ego to reduce or avoid anxiety.
B ego D libido
D by the superego to create anxiety.

2 Which of the following is not a point of emphasis for

5 Steven lied about his brother to avoid getting in trouble
APPLY . . .

psychodynamic theories of personality?

A The role of unconscious motives with his parents, but now he is experiencing anxiety caused
by extreme guilt. According to Freud, these negative feelings
B The importance of early social relationships
would arise due to the activity of the ______.
C Learning how to cope with and regulate emotion A Oedipus complex C superego
D Using trait descriptions to describe personality B ego D libido

3 According to Freud, in which order do the stages of 6 Why have some psychologists questioned the
ANALYZE. . .

psychosexual development occur? reliability of projective tests?

A Oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital A Judges very often agree on how to interpret an
B Oral, anal, genital, phallic, latency individual test.
C Anal, oral, phallic, latency, genital B Individuals often score quite differently if tested at
two different times.
D Latency, oral, anal, genital, phallic
C The tests may not measure what they claim to
measure.
D These tests often provide disturbing details about a
person’s unconscious.

Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.3 :: 531

 Within analytical psychology,
archetypes played a central role; arche-
types are images and symbols that reflect
common “truths” held across cultures, such as
universal life experiences or types of people.
The archetypes were thought to rep-
resent major narrative patterns in the
unconscious, and thus, the appearance
of archetypal symbols in the uncon-
scious (which could be found in a per-
son’s dreams, for example) could give
the person great insight into herself and
her personality dynamics. For exam-
Warner Bros./Everett Collection ple, there are archetypes of Mother
According to Carl Jung, the “Hero” archetype is a universal notion of the and Father, the Hero, and the Shadow,
individual who embodies good and strength.
among [Link] Hero archetype rep-
resents the special force or being that wins mighty battles
against dangerous or evil foes. The Shadow archetype
Alternatives to the Psychodynamic represents unwanted aspects of the self that the person
is unwilling to acknowledge; the Shadow archetype has
Approach been particularly influential, particularly among people
Freud attracted many followers, but some of his con- who emphasize personal growth, individual empower-
temporaries took psychodynamic psychology in differ- ment, and healing from trauma (e.g., Ford, 2002).
ent directions. They recognized that sex and aggression Alfred Adler (1870–1937) initially differentiated
are not the only motives driving personality develop- himself from Freud by arguing for the importance of
ment; indeed, other motivational forces, such as the social dynamics and conscious thoughts (as opposed to
need for belonging, the need for achievement, and the sexual and aggressive drives in the unconscious) as deter-
need for integrity or wholeness are important aspects of minants of behaviour. He rejected the centrality of the
personality. pleasure principle, instead emphasizing the inferior-
Watch Carl Jung (1875–1961) made a dramatic break ity complex, the struggle many people have with feelings
Classic Footage of Carl from Freud over disagreements about a number of of inferiority, which stem from experiences of helplessness and
Jung on Unconscious issues, founding the analytical psychology movement. powerlessness during childhood. The term inferiority complex
Analytical psychology focuses on the role of uncon- stems from Adler’s work; he described how people strive
scious archetypes in personality development. The arche- to compensate for their feelings of inferiority by trying
types were believed to be housed in a region of the to appear competent and, in many cases, overcompensate
unconscious unique to Jung’s theories. In contrast to for inferior feelings by trying to be or appear superior
the Freudian unconscious, Jung believed that there to others. Adler’s theories of the importance of the need
were two main types of the unconscious, a personal for power have had a profound influence on the field
unconscious , which was basically the same as the of psychology and continue to inspire contemporary
Freudian unconscious, a vast repository of experiences and research (e.g., Watts, 2000).
patterns that were absorbed during the entire experiential Karen Horney (1885–1952) also disagreed with
unfolding of the person’s life, and a collective unconscious, Freud’s heavy emphasis on sex, and especially infantile
which is not held within the individual person. The sexuality. Instead, Horney (disappointingly pronounced
collective unconscious is a separate, non-personal realm “HORN-eye”) focused on the importance of social
of the unconscious that holds the collective memories and and cultural factors, arguing that to understand person-
mythologies of humankind, stretching deep into our ances- ality one should focus on the functioning of a person’s
tral past. Thus, the personal and collective unconscious present self, rather than overwhelmingly focusing on the
are diff erent levels of consciousness, one being held unconscious, which was largely formed in early child-
within the person and representing the person’s own hood. Horney highlighted the role of interpersonal con-
life experience, and the other being held within the flict between children and their parents as important to
collectivity of humankind and representing humanity’s personality development. She also strongly advocated
collective experience. against Freud’s “phallocentrism” (i.e., emphasis on the

532 :: Module 12.3 : : Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality

penis). To counter his theory of the Oedipus complex, Humanistic Perspectives
Horney argued instead that men suffer from “womb
envy,” because men could never experience the miracle of Reacting against the pessimism and disempowerment
birth and of carrying another human life as part of oneself, inherent in Freudian approaches, the humanistic psy-
as well as the experiences of breastfeeding and other bio- chologists wanted to explore the potential for humans to
logical acts of motherhood. She said that men attempted become truly free and deeply fulfilled. Thinking outside
to compensate for their perceived deficiencies by focus- the boxes of behaviourism and psychodynamic theo-
ing on work and by devaluing and subjugating women. ries, the humanistic psychologists emphasized the indi-
While Freud believed that women suffered from penis vidual’s free will to make choices, highlighted positive
envy, Horney argued that any “envy” Freud observed in the motivations for personal growth and development, and
female psyche was envy of the patriarchal power enjoyed explored the upper ranges of human experience, such
by men, not of men’s sexual equipment (Paris, 1994). as feelings of transcendence, love, and fulfillment. Pro-
As you can see, psychodynamic theorists have sepa- ponents of the humanistic approach believed it would
rated themselves in a number of important ways. Con- become the “third force” in psychology, after psycho-
temporary psychodynamic psychologists work mostly analysis and behaviourism.
in the field of clinical psychology and counselling. And, Among the many influential humanistic psycholo-
despite some differences, modern psychodynamic psy- gists, Carl Rogers was perhaps uniquely responsible for
chologists do share many of the core attributes of psy- helping to launch the movement and for cementing cer-
choanalytic thought: an emphasis on the unconscious, tain ideas in the field that remain to this day. Rather than
internal conflicts between opposing forces within per- the Freudian depiction of people plagued by complexes
sonality, and the influence of early experiences on adult and defences, Rogers championed a person-centred
personality (Westen, 1998). perspective, founded on the assumption that people are
basically good, and given the right environment their personality
will develop fully and normally. Rogers believed that people
possess immense inner resources for growth and resil-
Quick Quiz 12.3b
ience, and an inner drive toward self-actualization,
Alternatives to the Psychodynamic Approach which is the drive to grow and fulfill one’s potential. Watch
1 The aspect of consciousness proposed by Carl Jung According to Rogers, fully functioning, self-
KNOW . . .

What’s in It for
that is a store of archetypes representing symbols and actualized people deeply accept themselves and are Me? Psychological
experiences common to all cultures is called
highly self-aware; having moved beyond the need to erect Resilience
the ______ .
A preconscious C analytical conscious
defences to ward off negative feelings, they become aware
of their inherent goodness. Rogers believed that the more
B subconscious D collective unconscious
self-actualized a person becomes, the more his inherently
good nature will dominate his personality.
2 Alexandra’s older sister is praised for being good
APPLY . . .

These themes predominate throughout humanistic

at math, but Alexandra struggles with the subject.
What would the resulting feelings of being “not good psychology, influencing many great theorists, including
enough” be called? Abraham Maslow. Maslow not only created his influ-
A Negative reinforcement ential theories of motivation and self-actualization, but
B Negative archetype also explored the outer ranges of human experience.
C Inferiority complex His investigations into self-transcendence, peak experi-
D Oedipus complex ences, and mysticism were regarded as ground-breaking
and inspiring by many, but also garnered critique from
research psychologists who felt that humanistic theo-
3 Which of the following is not a critique of Freud’s
ANALYZE . . .

psychodynamic approach to personality? ries were not well grounded in empirical research, and
A It focuses on situations we cannot control. explored topics that were outside of the realm of sci-
B It does not yield many scientifically testable entific investigation. As the cognitive revolution within
hypotheses. psychology became increasingly dominant in the 1960s
C It was based on a very limited sample of subjects. and 1970s, the humanistic movement became increas-
D It has not been found useful or applicable to clinical ingly marginalized and largely disappeared from main-
psychology. stream discussion.
Almost 40 years later, in 1998, a well-respected
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
psychologist, Martin Seligman, became president of the

Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.3 :: 533

 American Psychological Association, and used his term as of human growth and fulfillment as the humanists, but
president to resurrect the humanistic approach. Seligman attempting to approach these questions using more
had built a successful career studying depression and the rigorous, empirical methods. In the decade to fol-
self-defeating cognitions that accompany depression, but low the official launch of this movement, almost 1000
became dissatisfied with what the traditional approaches articles were published on positive psychology topics,
to personality and clinical psychology had been able to new journals were launched (e.g., the Journal of Posi-
accomplish. He became convinced that an absence of tive Psychology , the Journal of Happiness Research ), and
pathology was not the same as fulfillment and optimal research on such long-neglected topics as fulfillment,
living, and launched the positive psychology movement. compassion, kindness, joy, and gratitude have attained
In his seminal publication introducing the field positions of respect in mainstream psychology. Positive
of positive psychology, Seligman and Csikzentmihalyi psychology research is being applied in business, edu-
(2000) explain how the focus on people’s problems cation, and even the military. In fact, the foundation
and personality dysfunctions turned psychology into a of the U.S. Army’s Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Pro-
“victimology. Psychologists saw human beings as passive gram is based on positive psychology principles, and
foci: Stimuli came on and elicited responses (what an they are systematically evaluating how to best cultivate
extraordinarily passive word!). External reinforcements positive personality traits in military personnel, so as
weakened or strengthened responses. Drives, tissue needs, to help them become more resilient to the stresses that
instincts, and conflicts from childhood pushed each of come with military service and combat experience
us around” (Seligman & Csikzentmihalyi, 2000, p. 6). In (Azar, 2011).
contrast, their “message is to remind the field that psy- In conclusion, the humanistic and positive psychol-
chology is not just the study of pathology, weakness, and ogy movements have contributed a great deal to our
damage; it is also the study of strength and virtue” (Selig- understanding of personality, helping us to understand
man & Csikzentmihalyi, 2000, p. 7). and appreciate the incredible potential people have to
The positive psychologists quickly gained atten- cultivate the kinds of personality strengths that will allow
tion in the field, focusing on the same deep questions them to be truly happy.

Quick Quiz 12.3c Humanistic Perspectives

1 According to Maslow, what is the most advanced stage 3 If faced with trying to help a troubled youth, how
APPLY . . .
KNOW . . .

of personality development? would a positive psychologist’s approach differ from a

A Collective unconscious psychoanalytic approach?
B Self-actualization A The positive psychologist would place greater
emphasis on building the person’s psychological
C Hierarchy of needs
resilience and helping him recover his sense of
D Action potential what is truly important in life.
B The psychoanalyst would place more emphasis on
2 In contrast to psychodynamic theories, humanistic understanding the personal strengths and deep
theories emphasize values of the individual in order to know best how
A free will. to help him.
B how personalities are determined by biology. C The positive psychologist would focus on uncover-
ing the defence mechanisms the young person uses
C how personality is determined by the environment.
in order to avoid anxiety, and would then work
D how defence mechanisms affect behaviour. with the youth to develop more positive strategies
for dealing with anxiety.
D The positive psychologist would focus more
on understanding childhood traumas and early
experiences with one’s parents.

Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

534 :: Module 12.3 : : Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality

 Module Summary
Module Now that you have read this module you should
12.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology related to the psychodynamic

and humanistic approaches to personality:
blas/Fotolia
analytical psychology (p. 532) person-centred perspective
archetypes (p. 532) (p. 533)
personal unconscious (p. 532) 3. Dave is a pragmatic guy, preferring the hard, cold facts
collective unconscious (p. 532)
projective tests (p. 529) of reality to fantasies about how life could be different.
conscious mind (p. 523)
Rorschach inkblot test (p. 529)
He is not afraid to express what he really thinks, and
defence mechanisms (p. 525)
is not very concerned about whether other people
ego (p. 524) self-actualization (p. 533)
accept or reject him. Because he is so comfortable
fixation (p. 527) superego (p. 524)
with himself, he has little anxiety and can behave
id (p. 524) Thematic Apperception Test
(TAT) (p. 529)
spontaneously and freely in most situations. He feels
inferiority complex (p. 532) strongly patriotic toward his country, and thinks that
unconscious mind (p. 523)
government should focus on issues like taxes and the
economy, rather than trying to help people who are
UNDERSTAND . . . disadvantaged due to poverty.
4. Zoe is enthusiastic about life and has a strong spiritual
● How people use defence mechanisms to cope with conflicting thoughts and practice, using meditation and prayer to feel closer to
feelings. According to the psychodynamic perspective, defence mechanisms the divine. She feels profound empathy for people in
activate whenever we are threatened by feelings of anxiety due to conflicts all parts of the world and is described by her family
between different systems within consciousness. These mechanisms include as a “bleeding heart,” someone who cares strongly for
denying and repressing urges, displacing them, or finding more acceptable ways of people who are worse off than her. She is regretful
expressing them. about some of the choices she made earlier in life, and
● The developmental stages Freud used to explain the origins of personality. although she tries to learn from them, finds herself
To explain personality development, Freud began with the concept of libido—the often nostalgically thinking about the past. She has
id’s energy source for the drives that originate at different focal points of the body many friends and is very socially active, in part because
from infancy to adolescence. Each of the stages of psychosexual development— she is such a people-pleaser that she is good at
oral, anal, phallic, latent, and genital—is associated with a unique form of conflict presenting herself in such a way that she makes other
as the ego and superego develop. Failure to resolve the corresponding conflict can people comfortable.
result in a fixation by which the person is stuck at a certain phase of development,
and this can cause many problems later in life. ANALYZE . . .

APPLY . . . ● Whether projective tests are valid measures of per-

sonality . In this module you learned about projective
● Both psychodynamic and humanistic perspectives to understand personal- tests such as the Rorschach inkblot test and the Thematic
ity. If you are applying the psychodynamic approach to understand someone’s Apperception Test, which some psychologists believe are
personality, you would consider the role that unconscious processes play in useful tools that give them insight into unconscious pro-
determining behaviour, as well as the conflicts that exist between a person’s cesses. However, projective tests do not appear to be valid
impulses and his need to regulate them. Review Freud’s structure of the mind in ways of accessing what is being processed.
Figure 12.6 (p. 523) and the psychosexual stages of development (pp. 526–529). ● The strengths and weaknesses of psychodynamic per-
What might each of the following situations mean from Freud’s perspective? spectives. Psychodynamic theories can provide some
1. A student cannot concentrate on her homework until every little item on her compelling explanations for human motivation. For
desk is in its appropriate place. example, it is easy to understand how social and moral
conflicts arise when couched in terms of a struggle
2. An individual commits violent acts against others without feeling any remorse. between the id and the ego. At the same time, this
If you are applying the humanistic perspective to understand personality, you approach does not have a lot of scientific support. Its key
would look at the person’s motivations for personal growth and fulfillment, concepts, such as the id, ego, and superego, are theoretical
and consider whether they embody the set of traits described by Maslow as constructs that cannot be empirically measured. Also,
characterizing self-actualized people. In each of the following scenarios, which the psychosexual stages of development are no longer
personality characteristic could the person work on changing, in order to believed to be accurate descriptions of stages that
move toward becoming self-actualized? children go through while growing up.

Psychodynamic and Humanistic Approaches to Personality :: Module 12.3 :: 535

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Personality

1 What do we know about personality?

Review what it means to approach the study of personality from an idio-
2 How can science help explain personality?
Researchers use a variety of tests to understand per-
graphic or nomothetic perspective on page 493. The nomothetic approach sonality. The Five Factor Model and other trait approaches rely
is what allows researchers to arrive at global characterizations of personality, on statistical analyses, such as factor analysis, to determine the
such as the Five Factor Model (review Figure 12.1, p. 495). Research using structure of personality. However, some question the validity of
the Big Five indicates that individuals tend to have relatively stable traits from self-reports: Can people be trusted to evaluate their own char-
day to day—an observation that, as demonstrated in twin studies, indicates a acteristics, and do they report their behaviour accurately? As
strong genetic component to personality. But as we mention, personality is also we described on page 495, research shows that people’s self-
affected by factors like culture, environment, and the situation. On pages 501–502 reporting on trait inventories matches with the reports of people
we discussed the dynamic relationship between states and traits. This is a com- who know them well, and studies on self-presentation on Face-
plicated but important idea. Remember that traits are stable characteristics, book also suggest that people accurately report their personal-
while states are temporary but highly influential determinants of behaviour ity characteristics. Projective personality tests like the Rorschach
that are influenced by context. States influence how and when personality inkblot test are commonly used by psychodynamic psychologists.
traits are expressed. For example, you may normally be highly agreeable, but if Research has shown that we do process information without
you start your morning by losing your bus pass, and then wait in a long line at being aware of it, although psychologists have generally struggled
the coffee shop, you may be in a state of anger by the time the barista hands to demonstrate that projective tests are reliable or valid. Psy-
you a cappuccino instead of the iced coffee you ordered. chologists argue that our personality dimensions evolved to solve
adaptive problems in our physical and social envi-
ronments. So, for example, each of the Big Five traits
is thought to have an adaptive function. Evidence for
this argument comes from several sources, namely
that of studies showing that numerous nonhuman
species also share some of the basic personality
dimensions that people have.

4 Why is this relevant?

Wa t c h t h e a c c o m p a ny i n g
video excerpt on testing personality.
You can access the video at MyPsychLab or

3
by clicking the play button in the centre of ollyy/Shutterstock Can we critically evaluate claims about personality?
your eText. If your instructor assigns this
video as a homework activity, you will find additional content to Some popular psychology authors have argued that men and women are
help you in MyPsychLab. You can also view the video by using your so different that they might as well be from different planets—but is this sup-
smart phone and the QR code below, or you can go to the YouTube ported by research? The answer is no, at least not when it comes to personality
link provided. [Link] Myths in Mind on page 516 raised the point that although
women and men differ on their Big Five personality ratings, the differences are
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, identify
actually quite small and are often based on states or situational factors. Similar
and explain the four major approaches to personality assessment,
claims have been made about culturally based [Link] research shows
including the advantages and disadvantages of each type.
that there is remarkable consistency across cultures on core personality traits;
however, it would be wrong to assume that culture has no effect on personality.
For example, average levels of Big Five traits differ significantly between differ-
ent cultures, and personality tests that are constructed from the perspective of
other cultures and using other languages often show personality characteristics
that are unique to that culture or language. Finally, when it comes to projective
tests and probing the unconscious mind, it seems as though some projective
tests are not measuring personality, but artistic ability, intelligence, or something
altogether different, so it is wise to be skeptical of their results.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]/wo
[Link]/workthemodel
/workt
rkth
kthem
hemode
odel
d
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

536 :: Chapter 12 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 13
Social Psychology
13.1 The Power of the Situation: Social
Influences on Behaviour
● The Person and the Situation p. 539
● The Asch Experiments:
Conformity p. 545
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Examining Why People Conform:
Seeing Is Believing p. 546
● The Bystander Effect:
Situational Influences on
Helping Behaviour p. 548
● Social Roles:The Stanford
Prison Study p. 551
● Obedience to Authority:The
Milgram Experiment p. 553
● Module Summary p. 557

13.2 Social Cognition

● Person Perception p. 560
● The Self in the Social World p. 561
● Stereotypes, Prejudice, and
Discrimination p. 565
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Explicit versus Implicit
Measures of Prejudice p. 566
● Improving Intergroup
Relations p. 569
● Module Summary p. 570

13.3 Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective

Communication
● Changing People’s Behaviour p. 572
● Using the Central Route
Effectively p. 573
Working the Scientific Literacy Model: wong yu liang/Shutterstock
The Identifiable Victim Effect p. 574
● Using the Peripheral Route
Effectively p. 578
● The Attitude-Behaviour
Feedback Loop p. 580 • Work the Scientific Literacy Model p. 584
● Module Summary p. 583
 Ted Pink/Alamy

Module

13.1 The Power of the Situation:

Social Influences on Behaviour

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology Why individuals conform Your knowledge of the Whether guards who participate
After reading associated with to others’ behaviours bystander effect to ensure in abuse are inherently bad people,
this module social influence that you will be helped if or whether their behaviour is the
How individuals and groups
you should you are in an emergency product of social influences
can influence behaviours

In an interview for the BBC, Darby described what it felt like when he prisoners. The first picture he saw was one of a pyramid of naked people,
started looking at the pictures. In early 2004, military policeman Joe which made him laugh, as he thought that it was a photo of a group of sol-
Darby’s life changed forever, when one of his colleagues, Charles Graner, diers fooling around. However, as he saw more of the images, he realized it
gave him a CD of pictures. Most were of soldiers and scenes around was a very different scenario. He saw images of Charles Graner physically
Baghdad. But then he saw some photos that he would never forget, pho- assaulting a group of handcuffed prisoners. He saw a photo of naked male
tos that, three weeks later, he decided to turn over to the Army’s criminal prisoners with bags over their heads positioned in sexually suggestive
investigation unit. You have probably seen some of these photos your- poses. And he saw many images of Lynndie England—leading prisoners
self, as they were splashed across newspapers and websites around the around on a leash, standing behind a pile of naked prisoners while giving a
world, bringing to light the horrible abuse of Iraqi detainees in the Abu thumbs-up sign, and posing with an Iraqi prisoner who had died.
Ghraib prison. This prison was, ironically, once used by Saddam Hussein,
When he decided to hand over the pictures, Darby feared that he
as a brutal prison renowned for its use of torture and cruelty. And now
would be putting himself at serious risk for retaliation from his fel-
Abu Ghraib was being used by the U.S. military in basically the same way,
low soldiers. Sleeping at night, he feared that someone would take the
at least in some cases.
opportunity to quietly remove him from the picture. However, none of
In an interview for the BBC, Darby described what it felt like when he the other soldiers knew that he had been the one to turn in the pho-
started looking at the pictures. When Darby first looked at the pic- tos. His anonymity was protected until, astonishingly, then-Secretary of
tures, he didn’t initially realize that the subjects of the images were Iraqi Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, appeared on TV and personally thanked Joe

538 :: Module 13.1 : : The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour
Darby, by name, for turning in the photos; this astonishing
act destroyed Darby’s cover, leaving him vulnerable to any
who would seek revenge.

When his fellow soldiers found out, he was widely congratu-

lated, putting most of his fears to rest. But back in his home
town, Darby was regarded as a traitor. In his words, “You have
some people who don’t view it as right and wrong. They view
it as: I put American soldiers in prison over Iraqis.” For their
own security, Darby, his wife, and children were placed in pro-
tective custody. Today, they remain in an undisclosed location,
accompanied by a military escort whenever they go out—
even for something as simple as a trip to the grocery store.

When we learn about atrocities like Abu Ghraib, we want to

understand how people could ever do such things. The hope
is that by understanding the social and psychological dynam- BRIAN SNYDER/Landov
ics that lead to these tragedies, we may be able to prevent
them in the future, or at least make it easier for heroes such
as Joe Darby to come forward and expose the perpetrators.
One thing is certain, people can resist social pressures in any
circumstance. And when they “do the right thing,” it pays off
in a deep sense of inner conviction, a clear conscience. Joe
Darby says that after all he and his family have been through,
“I’ve never regretted for one second what I did when I was in
Iraq, to turn those pictures in.”

Focus Questions
1 What leads people to engage in horrific
acts against other human beings?
2 How powerfully are people affected
by the behaviour of others?

The Person and the Situation

Most of us grow up with a clear distinction between
right and wrong and the belief that the world is com-
prised of “good guys” and “bad guys.” This is reassuring
Courtesy Wikepedia/ZUMA Press/Newscom
because, of course, we feel that we are good; after all, we
don’t go around murdering and torturing people. When
we turn on the news and hear about terrible things, we supervision over guards’ treatment of detainees, a sense
assume that it’s “other” people who do these things. It’s of constant threat from terrorists, the presence of many
the bad guys, and they are fundamentally different from non-military personnel hired from private security com-
us. One consequence of this way of seeing the world is panies who didn’t have the same public accountability
that when terrible things occur, we generally don’t ques- as military officers, the danger and stress and exhaustion
tion the larger system; instead we assume it’s the few bad experienced by soldiers working in that region, language
apples who spoil things for everyone else. and cultural barriers that would make it easier to fall into Watch
Philip Zimbardo, a prominent social psychologist, Us vs. Them ways of thinking (see Module 13.2), fre- The Big Picture:
has a very different view. He says it’s not the bad apples, quent changes made to the official rules on what were The Social World
but the bad barrels. He believes that the tragedy of Abu considered acceptable methods for interrogation, and
Ghraib was a failure of the whole system, involving not finally, strong pressure coming from higher up the chain
just a few sadistic individuals but many social psycho- of command to “get results” when interrogating detain-
logical forces that, together, set up a situation that was ees. Not that the situation strictly caused a specific act of
hard to resist. For example, there was a general lack of torture or violence to occur, but these situational factors

The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour :: Module 13.1 :: 539
 would have made it far more likely that soldiers work-
ing in those conditions would commit violent or sadis-
tic acts. It is too simplistic to solely blame the individual
perpetrators; you have to also look at the situational
forces (Zimbardo, 2004, 2007).
It’s disturbing to fully consider the situational expla-
nation for “evil.” Most of us would rather believe in the
dispositional, bad apples explanation. Otherwise we have
to face the possibility that we also have the capacity to do
terrible things; if we fall into the wrong circumstances,
then who knows what might happen? On the other
hand, if we fail to appreciate the power of the situation,
how can we prevent history from repeating itself ? How
can we learn the lessons taught by Abu Ghraib, or by the
Holocaust, if we assume that these things occurred as a
mistake, a faulty pattern of human behaviour? Clearly,
we need to have a full understanding of the situational
forces that influence the occurrence of these types of
events.
We must also remember that the situational analy-
sis is never enough to fully explain a behaviour pattern.
Individuals retain free will (or so we assume). People are
still, in the final analysis, responsible for their behaviour.
INTERFOTO/Alamy
In Abu Ghraib, most of the soldiers did not behave abu-
sively; they seemed to be able to resist the power of the
situation. Joe Darby even had the courage to step for-
ward and report the abuses so that the rest of the world organizations often incorporate Lewin’s force-field
found out what was going on. logic, analyzing the forces operating in the situation and
To try to fully understand social reality, social psy- determining which forces to change.
chologists study the interaction between the person and The past 80 years or so of research in social psychol-
the situation. Kurt Lewin (1936), a key founder (often ogy that has flowed from this insight has pieced together
Watch
Introduction to Social
regarded as the grandfather) of social psychology, a deep understanding of the situational forces and indi-
Psychology
expressed this insight as B = f(P,E ): Behaviour is a func- vidual characteristics that determine human behaviour.
tion of the Person and the Environment. This insight chal-
lenged the Freudian theories of the early 20th century, MIMICRY Our analysis begins by considering the pow-
which painted a picture of a person’s behaviour being erful, and often overlooked, ways in which we are influ-
guided by psychological dynamics that were rooted in enced by the people who are around us. For example,
that person’s distant personal past. It also challenged in many subtle ways of which we are typically not even
behaviourism, with its emphasis on the person’s past aware, we engage in mimicry, taking on for ourselves the
history of conditioning. In contrast, social psycholo- behaviours, emotional displays, and facial expressions of others.
gists focused on the present moment, arguing that Although we aren’t merely “sheeple,” much of the time
the situation a person happens to be in at a particular we do simply follow the herd.
time is a key influence on behaviour. Lewin brought a It’s important to point out that there are very good
metaphor from physics into psychology, arguing that a reasons for doing so! Humans are a social species, and
person’s behaviour was the consequence of sets of forces coordinating our behaviour with others is a key part of
operating on the person, and once an analyst sufficiently learning to get along with each other. It is often highly
understood the forces, then the person’s behaviour desirable to see what other people are doing and “go
could be predicted, just as one could analyze the trajec- with the flow.” It sets the foundation for observational
tory of an object by understanding the physical forces learning, which is how chimpanzees learn techniques
(gravity, friction, etc.) operating on the object. This for cracking open hard nuts by banging them with rocks
general approach was extremely influential in social in specific ways, how you may have learned to eat with
psychology and has been widely applied in the busi- chopsticks, which fork to use when you sit down at a
ness world. Theor ies of how to create change in fancy dinner, and how to walk down the street without

540 :: Module 13.1 : : The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour
bumping into people. The whole complex navigation in social settings, helping people to feel reassured and
of the modern world is facilitated by coordinating our validated by each other, sending the unconsciously pro-
behaviour with other people, from learning specific skills cessed message to others that you are similar to them
to developing relationships and coordinating projects. and, thus, they should like and trust you. In this sense,
Everything depends on communication and behavioural mimicry represents another set of interdependencies
coordination. between ourselves and other people; our social nature
Although some of this communication and behav- as a species is programmed right into our automatic
ioural coordination occurs through explicit levels of behaviour patterns.
consciousness, such as the decisions and intentional In some situations, of course, people try to use the
actions we take, the vast bulk of our consciousness powers of mimicry to their advantage. For example,
is determined through implicit, “unconscious” pro- when people are trying to make a good impression,
cesses. (In this way, Freud’s iceberg metaphor of con- wanting to be liked or to be part of a group, they mimic
sciousness was genuinely getting at something real.) others’ behaviours even more (Lakin & Chartrand, 2003).
This nonconscious realm of experience is built out This tactic seems to work; people who are mimicked
of many different aspects, from the implicit processes have more favourable views of the person who is mim-
of attention, perception, emotions, and behaviour in icking them. Even something as subtle as mimicking the
social psychology, to the neural systems such as mir- gestures and bodily movements a person makes will tend
ror neurons that enable people’s brains to harmonize to make that person like you more (Chartrand & Bargh,
with each other, to the physiological synchronization 1999). However, don’t do it too obviously, or the person
that people experience when in close proximity with might notice, which will make that person like you less
each other over long enough periods of time that (Maddux, Mullen, & Galinsky, 2008). This discrepancy
their own bodily processes become synchronized with reflects the functional value of the mimicry system. After
each other. all, mimicry didn’t evolve at the conscious level as a tool
Our motor systems involve the cerebellum and its for manipulation. Mimicry occurs at the unconscious
procedural learning functions. This form of learning, level, reflecting genuine behavioural similarity, under-
which ties together subtle physical coordination with standing, and, presumably, trustworthiness. The point,
emotional functioning, depends on patterns formed therefore, of knowing about the social value of mimicry
through active, embodied learning (learning involving is not to learn how to use it manipulatively, but instead
the body) that forms the procedural knowledge net- to learn the value of getting oneself fully attuned to the
works in the cerebellum and other areas. people one interacts with; what can emerge from this
We took this digression in our discussion to point is the most healthy and genuine flourishing of trusting
out just how fundamental the involvement of the body relationships. After all, as the saying goes, imitation is the
and nonverbal, movement-based activities are to human sincerest form of flattery. And we might add, mimicry is
consciousness. It is important to appreciate the full the sincerest form of imitation.
extent of this, because this lays a foundation for under-
standing that this whole implicit, unconscious level of
our awareness, of who we are, is constantly shaped and pat-
terned by other people.
For example, the chameleon effect (Chartrand
& Bargh, 1999) descr ibes how people mimic others
non-consciously, automatically copying others’ behaviours even
without realizing it. You tend to laugh when others are
laughing. You make the same emotional expressions on
your face as those you see on the faces around you (and
then pick up their moods as well). And if someone else is
whispering, you will likely whisper as well, even if it is to
ask, “Why are we whispering?”The examples are literally
endless; practically every moment of social interaction
between people involves mimicry, the moment-by-
moment behavioural synchronization between people.
This kind of subtly attuned mimicry is highly
functional (Lakin et al., 2003), much of the time serv-
ing as a “social glue,” helping to coordinate behaviours kiuikson/Shutterstock

The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour :: Module 13.1 :: 541
 Given that mimicry and imitation are deeply often strongly affected by social norms, yet they gener-
ingrained, it makes sense that people find it difficult to ally fail to realize this, instead believing that their behav-
resist the influence of others, which can become a big iour reflects their belief that “it’s the right thing to do,” or
problem in some situations. Although it usually makes some logical, carefully thought out rational argument for
sense to follow the crowd, what happens when the doing so (Nolan et al., 2008). This reflects a more gen-
crowd is going in the wrong direction? Will we go along eral lack of understanding that people tend to have about
anyway, even if we know it to be wrong? Many people, their own implicit decision-making processes (Nisbett &
as children, have had the uncomfortable experience of Wilson, 1977).
standing in front of a parent after being caught for doing As a result of social pressures being so powerful, and
something the parent considers “wrong.” “But Mom/ so unnoticed by individuals in groups, a variety of fasci-
Dad!” the child protests, “All of my friends were doing nating group dynamics emerge that are unique to groups.
it!” The parent responds sharply, “If all of your friends Understanding how to work with these dynamics can
jumped off a bridge, would you?” At this point, this child dramatically improve the future group environments in
usually scuffs his/her feet, looks down, and mumbles a which you will find yourself. Having a full understand-
reluctant, “No . . .” ing of how one person’s behaviour patterns emerge from
But the question gets at a very important social phe- and reflect back to affect the behaviour patterns of the
nomenon, conformity pressure, more commonly called other members of the group, understanding how clusters
“peer pressure.” The fact is, if ALL your friends really of social influence can develop as people interact with
were jumping off a bridge, there would be a lot of pres- each other in groups, and understanding how to watch
sure for you to do it as well. After all, who wants to be out for some of the key pitfalls that develop as a result
the “chicken” who was too afraid to do what EVERY- can only help as one goes forward in life.
ONE else was doing? Looking into the social influences
that push us around has been an important focus for GROUP DYNAMICS: SOCIAL LOAFING AND
social psychologists. SOCIAL FACILITATION How do you feel about
For example, similar to mimicry, we often conform group assignments? Do you like them because they’re
to the social norms that are evident in a situation. Social an opportunity to get to know people and because the
norms are the (usually unwritten) guidelines for how to behave group together can do a more impressive project than
in social contexts. Norms influence everything from the individuals typically can do alone? Or do you hate them
manners we use (e.g., compare the jokes you tell to your because people often have ideas you don’t like, and
friends or to your grandparents), to the amount of alco- because some people are slackers whose work doesn’t
hol we drink, food we eat, clothes we wear, and even our meet your standards (or doesn’t happen at all!), so that
beliefs and attitudes. Norms govern much of our behav- you end up having to do everything? Whether you like
iour even when we don’t realize it. People’s behaviour is them or not, the fact is you are very likely going to be
working in groups throughout your life, whether it’s
the fundraising team at your children’s school, the work
team you are part of, or the group project your evil pro-
fessor assigns to your class.
Do groups produce better work, making the most
out of individuals’ ideas and encouraging their best
effort? Or do they produce poorer outcomes, limiting
people’s creativity and encouraging them to slack off ?
Oddly enough, the answer to both questions is “yes,
sometimes.”
Groups can produce poorer outcomes due to social
loafing, which occurs when an individual puts less effort into
working on a task with others. There are various phrases for
describing this—coasting, slacking, free-riding. Social
loafing can occur in all sorts of tasks, including physical
activities (e.g., swimming, rope-pulling), cognitive activi-
ties (e.g., problem solving, perceptual tests), and creativity
(e.g., songwriting), and across all types of groups, regard-
less of age, gender, or nationality (Karau & Williams,
Juergen Hasenkopf/Alamy 2001; Latané et al., 2006). One reason why people loaf

542 :: Module 13.1 : : The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour
is because they think others in the group are also not
doing their best, setting up an apparent social norm that
“people in this group don’t work very hard.” The likely
result? A group that crashes and burns, or a small number
of people who end up saving the group by doing every-
thing themselves.
Given the importance and inescapability of group
work, it is important to understand what factors encour-
age loafing, so we can avoid them.
• Low efficacy beliefs. This occurs if tasks are too
difficult or complex, so people don’t know where to
start. It can be overcome by structuring tasks so peo-
ple know exactly what to do, providing clear dead-
lines, and giving people feedback so they know how
well they are doing and how they can improve.
• Believing that one’s contributions are not
important to the group. This occurs if people can’t
see how their own input matters to the group. Ways of
overcoming this include giving people a larger under-
standing of how the different group members rely on
and affect each other, and assigning tasks to people
that they feel are significant, as much as possible.
• Not caring about the group’s outcome. This
occurs when a person is not personally identi-
fied with the group; this can be the result of feeling JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP/GETTY IMAGES/Newscom
rejected from the group or perceiving that the group Cockroaches run faster down a simple runway when in the
is unsuccessful or unimportant. This can be overcome presence of other cockroaches than they do by themselves.
by making the group’s goals clear and explicit, so that We don’t think it’s because they’re trying to win a race
though. . . .
people know what the group stands for. Identification
with the group will also follow from identifying with
the people in the group, so encouraging personal
The presence of others doesn’t always improve
relationships, making time for socializing, and making
performance, however. We’re all familiar with the ath-
the group more fun and socially rewarding will help
lete who “choked” at the big moment. The presence of
people care more about the group.
others is likely to interfere with our performance when
• Feeling like others are not trying very hard.
our skills are poor or the task is difficult. Even the cock-
As discussed earlier, people loaf if they feel others
roaches mentioned earlier did more poorly when other
are loafing (Karau & Williams, 2001). This can be
cockroaches watched them try to navigate a more com-
overcome by providing feedback about the progress
plex maze (Zajonc et al., 1969).
of group members on their individual tasks; strong
There are many different mechanisms that explain
groups often have regular meetings where people’s
parts of the social facilitation effect (Uziel, 2007). One
progress is discussed and, ideally, celebrated!
of the most important is that the presence of others is
In contrast to social loafing, social facilitation arousing, and arousal tends to strengthen our domi-
occurs when one’s performance is affected by the presence of nant responses. When the task is simple (e.g., run in a
others. For example, in probably the first social psychol- straight line), our dominant responses are the right ones,
ogy experiment ever published, Norman Triplett (1898) but when the task is very complex (e.g., juggle three
found that cyclists ride faster when racing against each axes), we need to be able to control our responses more
other than when trying to beat the clock. Many other carefully, and then arousal decreases performance. Thus,
researchers have found similar effects, even in animals. the effects of arousal due to social facilitation depend
For example, ants are able to dig more when other ants on one’s skills and the difficulty of the task; the greater
are working alongside them (Chen, 1937) and even the skills and the simpler the tasks, the more likely the Explore
cockroaches run down a runway more quickly when presence of others will enhance performance. For true Social Facilitation and
other cockroaches are around (Zajonc et al., 1969). masters of a skill, audiences and competitors generally Social Loafing

The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour :: Module 13.1 :: 543
 enhance performance, but novices tend to perform best the constant need to keep “person X” happy, a family
in practice sessions when nobody’s watching (Bell & control tactic that keeps each person locked in a certain
Yee, 1989; MacCracken & Stadulis, 1985). In fact, the role, but all in deference to the emotional manipulator.
audience doesn’t have to actually exist; they can just be When difficult decisions arise in such families, such as
present in one’s mind. This often happens when people where to live, what kinds of activities a child should be
feel they are being evaluated; it is as though they con- encouraged to pursue, or how money should be spent,
struct a “private audience” in their minds that then cre- the person with the most emotional power over the rest
ates anxiety and arousal and disrupts performance in the of the family will exert groupthink pressures on every-
same way. body in the family. The results are written in the lives
of all of us, given that everybody has experienced this
GROUPTHINK In the same way that feeling evalu- in different ways in different relationships and social
ated tends to limit one’s full abilities, the pressures that situations.
build within groups also limit creativity, and shut down At the broader, cultural level, groupthink has
the ability for different perspectives to be heard or con- been identifi ed in some famously disastrous political
sidered. As a result, group brainstorming sessions are decisions, including the 1986 space shuttle Challenger
often less effective than they could be, particularly to the explosion; the escalation of the Vietnam War; and the
extent that group members feel evaluative or competi- 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion, when U.S. forces attempted
tive pressures in the group. Of course, it is possible for to orchestrate an overthrow of Fidel Castro and were
brainstorming to work, particularly if group members soundly defeated. In each case, leaders committed
trust each other and maintain a spirit of light-hearted themselves to a course of action without taking into
acceptance of whatever ideas people come up with, consideration all the different perspectives and opin-
much in the same way that comedians learn to perform ions that were available. In recent years, the U.S. war
together, creating a kind of bubble of utter safety and in Iraq has been criticized as being due to groupthink;
acceptance. Obviously, and unfortunately, this is not what the original offi cial justifi cation for the invasion was
groups tend to accomplish. Numerous kinds of social that Saddam Hussein had a vigorous program manu-
pressures arise in groups that lead people to “hold back” facturing weapons of massive destruction (WMDs).
their ideas, and focus more on maintaining harmony and However, the Bush administration was widely criti-
agreement in the group, than on considering different cized for making its decisions after not giving equal
perspectives. Groupthink refers to this stifling of diversity consideration to different types of information. Spe-
Watch that occurs when individuals are not able to express their true cifically, information that supported the assertion that
IT Video: Group perspectives, instead having to focus on agreeing with others and Saddam Hussein was manufacturing WMDs was con-
Thinking maintaining harmony in the group. sidered valid and given serious weight, whereas infor-
When everyone is overly concerned with avoid- mation that countered this assertion tended to be
ing disagreements, three main problems occur in terms rejected as invalid or based on uninformed testimony.
of the group’s effectiveness. First, group members may In the end, the military action that resulted from this
minimize or ignore potential problems and risks in the decision involved the deaths of hundreds of thousands
ideas they are considering. Second, they may apply social of Iraqi citizens and thousands of U.S. soldiers. In the
pressure to influence people who are not fully in support end, no WMDs were found, and that region remains in
of an idea in an effort to get them to conform, lead- turmoil.
ing to decisions that are sub-optimal. Third, the group Obviously, it lies far beyond our analysis here to
often becomes overconfident and fails to think carefully consider what other ways the United States and Iraq
or critically about its conclusions and decisions, leading may have negotiated their relationship, and what other
it to be incapable of learning from its mistakes (Ahlfinger decisions the Bush administration may have made. The
& Esser, 2001; Janis, 1972). point of this psychological analysis is to show that when
But in order to fully understand the effects of groupthink is involved, the search for alternative solu-
groupthink on individuals, you have to go beyond these tions and creative ideas does not happen in the first
group-level consequences and think of the many spe- place. Few options are considered, action is taken, and let
cific instances in which specific people are affected by the chips fall where they may. If only that strategy always
groupthink. For example, think of the groupthink that turned out well. . . .
may occur in families with a parent who is abusive, Some groups are more susceptible to groupthink
emotionally unstable, manipulative, neglectful, or sim- than others, as Table 13.1 shows. Laboratory research
ply emotionally immature or unskilled. Many people, in revealed that when groupthink occurs, there is often a
many families, have experienced that climate of fear and strong or “directive” leader—specifically, an individual

544 :: Module 13.1 : : The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour
who suppresses dissenters and encourages the group
to consider fewer alternative ideas (Ahlfinger & Esser,
2001). Also, groups in which members are more similar
to each other, especially in terms of shared sociopolitical
perspectives, are more likely to fall into groupthink (e.g.,
Schulz-Hardt et al., 2000).

The Asch Experiments: Conformity

Groupthink can occur easily without a strong leader sim-
ply because of conformity pressures that arise spontane-
ously in groups. The classic experiments on conformity
were performed in the 1950s by Solomon Asch. In his
now-famous studies, participants were seated at a table A B C
along with several other people who seemed like other Standard line Comparison lines
Top: Reproduced with per mission. Copyr ight © 2012
participants but who were, in fact, “confederates,” people
Scientific American, Inc. All rights reserved
who were secretly working with the experimenter. Par-
{fig. 13.1} Perceptual Judgment Task in Asch’s Confor-
ticipants and confederates were asked to look at an image mity Studies Which of the comparison lines is the same length
of three lines, and choose which was the same length as as the standard line? In Asch’s experiments, many people con-
a “standard line.” The task was designed to be very easy formed to the confederates and gave the wrong answer. Click
on this figure in your eText to see more details.
(see Figure 13.1); Asch showed that when people were
allowed to give their answers privately, they were cor-
rect almost 100% of the time. However, things changed Why would people choose an answer they knew to
when answers were spoken aloud in front of a group. For be wrong? After the experiments, some of the conforming
the first couple of trials, everybody gave the right answer, participants said that they might have misunderstood the
making the participant’s job easy. But then, something test, or thought that there was a “trick” or an optical illusion
weird happened; each of the confederates started giv- involved. Others simply wanted to avoid making a scene
ing the same wrong answer, one after another. Then it or being the odd one out. This experiment showed that
was the participant’s turn. What would he do? Would he conformity can happen through either normative influ-
go along with the rest of the group and give the clearly ence, a social pressure to adopt a group’s perspective in order to Watch
wrong answer? Or would he say what he knew to be the be accepted, rather than rejected, by a group, or informational Conformity and
right answer? influence, which occurs when people internalize the values and Influence in Groups

This is a situation in which unconscious mimick- beliefs of the group, coming to believe the same things and feel the
ing doesn’t apply, because the behaviour is very con- same ways [Link] is a big difference between these
sciously chosen. And it is not an ambiguous situation at two types of social influence. Normative influence leads to
all. And yet, conformity pressures were strong enough public acceptance, but not necessarily private acceptance,
that 75% of people gave the wrong answer on at least whereas informational influence leads more directly to the
one of the 12 trials in which the confederates gave the person privately accepting the group norm.
wrong answer. Each time confederates gave the wrong In conformity situations more generally, there are
answer, about ⅓ of participants conformed (Asch, 1951, numerous factors that influence whether someone con-
1955, 1956). forms or goes against the grain (see Table 13.1).

Table 13.1 :: Personal and Situational Factors Contribute to Conformity

PEOPLE TEND TO BE LESS LIKELY TO CONFORM WHEN . . . PEOPLE TEND TO BE MORE LIKELY TO CONFORM WHEN . . .
Only one other person is in the vicinity There is a larger group in the vicinity
There are only male group members There is a high proportion of female group members
There are only strangers in the room There are friends, family, or acquaintances in the vicinity
There are extremely clear and simple tasks The task is unclear or ambiguous
There is one other nonconformist in the room Others conform first
Responses are made anonymously Responses are made publicly

The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour :: Module 13.1 :: 545
 machine, researchers can look for whether the brain shows
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC evidence of actual perceptual changes, or whether people
LITERACY MODEL seem to be consciously choosing to conform for other, pre-
sumably more social, reasons.
Examining Why People Conform:
Seeing Is Believing One ingenious study did exactly this (Berns et al., 2005). Sub-
jects were put into a situation similar to Asch’s original stud-
ies, in which they were asked to make perceptual judgments
For more than half a century, social psychologists have won- but were also given information about the perceptions of
dered why subjects in the Asch experiment conformed to other people in the experiment, many of which were wrong.
the group. Did they consciously choose to conform solely One key difference was that instead of line judgments, these
because they didn’t want to incur a social cost by seeming subjects were asked to mentally rotate figures in order to
different from everyone else (although they still knew the determine whether a shape was the same or different from
right answer), or did the group’s collective opinion actually a comparison shape. The reason for choosing these stimuli
change the subjects’ own perceptions of the lines? Is it pos- rather than the lines that Asch used was that other research
sible that if enough people insist that reality is different from has mapped out the brain areas that are involved in this type
how it appears, then you will actually perceive a different of mental rotation task.
reality?
This study showed that when subjects conformed to the
incorrect judgments of the group, they activated regions of
What do we know the brain involved in visual perception (i.e., parts of the visual
cortex and parietal lobes). This indicates that they were, in
about measuring
fact, perceiving these stimuli in a different way—that the dif-
choosing vs. perceiving? ference was in their perceptions. On the other hand, when
Recent advances in neuroscience subjects refused to conform to the group’s incorrect judg-
have given researchers the ability ments, they activated areas of the amygdala that are asso-
to see which areas of the brain ciated with negative emotion (LeDoux, 2000) and with
are associated with consciously making a choice and with processing social information (Amaral et al., 2003; Singer
straight perceptual processes, such as seeing. Consciously et al., 2004). This suggests that going against a group’s judg-
making a choice that one knows to be wrong should activate ments is a difficult thing for people to do, involving negative
parts of the prefrontal cortex that involve executive func- emotion and a heightened social awareness. This may be the
tion abilities, such as choosing between alternatives, whereas brain indicator of the heavy emotional load of standing up
the act of perceiving visual stimuli activates certain parts of for what you believe in.
the frontal, occipital, and parietal cortices. If it turns out that
the group’s perception actually changes the way that people Can we critically
perceive a stimulus, then when people are conforming to
evaluate this evidence?
the group, the perceptual networks of their brains should be
activated. On the other hand, if people are conforming to the This fascinating study may give
group merely in order to “fit in,” they shouldn’t show this us insight into what can happen
same pattern of activation. when people conform to groups,
but it leaves wide open the ques-
tion of what happens in different
How can science
situations, including the Asch study. In this study, people were
study people’s mentally rotating shapes, which is a more challenging task
reasons for than the line judgments in Asch’s study. Although people’s per-
conforming, if the ceptions on the mental rotation task could be swayed by the
people themselves group’s judgment, this does not necessarily imply that peo-
don’t necessarily know why they do so? ple’s perceptions on Asch’s much simpler task could also be
swayed in the same way. It is important to keep in mind that
The simplest way of assessing why people conform is, of the different operational details of the experiments, indeed
course, to ask them, which Asch did in some of his original of any experiment, have important implications for how the
studies. However, other research has shown that people often results should be interpreted.
don’t have accurate insight into their own reasons for doing
things (Nisbett & Wilson, 1977). Relying on self-reports only
gives you insight into the theories people have about their
Why is this relevant?
own behaviour, not necessarily the actual reasons why they This study shows that when
did what they did. By having subjects go through an Asch-like people conform to a group, it
procedure while their brains are being scanned in an fMRI can potentially change their

546 :: Module 13.1 : : The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour
basic perceptions about the world at a deep level. This sug- The question of why people conform therefore relates to
gests that if enough people say something is true, not only deep questions about when people will or will not stand
may we go along with the group, we may start to experi- up for the good, how destructive institutions and social
ence the world in the same way. This study also shows that movements arise, why situations occurred like Abu Ghraib
going against the group, standing up for what you believe, is and the Stanford Prison study, and in short, questions about
a threatening experience, making us feel negative emotions how to make the world a better place and avoid making it a
such as fear or self-doubt. worse one. In recent years, many psychologists, including the
field of positive psychology, have put these questions at the
Empowering people to resist the influence and pressures
forefront of their agendas.
of destructive groups or authority figures is a huge puzzle
science is still trying to solve. Certainly it’s true that over-
coming the power of the group, and all the negative emo-
tions that go along with it, requires some form of strong
opposing force. For example, people are more likely to
resist a group’s influence if they have deep moral convic-
tion that their own perspective is right and the group is
evil or otherwise in the wrong. But many forces operat-
ing together, some seemingly positive and others seemingly
negative, all influence how empowered a person feels to
go against a group: self-esteem, nationalistic pride, cour-
age, compassion, empathy, prejudice, a feeling of certainty
or expertise in the relevant area (e.g., a heart specialist
disagreeing with a group’s diagnosis), having authority or
status in society, religious or ideological certainty, and
Nomad_Soul/Fotolia
undoubtedly many others.

Follow-up experiments to the Asch study illumi- some variations of Asch’s studies, one of the confeder-
nated two additional, very important aspects of confor- ates would also give the right answer, going against
mity situations. First, there is a fascinating relationship the rest of the [Link] single dissenting voice was
between conformity rates and the size of the group. Asch enough to shatter the group’s power, reducing the rate
found very low conformity if only one or two people
gave a wrong answer. But once there are 3 or more
people, conformity rates instantly reach their maximum
level (Asch, 1951).
This means that it doesn’t take many people to
build group pressure; in fact, group norms would arise in
countless small groups with which people are involved
in their daily lives. Group norms are not some sort of
overarching set of abstract cultural forces that influence
our behaviour; norms are also created at the micro-
level of our everyday situations and circumstances—
people laughing with their friends to a demeaning
joke, co-workers passing along malicious gossip, home-
owners pressuring their neighbours to maintain certain
front lawn standards, the decision to have a coffee and
a bagel in the morning, or the decision of a few friends
to take away someone’s car keys because he has had too
much to drink. As you go through your day, social norms
are operating continuously, shaping your behaviour in Arthur Tsang/Files/Reuters/Landov
countless ways. “Tank man”—this image shows a lone Chinese man who was
able to temporarily stop a line of tanks by refusing to get out of
The second finding was that, even though groups the way. This brave act occurred one day after the Tiananmen
are powerful, individuals can also be very powerful. In Square massacre of 1989.

The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour :: Module 13.1 :: 547
 2 The chameleon effect occurs when

UNDERSTAND . . .
A individuals withdraw from social interactions.
B individuals try to use subtle means of persuasion.
C individuals turn their backs on a group member.
D individuals unintentionally mimic another’s
behaviour.

3 Groupthink is least likely to occur when

A group members have very different sociopolitical
values.
B group members become excited about their progress.
C a leader emerges who suppresses dissent.
Todd Bannor/Alamy
D the group refuses to consider alternatives.
Being willing to stand out from the crowd is not all about
grim and serious things. It can also just be about good times!
Imagine if people could be like this guy more often.
4 Which of the following is a reasonable conclusion to

APPLY . . .
draw from the Asch studies?
A Conformity pressures are so powerful that it is
almost impossible to help people stand up against a
of conformity to ¼ of its original level (Asch, 1955). group’s majority opinion.
This shows that groups are most powerful when they are B Conformity always happens because people simply
unanimous, but a single person’s courage can burst that choose to agree with the group just to fit in; con-
bubble of unanimity and liberate the voices of others formity can never, however, lead people to privately
who may privately disagree with the group. This is a key accept a group’s perspective.

reason why it is so important to speak out about what C People will conform in most situations where there
is a great deal of uncertainty; but when people are
you believe in.
certain of what is “right,” most will disagree with the
Interestingly, this may be one of the situational fac- group if the group holds a different opinion from them.
tors that led to the Abu Ghraib abuses. Because of the
D Even a single individual has a great deal of power in
general need for soldiers to not question orders and to group settings, because by being willing to publicly
maintain solidarity in the ranks, soldiers were unwill- disagree with the group, conformity pressures are
ing to voice their disapproval of what they saw others significantly reduced for others.
doing; however, once it was revealed that Joe Darby had
reported the pictures, most of the others congratulated 5 Which of the following does not explain why social
ANALYZE . . .

him and appreciated his courage. However, because of loafing may occur?
the general tendency to not want to be the first one who A The individual believes that even if the group suc-
ceeds, there will be very little reward in it for each
appears different from the group, it is all too common
individual group member.
for kindness, caring, and courage to be suppressed. In a
B The individual believes that the group will fail no
strange irony, the seemingly good desire to maintain har- matter what his or her contribution is.
mony leads all too often to ignoring those who are truly
C The individual believes that he or she has little to
in distress and need help. contribute to a group.
D The group is engaged in a particularly complicated
project.

Quick Quiz 13.1a

Norms, Roles, and Conformity
The Bystander Effect: Situational
1 According to Kurt Lewin, human behaviour is
KNOW . . .

governed by the formula B = f (P,E ). In this formula E Influences on Helping Behaviour

refers to
In the middle of the night on March 13, 1964, a young
A environment.
woman, Kitty Genovese, was attacked outside an apart-
B education.
ment complex in New York City. She screamed and
C ego.
made enough noise that many people (38, it was later
D extraversion. revealed) came to their windows to try to see what was

548 :: Module 13.1 : : The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour
 anything in the parking lot, and only for a few moments;
it was not clear to them exactly what was going on.
Some people also reported that they did, in fact, phone
the police (Manning et al., 2007).
Nevertheless, the horrifying (if mistaken) belief that
38 people could have watched a woman get murdered
and do nothing to help her launched an important line
of research. The bystander effect describes the coun-
terintuitive finding that the presence of other people actu-
ally reduces the likelihood of helping [Link] might
assume, for a given situation, that if one person had a
certain chance of helping, then each additional person
would make it even more likely that someone would Watch
help. However, research says exactly the opposite; as you Basics: Under the
add people to a situation, helping rates actually decrease! Influence of Others
There are different reasons for the bystander effect
in different situations. The first was offered by social psy-
chologists Bibb Latané and John Darley after the Geno-
vese [Link] reasoned that, instead of thinking that it
was surprising that nobody intervened, out of such a large
number of people, what if they considered that it was
because there were so many people that nobody intervened.
This brilliant flip of the logic reveals a very com-
mon pattern of behaviour, one that occurs for many
reasons. Just think of the embarrassment you might feel
NY Daily News Archive/Getty Images in a situation if something were wrong but you weren’t
Kitty Genovese: Her tragic murder in 1964 led to groundbreaking entirely sure what to do, or you were in a circumstance
studies on the bystander effect.
in which you had no familiarity or power. Unsure of
yourself, it would be very easy to step back and let oth-
ers deal with the situation, convincing yourself that it’s
going on. One person shouted through his window, probably for the best anyway, and you’ll keep an eye on
which scared the attacker off , and Kitty stumbled around everybody else to see what they’re doing . . .
the corner of the building, out of sight of most of the Consider the perspective of each person, standing
residents. Kitty’s attacker came back and attacked her by their window that night in New York in 1964, look-
again, stabbing and sexually assaulting her. In total, her ing out at a dark parking lot where they heard a bit of
ordeal lasted more than half an hour. When the police shouting. They wonder, is it serious? Is it just a drunken
were finally called, it was too late to save Kitty’s life. argument or even people having fun? Is it an argument
A couple of weeks later, The New York Times pub- between two people in a relationship? Or is it something
lished a front-page article, with the headline, “37 Who worse? Maybe somebody needs help! What should I do?
Saw Murder Didn’t Call the Police. Apathy at Stab- Call the police? . . . And then they notice all the other
bing of Queens Woman Shocks Inspector.” People were people looking out of their own windows, and they
shocked and outraged that so many people could have conclude, “Somebody else probably has a better idea of
watched a young woman get assaulted and not lift a what is going on and has called the police.”
finger to help her. How is it possible that not a single The problem is, of course, that if everybody thinks
person could have intervened? Have we become so self- that way, nobody ends up doing anything. Latané and
ish and disconnected from our neighbours that we don’t Darley called this diffusion of responsibility, which
want to get involved even when a life is on the line? occurs when the responsibility for taking action is spread across
Note: Before continuing, we should mention that more than one person, thus making no single individual feel
several decades later, it has been revealed that the murder personally responsible.
did not really occur the way it was reported, which is the Other studies have explored this effect by simulating
way that most psychology textbooks have repeated ever emergencies. For example, in one study, subjects believed
since. Only a few people seem to have been able to see they were interacting with other people who were in

The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour :: Module 13.1 :: 549
 different rooms in the experiment, talking over an intercom Let’s see how this works: Imagine that you are sit-
system with each other. One of the other voices on the ting in a room filling out questionnaires, when you
intercom started to clearly have a seizure and require some notice smoke wafting into the room from a vent. What
help. Latané & Darley varied the number of other people do you do? If you are by yourself, you probably will
(including the subjects themselves and the person having quickly get up to investigate, look for the experimenter,
the seizure) that subjects assumed were part of the inter- or even leave the building. But what if you are sitting in
com conversation: 0, 2, and [Link] more people there were, the room with other people? In this case, you might not
the longer it took participants to react to the calls for help want to embarrass yourself by jumping up right away;
(Latané & Darley, 1968).The take-home message is that the after all, maybe the “smoke” is just mist from a broken air
Explore more people there are in a situation, the more likely it is conditioner or something equally benign.
Helping a Stranger that any one person will assume “someone else will do it.” So, in this situation, you pause, considering what to
The second explanation is that you may not be sure do, looking out of the corner of your eyes at the others
what to do, or how to interpret the situation, and so you in the room. But everyone else isn’t doing much either,
look around to see what other people are doing. This is just filling out their questionnaires, perhaps occasionally
a search for informational influence, which seems sen- looking around as well. Nobody gives any indication that
sible enough, right? And indeed it often is, as we have they are worried, so you conclude there’s nothing to be
discussed. But being guided by the group can in some worried about. It’s possible that every single person is pri-
circumstances backfire terribly, leading to a phenomenon vately thinking, “There might be a fire!” but publicly, each
called pluralistic ignorance. This occurs when there is a person is displaying no evidence of their private concerns.
disjunction between the private beliefs of individuals and the So, nobody takes action because nobody takes action.
public behaviour they display to others. Although that might Exactly this pattern of behaviour was observed in
seem abstract for a moment, pluralistic ignorance is one the “smoke-filled room study” (Latané & Darley, 1968),
of the most important and powerful ideas in theories of which had subjects go through that experience. Most
social change. Think about the implications of one of subjects (75%) who sat in the smoky room by themselves
its conclusions: It is possible for a social norm, which got up to investigate within six minutes, but if the sub-
is not privately held by a single person in the group, to jects were in a room with two other people who gave
develop in a group and exert pressure on each person in no indication of being concerned about the smoke, only
the group. This means that groups can pressure people 10% of the subjects took action to investigate.
to do things that not only do they themselves not agree Political scientist Timur Kuran (1995) has even argued
with, neither does a single person in the group. that pluralistic ignorance lies at the heart of why
social and political revolutions happen so suddenly,
and often unpredictably. Revolutions usually occur
I’m sure
He really someone else
when there is a widespread dissatisfaction with the
doesn’t need will handle current system, but widespread dissatisfaction is
help. He’ll be it.
OK. not a good predictor of when a revolution might
I guess occur. Pluralistic ignorance helps us to understand
he’s drunk.
why this is. If there is an unpopular government
in place, such as a dictator, there are often seri-
ous costs that the individual would be risking by
speaking out against the government. As a result,
most people keep their beliefs privately to them-
selves. If the government also controls most of the
media, then it might easily occur that the majority
of the population privately disagrees with the gov-
ernment, but so little of this gets expressed pub-
licly that what people see is very little support for
taking action against the government. As a result,
people don’t take action, the illusion is maintained,
and the oppressive system remains in power. This
example helps illustrate the more general insight
that individual-level processes, such as pluralistic
The bystander effect, diffusion of responsibility, and pluralistic ignorance can often work ignorance, can operate at larger scales and become
together to ensure that people who need help don’t get it. forces that shape the nature of a society.

550 :: Module 13.1 : : The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour
 Understanding pluralistic ignorance is important also
because it indicates that a social system is ready for change. Emergency
Emergency
If most people in a nation, for example, disagree strongly
with an oppressive government but are afraid to speak up,
they may all fail to realize how much support exists for
a revolution. As people speak up, it is possible for such a
social system to change very quickly, as people suddenly
become aware of how many other people think the same
way they do. Remember the power of the dissenter in the
Asch study? As enough dissenters speak up, support builds
for others to do the same. Because pluralistic ignorance
can be so rapidly dispelled, social changes such as revolu-
tions often happen suddenly and seemingly by surprise.
It should be obvious how much potential power
exists in understanding these social forces within a soci- {fig. 13.2} Diffusion of Responsibility If one person witnesses an emergency, it is
as if 100% of the responsibility for helping falls on that person. If 10 people witness an
ety. Understanding the values, beliefs, and norms that are
emergency, that responsibility is diffused, so it is as if each person feels only 10% of
held within a population provides leverage for how to the responsibility—which may not be enough to motivate a person to act. Click on this
communicate with and connect with different groups in figure in your eText to see more details.
Explore
that population. Understanding any important areas of
Bystander Intervention
pluralistic ignorance provides great power, because these
are areas that are ripe for change, areas in which small Social Roles: The Stanford
numbers of people could potentially have a great impact,
if only they can raise enough awareness to dispel the plu-
Prison Study
ralistic ignorance they believe is held by society. In 1971, Philip Zimbardo, a social psychologist at Stan-
In a specific crisis situation in which people would ford University, wanted to study the impact that situ-
normally help or take action, the mere presence of other ations could have on people. Would otherwise “good”
people sets up social forces that can prevent people people do “bad” things if placed in a bad situation? He
from doing so. This can occur for many possible rea- placed an ad in the paper asking for volunteers for a
sons, including embarrassment (Karakashian et al., 2006), prison simulation experiment. After giving the respon-
uncertainty and pluralistic ignorance (Prentice & Miller, dents a battery of psychological tests, Zimbardo selected Watch
1993), and diffusion of responsibility (see Figure 13.2; the most psychologically stable people to be partici- The Stanford Prison
Darley & Latané, 1968). pants. He then randomly assigned nine to take on the Experiment: Phil
As something to remember for your own life, if you role of prison guards, and nine to become prisoners. Zimbardo
are ever in an emergency situation and need someone’s The study began dramatically, as the police arrested
help, it is important to cut through any confusion or dif- the new “prisoners” outside of their homes, in full view
fusion of responsibility. If possible, clearly ask for help, of their neighbours. (Zimbardo had enlisted the help of
from a specific person, with a specific command: “Hey the local police department to help maximize the realism
you! In the red shirt! This is an emergency! Call 911! of this part of his study.) These newly arrested men were
Get an ambulance!” (Schroeder et al., 1995). taken to the police station, where they were fingerprinted
In contrast to social norms, which are general rules and held in a cell, then blindfolded and transferred to the
that apply to members of a group, social roles are more basement of Stanford University’s Psychology Department.
specific sets of expectations for how someone in a specific posi- Zimbardo had transformed the basement into a simulated
tion should behave. The key word here is “specific.” Roles prison, complete with cells with barred doors and cots for
emerge within a specific position in society—such as sleeping. The prisoners were strip-searched and sprayed
professor, student, parent, and prison guard—because the with de-lousing spray, then given a smock to wear (with
rest of society expects the person to behave in accor- no underwear), a nylon stocking for their heads, a chain
dance with the role. In a sense, the person’s individuality around their ankles, and an ID number, which was to be
gets subsumed by the role, and what they might freely their only personal identification while in the study (i.e.,
choose to do takes a back seat to what society expects they couldn’t use their names anymore). The guards were Watch
of someone in that role. Roles can be incredibly power- given uniforms, and were given authority to oversee the The Stanford Prison
ful, leading people to do things they would never believe daily lives of the prisoners. And thus the study began. Experiment
themselves capable of. Perhaps the best illustration of this What happened next was truly surprising, and hor-
is the now famous Stanford Prison study. rifying. By the morning of the second day, the prisoners

The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour :: Module 13.1 :: 551
 Philip G. Zimbardo
Volunteers were randomly assigned to play guards or prisoners in the Stanford Prison Study in 1971. Each
group took their roles so seriously, and their behaviours degraded so quickly, that the researchers called off the
experiment before it was even halfway completed.

staged a rebellion and refused to cooperate with the and committed to being abusive toward the prison-
guards. The guards decided to physically subdue the pris- ers. Guards mocked and verbally harassed the prisoners,
oners, so using the chilling spray from a fire extinguisher, forced them to clean toilets with their bare hands, con-
they forced the prisoners to back away from their cell trolled when the prisoners were allowed to use the toilet,
doors, whereupon the guards went in and subdued them. even played humiliating games in which they forced pris-
The stress was so intense that less than 36 hours into oners’ bodies together in various postures and simulations
the experiment, one of the prisoners completely broke that were degrading. For prisoners who were rebellious
down, exhibiting such severe signs of emotional distress or difficult, the guards set up a solitary confinement cell
that he was taken out of the study. in what had previously been a broom closet.
Afterwards, the prisoners quickly became absorbed Zimbardo himself, who had assumed the title of
into their roles, followed the guards’ orders, and generally Prison Superintendent, even fell into his role. As he freely
tried to be “good prisoners”; no individual wanting to admits, he quickly lost his more objective perspective as a
risk being singled out by the guards for some sort of pun- psychologist running a study, and instead started to view it
ishment or harsh treatment. They left their names behind as “his prison” containing “prisoners and guards,” not young
and only referred to themselves by number. The guards men from the community who were research participants.
also fell into their roles, quickly learning to treat the pris- The situation took a serious toll on the prison-
oners with disrespect, engaging in ever-escalating tactics ers; many exhibited stress-related symptoms including
of control and humiliation. Prisoners were made to do screaming, crying, even becoming ill. Amazingly, although
push-ups and their sleep was interrupted for “counts” at least 50 outside observers were allowed to see what
during which they had to line up and say their ID num- was going on, nobody questioned the ethics or expressed
bers, which lasted for a very long time, in some cases, up significant concern for the prisoners, until one graduate
to a few hours. Some guards became particularly creative student, upon seeing the prisoners being marched down

552 :: Module 13.1 : : The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour
the hall on a “toilet run” with sacks over their heads, them to be naked or perhaps to wear women’s underwear
confronted Zimbardo with the unethical nature of the on their heads, terrorizing prisoners with attack dogs and
study. At that point, Zimbardo realized things had gotten electrical cables, and committing outright physical torture,
out of hand and called off the study, a mere six days into such as hanging prisoners by their arms for many hours at
the planned two-week simulation of prison life. a time. It is important to appreciate that once the power
The Stanford Prison Study could not be repeated of authority is added to the mix of social influence factors,
today due to the ethical standards that have since come the power of the situation becomes truly profound.
into force. Nevertheless, it taught us a great deal about Nevertheless, you probably believe that if you were
human behaviour and, in particular, the power of social ever in a situation where you were ordered to do some-
roles. It seems that a role, even a randomly assigned role, thing that went completely against your values, such as
can make otherwise bright, well-adjusted people do torturing or killing an innocent person, you would refuse.
things that they would never dream possible for them- Especially if the person giving the orders had no real power
selves. You can likely see the connection between the over you, then you would just say no. Right? Although we
Stanford experiment and the tragedies of Abu Ghraib. In would all like to believe this of ourselves, the results of the Watch
both cases, a host of situational factors encouraged brutal Milgram obedience experiments have thoroughly shattered Milgram’s Obedience
behaviour. This is the power of the situation. However, as this belief. Consider what happened in Milgram’s study: Study
we discussed earlier, situational forces don’t deserve all the
• Participants are told the study is about the effects
blame; in both Abu Ghraib and Zimbardo’s prison study,
of punishment on memory. They, and the other par-
not all people were affected equally. In Abu Ghraib, only
ticipant (who is actually a confederate, although the real
a relatively few soldiers seemed to have committed the
participants don’t know that), a friendly middle-aged
majority of the documented abuses. In Zimbardo’s study,
man, draw slips of paper in order to determine who will
some people took on their role as guards with far more
play the role of “teacher” and who will be the “learner.”
sadism than others, whereas other guards treated the pris-
The draw is rigged so that the real subjects are always
oners much more kindly. Understanding precisely what
the teacher (but again, they don’t know that).
personal factors lead people to be better able to resist
• The teacher’s job is to read a series of word pairs
destructive situations is a key focus in the field today.
to the learner, and then to test him on his memory
of the word pairs. The learner will be in a separate
Obedience to Authority: room hooked up to an electric shock machine. Each
time the learner gets an answer wrong, the teacher is
The Milgram Experiment to administer a shock, by flipping a switch on a panel
One additional factor in Abu Ghraib was the military in front of him, and increasing the voltage after each
command structure. Prison guards were often given orders wrong answer. The switches go up by 15 volts until
to “soften up” the detainees for questioning; softening up reaching a maximum of 450 volts, which is labelled
implied a variety of tactics, including general harassment “xxx.” This process is watched by an “experimenter”
and rough treatment, humiliating prisoners through forcing wearing a lab coat.

From the film Obedience From the film Obedience From the film Obedience 1965 Stanley Milgram. From the
© 1968 by Stanley Milgram, © 1968 by Stanley Milgram, © 1968 by Stanley Milgram. film “Obedience,” distributed by
© renewed 1993 by Alexandra © renewed 1993 by Alexandra © renewed 1993 by Alexandra Pennsylvania State University,
Milgram, and distributed by Milgram, and distributed by Milgram, distributed by Penn Media Sales.
Penn State Media Sales. Penn State Media Sales. State Media Sales. Although most subjects were
The “shock generator” that the The “lear ner” gets set up to The experimenter explains to the highly obedient, some, such as
teacher operated, purportedly to participate in the experiment. He is “teacher” what the experimental this person, refused to continue
punish the learner. being hooked up to the device that procedure entails and how to use complying with the experimenter’s
the teacher believes will deliver a the shock generator. orders.
shock.

The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour :: Module 13.1 :: 553
 • As the experiment progresses, the learner starts to therefore ineff ective at resisting the infl uence of the
make sounds of discomfort in the other room, grunt- authority figure.
ing audibly as he is shocked. By 150 volts he is pro- It is worth repeating this, because this finding is truly
testing loudly and saying that he no longer wants to astonishing—most of the people, across all the replica-
continue in the study. If the subjects continue read- tions of these experiments, made the decision to bow to
ing the word pairs and increasing the shock level, authority pressure, choosing to deliver electric shocks to
the learner gets to the point of screaming in pain, another person, even though the other person was obvi-
demanding and pleading, over and over again, to be ously in pain and expressed very clearly and eventually,
let out, pleading that he can’t take it any more, even desperately, that they did not consent to being involved
that his heart condition is bothering him and his any further. It’s frightening to think of how easily people
heart is acting up. And then, at 330 volts, the learner can be pressured to commit such harm, because surely
falls silent and gives no further responses. At this few of us believe that we would do this ourselves. After
point, subjects are informed by the experimenter that all, how difficult can it really be to simply say no to the
a non-response is to be considered “wrong,” and the experimenter?
punishing shock is to be administered. It wasn’t, in fact, difficult to say no to the experi-
• If, at any point, subjects express concern for the menter; almost everybody protested and argued with the
learner, or say that they don’t want to continue, the experimenter, even repeatedly saying that they wouldn’t
experimenter simply says a few stock responses, such continue. But the experimenter was implacable, refusing
as “Please continue” or, “The experiment requires to take no for an answer and just stating his prompts of
that you continue.” how necessary it was that the experiment continue, and
how subjects had no choice but must simply continue.
Now, let’s step back for a moment and put the situ- The experimenter forced subjects into a situation where
ation in perspective. As part of a psychology experiment, “just saying no” wasn’t enough; they had to insist, even
people are asked to shock a person in another room and beyond the point of being polite. It is quite telling that
ignore this person as he expresses increasing discomfort, many of the participants in Milgram’s study found it dif-
screams repeatedly, begs and pleads to be let out of the ficult to resist the experimenter because they didn’t want
experiment, angrily refuses to continue, indicates that he to seem rude, and were simply uncomfortable disagree-
might be having a heart attack, and eventually falls com- ing with someone so emphatically and taking action; this
pletely silent. And there is no compelling reason for peo- embarrassment held people back, astonishingly having
ple to continue, except a guy in a lab coat telling them to more power than the man in the other room, screaming
do so. That seems absurd, when you stop and think about and begging to be let out of the experiment.
it. Surely almost nobody would actually do such a thing! But, surely, if you were in this situation yourself,
Think about yourself in the teacher’s chair. What you would stop at some point! Surely you wouldn’t go
would you do? You probably feel that, at the very least, all the way to the end, shocking that other person even
you would stop shocking the poor man once he said after they fell silent, gave no responses, or made noises of
that he didn’t want to continue in the experiment, right? any kind. Surely you wouldn’t shock that man to death,
What kind of person would force someone to receive would you?
electric shocks once the recipient stated he no longer This is one of the most unbelievable findings in the
consented to it? history of psychology. Milgram found that two out of
A recent analysis of obedience rates across mul- every three people (65% to be exact), would do just that,
tiple replications of the Milgram study concluded that slowly electrocute an innocent, desperately protesting
this moment of decision making is, in fact, the criti- man into oblivion, simply because a psychology experi-
cal point (Packer, 2008). In most studies, more subjects menter insisted that they do so.
disobey the experimenter and terminate the experi- Incidentally, a group of psychiatrists at Yale Uni-
ment at this point than at any other. This is the point at versity were asked to predict ahead of time how many
which the true moral conflict becomes clear, between people would go to the end, and they thought it would
the rights and safety of the learner versus the authority only be about 1 in 1000—the base rate of sadistic or psy-
of the experimenter and the power of the situational chopathic individuals in the population (Milgram, 1974).
forces acting on the subjects. It is heartening that Similarly, the experimental sessions were observed by
this is a choice point at which many people choose people through one-way mirrors, who were unequivo-
to follow their morals and disobey the experimenter; cably surprised and appalled at what the teachers were
but it’s hard not to be disheartened overall, because doing, expecting that they would definitely have stopped
far more people waver at this point, unprepared and long before they did.

554 :: Module 13.1 : : The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour
 Clearly, the commands of an authority figure carry another person’s suff ering does not seem to be suffi-
great power, able to override even the strong moral con- cient to overwhelm the power of authority. The fact
viction not to harm another innocent person. It’s impor- that 30% of us would physically force a struggling per-
tant to emphasize that it wasn’t easy for the subjects in son to receive pain against his will is disturbing, to say
this experiment; they were clearly very distressed by the least.
what they were doing to the learner. They became very There were two especially interesting and pow-
tense and frequently turned to the experimenter, saying erful variations. One experiment looks at whether it
that they didn’t want to continue, expressing concern is easier for a group to resist the experimenter, pit-
for the learner, even worrying that they might be kill- ting the power of the group against the power of
ing him. But time and time again, when commanded to authority. In this experiment, there were three teach-
by the experimenter, they would turn back to the shock ers making decisions collectively; two of the teachers
machine and keep increasing the voltage. were confederates, pretending to be real subjects; the
Milgram (1963) wrote, other teacher was the actual subject. When the two
confederate teachers would make the decision to not
In a large number of cases, the degree of tension reached
continue with the experiment, 90% of subjects also
extremes that are rarely seen in sociopsychological labo-
refused. (We would note that it seems surprising that
ratory studies. Subjects were observed to sweat, tremble,
a full 10% of people would still go to the maximum
stutter, bite their lips, groan, and dig their fingernails into
shock value; in this study, the power of authority was
their [Link] were characteristic rather than exceptional
strong enough to resist even an open revolt against the
responses. . . . At one point he (one of the participants)
authority figure!)
pushed his fist into his forehead and muttered, ‘Oh God,
This particular variation is important because it
let’s stop it.’ And yet he continued to respond to every word
illustrates again the power of dissent. As in the Asch
of the experimenter, and obeyed to the end . . . I observed
study, if even a couple of people are courageous enough
a mature and initially poised businessman enter the labo-
to fight for what is “right,” they make it much easier for
ratory smiling and confident. Within 20 minutes he was
others to do the same; on the other hand, if those people
reduced to a twitching, shuddering wreck, who was rapidly
fail to take action or support the “wrong,” they can turn
approaching nervous collapse. . . . (pp. 375–377)
many of us into monsters.
Clearly, it was not easy for the subjects to commit Then there is one final condition, examining a cru-
harm to another person, but it was even more difficult to cial piece of the puzzle of World War II and the Holocaust,
break out of the power of the situation and refuse to obey. known as the Eichmann factor. Milgram ran one experi-
Interestingly, Milgram ran other variants of this ment in which subjects only had to read the word pairs
experiment, trying to see what would increase or to the learner; it was another person who actually threw
decrease obedience rates and to understand what gives the switches to deliver the electric shocks. This allowed
the situation such power. Milgram tried to reduce the subjects to feel even less responsible; by splitting the
situational pressure in several ways, such as having the process of what was essentially torture into multiple
experimenter deliver his orders from a different loca- components, with multiple people involved in different
tion using the telephone, or reducing the stature and ways, it was easy for each individual to feel not respon-
reputation of the organization, holding the experi- sible, and not powerful enough to do anything about it.
ment in a downtown commercial space as research The result was that 92.5% (37/40) of subjects obeyed the
being conducted by a private firm working for industry experimenter right to the end.
rather than at prestigious Yale University. Milgram himself believed that these studies provided
Milgram also tried to increase the personal direct- insight into the horrors of the Holocaust in World War II.
ness with which subjects would experience the learn- Clearly, the Holocaust is the result of many differ-
er’s distress, such as by having subjects and learners ent factors converging, but the Milgram study helps
in the same room so that subjects had to watch the to shed light on one key aspect of it, which is often
learner shout and writhe in pain; in one condition, the overlooked: how the behaviours of so many millions
learner had to press a shock plate in order to receive of people working for the Nazi death camps and all of
their shock, and when they resisted, the subjects would the infrastructure that went along to support it created
have to physically force their hand onto the shock incredibly powerful situations, which swept most peo-
plate while the learner struggled against the subject. ple up. Without understanding how these social forces
Astonishingly, although the rates of obedience are can create such intense pressures, it is hard to under-
slightly lower, they remain disturbingly high. At least stand. Specifically, it is hard to understand how so many
in this context, being directly physically exposed to millions of people could willingly participate in the

The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour :: Module 13.1 :: 555
 immense Nazi operation that enabled the Holocaust, out actions incompatible with fundamental standards of
and how so many more millions of people could stand morality, relatively few people have the resources needed
passively by, while one of the most brutal genocides to resist authority” (p. 6).
of all time took place. How could so many people be In sum, situational forces can exert immense pressure
so “evil”? on individuals, making an analysis of personal responsi-
The disarmingly simple insight from the Milgram bility very tricky. However, social psychologists would
study is that it’s not a question of people being good or generally agree that, in the final analysis, people are
evil; it’s a question of the power of social [Link] responsible for their behaviours; no matter how powerful
some cases, they can be powerful enough to overwhelm the situational forces may be, individuals can always resist
even the deep moral beliefs of most people that commit- them and make a free choice, and history is replete with
ting harm to an innocent person is wrong. As Milgram examples of such courageous behaviour. In fact, one of
(1974) noted, “ This is, perhaps, the most fundamen- Dr. Zimbardo’s current projects, the Heroic Imagination
tal lesson of our study: Ordinary people, simply doing Project, is focused on understanding the factors that lead
their jobs, and without any particular hostility on their people to behave heroically. It is hoped that, by unlock-
Simulate part, can become agents in a terrible destructive process. ing the secrets of heroism, courage, bravery, and compas-
Could You Be a Moreover, even when the destructive effects of their sion, we can help society evolve in a healthier direction,
Hero? work become patently clear, and they are asked to carry and potentially avoid future atrocities.

Quick Quiz 13.1b Group Influence and Authority

1 ______ is complying with instructions from an 3 According to variations of the Milgram experiment
KNOW . . .

APPLY . . .
individual who has authority. A women are much more obedient to authority
A Obedience C Conformity figures than men are.
B Groupthink D Mimicry B most of the power of the situation was the general
reputation of Yale as an institution; people assumed
2 How did the Stanford Prison Study researchers that the consequences of the shocks couldn’t be too
UNDERSTAND . . .

come to the conclusion that roles, and not individual terrible, because it was, after all, happening at Yale.
personalities, were the main influence on the C people are much less obedient now than they were
volunteers’ behaviour? shortly after World War II; so, Milgram’s findings
A The volunteer “prison guards” were specifically are historically important, but are not relevant to
instructed to respond brutally. modern generations.
B The “prisoners” were actually actors hired by the D one of the most effective ways to get people to
researchers. disobey an authority figure is to make sure they
C The prisoners and prison guards were psychologi- have some companions who will do it too.
cally similar prior to the start of the experience.
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
D The researchers actually believed that personality
is more important than social roles.

556 :: Module 13.1 : : The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour
 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
13.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with social influence:

bystander effect (p. 549) normative influence (p. 545)
Ted Pink/Alamy
chameleon effect (p. 541) pluralistic ignorance (p. 550)
diffusion of responsibility (p. 549) social facilitation (p. 543)
groupthink (p. 544) social loafing (p. 542)
informational influence (p. 545) social norms (p. 542)
mimicry (p. 540) social roles (p. 551) APPLY . . .

● Your knowledge of the bystander effect to ensure

that you will be helped if you are in an emergency.
UNDERSTAND . . .
People are least likely to help if they don’t feel personally
● Why individuals conform to others’ behaviours . At responsible for taking action, if they are unsure what to
its most basic level, conforming begins with mimicry, in do to help, or if they are unsure whether the situation
which people simply imitate others’ behaviours. Mimicry is a genuine emergency. Thus, you can best ensure that
seems to help form social bonds and encourages prosocial others will help you if you make very clear that it’s an
behaviour. Conformity usually describes the way an emergency and you need help, if you make a specific
individual’s more complex behaviours evolve to become person responsible for helping, and if you tell that person
like the behaviours of the group. People may conform exactly what he or she needs to do.
because they want to be accepted by the group, or they
may conform because the group’s way of perceiving reality
ANALYZE . . .
actually influences the person’s own perceptions.
● How individuals and groups can influence behaviours. ● Whether guards who par ticipate in abuse are
In many different situations, other people can change how inherently bad people, or if their behaviour is
we behave. In helping situations, the presence of others the product of social influences. Behaviour is a function
tends to decrease the likelihood that someone will help of the person and the [Link] it is impossible to
another in distress. In other situations, the presence of say in general the extent to which guards who participate
even a few more people can set up conformity pressures in abuse were driven by their own character traits or by
that influence us to behave like the others in the group. situational forces. A full analysis must take both sets of
Interestingly, these conformity pressures can be largely factors into consideration. Clearly though, in situations
eliminated in at least some situations if even a single in which people are pressured to abuse prisoners,
individual is willing to go against the group and break its peer pressure is exerted through the expectations
unanimity. In many situations we are placed into social and behaviours of others, the authorities in charge
roles and feel like we have to live up to the responsibilities condone the abuse, and other factors align with abusive
of that role, even if we would normally behave differently. behaviour, it becomes far more likely that some guards
When authority figures are involved, these social pressures will become abusive. Nevertheless, even the most strict
can become even more powerful, so powerful that many social psychological analysis would never remove the final
people cannot resist complying. responsibility from the person; no matter the situation, we
can always choose how to respond.

The Power of the Situation: Social Influences on Behaviour :: Module 13.1 :: 557
 w85/ZUMA Press/Newscom

Module

13.2 Social Cognition

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology How we form first Your understanding of social cognition Whether people who
After reading associated with impressions and how these to the problem of overcoming commit discriminatory acts
this module social cognition impressions influence us prejudice and discrimination are necessarily prejudiced
you should

One February night in 1999, four New York City plainclothes police offi- of your home is a sensible thing to do. His hand went into his pocket
cers were patrolling a Bronx neighbourhood when they saw a lone man because he was reaching for his wallet.
on the street. The officers thought he was behaving suspiciously, so they
decided to question him. Upon orders from the police to stop, the man Much of New York was in an uproar over the shooting, and the turmoil
ducked into the vestibule of an apartment building, reaching for the door was only heightened after the four police officers were found not guilty
with one hand and putting the other into his pocket. Officers feared he of any criminal wrongdoing in court. Half of all New Yorkers disagreed
was reaching for a gun. One officer opened fire on the man, and the with the verdict, and that figure reached almost 80% among Africans
other three followed, firing a total of 41 shots, 19 of which hit the man and African Americans (Connelly, 2000). People of all backgrounds
and killed him on the spot. attributed the shooting to hostile prejudice. On the other hand, many
other people and most police officers defended the actions of the four
Tragically, the victim of the shooting was a peaceful and unarmed 24-year- officers, blaming the stressful environment in which they work and the
old man named Amadou Diallo. By all accounts, Diallo was a friendly, need for them to make a snap decision in a potentially life-threatening
industrious, and law-abiding man from Guinea, West Africa, who had situation.
come to New York in hopes of attaining a college education. He had run
from the police presumably because he didn’t know they were police Was prejudice an issue in Diallo’s death? If he had been a White man,
(they were not in uniform and were driving an unmarked car); besides, would the police have reacted the same way? These questions go right to
whenever four guys jump out of a car in the middle of the night in the the heart of how stereotypes and prejudice colour our perceptions and
Bronx and start yelling and running toward you, running into the safety can influence our behaviours, topics we turn to in this module.

558 :: Module 13.2 : : Social Cognition

Focus Questions and generally under our intentional control. This explicit level
of consciousness is our subjective inner awareness, our
1 How do we make judgments and form
“mind” as we know it. Implicit processes comprise our
impressions about other people?
“unconscious” thought; they are intuitive, automatic, effortless,
2 Can stereotypes affect our behaviour in ways that very fast, and operate largely outside of our intentional control.
we are unaware of? Could such processes have
The implicit level of consciousness is the larger set of
played a role in the killing of Amadou Diallo?
patterns that govern how our mind generally functions,
all the “lower-level” processes that comprise the vast bulk
of what our brains actually do (Chaiken & Trope, 1999;
The field of social-cognitive psychology is a fusion of Kahneman, 2003; Todorov et al., 2005).
social psychology’s emphasis on social situations, with These two sets of processes work together to reg-
cognitive psychology’s emphasis on cognitions (percep- ulate our bodies, continually update our perceptions,
tions, thoughts, and beliefs). Social-cognitive researchers infuse emotional evaluations and layers of personal mean-
study the cognitions that people have about social situ- ing to our experiences, and affect how we think, make
ations, and how situations influence cognitive processes. decisions, and self-reflect. But not only do these two
It is an exciting area to study, because it deals directly sets of processes carry out their independent functions,
with the everyday social experiences we encounter in they also can influence each other. For example, explicit
our lives. processes influence implicit processes when our beliefs
One of the central ideas in social-cognitive psychol- (e.g., my friend Bob is a kind person!) influence how we
ogy is the idea that there are two major types of pro- process information (e.g., how much attention we pay
cesses in our consciousness: explicit processes and implicit to Bob’s positive and negative behaviours). On the other
processes. Explicit processes, which correspond roughly to hand, implicit processes can influence explicit processes,
“conscious” thought, are deliberative, effortful, relatively slow, such as when our automatic tendency to categorize a
person into a stereotyped group influences the judg-
ments we make about that person or our decisions about
how to behave toward [Link] can see how explicit and
implicit processes are intertwined, each influencing the
other as we navigate the social world. Models of behaviour
that account for both implicit and explicit processes are called
dual-process models in social-cognitive psychology
(Chaiken & Trope, 1999).
Because implicit processes happen so quickly, they
occur even before we consciously can think and delib-
erate about something. Thus, as we consciously think
about things and make decisions, we are already being
influenced and guided by our implicit processes, without
being aware of this at all. For example, consider the police
officers in the Diallo case. As soon as they saw a Black
man on the street late at night in the Bronx, the Black
male stereotype may have become implicitly activated
(Bargh, 1999); this stereotype then would have guided
their explicit thinking, which then had disastrous conse-
quences. For example, they would have been primed for
information related to the Black stereotype, which may
have made them more likely to interpret Diallo initially
as somebody “acting suspiciously,” and more likely to
interpret later that he was reaching for a gun.
That’s the double-edged sword nature of implicit
processes; they bias us in ways that often help us pro-
cess information efficiently and function effectively; but
NY Daily News Archive/Getty Images because they operate outside of conscious awareness,
Amadou Diallo—Was his tragic death the result of racial when they are faulty it is very difficult to protect yourself
prejudice? from their influence.

Social Cognition :: Module 13.2 :: 559

 Person Perception (Ambady & Rosenthal, 1993; Tom et al., 2010). What
happens in these situations is that we make very rapid,
The effects of implicit processes are dramatically illus- implicit judgments of people based on thin slices of
trated by research on person perception, the processes behaviour, very small samples of a person’s behaviour.
by which individuals categorize and form judgments about Our implicit processes, guiding our perceptions holisti-
other people (Kenny, 2004). Person perception begins cally and using well-practised heuristics, are able to per-
the instant we encounter another person, guided by ceive very small cues and subtle patterns shaping our
Watch our past experiences with people and the interper- judgments so fast, and sometimes so accurately, that our
Attitudes and Attitude sonal knowledge we have absorbed from our culture. “thin slice” judgments are often helpful guides to navi-
Change When we make a first impression of someone, we rely gating our social world.
heavily on implicit processes. Because we have very Surprisingly, many of our social judgments are made
little personal knowledge of someone we have just met, in this way—instantaneously, based on very little infor-
we rely on schemas to guide our impressions. Schemas mation. Whether it’s judging people based on tiny snip-
are organized clusters of knowledge, beliefs, and expec- pets of conversations we happen to overhear (Holleran
tations about individuals and groups, which influence et al., 2009; Mehl et al., 2006), or based on a mere glimpse
Watch
our attention and perceptual processes in many ways of their face (e.g., we judge trustworthiness, competence,
Nature vs. Nurture and (see Module 7.3). For example, a person’s visible char- likability, and aggressiveness after seeing a photograph for
the Stanford Prison acteristics (e.g., gender, race, age, style of dress) all acti- a mere half a second; Willis & Todorov, 2006), the fact
Experiment: Phil vate schemas, and these schemas can bring certain traits is, our implicit judging and evaluating processes are siz-
Zimbardo to mind automatically. ing people up all the time. Research by Nicholas Rule
from the University of Toronto has shown that we can
THIN SLICES OF BEHAVIOUR One amazing tell surprising things about people given incredibly little
aspect of these implicit processes is just how accurate information; for example, people can guess a male’s sex-
and instantaneous they can be. For example, within ual orientation (i.e., gay vs. straight) at rates greater than
the first minute of seeing your professor at the front chance after viewing his photograph for a mere 1/20th
of the room, you have already evaluated her and made of a second (Rule & Ambady, 2008), and Americans
some basic judgments; if you were to fill out your course can accurately guess whether other people tend to vote
evaluations after a mere 30 seconds of the first class Republican or Democrat merely by looking at a photo-
(which would seem highly unfair), your ratings would graph of their face (Rule & Ambady, 2010). Republicans
likely be very similar to your course evaluations after are viewed as having more powerful faces, but Demo-
an entire semester’s worth of exposure to that person crats’ are seen as warmer.

Left: Monkey Business Images, 2009/Used under license from [Link]; right: Glow Asia RF/Alamy
Thin slices of behaviour research shows that, in mere seconds, people form impressions that are surprisingly accurate.
For example, you could get students to fill out course evaluations in university, evaluating the teaching capability of their
professor, in the first minute of the first class, and they would be about the same as ratings taken after an entire semester
of being taught by that professor.

560 :: Module 13.2 : : Social Cognition

 them in a warm and friendly manner yourself.
This friendly behaviour will make them com-
fortable and will lead them to behave warm
and friendly in return, leaving you with the
conclusion that they are—surprise!—warm and
friendly. You can easily imagine the opposite
process, if your initial expectation is that the
person will be cold and unfriendly.
Self-fulfilling prophecies have been found
in many important contexts, such as school and
work. Back in the 1960s, Rosenthal and Jacobson
(1968) told teachers of an elementary school
class that certain students in the class had shown
through IQ testing that they were exception-
Mark Burnett/Alamy ally bright (see Module 2.1 for more informa-
According to research on thin slices, our perceptions of others are formed tion). By the end of the year, these same children
immediately and with only physical appearance as a source of information.
It turns out that our initial perceptions can be quite accurate. We have a experienced a whopping increase in their scores
strong tendency to judge personality characteristics based on physical on IQ tests! This increase was surprising though,
appearances. given that the children were randomly chosen
and, therefore, were no more intelligent on aver-
Thin-slice research demonstrates just how quickly age than the other students.
impressions are formed, and how surprisingly accu- Why did these randomly chosen students do so
rate they often can be. Of course, they are not perfectly much better by the end of the year? According to
accurate, but they can have a large impact on how our Rosenthal (1974), teachers were more friendly toward
social reality unfolds, sometimes for better, sometimes for them, gave them more challenging work to do, gave
worse. more specific and immediate feedback (both positive
and negative) on their work, and were more likely to
SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECIES AND OTHER select those students to participate in class. Receiving all
CONSEQUENCES OF FIRST IMPRESSIONS First of this positive feedback over the year would reinforce
impressions have a big impact on many of our social these students’ motivation to do well in school, as well
behaviours. Even very simple cues, such as facial appear- as their self-confidence and beliefs in their own intel-
ance, guide a wide range of behaviours, from how a jury ligence. Through a variety of processes, students would
treats a defendant to how people vote. For example, end up performing more highly on an IQ test at the
one study asked participants to act as jurors and evalu- end of the year; the teacher’s expectations became the
ate evidence against a defendant. If shown a photograph students’ [Link] is one example of how implicit pro-
of a defendant who simply “looked more trustworthy,” cesses can create their own social realities through self-
participants were less likely to come to a guilty verdict fulfilling prophecies.
(Porter et al., 2010). In another study, the outcome of
U.S. elections of congressional candidates could be
predicted 70% of the time simply using participants’ The Self in the Social World
judgments of how competent the candidates appeared in How do we decide what information to use when we’re
photographs (Todorov et al., 2005). trying to understand other people or form impressions
The fact that our implicit judgments can influ- of them? What schemas do we activate to guide our
ence our perceptions and behaviours has countless judgments? As discussed above, we may use subtle cues
implications for our social lives, particularly in terms of in people’s faces or non-verbal behaviours, but what else
self-fulfilling prophecies, which occur when a first impres- guides our judgments? Certainly, if the person falls into
sion (or an expectation) affects one’s behaviour, and then that a group about which there are specific stereotypes, such
affects other people’s behaviour, leading one to “confirm” the ini- as categories based on race, class, and gender, then these
tial impression or expectation. In other words, your beliefs stereotypes often are automatically activated and can
affect your actions, which affect other people’s actions, colour our judgments (Bargh, 1999). But one additional
which then reinforce your beliefs. For example, if you schema that is highly accessible, contains a vast amount
expect someone you meet to be warm and friendly, you of information, and is therefore often used in guiding
will probably be more at ease with them and will treat our social judgments—is ourselves! Much of the time,

Social Cognition :: Module 13.2 :: 561

 we look out at the social world through the lens of our a positive sense of self-evaluation or self-esteem (Allport,
own self-concepts. 1955; Maslow, 1968; Sedikides & Strube, 1995). Under-
This has two very important consequences. The first graduate students clearly enjoy boosts to their self-esteem,
is that we tend to think that the way we are is the way reporting preferring to receive such a boost even over eat-
people should be, and therefore, people who are substan- ing a favourite food, getting paid, having sex, or seeing a
tially different from us have something wrong with them. best friend (Bushman et al., 2011). We strive to maintain
The second is that we have a strong tendency to split the our positive self-feelings through a host of self-serving
world into Us and Them, and we are motivated to see Us biases , which are biased ways of processing self-relevant
more positively than how we see Them. Understanding information to enhance our positive self-evaluation (Miller &
Watch these dynamics gets right to the heart of why there is so Ross, 1975). For example, we tend to take credit for our
Cultural Psychology: much intergroup hostility in the world. It also reveals a successes, but blame our failures on other people, circum-
Kaiping Peng tragic irony, which is that in the quest to feel good about stances, or bad luck.
ourselves and be happy, we sow the seeds that will grow Also, on many different dimensions, we tend to
into distrust, prejudice, and discrimination, thereby caus- assume that we are better than average; this better than
ing much suffering and unhappiness. Let’s examine these average effect is just another way we keep our self-esteem
arguments carefully, for they have major implications for intact, and has been shown in many different domains.
understanding why the world is the way it is. We tend to prefer the letters in our name, especially our
initials, over the other letters of the alphabet (Nuttin,
PROJECTING THE SELF ONTO OTHERS: FALSE
1985; Pelham et al., 2005). An extreme example was
CONSENSUS AND NAIVE REALISM One way in
shown in one study of almost one million American
which our self-concept affects our social perceptions is
students; a whopping 85% viewed themselves as above
that we tend to project our self-concepts onto the social
average in their ability to get along with other people,
world; this means that the qualities we see in ourselves
and 25% believed they were in the top 1% of this ability
and the attitudes and opinions that we hold, we tend to
(Alicke & Olesya, 2005).
assume are similar for society at large. If we are sports
These self-serving processes also influence the types
fans, we assume that sports is generally important for
of attributions, or explanations, that we make for our own
other people as well. Even qualities we have that we
and others’ behaviours. Much in the same way that our
know for certain are not popular enough to be main-
first impressions are formed implicitly, attributions tend
stream are still projected onto society; so, for example, if
to start out as automatic, intuitive explanations. Imagine
we are believers in Scientology, we will tend to assume
that you’re driving down the highway, and all of a sudden
that a larger proportion of the population believes in
some other driver swerves in front of you, honking; you
Scientology than is likely the case, and we will certainly
slam on the brakes and turn the wheel sharply, narrowly
assume there are more Scientology believers out there
avoiding a collision. Quick—what is the first thing that
than a non-believer would assume. This tendency to project
comes to mind about the other driver? Probably, your
the self-concept onto the social world is known as the false
first thought is not the kindest or gentlest; you assume
consensus effect (Marks & Miller, 1987). It’s impor-
the other driver is an aggressive jerk! This is an internal
tant to understand that this is a pretty sensible way to be,
attribution (also known as a dispositional attribution),
much of the time; after all, if we have to make guesses
whereby the observer (yourself, in the above example) explains
about people, why not base these guesses on ourselves?
the behaviour of the actor (the driver who cut in front of you) in
We also tend to assume that the way we see things is the way
terms of some innate quality of that person (being an aggressive
that they are, that our perceptions of reality are accurate. Of
jerk) (see Figure 13.3).
course we want to believe that we make sense. By exten-
But of course, there may be other reasons for the
sion, this means that people who differ from us are not
driver’s behaviour. Perhaps he is swerving out of the
only a little weird, they are wrong as well. This tendency,
way of a piece of debris on the road, or he just blew
called naive realism (Ross & Ward, 1996), also makes
a tire, or he just received a phone call that his wife is
sense to some degree. After all, imagine the opposite: if you
in the hospital and so he is panicked and distracted, or
had no trust in your own perceptions of reality, you would
he’s a surgeon driving home after a 36-hour shift at
be so beset by doubts and uncertainty that life would be
the hospital and he is completely exhausted and falling
difficult and stressful. So, it makes sense to assume, most of
asleep. These are external attributions (also known as
the time, that the way you see things is the way they are.
situational attributions), whereby the observer explains the
SELF-SERVING BIASES AND ATTRIBUTIONS This actor’s behaviour as the result of the situation (Heider, 1958).
tendency toward naive realism reflects a larger, more gen- Generally, these external attributions are not what first
eral need to want to feel positively about ourselves, to have come to mind, but rather, they take a bit of time as we

562 :: Module 13.2 : : Social Cognition

 Internal Attributions External Attributions

Intelligence Time of day

Gender Surrounding
environment

Ethnicity
Experiences
with others
Personality

Explore
{fig. 13.3} Internal and External Attributions Internal attributions are based on qualities or actions
of the individual, whereas external attributions focus on the context in which the individual is situated. Internal and External
Click on this figure in your eText to see more details. Attributions

continue thinking about the situation and then realize the person’s life), whereas North American subjects are
that perhaps our snap judgment of the person’s char- much more likely to emphasize dispositional explana-
acter may not have been warranted because there are tions (such as the murderer being an evil person; Morris
other possible explanations we did not initially consider. & Peng, 1994). This greater emphasis on situational fac-
This tendency to over-emphasize internal (dispositional) attri- tors in collectivistic societies reflects stronger values
butions, and under-emphasize external (situational) factors, is toward maintaining harmony in interpersonal relation-
known as the fundamental attribution error (FAE) ships and fulfilling one’s social roles in the larger com-
(Ross, 1977). munity; this orientation leads people to become more
On the other hand, when we explain our own sensitively attuned to and aware of situational informa-
behaviours, we tend to emphasize whichever kind of tion (Choi et al., 1999; Nisbett, 2003).
explanation paints us in the best light. For our nega-
tive behaviours, our attributions are much more gener- INGROUPS AND OUTGROUPS Although this
ous; we emphasize the situational factors that cause us desire to feel good about ourselves seems functional and
to do undesirable things (e.g., we had a headache, our healthy, it often has negative side effects, because these
dog died last week, we were under a lot of stress, we had self-serving processes reinforce a tendency to be biased
bad luck, etc.), rather than assuming that we are incom- against others. We are motivated to be biased against oth-
petent. And of course, when the behaviour is desirable, ers because one of the key ways we maintain positive
the self-serving bias works in the opposite direction; we feelings about ourselves is through our identification
take as much credit as we can for our successes (e.g., we with larger social groups (Fein & Spencer, 1997). Groups
worked really hard to deserve that promotion, we faced a we feel positively toward and identify with are our ingroups,
lot of setbacks but we persevered and just didn’t give up), including our family, home team, group of best friends,
but blame away our failures on people and circumstances etc. In contrast, outgroups are those “other” groups that we
beyond our control. don’t identify with. In fact, we actively dis-identify with
We should point out that the fundamental attribu- outgroups, which is one way we maintain high levels of
tion error (FAE) is influenced by culture. People make the self-esteem—we carve our social world into categories
FAE the most in predominantly individualistic cul- of Us and Them and then we automatically show a pref-
tures such as Canada or the United States, and the least erence for Us over Them.
in more collectivistic cultures such as China or Japan. This where our self-serving biases begin to be so
This different approach to explaining others’ behav- destructive. As positive biases toward the self get extended
iour can be seen in how people interpret social events to include one’s ingroups, people become motivated to see their
such as news stories. For example, after reading about ingroups as superior to their outgroups—engaging in ingroup
recent mass murderers in the newspaper, subjects from bias. (Obviously, from the “outgroup’s” perspective, it’s
China are more likely to emphasize situational explana- the other way around, therein sowing the seeds for much
tions for the murders (such as recent stressful events in social conflict.)

Social Cognition :: Module 13.2 :: 563

 The final, crucial piece of this self–other puzzle attach ourselves to desired ingroups and distance our-
is to appreciate just how automatically and easily we selves from undesired outgroups it would be hard to
categorize our social world into Us and Them. A set feel a sense of belonging, which is indispensable to our
of clever studies starting in the 1970s examined just well-being and healthy identity (Cacioppo et al., 2003;
how easily people will form social categories, Us vs. Them, Myers & Diener, 1995; Tajfel & Turner, 1986). What we
even using criteria that are meaningless . The minimal need to do then, is to learn to find a balance between
group paradigm was described in a set of studies in our needs to feel good about ourselves and our groups,
which subjects were placed into different groups based and our more enlightened awareness of our fundamen-
on essentially meaningless distinctions, in order to see tal equality with all people.
whether Us vs. Them ways of thinking would take root.
In diff erent studies, people were divided into groups
based on whether they preferred one painting over
another (Tajfel, 1970; Tajfel et al., 1971), or whether Quick Quiz 13.2a
they flipped heads or tails on a coin toss (Locksley Person Perception
et al., 1980). Perhaps the most strikingly meaning-
1 ________ are very quick, effortless, and automatic,

KNOW . . .
less exercise was conducted by Richard Sorrentino at whereas ________ are slower, more careful, and
Western University and Gordon Hodson at Brock effortful.
University, who simply randomly assigned people to A Explicit processes; implicit processes
“Group X” or “Group Y.” Amazingly, even these com- B Implicit processes; explicit processes
pletely meaningless ways of categorizing people into C Internal attributions; external attributions
ingroups and outgroups are enough to drive prejudice D External attributions; internal attributions
and discrimination; for example, if people are asked to
distribute money between the two groups, they consis-
2 Which of the following statements about thin slices of

UNDERSTAND . . .
tently give more to their new ingroup members. behaviour is most accurate?
Imagine, if ingroup favouritism is so easily triggered A Thin slices of behaviour lead to inaccurate
based on essentially meaningless criteria, how much impressions of others.
more powerful must such processes be when they are B In many instances, lasting and often accurate
based on real-world distinctions, such as race, class, gen- impressions of others form in just a few moments.
der, or national identity? If the people in meaningless C Thin-slice impressions are 100% accurate.
Group X prefer their fellow Xs over those nasty Ys, even D Thin slices work only when rating the
though they have no history of animosity, no competi- attractiveness of others.
tion over resources, or any other grounds whatsoever
3 Shania feels sure that her boss doesn’t like her. As a
APPLY . . .

on which to base their preferences, imagine how much

result, every time her boss is around, Shania acts more
more powerful people’s biases will be when faced with
restrained and less warm and friendly. This causes her
real-world distinctions and long histories of conflict and boss to, in fact, find her unfriendly and start to not like
violence. Appreciating the deeply biasing influences of her. This is an illustration of
making ingroup-outgroup distinctions in the first place A thin slices of behaviour.
adds an important layer to our understanding of these B a self-fulfilling prophecy.
larger conflicts. C implicit processes being stronger than explicit
Finally, it is important to highlight that we can- processes.
not simply dispense with these psychological processes, D explicit processes being stronger than implicit
despite all the trouble they cause us. All of these pro- processes.
cesses serve important functions for us. Without the
false consensus effect and our tendency to project our 4 Donald, once poor, inherited $5 million and decided
self-concept onto others, we would be in a great deal of to donate $1000 to a local charity. Donald believes he
uncertainty about what other people are like; it would took this step because he is a kind and generous man.
Donald might be demonstrating ________.
be like living on a planet of aliens about whom one
A the fundamental attribution error
can’t make any assumptions except that they’re mysteri-
B hindsight bias
ous and unpredictable. Without naive realism, we would
be plagued by doubts as we constantly second-guessed C self-serving bias

our perceptions of the world. Without a positive sense D concepts of cognitive dissonance
of self-evaluation, it would be easy to feel useless, help- Answers can be found on page ANS-3.
less, and generally miserable. Without the ability to

564 :: Module 13.2 : : Social Cognition

Stereotypes, Prejudice, hidden danger, leading to a tendency for people to believe it
is okay to emphasize the positive aspects of a stereotype in a
and Discrimination “benevolent or well-intentioned way.” This has been examined
Obviously, the roots of prejudice are planted very deeply a great deal with regard to sexism. For example, researchers
have distinguished between hostile sexism, or stereotypes
in our psyches, stemming ultimately from our deep-rooted
that have negative views of one or both sexes, and benevolent
attachment to our own selves. Thus, while at the explicit
sexism, which includes positive views of one or both sexes
level we may strive to be egalitarian, seeing all people as (Glick & Fiske, 1996, 2001). For example, consider the some-
equal and not discriminating based on dimensions such as what dated saying that women are “the fairer sex.” A person
race, class, and gender, our normally functioning implicit using this phrase may mean it as a compliment, implying that
processes continually split the world into Us and Them. women are virtuous, nurturing, and empathetic. However,
In fact, using ERP technology to measure brain activa- even stereotypes that a person may defend as being “well-
tion, research has shown that the perceptual system starts intentioned” can place restrictions on an individual’s behav-
to react differently to people based on race and gender iour. If we consider women to be “virtuous,” they may be held
within a mere 200 milliseconds (Ito & Urland, 2003). to different sexual standards than men and, as a result, may be
When we try to change these implicit tendencies, we judged more harshly when they violate those standards. Simi-
are battling our vast and speedy implicit system with our larly, considering women to be nurturing and empathetic rein-
forces the notion that women are the primary hubs of family
weak and ponderously slow explicit system. Much of the
life, and therefore less inclined toward career advancement in
time, our explicit, consciously controlled self is going to lose,
our competitive world; the belief in women’s nurturance may
and we will fall prey to our implicit biases. This can have feed the belief that their career is never the “primary” one
highly destructive effects on society, because these implicit in a two-gender household, and that when it comes time to
biases lay the foundation in our social-cognitive systems for raise a family, they will step back from their careers while the
stereotyping, prejudice, and intergroup discrimination. man will be the primary breadwinner, thus setting discrimina-
It is important to understand that these three terms tory practices in motion in the workplace and contributing to
mean quite different things, although they are highly making women more dependent on men for financial secu-
related to each other. rity. Even when women try to go toe-to-toe in the workplace,
A stereotype is a cognitive structure, a set of beliefs they may be hindered in careers that call for assertive or
about the characteristics that are held by members of a specific aggressive behaviours (such as being successful in the business
social group; these beliefs function as schemas, serving to guide world) because the “fairer sex” stereotype is pervasive in the
organization (Glick & Fiske, 1996, 2001). Thus, even seemingly
how we process information about our social world.
positive aspects of a stereotype, from one perspective, can be
Prejudice is an affective, emotionally driven process,
perceived negatively from another perspective, and can result
including negative attitudes toward and critical judgments of in negative consequences that were unforeseen.
other groups. Prejudice itself is an emotional process, but it
in turn is reinforced by negative stereotypes.
Discrimination is behaviour that disfavours or disadvan-
tages members of a certain social group in some way. P R E J U D I C E I N A P O L I T I C A L LY C O R R E C T
Taken together, stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimi- WORLD? In recent decades, norms have changed
nation underlie many of the destructive “isms” in society— greatly in terms of what is appropriate to say about other Watch
racism, sexism, classism, etc. One of the central goals of people. This increased sensitivity to social diversity and In the Real World:
social-cognitive psychology has been to understand how equality, such as society’s greater acceptance of LGBTQ Are Stereotypes and
these processes work. expressions of sexuality, or belief in gender and ethnic Prejudice Inevitable?
equality, is sometimes disparagingly referred to as “political
correctness.” The label carries the suggestion that the bat-
tles for equality are basically over, and now if people in
MYTHS IN MIND disadvantaged groups raise concerns about how they are
Are Only Negative Aspects treated in our society, they are just looking for excuses,
of Stereotypes Problematic? such as when people say someone is “playing the race
card” as though they are using their ethnicity merely as
The first examples that come to mind when stereotyping a
group are usually based on negative characteristics. However,
a tool with which to try to take advantage of society. The
it is certainly not the case that all stereotypic associations are truth is quite different. Outgroup stereotypes and preju-
negative; men and women are stereotypically associated with dices are by no means a thing of the past, and neither are
different strengths, for example. the discriminatory practices that go along with them. Just
What might be counterintuitive to many people is that ask Muslims in the post-9/11 world how stigmatized they
even the positive aspects of a stereotype carry a kind of feel every time there is a “terrorist” attack somewhere in

Social Cognition :: Module 13.2 :: 565

 the world. Or ask a young Black person whether they feel most people. For example, even though the general pub-
they are treated exactly the same as Whites by their teach- lic denounces prejudice and discrimination and holds
ers, or the police, or potential employers. Or look at the values of universal equality, studies of implicit processes
outcry after a young girl in Steubenville, Ohio, was sexu- tell a different story; when people (generally, White peo-
ally assaulted while unconscious at a party, and two promi- ple) first are exposed to Black faces, this automatically
nent high school football players in the community were influences a variety of physiological responses, including
found criminally responsible; many people felt that she had the activation of facial muscles, cardiovascular responses,
ruined their lives, and not the other way around. Or look and brain activity related to fear and negative emotions
at the disturbingly common and unabashed expression of (Cunningham et al., 2004; Eberhardt, 2005).
negative views against Canada’s Native people in the wake In fact, measures of brain activity reveal the battle
of the Idle No More protests of recent years. Clearly, the between implicit and explicit processes. Over very short
full story of stereotypes and prejudice plays out in the lives amounts of time, exposure to White or Black faces acti-
of millions of people who are placed into the category of vates implicit processes such as described above, indicating
“other” by one group or another. a racially biased pattern of processing. However, over lon-
For example, in the United States, despite the victories ger periods of time, such as 30 seconds, brain activity shifts,
of the civil rights movement in shifting the racial attitudes of showing heightened activity in the prefrontal cortex. This
the general North American population, there is still preju- area relates to the control of emotions and abstract think-
dice toward non-White cultural groups. For example, it still ing, consistent with a neurological effort to bring values
seems as though Black men in particular experience the into one’s mind in order to control emotional reactions.
legal system differently from others. Black men in the U.S. This teaches us a powerful lesson: Even if people
are incarcerated far more often than any other groups, and abhor prejudice at the explicit level of their awareness,
experience substantially more physical and aggressive treat- they may implicitly hold negative stereotypes and expe-
ment from police (Smith, 2004). Records of police encoun- rience prejudiced emotional reactions.
ters over the past 30 years confirm what many minority Clearly, there can be important discrepancies between
groups have long claimed, that the police use more aggres- stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination at the explicit
sive techniques on minority suspects than White suspects and implicit levels. This has created huge challenges for
(Inn, Wheeler, & Sparling, 1977; Smith, 2004; Weitzer & researchers attempting to study these processes, because of
Tuch, 2004). Historically, Black suspects have also been course simply asking subjects how they feel is only going
five times more likely to die in police confrontations than to reveal their explicit processes, which may appear very
White suspects (U.S. Department of Justice, 2001). egalitarian. Trying to overcome these challenges has led to
This prejudice has seeped into the basic social- the invention of measurement techniques to try to reveal
psychological functioning of many people, probably implicit processes.

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC kept silent, either intentionally or because individuals are
unaware of their own prejudices (Greenwald & Banaji, 1995;
LITERACY MODEL Nosek, 2007). In order to do so, researchers needed to come
Explicit versus Implicit Measures up with measurement devices that would reveal people’s
of Prejudice implicit processes. This is no easy challenge, because implicit
processes can operate so quickly (in less than a second), and
so subtly that we are typically not consciously aware of them.
If a great deal of modern prejudice has “gone underground”
in the sense that people hide it and give politically correct
responses at the explicit level, how can researchers accu- How can science
rately measure prejudice in today’s society? study implicit
prejudice?
What do we know
about measuring A major research break-
through occurred in the
prejudice? 1990s with the invention of the Implicit Associations Test
Psychologists have developed clever ( IAT ; Greenwald et al., 1998). The IAT measures how fast
ways of measuring the forms of people can respond to images or words flashed on a computer
stereotyping and prejudice that are screen. To complete the test, a person uses two fingers and

566 :: Module 13.2 : : Social Cognition

 two computer buttons, and responds to stimuli on a com-
puter screen (see Figure 13.4). In round 1, subjects are sup-
posed to press one button if they see a Caucasian face or a
positive word (such as “peace”), and a different button if they
see a Black face or a negative word (such as “war”). Thus, in
this round, the buttons are associating stereotype-consistent
stimuli. With these particular pairings, it takes people around
800 milliseconds (four-fifths of a second) to press the cor- Watch
rect button. Implicit Attitudes

Round 2 rearranges the associations. This time subjects

press one button if they see a Caucasian face or a negative
word, and a different button if they see a Black face or a
positive word. Thus, in this round, the buttons are associating
the stimuli in stereotype-inconsistent ways. In this situation,
people take an average of 1015 milliseconds to press the
(a)
correct button, more than one-fifth of a second longer than
in round 1. (To control for any possible effects of going first
vs. going second, the order in which a person goes through
these tasks is usually counterbalanced across subjects, with
some going in the order presented here, and others in the
reverse order.)

Why does it take longer to respond when there is a Black/

positive button than when there is a Black/negative button?
The researchers reasoned that our racial schemas associ-
ate more negativity with Blacks than with Whites. Because
schemas guide our information processing, they facilitate the
processing of information that is schema-consistent; thus,
it is easier for a person to make snap judgments to always
press one button for either Black or negative stimuli. But
schema-inconsistent information is more difficult to process;
(b) thus, having two different buttons for Black and for negative
means that a person has to override their automatic, implicit
association between Black and negative, in order to choose
the correct response. Thus, by measuring participants’
abilities to process information extremely quickly, the IAT
Positive Negative starts to reveal a person’s schematic, implicit “programming.”
words words
The size of the reaction time discrepancy between these two
Milliseconds

rounds is believed to be a direct measure of the strength of

people’s implicit prejudice toward Blacks.
Negative Positive
words words
Can we critically
evaluate this evidence?
Although the data gathered with
this instrument show reliable results,
Reaction time some psychologists have questioned
(c) the test’s validity: Is the IAT really a
measure of prejudice? Or is it pos-
{fig. 13.4} The IAT Procedure To complete one condition in sible that the IAT is merely measuring the extent to which
the IAT (a), participants must use one button to identify Black
people have been exposed to negative stereotypes, but have
faces and negative words and another button to identify White
faces and positive words. In the other condition (b), the positive not necessarily developed prejudices? After all, simply knowing
and negative words are switched to be paired with the other about a stereotype does not mean an individual believes it, uses
race (Black/positive and White/negative). Average response it to judge people, or engages in discriminatory behaviour.
times are faster when Black is paired with negative words and
White is paired with positive words (c). Is this a sign of hidden Studies by Elizabeth Phelps and her colleagues (2000) sug-
prejudice? gest that the IAT reflects a person’s emotional reactions to

Social Cognition :: Module 13.2 :: 567

 outgroup members. In her studies, White participants were example, one research group developed an IAT that measures
shown pictures of Black and White faces, while having their attitudes about alcohol use. This instrument can successfully
brains scanned for activity in the amygdala. The amount of predict how much alcohol someone is likely to consume, even
amygdala activation measured when looking at Black faces when explicit measures fail to do so (Ostafin et al., 2008).
was positively correlated with participants’ IAT measures To the extent that this methodology is valid, it is extremely
of implicit prejudice. This suggests that the IAT is measuring valuable, giving us a window into people’s private minds.
something real enough to be reflected in neurological activ-
ity in areas related to fear and emotional processing.

Why is this relevant?

The development of the IAT
has fostered a great deal of
research and has been applied
to at least a dozen forms of stereotyping, including stereo-
types of social classes (Rudman et al., 2002), sexual orientation
(Banse et al., 2001), and even fraternity and sorority members
(Wells & Corts, 2008). The results of all these tests illustrate
that implicit prejudice seems to be more prevalent than what
people are willing to express in explicit tests (Nosek et al.,
2002). The IAT is also being applied to clinical settings. For Blend Images/Alamy

PSYCH @ real-world situation, would lead to an even higher chance of

a mistaken shooting occurring (Saus et al., 2006). To com-
The Law Enforcement bat any implicit influence of race on an officer’s decision to
Academy shoot, most law enforcement agencies in North America have
developed extensive training programs, part of which focuses
Imagine that instead of linking positive or negative terms
on making shoot–don’t-shoot decisions (Cordner & Shain,
with Black faces in the IAT, you were asked to make a snap
2011). Programs may simulate a variety of firearms combat
decision whether or not to shoot a potential criminal. A
situations, using a combination of walk-through sets with
number of researchers have used video-game-like tasks to
cardboard figures, and realistic mock-combat against other
put participants in these situations. In these video simula-
people armed with foam pellet guns. Research suggests that
tions, a figure will suddenly appear, either holding a weapon
this training is helpful; even student volunteers in the lab can
or a non-weapon (e.g., a wallet or a cell phone). It turns
be trained to reduce shooting errors through such means
out that when making these split-second decisions, people
(Correl et al., 2007; Plant & Peruche, 2005).
are a little bit slower to decide whether or not to shoot
a Black man holding a non-weapon, and they make the
wrong decision more often. When a Black man is hold-
ing a gun, however, they make the “shoot” decision more
quickly than if the gun is held by a White man (Correll
et al., 2007; Correll et al., 2006). The logic is similar to the
IAT discussed above. Because Black and “gun” are stereo-
typically consistent with each other, people have an easier
time processing these stimuli together than when Black
and “wallet” are paired with each other. Just like the situa-
tion in the Amadou Diallo case then, people are more likely
to mistakenly shoot a Black man holding a wallet, believing
that he might be holding a gun; at least, they’re more likely
83/ZUMA Press/Newscom
to do this in a video game.
Certainly a video game pales in comparison to the The split-second differences in the IAT may be related to
officers’ increased use of deadly force with Black suspects,
adrenaline-fuelled confrontation that occurred that fate- including cases where the suspect is unarmed. Here, a police
ful night in the Bronx. It is easy to imagine that the stress officer undergoes virtual reality training designed to reduce
of a real confrontation, combined with the complexity of a shooting errors.

568 :: Module 13.2 : : Social Cognition

 to directly teach people to make different associations to
Quick Quiz 13.2b a stereotyped group. Subjects were presented with pho-
Stereotypes, Prejudice, and Discrimination tographs of Blacks and Whites, coupled with either ste-
reotypic or non-stereotypic traits, and were instructed to
1 The concept of self-serving bias is similar to
KNOW . . .

_________, in which we attribute positive qualities to respond “NO” to stereotypic pairings, and “YES” to
the social group we belong to. non-stereotypic pairings. After extensive training involving
A ingroup bias C discrimination many such trials, subjects no longer activated negative racial
B outgroup bias D implicit bias stereotypes, even at the implicit level (Kawakami et al.,
2000). This suggests that, over time, as our society contin-
2 _________ prejudice refers to situations in which
ues to evolve in an increasingly egalitarian, non-prejudiced
a person stereotypes a group of people based on
hidden, unacknowledged feelings. direction, it may be possible for people to un-learn the ste-
A Explicit C Associative reotypes that history has provided us with. However, there
B Discriminative D Implicit is a huge gap between the kind of intensive training that
Kawakami’s participants experienced in the lab and the
3 Unconscious forms of prejudice are believed to be measured real-world experience of individuals who are bombarded
UNDERSTAND . . .

with the implicit associations test. This test is based on with both stereotypic and non-stereotypic messages on a
A the types of words people typically make up when daily basis. Nevertheless, these results suggest that it is at least
they see a person of a specific race.
possible for people to “reprogram” themselves.
B how long it takes people to respond to positive or
One of the most well-supported ideas in all of social
negative words along with Black or White faces.
psychology is the contact hypothesis, which predicts that
C changes in heart rate that accompany photos of
social contact between members of different groups is extremely
people from different racial backgrounds.
important to overcoming prejudice (Allport, 1954; Pettigrew &
D increased activity in the emotional centres of the
brain that are associated with specific races.
Tropp, 2006), especially if that contact occurs in settings in
which the groups have equal status and power, and ideally, in
4 Which of the following statements about stereotypes which group members are cooperating on tasks or pursu-
ANALYZE . . .

and prejudice is false? ing common goals (Sherif, 1961). Negative stereotypes and
A Stereotypes can be expressed outwardly and very the attendant prejudices thrive under conditions of igno-
explicitly.
rance, whereas allowing people to get to know members of
B All stereotypes are of negative characteristics.
outgroups, to work together to pursue common goals, to
C Stereotypes are often experienced implicitly. come to appreciate their membership in common groups
D Prejudice has become increasingly unpopular in the or as part of the same ingroup (e.g., we’re both Leafs fans,
United States.
Canadians, or members of the human species; Gaertner &
Answers can be found on page ANS-3. Dovidio, 2000), and to develop friendships with members
of outgroups (Pettigrew, 1997, 1998) are all different ways
in which contact helps to overcome prejudice. In fact, con-
tact between members of different groups not only helps
Improving Intergroup Relations to combat their own prejudices, but that of their friends
We are left with an immense practical challenge: How as well; simply knowing that someone is friends with an
can we overcome the implicit processes we have exam- outgroup member serves to decrease the prejudice of that
ined in this module, and work toward eliminating harm- person’s friends (Wright et al., 1997).
ful stereotypes, prejudices, and discrimination from our Coming to see our fellow human beings as all part of the
society? Unfortunately, there are no easy answers. But same human family is an opportunity that recent advances in
there are some promising possibilities. technology (the Internet, space exploration), economics (glo-
Keri Kawakami at York University has spent more than balization), and ironically, global problems (climate change,
a decade researching how to overcoming implicit stereo- nuclear proliferation) have made available to all of us. This
typing and prejudice. Research in her lab has shown that global perspective shift may, one hopes, help us to overcome
people’s implicit networks can be “reprogrammed” through our age-old group prejudices. Astronauts who travel into
practice. For example, people can be trained to make situ- space and look back on this one little planet that we inhabit
ational attributions for negative behaviours by stereotyped often report that the experience profoundly affects them.
group members, thereby overcoming the fundamental attri- “The first day or so we all pointed to our countries.
bution error; this helps to prevent people from thinking of The third or fourth day we were pointing to our conti-
others in stereotypic ways (Stewart et al., 2010). In another nents. By the fifth day, we were aware of only one Earth.”
study, Kawakami and her colleagues used a computer task —Sultan bin Salman Al-Saud

Social Cognition :: Module 13.2 :: 569

 Module Summary
Module

13.2 Now that you have read this module you should

KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with social cognition:

contact hypothesis (p. 569) ingroups (p. 563) w85/ZUMA Press/Newscom
discrimination (p. 565) internal (dispositional)
dual-process models (p. 559) attribution (p. 562)
explicit processes (p. 559) minimal group
paradigm (p. 564)
external (situational)
attribution (p. 562) naive realism (p. 562) to help people create different schemas in their mind
false consensus effect (p. 562) outgroups (p. 563) for members of outgroups. This can be done through
fundamental attribution person perception (p. 560) retraining the person to make different automatic
error (FAE) (p. 563) prejudice (p. 565) associations with outgroup members, such as training
Implicit Associations self-fulfilling prophecy (p. 561) them to consciously reject any pairing of the outgroup
Test (IAT) (p. 566) self-serving bias (p. 562) with any negative or stereotyped traits. Different schemas
implicit processes (p. 559) stereotype (p. 565) can also be created through realizing a common identity
ingroup bias (p. 563) thin slices of behaviour (p. 560) between oneself and the other person, which can occur
from extended contact, cooperation on mutual goals,
or adopting more inclusive and abstract categories (e.g.,
human family) by which to think about people.
UNDERSTAND . . .

● How we form first impressions and how these impres- ANALYZE . . .

sions influence us. We quickly form impressions, even
when only thin slices of behaviour are available to us. ● Whether people who commit discriminatory acts are
These impressions can be surprisingly accurate, but they necessarily prejudiced. It is certainly possible for people
can also affect our behaviour in ways that often tends to to commit discriminatory acts without being prejudiced.
confirm our initial impressions; this is the phenomenon of Regardless of prejudice, stereotypes are absorbed from
self-fulfilling prophecies. the larger culture, and these can function as interpersonal
schemas that can guide how we see things, and how we
APPLY . . . process information implicitly. This can cause us to behave
in a discriminatory fashion without us intending to, such as
● Your understanding of social cognition to the problem being more likely to assume an ambiguous object is a gun
of overcoming prejudice and discrimination. The key if held by a Black man, compared to when it is held by a
to overcoming prejudice and discrimination seems to be White man.

570 :: Module 13.2 : : Social Cognition

 Anton Balazh/Shutterstock

Module

13.3 Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective

Communication
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology in research How behaviours influence Your understanding of the The difficulties communicators face
After reading on attitudes, behaviour, and attitudes in terms of central route to describe how in trying to convince the public
this module effective communication cognitive dissonance theory a message should be designed to take action on climate change
you should

Bill McKibben is a man on a mission. He wants to save the planet; actually, For Bill McKibben, and for the human species more generally, to suc-
to be more accurate, he wants to save the kind of planet that humans can ceed in the fi ght against climate change, there are some big barriers
live on. But unlike many people with such ambitious dreams, Bill has a few to overcome. Psychology provides a great deal of insight into how to
very important factors on his side. rise to such a societal challenge. Any social problem is, at some level,
a problem of human behaviour, and finding solutions therefore inevi-
First, he knows what he is talking about when it comes to saving the planet, tably involves changing human behaviour. Social psychology provides
having published many books and articles on the topic over the past few many insights for how to do exactly this, which is what this module
decades. Second, he has the full weight of the scientific community behind is about.
his cause, which agrees that the human species is heading rapidly for catas-
trophe as we push global warming higher and higher. And third, he has a
global organization, [Link], spanning almost every country on Earth, with Focus Questions
hundreds of thousands of members. He also has some significant victories
1 What is the relationship between attitudes and behaviour?
under his belt, from organizing the most widespread days of political activ-
ism in history to raising unprecedented opposition to key government deci- 2 How should communications be structured
sions, such as whether or not to pass the Keystone XL pipeline that would so as to be as persuasive as possible?
take oil from Alberta’s oilsands and transport it across the United States.

Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication :: Module 13.3 :: 571

 and people will behave in the desired way. The raising
awareness approach focuses on information—get the
information right, educate everybody, and people will
behave in the desired way.
Although each of these approaches obviously can
have an impact on public behaviour, each one by itself
is insufficient for solving the climate change crisis. The
biggest problem with the technological, legal, and eco-
nomic perspectives (aside from the problem that you
can’t, realistically, apply them to every behaviour that is
relevant to climate change) is that developing and imple-
menting the technological solutions, or passing the laws
and setting the price incentives that would be required
to sufficiently change behaviour, can only happen if the
public at large will support such changes. Any politician
ZUMA Press, Inc./Alamy who tries to, for example, increase gas taxes in order to
Bill McKibben, author, activist and founder of [Link] encourage the shift to a sustainable energy economy is
going to have to overcome some stiff public resistance.
Clearly, finding solutions to our environmental chal-
According to the American Psychological Associa- lenges requires that the public supports those solutions.
tion’s official task force on climate change, “Addressing Inevitably, as you consider how to achieve the tech-
climate change is arguably one of the most pressing tasks nological, legal, or economic changes that might change
facing this planet and its inhabitants” (American Psycho- public behaviour, you often end up at the problem of
logical Association, 2010, p. 6). The task force was com- how to get the support of the general [Link] takes us
prised of a carefully chosen group of highly regarded to the fourth approach: raising awareness. The assumption
senior scientists, including the University of Victoria’s behind the raising awareness approach is that people will
Robert Gifford. Their overall assessment agrees with generally do the right thing, provided they have the right
the perspective of the United Nations, whose Secretary information. In turn, this is based on the assumption that
General Ban Ki-Moon said in 2009 that climate change information drives attitudes, and attitudes drive behaviour.
was the greatest issue of the 21st century. Using the So to change behaviour, you have to change the beliefs
insights of psychology to find solutions to climate change upon which attitudes are based, which means you have
is increasingly becoming a focus for applied psychologists to give people information. Therein lies the logic behind
who specialize in communication and behaviour change. public service announcements, pamphlets, billboards, edu-
cation campaigns, and the vast majority of the behaviour
change attempts occurring in society (McKenzie-Mohr,
Changing People’s Behaviour 2000). Learning how to communicate effectively in order
Four of the most common approaches taken to attempt to influence attitudes and behaviour has been a major
to change the public’s behaviour on a large scale are tech- focus of psychology for most of its history, and we have
nological, legal, economic, and raising awareness. The learned a great deal about how to do so.
technological approach focuses on making the desired
behaviour as easy as possible through changing the tech- P E R S U A S I O N : C H A N G I N G AT T I T U D E S
nologies and structures that influence the person. For THROUGH COMMUNICATION Social psycholo-
example, people will have a smaller carbon footprint if gists have discovered many important principles under-
there are alternative energy technologies widely avail- lying effective communication, giving us a set of tools
able; similarly, people will be less likely to throw their for influencing all sorts of behaviours, from wearing con-
litter on the ground if there are easily accessible garbage doms to eating chocolate bars. These tools are regularly
cans nearby. The idea is to get the technology right, and employed in the marketing world to get us to, basically,
people will behave in the desired way. The legal approach buy more stuff . But they are also being employed in the
focuses on policy change—get the laws right and people social marketing world, which uses principles of market-
will behave in the desired way. The economic approach ing psychology to promote positive, pro-social behaviour
Watch focuses on financial incentives and penalties, generally changes, changes that benefit other people and society in
What’s in It for Me?: through taxes and pricing—make the “right” thing to do general, such as donating blood or giving your time or
Persuasion cheaper, and the “wrong” thing to do more expensive, money for a charitable cause.

572 :: Module 13.3 : : Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication

 Indirect
reach people, in part because it’s so much easier. Even
though people may not be paying much attention or may
Peripheral route: not really care about your issue, they can be convinced
foot in the door through the peripheral route. Also, even if you have a Watch
relatively weak set of arguments, people can often be per- Becoming a Detective
suaded through the peripheral route. We will explore the of Social Influence:
use of the peripheral route later in this module. Robert Cialdini
Direct

Central route: information

Using the Central Route Effectively
First, you need to be confident that you have the facts
on your side. If you feel your perspective makes logical,
{fig. 13.5} Central and Peripheral Routes to Persua-
sion There are two ways that communications can per- rational sense, then it makes sense to appeal to the cen-
suade people. In the “central route” people are persuaded by tral route. This means getting your audience to pay close
the content of a message, while in the “peripheral route” they attention to your arguments; in order to do that, you have
are influenced by the way the content is presented, the “style” Watch
over the “substance.” Click on this figure in your eText to
two key factors to work with: motivation and opportunity. What’s in It for Me?
see more details. People will be more likely to process information through Persuasion
the central route when they are highly motivated and
when they have the knowledge or expertise to understand
If you are preparing a persuasive message, under- the information. Thus, the central route is most reliable
standing what is likely to be convincing to your audi- when people are highly motivated about the topic, when
ence is extremely important. One of the key theories they have sufficient time and freedom from distraction,
that provide guidance for how to approach convincing and when the information is not overwhelmingly com-
your audience is the elaboration likelihood model. plex relative to their knowledge (i.e., if the audience is
This model predicts that when audiences are sufficiently not very knowledgeable, the information has to be simple,
motivated to pay attention to a message (i.e., they care about but if the audience has more expertise, then obviously the
the issue) and they have the opportunity for careful processing information can be more nuanced and complex).
(i.e., they have the cognitive resources available to understand Keeping these factors in mind suggests some key
the message), they will be persuaded by the facts of the argu- strategies for maximizing the central route:
ment, the substance; when either of these two factors, motivation
and opportunity, are missing, people will tend to be persuaded MAKE IT PERSONAL Imagine for a moment that
by other factors. According to this model of persuasion, your friend has some juicy, scandalous gossip to tell you.
information can appeal to people through two general There would be a big difference in your desire to hear
“routes”: the central route and the peripheral route (Cacioppo it if it were about (1) one of her friends who you do
et al., 1986). not know; (2) one of your friends; (3) you! Clearly, your
The central route to persuasion is all about sub- desire to get this information is directly related to how
stance. It occurs when people pay close attention to the content personally relevant it is. Making a message self-relevant
of a message, evaluate the evidence presented, and examine the is crucially important to motivating people to care and
logic of the arguments; if the message is sufficiently compel- pay attention.
ling, they will be convinced, internalizing the message as Interestingly, it can be very easy to make information
something they believe in (see Figure 13.5). As a result, self-relevant, as simple as shifting from describing some-
attitude or belief change that occurs through the central thing to a person to getting them to imagine themselves
route tends to be strong and long-lasting. in the situation. In the previous paragraph, our opening
However, much of the time, people are not going to sentence could have been, “Making a message self-
pay sufficient attention to the content of a message, and relevant is very important. . . .” Instead, we said “Imagine
instead, persuasion will depend upon other features that are not for a moment that your friend has some juicy, scandalous
directly related to the message itself, such as the attractiveness of gossip. . . .” Crafting effective communications involves
the person delivering the information, or the sheer amount a subtle consideration of nuances such as this rewording
of information, such as the number of arguments made. that can make a message more personally engaging.
When taking the peripheral route to persuasion it’s Consider one striking study from the early 1980s
all about style, not substance. Although persuasion is typi- (Gregory et al., 1982), a time when cable television (CATV)
cally not as powerful through the peripheral route, it is was still making its way into the North American viewing
nevertheless often a superior route through which to market. Researchers compared two highly similar persuasive

Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication :: Module 13.3 :: 573

 appeals, which were presented to two samples of homeown- more general, impersonal, and described in more abstract
ers to try to convince them to subscribe to CATV. terms feels less personal, or more distant. Importantly,
psychological distance depends not only on geography
In the information-only condition, homeowners
(people or places that are farther away are less personal),
were presented with this appeal: CATV will provide
but temporal factors (distant future or past times feel less
a broader entertainment and information service to its sub-
personal), social factors (people or groups that are fur-
scribers. Used properly, a person can plan in advance to
ther removed from one’s identity are less personal), how
enjoy events offered. Instead of spending money on the
abstract the information is (abstractions are less personal
babysitter and gas, and putting up with the hassles of go-
than things that are specific), and even the level of cer-
ing out, more time can be spent at home with family, alone,
tainty one feels about an outcome (outcomes that are less
or with friends.
certain are less personal). Communicators should be able
In the imagination condition, homeowners
to make their messages feel more personally relevant to
received this appeal: Take a moment and imagine how
the audience by working with these factors, bringing the
CATV will provide you with a broader entertainment
message close to home in time and space, showing how it
and information service. When you use it properly, you
affects the audience themselves or their social groups, and
will be able to plan in advance which of the events offered
making consequences or outcomes as certain as possible.
you wish to enjoy. Take a moment and think of how,
Unfortunately for climate change communicators,
instead of spending money on the babysitter and gas, and
they have struggled in making climate change personal.
then having to put up with the hassles of going out, you
Climate change communications have traditionally
will be able to spend your time at home, with your fam-
fared poorly on all the factors of psychological distance
ily, alone, or with your friends.
mentioned above. The term “climate change” itself
As you can see, the two appeals are almost identical, implies something global and abstract, and when peo-
providing the exact same arguments; from a purely logical ple do think of specific others who may suffer due to
perspective, they should have exactly the same impact. climate change, they tend to think of others in the dis-
However, their impact differed dramatically: Only 19.5% tant future or in distant parts of the world (Leiserowitz
of the people who received the information-only appeal et al., 2010; Lorenzoni & Pidgeon, 2006), and scientists
signed up for CATV, whereas a whopping 47% sub- have been honest about communicating the inherent
scribed when they were simply told to imagine them- uncertainty of scientific predictions. As a result, people
selves in the scenario! Imagine the profit difference often experience climate change as “psychologically
between selling your product to 1 in 5 people or 1 in 2 distant,” rather than personally relevant (Liberman &
people. This is the power of making things personal. Trope, 2008; Milfont, 2010). Clearly, bringing the con-
This power has been explained by construal-level sequences of climate change home for a given audi-
theory (Trope & Liberman, 2010), which describes how ence, bringing them close in time and space, and
information affects us differently depending on our psychological changing the focus of the discussion to the certainty of
distance from the information. Information that is specific, what scientists do know rather than the uncertainty of
personal, and described in terms of concrete details feels what they don’t, should make the message much more
more personal, or closer to us; whereas information that is powerful (Spence et al., 2012).

we do these things, to convey these tragedies to the public,

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC to keep people informed about what’s going on in the world,
LITERACY MODEL and to honour the dead by telling their stories. However, we
also regularly ignore much larger tragedies. One astonishing
The Identifiable Victim Effect example occurred in Rwanda, when 800 000 people were
killed by machete attacks over a matter of weeks; almost
as astonishing as the genocide itself was the world media’s
It is practically a daily event on the news to focus on some
response, which was to largely ignore it, with most of the
human tragedy and cover it in excruciating detail, from chil-
major news agencies devoting only a few minutes of a news-
dren who have fallen down wells to individuals who have
cast to the genocide (Slovic, 2007). As a result, it was difficult
been tragically murdered. We focus an incredible amount of
to marshall public support for action.
media attention to certain tragedies in particular, such as the
horrendous shooting death of 20 children and six adults at A similar puzzle has held back the public from taking climate
Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012. It makes sense that change action. The problem itself couldn’t be much more

574 :: Module 13.3 : : Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication

threatening; for example, in March 2013, a major publica- How can science
tion in the prestigious Proceedings of the Royal Society, by
explain the
renowned scientists Paul and Anne Ehrlich at Stanford
University, concluded that human civilization is headed
identifiable victim
rapidly toward global collapse due to an escalating mix of effect?
environmental problems such as climate change and the Earlier in the module, we mentioned that abstract informa-
acidification of the oceans (Ehrlich & Ehrlich, 2013). Already, tion is experienced as more “psychologically distant” than
approximately 400 000 people die every year due to climate concrete, specific information. But this doesn’t go far enough
change–related disasters (DARA, 2012).Yet we largely ignore to help us understand the findings in this Rokia study. There
these news stories. are two key findings to explain. First, why is Rokia’s indi-
The mystery is not why we pay so much attention to a trag- vidual story more impactful than millions of Rokia stories
edy like the Sandy Hook shootings; they certainly deserve presented in the form of statistical information? Second, why
our shock, horror, and collective mourning. The mystery is does combining Rokia’s story with statistics actually make it
why we give so much less attention to tragedies at much less likely for people to act?
larger scales. Why is it so difficult, for instance, to persuade To understand these findings, psychologists rely upon dual-
the public to force governments to take action on climate process models (see Module 13.2) of information pro-
change? cessing, involving two systems in the brain that process
information differently. System One (Stanovich & West,
What do we know 2000), the experiential system (Epstein, 1994), operates
about communicating more implicitly, quickly, and intuitively and is predominantly
about tragedy? emotional ; the experiential system responds to personal
experiences, images, stories, and other people’s emotions,
Many experiments have shown
making snap judgments based on intuitive, affective reac-
that information about tragedies
tions to images, stories, and other people’s emotions. Sys-
has much more impact if it focuses
tem Two, the analytic system, operates more at the explicit
on specific, concrete events and
level of consciousness, is slower and more methodical, and uses
specific people’s experiences than if it relies upon more
logic and discursive thinking (i.e., reasoning using language) to
abstract, statistical information to try to convey the sheer
try to understand reality. The experiential system is more
scope and overall impact of the tragedy. For example, the
about feeling with something; the analytic system is more
identifiable victim effect describes how people are more
about understanding that “other” thing.
powerfully moved to action by the story of a single suffering per-
son, than by information about a whole group of people. With these systems in mind, you can begin to see why
Rokia’s story would be so powerful; Rokia’s story speaks
In one study (Small et al., 2007), researchers gave subjects
to the experiential system, thereby triggering the affective
a chance to donate up to $5 of their earnings from partici-
responses, such as empathy, that would motivate people to
pating in the study to an organization, Save the Children,
give money to charity. The abstract statistics, however, speak
based on information provided in one of three different
to the analytic system, the head rather than the heart. With
conditions. In the identifiable victim condition, participants
less emotional impact, they have less motivational strength
read about Rokia, a 7-year-old girl from Mali, Africa, who
(Barrett & Salovey, 2002; Forgas, 2000). Without emo-
was desperately poor and facing severe hunger and pos-
tions, information about the suffering of millions of people
sibly starvation. In the statistical victims condition, par-
becomes “just a number,” an abstraction, something that is
ticipants read about food shortages and rainfall deficits
difficult to feel with.
affecting more than 20 million people and children in four
countries in Africa. In the third condition, the information In some situations, appealing to the analytic system can back-
was combined; participants read about Rokia and then fire, because the analytic system effectively shuts down the
were also given statistical information about mass suffering experiential system, putting people in more of a cold, analytic
in African countries. frame of mind rather than a hot, emotional state. This may be
why the condition that included both Rokia and the statistics
Perhaps not surprisingly, people who read specifically about
was no more motivating than the statistics alone. The cold,
Rokia gave significantly more ($2.38) than people who read
analytic way of thinking that was activated by the statistics
general statistical information ($1.14). Clearly, Rokia tugs on
made Rokia’s emotional story have less impact. When infor-
the heart-strings more than abstract numbers do. But amaz-
mation is “just information,” it is stripped of its meaning and
ingly, when given information about Rokia combined with the
therefore less likely to guide behaviour (Loewenstein et al.,
statistics, people still gave less than they did when reading
2001; Slovic et al., 2002).
solely about Rokia ($1.43) and no more (statistically speak-
ing) than they gave when presented with the statistics alone. The system that FEELS, feels for the small, not the large.
It seems that appealing to the head and heart simultaneously Nobel prize–winning biochemist Albert Szent Gyorgi sums
doesn’t work. this up well when he talks about the difficulties trying to

Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication :: Module 13.3 :: 575

 wrap your head around the consequences of nuclear war. “I in a way that motivates behaviour change is to personally
am deeply moved if I see one man suffering and would risk engage the person, to reduce the psychological distance of
my life for him. Then I talk impersonally about the possible the information. There are many ways to do this, as illus-
pulverization of our big cities, with a hundred million dead. trated by a recent TED talk on climate change.
I am unable to multiply one man’s suffering by a hundred
• Information can be framed in a personal way. For example,
million” (Slovic, 2007). the talk is titled, “Everything You Love,” immediately
framing the climate change message not in terms of “the
Can we critically environment” or something external to the person, but
instead highlighting for people that this is, in fact, highly
evaluate this evidence? personal.
Taken by itself, this single study • Abstract information can be described in terms of
cannot tell us whether individual personal experiences. For example, the fact that climate
stories are more motivating than change is affecting the oceans is described not as a
statistics; it merely tells us that this summary of environmental facts, but rather as a story
particular story is more motivating than these particular sta- about a little boy who loves the ocean so much, but is
tistics. But it obviously cannot be the case that all informa- going to grow up to find that it has become a graveyard of
tion that appeals to the logical mind is therefore undesirable his beloved species.
or that it will interfere with the motivation to act. There are • The timeframe can be shortened, emphasizing the present
two main arguments against this. and near future, rather than distant future. For example, in
the talk, major consequences and opportunities for action
First, specific stories and specific statistics will have different are described in terms of the next few years, including the
impacts in specific situations with specific people. Obviously, melting of the Arctic and the imminent need to change our
every particular convergence of circumstances is different. energy systems.
Sometimes, a certain story will be particularly powerful; • Specific actions that will make a difference can be emphasized.
other times a certain statistic will be. Sometimes, a particular For example, the TED talk emphasizes the importance of
combination of story and statistics will work the best, and joining organizations (such as [Link] or The Unstoppable
other times one may disempower the other, as with Rokia. Snowball) that are lobbying politicians to take action on
climate change.
Second, we don’t know what the long-term impacts may be
• Information can be more personally engaging if it is
of statistical information and emotional stories. For example, told to a person by their friends, rather than a more
a given statistic may have little impact in the first moment impersonal news source. For example, the TED talk
when a person hears it, but it may become part of a larger advocates that people make use of social media
understanding of what is happening in the world that oper- strategies for sharing information about opportunities
ates over a longer period of time. It seems highly possible to take action.
that information that appeals to the analytic system may have How to make the best use of our understanding of the
more impact over longer periods of time; after all, this sys- psychology of communication, in order to have a positive
tem, by its very nature, operates more slowly. We also don’t impact on the world, remains a major puzzle for humanity
know how the impacts of specific stories or statistics may to solve.
change over time, or with repeated exposure. Do we get
used to hearing about each of them and habituate to them so
that they have less impact over time? Or do repeated expo-
sures accumulate over time into a larger understanding that
motivates us to act?

Obviously, we cannot dispense with talking about statistical,

abstract information if we are to communicate with each
other about what is happening in the world. It therefore
becomes extremely important to understand how the expe-
riential and analytic systems can work together, and how to
make the best use of them in crafting effective communica-
tion strategies.

Why is this relevant?

This research is highly rel-
evant to the challenge of
motivating people to take
action on major societal issues such as climate change
(e.g., Slovic, 2007). The basic principle for communicating SHAH MARAI/AFP/Getty Images

576 :: Module 13.3 : : Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication

VALUE APPEALS As any good marketer knows, audi- From a strategic point of view, these strategies make
ences are much more likely to listen to a message that sense. Appealing to your audience’s values generally
is framed in such a way that it seems relevant to their enhances the impact of messages; however, as we’ll dis-
values (see also Module 11.3). Most pro-environmental cuss at the end of this module, appealing to your audi-
behaviours have been framed in ways that go against ence’s existing values may, in some cases, be detrimental
people’s self-interest, involving trade-offs between the to your cause . . .
economy or the environment, jobs or trees, comfort and
convenience or personal sacrifice (Schultz & Zelezny, PREACHING OR FLIP-FLOPPING? ONE-SIDED VS.
2003). And as noble as it might be to sit in the dark, shiv- TWO-SIDED MESSAGES One final consideration
ering through the winter and eating only locally grown about message content is whether you should “preach,”
root vegetables while having two-minute showers once that is, give a one-sided appeal whereby you only argue for
a week, these are unlikely to be the next hot behaviour your own perspective, or whether you should risk being
trends. seen as a “flip-flopper,” giving a two-sided appeal that
The value frames that are adopted by most environ- acknowledges different [Link] might think that
mental messages are biospheric (e.g., save the rain forests; the one-sided message is strongest, because it’s least likely
save the polar bears!) or social-altruistic (e.g., the poor to raise doubts in the audience’s mind, but research sug-
will be more severely affected by climate change; cli- gests otherwise (O’Keefe, 1999). It is actually more persua-
mate change should be stopped to protect our children, sive if you acknowledge opposing arguments than if you
grandchildren, and future generations) (Stern & Dietz, just preach from your own soap-box, unless your audience
1994). However, these value frames are not compatible is unlikely to ever hear information that counters your
with the dominant North American value system, which message. So, if you’re trying to convince people the Earth
is egoistic, focused on self-enhancement, personal success, is round, then it’s okay to go with a one-sided message.
material wealth, and independence (Schultz & Zelezny, But if you’re wading into a real debate, it’s best to show
2003; Schwartz, 1994). your audience the opposing side’s arguments (and then, of
Environmental messages might be more motivat- course, show them why those arguments are wrong).
ing if they are framed in more egoistic terms. For exam- By giving a two-sided message, you make it more
ple, messages could emphasize financial savings (saving likely that your audience will see you as trustworthy and
energy = saving money), personal empowerment (you honest. But you gain in another, sneakier way as well. By
can make a difference), the importance of community bringing up, and shooting down, opposing arguments,
(community gardening will make your neighbourhood you are helping your audience resist those arguments in
safer), economic opportunities (renewable energy is the the future. This is a strategy of attitude inoculation,
fastest-growing sector of the energy economy), and even which is a strategy for strengthening attitudes and making
fun and friendship (going to protests is exciting and you them more resistant to change by first exposing people to a weak
meet interesting people). The increasingly popular youth counter-argument and then refuting that argument (Compton
movement, Power Shift ( [Link] ) & Pfau, 2005; McGuire, 1961). This strategy operates in
emphasizes what people can do in their own commu- an analogous way to how the flu shot protects you from
nities to encourage the transition to a sustainable soci- the flu. When you get injected with a weakened version
ety; it’s about inspiration through action, and has rapidly of the flu virus, your immune system has a chance to
gained thousands of members in Canada and several respond, building up the antibodies it will need when
other countries. Bill McKibben’s organization, [Link], the real flu comes along. Analogously, by exposing your
has placed its members’ creativity and inspiration front audience to counter-arguments, and then showing why
and centre for its whole existence; for example, in one those counter-arguments are not correct, you are giving
of its first years of existence, [Link]’s major campaign your audience the necessary information they will need
for the year was not explicitly environmental at all; it to resist those counterarguments when they hear them
was simply a challenge for groups all over the world to later. The result is that the audience’s attitudes are likely
take pictures of themselves making the 350 symbol in to be more resistant to change, even when presented
some creative way. Although this doesn’t accomplish a with opposing viewpoints.
thing in terms of reducing carbon emissions or helping
the climate, it does show people that this organization is EMOTIONS IN THE CENTRAL ROUTE Taking the
fun, inspiring, and has inspired many people from almost central route has been the chief strategy of climate change
every country on the planet to get involved, helping to communicators, and unfortunately, they’ve had a pretty
take the whole notion of environmental activism out of tough go of it. The well-funded “climate change denial”
the fringe and into the mainstream. movement has been able to spread enough misinformation

Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication :: Module 13.3 :: 577

 through the media that many people have been left con- totally obvious; when they tapped out “Happy Birthday,”
fused about what is the truth and who to believe. Nega- they would hear the words and the tune in their heads
tive emotions such as confusion are much more damaging and it seemed pretty likely that the listeners would be
than you might expect, influencing people to process able to guess the song; in fact, they estimated that listen-
information in a different way. Even very subtle manipula- ers would guess about 50% of the songs. To the listeners,
tions of confusion can have this effect. however, the vague “tap-tap-TAP-tap TAP TAP” didn’t
For example, research by Norbert Schwarz and his amount to much; they guessed the correct songs a mere
colleagues has shown that even the font or the colour 2.5% of the time!
of the text used in a message can change how skepti- When you are communicating, you are the tapper;
cal people are of the information. If the font is a little fight the urge to use impressively long words, acronyms,
bit more difficult to read (e.g., font like this, compared and technical lingo. Saying less, and in less complex ways,
to font like this), or if the text doesn’t contrast as starkly is often saying more.
from the background and thus is also more difficult to
read, people tend to be more skeptical of the message
(Winkielman et al., 2002).
Using the Peripheral
What seems to happen is that the person experi- Route Effectively
ences a subtle amount of negative emotion, which biases To be an effective communicator, you can’t ignore
their information processing in a negative manner. As the peripheral route. Half a century of social psychol-
a result, they pay more attention to weaknesses in the ogy research has identified several powerful factors of
information and claims that they disagree with, the net influence. There are more than can be represented here,
result being that they are less easily persuaded. Schwarz but we will discuss several of the most important ones.
explains that processing fluency, which is the ease with You may recognize many of these, because they have
which information is processed, biases the person’s process- undoubtedly been used against you many times, from
ing of the information; thus, even insignificant aspects of corporations trying to sell you products to people trying
a communication can, through triggering negative affect, to get you to do them a favour.
influence the communication’s persuasive impact. Politi-
cal strategists attempt to influence the public’s emotions AUTHORITY The use of experts and authority fig-
for similar reasons through the use of negative political ures to deliver a message can often enhance the impact
advertising (attack ads; see Module 6.1). of the message (Cialdini, 2001). Even people who look
Another key factor that can easily derail communi- like experts but have no real authority on a subject can
cation is the message’s complexity. If your arguments are be used effectively. For example, an extremely successful
overly technical, complex, convoluted, or use specialized ad campaign in the 1970s for decaffeinated coffee used
language, this can also activate negative emotion for peo- a man who had absolutely no expert knowledge of cof-
ple, biasing them against your message. Also, people will fee or its health effects; however, as an actor, he played
simply lose interest in a message they don’t understand, Marcus Whelby, M.D., who was a very popular TV doc-
and stop paying attention. This is a big challenge for com- tor at the time. Dressing the part is important as well; a
municating about technical topics like climate change. man wearing a suit who jaywalks across a red light will
Strangely, experts are often terrible at communicating be followed by 3.5 times as many people as the same
their knowledge. They don’t realize that even though they man wearing casual clothes.
understand the language they use and the subtleties of Basically, we believe people we like. Communica-
what they are saying, their audience may not. Chip and tors who “connect” with their audience are going to get
Dan Heath (2007) call this the “curse of knowledge.” Any- their message across more effectively (Cialdini, 2001).
body who has ever attended an academic conference or Liking can be influenced by numerous factors, includ-
listened to an expert being interviewed on the news has ing attractiveness. For example, in a study performed for
likely experienced this phenomenon. Even though to the the American Heart Association, “good-looking” fund-
expert the conversation is fascinating and rife with mean- raisers generated almost twice as many donations (42%
ing, to the audience it sounds like a monotonous drone. versus 23%) as their less-attractive counterparts (Rein-
The curse of knowledge was shown in an innova- gen & Kernan, 1993). In the 1972 Canadian federal elec-
tive experiment (Newton, 1991) in which subjects were tion, candidates who were rated as physically attractive
assigned to be “tappers” or “listeners.” The tappers were got three times as many votes as unattractive ones (Efrain
asked to tap the rhythm to a selection of extremely well- & Patterson, 1974); in fact, politically unpopular parties
known songs, like “Happy Birthday,” while the listeners had substantially less attractive candidates, which may
tried to guess the songs. To the tappers, the songs were have been the result of their party’s lack of success at

578 :: Module 13.3 : : Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication

the polls! It is interesting to note that voters themselves If someone does you a favour, you “owe them one.” This
insisted that their choices were not influenced by some- strong social norm is used by influence specialists all the
thing as superficial as appearance. time, and it can be so sneaky we often don’t realize it.
Thus, there are good reasons to be pleasant and Just think of the “free samples” offered by vendors, the
appealing, and to look your best, at least from a persuasion “free trial workout” offered by health clubs, even the
perspective. Highlighting any similarities you may share “free personality assessments” offered by the Church of
with your audience, loosening up a little and speaking Scientology. The principle of reciprocity is one reason
informally, the appropriate use of humour, even compli- why corporations donate to politicians’ campaigns, and
menting the audience, can all enhance your likability and why pharmaceutical companies spend millions of dollars
increase the effectiveness of your communication. funding research, organizing conferences, providing gifts,
stationery, calendars, and even pens to doctors and family
SOCIAL VALIDATION Because humans are such a health clinics (Cialdini, 2001).
social species, we use the behaviour of others as a guide Reciprocity is often used in a two-step manner called
to inform us what we should do. Elsewhere (Mod- the door-in-the-face technique, which involves asking
ule 13.2) we discussed the importance of social norms for something relatively big, then following with a request for
and the effects of conformity pressures, and indeed, as something relatively small. The logic is that once someone
an influence tactic, social validation can be incredibly has scaled back their request, you are obligated to meet
powerful. Social validation is at work whenever you hear them part way. Professional negotiators will always start
that a novel is a best-seller, or a piece of music has hit with a proposal they don’t really expect to get; but they
the charts, or “polls indicate” that a political party is sup- know that once they “give up” some of the things they
ported by a certain percentage of the population. want, the opposing side is obligated to do the same. The
One such example of social validation used in cli- door-in-the-face technique can be used to surprising
mate change communication occurred in the spring of effectiveness.
2013 when Bill McKibben’s organization, [Link], and In one well-known study by Bob Cialdini
several other organizations submitted a petition with one (Cialdini et al., 1975), people were approached on the
million signatures, urging President Obama to not allow street and asked whether they would be willing to vol-
the Keystone XL pipeline to transport oil from Canada’s unteer to chaperone inmates from a juvenile detention
oilsands to the United States. Afterward, the fact that a centre for a day trip to the zoo. When simply asked,
million signatures were gathered became a major part of 17% said yes. A second set of people were approached
their organization’s marketing [Link] can see how and submitted to a door-in-the-face manipulation; they
social validation becomes a major tool for communica- were first asked if they would be willing to volunteer
tors; obviously, proponents of the pipeline would want to for two hours per week as a counsellor at the juve-
downplay these facts, whereas opponents of the pipeline nile detention centre, and make a commitment for two
would want to highlight them. years. Everybody said no. But when they were subse-
Social validation is also often misused by communi- quently asked whether they would merely agree to vol-
cators, somewhat ironically. For example, people may try unteer to chaperone inmates from the detention centre
to highlight the urgency of a behaviour change or the on a trip to the zoo for the day, an astonishing 50% said
seriousness of an issue by pointing out how few people yes. This one-two punch is very effective, both because
are currently doing something desirable (such as wear- it makes the person feel obligated to say yes after you
ing condoms every time they have casual sex, or reducing have “backed down,” and because the second request
their carbon footprint), or how many people are currently doesn’t seem as onerous, after being presented with the
doing something undesirable (eating a high sugar diet, or first, bigger request.
leaving the lights on all the time). Although the informa-
tion may be true, and the intentions are good, these com- CONSISTENCY One of the most powerful influence
munications can easily backfire. In one study, a suicide techniques, especially for long-term behaviour change,
intervention program in New Jersey told people about is an old salesperson’s trick called the foot-in-the-door
the high rates of teenage suicides; as a result, people who technique, which involves making a simple request followed by
went through the program became MORE likely to think a more substantial request. To the travelling salesmen of days
of suicide as a way out of their problems (Cialdini, 2001). gone by, literally getting one’s foot in the door meant that
a homeowner could not shut you out. In social psychol-
RECIPROCITY You scratch my back, I’ll scratch ogy, the idea is that once you get the person to agree to Explore
yours. All cultures have a strong social norm that obli- even a small request, it’s harder for them to say no to a Cognitive Dissonance
gates people to repay to others what they have received. subsequent request (Burger, 1999; Cialdini, 2000). and Attitude Change

Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication :: Module 13.3 :: 579

 Commitments can be extremely subtle, another
reason they are very sneaky. For example, one restaurant
owner was able to reduce the rate of no-shows (people
who reserve a table, but then don’t show up) from 30%
all the way down to 10% by changing two words in the
script that his employees used when scheduling reserva-
tions over the phone. In the old script, the receptionist
“Would you you sign a petition for
this cause?”
“Sure!” “Could you also give an hour of your time to
volunteer for the cause?” would say, “Please call if you have to change your plans.”
Now, she would say, “Would you please call if you have
to change your plans?” And then, she would wait for a
couple of seconds, until the person responded and said
yes (Cialdini, 2001). Saying “yes” is an active commitment,
and that tiny act was enough to get two-thirds of his no-
shows to call first and cancel. Other studies have shown
that written commitments (“sign here . . .”) are even more
“Would you be willing to volunteer four days each “Well, how about just spending an hour with us
week to help our cause?” this Saturday afternoon?” effective than verbal commitments, and commitments that
{fig. 13.6} Two-Step Persuasion Techniques to Encourage can be made public are the most effective of all.
Community Service The foot-in-the-door technique (top) starts
with a small request and then moves on to a larger request. The
door-in-the-face technique (bottom) does the reverse. It begins
The Attitude-Behaviour
with a highly demanding request and then appears to settle for a
much smaller one.
Feedback Loop
As we mentioned earlier, the reason the foot-in-the-door
The foot-in-the-door technique is a very sneaky approach works so well is because people have a general
strategy, because the initial request can be so small that need to be psychologically consistent—for their attitudes,
virtually everyone would say yes to it; nevertheless, it’s beliefs, and behaviours to match up with each other. Much
powerful, because it makes use of a very strong motivation of the time, we maintain a feeling of consistency by letting
held by many people—the need for psychological consis- our beliefs and attitudes guide our behaviours; we act in the
tency. We’ll describe this in more detail, but just think of way we think and feel is right. But groundbreaking work
how people usually react to being called a “hypocrite” by Leon Festinger (1957) showed that we can also main-
Watch and you’ll get a sense of the power of the need for consis- tain a feeling of consistency by simply changing our beliefs
Thinking Like a tency. So the foot-in-the-door technique packs another to be consistent with our behaviour. Festinger (1957) pro-
Psychologist:
powerful one-two punch—an initial request that’s hard posed cognitive dissonance theory, describing that when
Changing Attitudes
to refuse locks you in, and then you get cornered into we hold inconsistent beliefs, this creates a kind of aversive inner ten-
and Behaviours
agreeing to a much larger request (see Figure 13.6). sion, or “dissonance”; we are then motivated to reduce this tension
Explore For example, if you are at the beach and you in whatever way we can, often by simply changing the beliefs
Cognitive Dissonance want to go swimming, how can you be sure nobody that created the dissonance in the first place.
is going to steal your stuff ? Just ask someone to watch This sort of belief change was observed in a dramatic
your things for you. This is amazingly powerful. In one way by Festinger and two of his colleagues when they
experiment, the experimenter posed as a person sun- infiltrated a doomsday cult in the 1950s. December 21,
bathing on the beach; he then got up and asked who- 1954, was the date the world was supposed to end, accord-
ever was close them to watch his things; everybody said ing to the cult’s leader, Marian Keech (not her real name).
yes. In a control condition, he simply got up and walked Keech told her followers that she was receiving messages
away from his things without asking anybody. After he from aliens who lived on the planet Clarion. The aliens
left, as you might expect, a mock-thief came along and had warned of an impending flood that would destroy life
attempted to steal the experimenter’s radio. An astonish- on Earth, but they promised to come in a spaceship and
ing 95% of the people who agreed to watch his things rescue Keech and her followers before the final cataclysm.
attempted to interfere with the would-be thief, even to If the members kept their faith, the aliens were supposed
the point of chasing the thief down the beach! But if to contact them at midnight. The cult members were so
no one was asked and the experimenter just abandoned convinced of impending doom that they gave away their
his things, only 20% of people tried to stop the thief possessions, quit their jobs, and prepared for the end.
(Cialdini, 2001). Imagine that—an additional 75% of us Festinger and his colleagues, not being big believers
will become heroic vigilantes just because some stranger in alien messages about the end of the world, wondered
casually asks us on a beach to watch his stuff . what would happen when the prophecy failed to come

580 :: Module 13.3 : : Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication

true. So, on December 20th, the cult members, including it for the money.” But getting paid $1 seems hardly worth
Festinger and his colleagues, gathered together and waited it; these subjects were left in a state of uncomfortable dis-
for the spaceship to arrive. sonance, caught between the beliefs “deceiving people
Midnight came . . . and went. A few minutes after is wrong” and “I just lied to somebody for a measly $1.”
midnight the group decided the clocks were fast and any However, by changing their attitudes—“This study actu-
minute now, the aliens would be contacting them. Then ally wasn’t mind-numbingly dull; it was pretty interesting!
an hour passed. And another. The group waited all night, I didn’t lie after all!”—subjects were able to resolve their
increasingly confused, wondering what was going on. dissonance and feel good again.
Finally, at 4:45 a.m., it was apparent the Clarions Cognitive dissonance theory can help to explain
weren’t coming to whisk them away. Keech had been many puzzling phenomena of everyday life. For example,
wrong. The cult members had made fools out of them- why would perfectly sane young people crawl through
selves and ruined their lives. You might think that they ice water in their underwear while others stood around
would slink back to their normal lives, beg for their jobs shouting at them, throwing snowballs, and even spanking
back, and try to recover from the embarrassment. But no, them? In the winter of 2013, exactly such an event hap-
the opposite happened. Keech suddenly got another mes- pened at Ryerson University, when aspiring frosh lead-
sage from the Clarions! They told her that because her ers went through a “hazing ritual.” When it came to light,
little group had been so faithful, waiting all night for them university administrators and even Ontario’s premier were
to come, God had decided not to destroy the Earth after shocked and appalled, although no official action was
all. They weren’t fools; they were heroes! Convinced that taken except to express disapproval.
they had saved the world, Keech and most of her followers Students at Dalhousie University, in the same year,
(some decided this was ridiculous and ditched them at this were not so lucky; Dalhousie suspended its entire wom-
point) became even more evangelical, contacting newspa- en’s hockey team in January, except for the rookies, who
pers and media outlets, spreading the good word that the also lost their season as a result of not having a team to
world had been saved (Festinger, 1956). play with. The previous September, the team had held
Festinger and Carlsmith (1959) tested cognitive dis- a party at which the rookies were subjected to hazing,
sonance theory by having subjects come to their lab and and when it came to light, the university administration
spend an hour engaged in a mind-numbing study that reacted based on a “zero tolerance” policy.
required them to perform menial, repetitive tasks. After- But why does hazing occur? Why do groups so
ward, the subjects were told that in a different condition often require people who want to join them to submit
of the study, a research assistant meets subjects before- to embarrassing, humiliating, even painful and danger-
hand and gives them positive expectations of the study, ous initiation rituals? People have traditionally believed
telling them that it’s a fun and interesting study. Unfor- that such rituals help to bond members of the organiza-
tunately, the person called in sick that day, and so the tion together; cognitive dissonance theory helps to explain
subjects were asked if they would play the part of the why this seems to happen. Engaging in such rituals would
research assistant for the next, incoming subject. All they be generally dissonant with the belief “I am a reasonable
had to do was sit in the waiting room, and when the person who would not harm myself or do ridiculous
next subject came in, chat with them and tell them the things for no good reason.” How can you reduce this dis-
study was fun and interesting. Little did the unsuspecting sonance after harming yourself or doing ridiculous things?
participants know that this was what the real study was One handy strategy is to assume that you did indeed have
about, getting them to tell a “little white lie” and then a good reason, that the group you suffered in order to join
seeing how it affected their attitudes. was worth it! By enhancing your positive attitude toward
The subjects were also offered one of two amounts the group, you create a justification for your behaviour.
of payment if they agreed to go along with the deception. Cognitive dissonance is created when we make dif-
Some subjects were paid $1 (the equivalent of $8 today), ficult choices between attractive alternatives. For example,
and others were paid $20 (the equivalent of $167 today). imagine that you have to choose to date only one of two
After agreeing to play along and deceiving the person in people who like you. You are attracted to both of them;
the waiting room, subjects then filled out a few measures one is funny and spontaneous and appeals to your fun-
of their perceptions of the study. Lo and behold, after lying loving side, while the other is deep and intense and appeals
about the study, the subjects actually felt more positively to your existential, serious [Link]’re unsure who would
toward it! But not all the subjects felt this way, only those be the better match, but then, after some soul-searching
who were paid $1. Why might this be? (or maybe on a mysterious whim), you make your choice.
The subjects who were paid $20 had more than After making such a difficult choice, we often feel
enough justification for telling a little white lie—“I did some dissonance, as we consider what might have been

Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication :: Module 13.3 :: 581

 had we chosen differently. To reduce this dissonance, we commitments, and the foot-in-the-door technique.
may bias our perceptions, highlighting for ourselves all With regard to climate change and the environmental
the good things about our chosen option, and all the bad movement, the hope for many decades has been that
things about the rejected option, making the options seem this “foot-in-the-door” approach would build increas-
farther apart afterwards than they were initially. ingly pro-environmental attitudes in the general public
Interestingly, because cognitive dissonance is based on in order to move society toward sustainability. By getting
the need for self-consistency, it does not appear to work the public to adopt relatively easy behaviours, like recy-
in quite the same way across cultures. In more collectiv- cling or using compact fluorescent light bulbs, the hope
istic societies, for example, the need for self-consistency is has been that this would strengthen pro-environmental
not as strong, because it is more widely recognized that attitudes and spill over, or generalize, to other behaviours
one’s “self ” is more fluid, manifesting differently in dif- and greater support for environmental laws and policies.
ferent social situations. This is reflected in collectivists This “spillover” effect has been the basic rationale for the
experiencing less dissonance after making choices. How- general marketing approach to environmental behav-
ever, research conducted at the University of Waterloo has iour change: appeal to whatever values people hold (e.g.,
shown that people from collectivist cultures do experi- the money they’ll save), and encourage the adoption of
ence dissonance after making difficult choices for their whatever behaviours seem most likely. For example, you
friends (Hoshino-Browne et al., 2005). It appears that the may recall a TV commercial of recent years by the David
need for self-consistency still exists; it’s just that the “self ” Suzuki Foundation, in which a man was informed of
is more interpersonal than personal. how much beer money he would save if he got rid of
If attitudes influence behaviours, and behaviours influ- his extra fridge in the basement. Unplugging your fridge
ence attitudes, then you can see that the two are connected today, protesting in the streets tomorrow!
to each other in a circular fashion, with each affecting Unfortunately for anybody hoping to use the foot-
the other in a self-reinforcing cycle. Because each process in-the-door technique to change society in major ways,
affects the other, what happens in these causal loops is that the strategy seems most effective for encouraging the
initially small changes can grow into very large changes adoption of similar behaviours (e.g., signing a petition for
over time. For example, an initially small behaviour change a cause today will make it more likely that you’ll volun-
can feed back to strengthen the person’s attitude toward teer for that cause in the future), but it does not reliably
that behaviour, which leads in turn to greater behaviour spill over to a wider range of behaviours. Spillover is even
changes in the future (see Figure 13.7). less likely if there are clear, extrinsically motivating reasons
Clearly, sometimes this works, as we saw earlier for engaging in the behaviour, such as saving beer money
with the cognitive dissonance examples, the power of (see Module 11.3). Just like Festinger’s subjects didn’t need

Before a medical marijuana debate:

Con: “It is an illegal Pro: “I don’t see why

drug—it just does not it is such a problem.”
seem right.”

Difference in opinion

After debate:

Con: “Absolutely not. The Pro: “Under no circumstances

government should not should someone in need be
undermine its own drug laws.” deprived of a drug that could
reduce that person’s pain.”

Difference in opinion

{fig. 13.7} The Circle of Attitudes and Actions

582 :: Module 13.3 : : Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication

to change their attitudes when they were paid $20 for effectively communicating and helping to change peo-
lying, people whose primary reason for conserving energy ple’s behaviour. Obviously, these same insights could be
is to save money are not likely to strengthen their pro- used to either benefit society or to harm it, just as they
environmental attitudes more generally. After all, they just could be used to sell people cigarettes and alcohol or to
did it for the money. help people kick their [Link] is no inherent
Nevertheless, as we have reviewed, psycholo- morality in the tools themselves, but with them, we can
gists have provided many insights and tools for more certainly help to shape our society.

Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
13.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology in research on attitudes, behaviour,

and effective communication:

analytic system (p. 575) elaboration likelihood model

attitude inoculation (p. 577) (p. 573)
central route to persuasion experiential system (p. 575) Anton Balazh/Shutterstock
(p. 573) foot-in-the-door technique
cognitive dissonance theory (p. 579)
(p. 580) identifiable victim effect (p. 575)
construal-level theory (p. 574) peripheral route to persuasion audience is likely to hear opposing viewpoints, be sure
door-in-the-face technique (p. 573) to construct a two-sided message that includes those
(p. 579) processing fluency (p. 578) opposing arguments, and then provide solid reasons for
why the opposing arguments are not valid. It also makes
sense to use peripheral cues to further strengthen your
UNDERSTAND . . . message, such as appealing to authority, mentioning
similarities between yourself and the audience, using
● How behaviours influence attitudes in terms of humour appropriately, and relying predominantly on
cognitive dissonance theor y . When people hold specific stories rather than on abstract data and statistics.
cognitions that conflict with each other, such as when
they are aware that they have behaved in a way that runs
counter to their beliefs or attitudes, they experience ANALYZE . . .
an uncomfortable state of arousal known as cognitive
dissonance. In order to reduce this dissonance, they need ● The difficulties communicators face in trying to
to change one of their conflicting cognitions, which often convince the public to take action on climate change.
results in changing their attitudes in order to reflect the Climate change communicators face some key challenges.
behaviour they just performed. In this way, behaviours and Traditionally, the environmental movement has framed
attitudes influence each other. its messages in ways that run counter to predominant
North American values, making many people wary of
APPLY . . . environmental messages or at least likely to see them as
not relevant to themselves. Furthermore, climate change
● Your understanding of the central route to describe is experienced as psychologically distant from the public,
how a message should be designed. In order to with consequences that people feel are generally going
design an effective message using the central route to to be experienced by people in other parts of the world
persuasion, you must start with solid, convincing facts. and future generations. Climate change information is
Then personalize the message, making it self-relevant also highly technical and complex, and is abstract and
for your audience, such as by directly engaging them in a statistical in nature, given that climate change is a global
scenario you describe, or by describing how the message phenomenon that doesn’t easily boil down to specific
is relevant to them personally, or by framing the message stories about specific people. There is also inherent
in terms of values that your audience members hold. Also, uncertainty in scientific research, which has made it
keep your message from being unnecessarily complex, so difficult to express climate change information in a way
as to maintain the interest of your audience. But if your that would seem “certain” to the public.

Attitudes, Behaviour, and Effective Communication :: Module 13.3 :: 583

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Social Cognition

1 What do we know about social cognition?

Review Figure 13.3 on page 563 for a recap of internal and external
2 How can science help explain stereotypes
and prejudice?
attributions, and take a moment to think about how you attribute behaviour Recent research has shown that people are increasingly con-
in your daily life. Consider the fundamental attribution bias by thinking about cerned about appearing prejudiced, yet there is still evidence
this scenario: Imagine you are at the movies and another person in the theatre of pervasive stereotypes. For instance, examination of police
snaps at you and your friends for talking too loudly. You might assume that records reveals that Black suspects are over five times more
she is simply unpleasant and uptight (internal attribution) rather than assuming likely to die in a police encounter than White suspects. Psy-
that she was having a bad day (external attribution). In contrast, an example of chologists interpret this type of evidence to suggest that many
the self-serving bias would be snapping at your roommate for talking on the of us unknowingly or implicitly harbour prejudice. The discus-
phone too loudly, but rationalizing your behaviour because you were feeling sion on page 566 supports this claim with a study in which
cranky after a long shift at work—not to mention your roommate was being researchers found subtle but remarkable differences in facial
rude first. expressions and brain activity when subjects looked at Black
You may be surprised to learn that the terms “stereotype,” “prejudice,” and and White faces, even when the participants claimed that they
“discrimination” are not interchangeable. Remember that a stereotype is a were not prejudiced. Similarly, on page 566 we described the
generalized set of beliefs about a group of people (a type of schema), prejudice Implicit Associations Test, which researchers say can reveal
is a prejudgment of members of a group based solely on their membership implicit prejudice through a series of responses to images
in that group (an attitude), and discrimination or words flashed on a computer screen (see
is actual positive or negative behaviour that is Figure 13.4, p. 567). For example, a person who
based on that prejudice (actions). believes he is free from prejudice might exhibit an
implicit (unconscious) association between posi-
tive words and images of White faces, and negative
words with images of Black faces.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video
excerpt on stereotypes and prejudice. You
can access the video at MyPsychLab or by click- wong yu liang/Shutterstock
ing the play button in the centre of your eText.
If your instructor assigns this video as a homework activity, you
will find additional content to help you in MyPsychLab. You can
3
Can we critically evaluate claims about stereotypes,
prejudice, and discrimination?
also view the video by using your smart phone and the QR code Even “positive” stereotypes can be harmful. In the Myths in Mind feature on
below, or you can go to the YouTube link provided. page 565, you were asked to think about how seemingly harmless stereotyping,
such as labelling women as nurturers, can affect the group being stereotyped. If all
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, discuss
women are nurturing and gentle, then certainly women would be out of place in
the factors that contribute to prejudice and discrimination and
a field like finance or politics, where leaders often have to make unpopular and
identify some techniques for reducing the development of preju-
assertive decisions. This kind of categorization can have other negative effects as
dice and discrimination.
well, such as the exclusion of women from executive or other high-level positions.

Are stereotypes just too powerful to fight? Keep in mind that training can under-
mine stereotypes. The Psych @ feature on page 568 described the success that
law enforcement retraining has had in changing shoot/do not shoot procedures, and
the encouraging data that suggest this kind of training can work even with people
who are not making life-and-death decisions. Also, keep in mind that the research on
implicit prejudice, while interesting, raises some questions about validity and whether
the IAT is testing prejudice or simply the knowledge of pervasive stereotypes.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]//wor
[Link]/workthemodel
work
kthemo
kth
hemod
de
del
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

584 :: Chapter 13 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 14
Health, Stress, and Coping
14.1 Behaviour and Health
● Smoking p. 587
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Media Exposure and Smoking p. 588
● Obesity p. 590
● Psychosocial Influences
on Health p. 594
● Module Summary p. 597

14.2 Stress and Illness

● Physiology of Stress p. 601
● Stress, Immunity, and Illness p. 604
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Hormones, Relationships,
and Health p. 604
● Stress, Personality,
and Illness p. 608
● Module Summary p. 609

14.3 Coping and Well-Being

● Coping p. 611
● Perceived Control p. 618
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Compensatory Control
and Health p. 619
● Module Summary p. 621

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 622
Ase/Shutterstock
 stock_wales/Alamy

Module

14.1 Behaviour and Health

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology How genetic and Your knowledge of persuasion and Whether associations with
After reading related to health environmental factors health to examine the effectiveness of people who smoke affect
this module psychology influence obesity different types of cigarette warnings smoking in adolescents
you should

Should a person’s body weight be a basis for how much tax the person and behaviour are becoming common topics of conversation in many
pays? Some politicians, hospital administrators, and other members of areas of society.
society advocate a “fat tax”—taxing individuals for their excess weight,
or for the nonessential food items that contribute to being overweight.
Focus Questions
Sugary soft drinks contribute hundreds of calories to our daily diet
without providing any nutrition, and do little to leave a person feeling 1 Which factors contribute to weight problems, and how
full and satisfied. So, like cigarettes, should additional taxes be attached much control over them can people expect to have?
to these products for the same reasons that cigarettes are so heav- 2 To what extent is physical health based on psychological
ily taxed? Some health-care providers are pursuing such a plan. In processes such as choice and decision?
2009, for example, public employees in the U.S. state of Alabama who
were obese discovered that they had to lose weight by year’s end or
face increased monthly health insurance costs. On one hand, this may
sound like blatant discrimination. On the other hand, there is a parallel
precedent for fat tax plans—namely, the massive taxes on cigarettes To what degree do you believe your behaviour affects your
that serve to discourage smoking and help cover the costs of treating health? Each day we make choices that shape our physical and
smoking-related illnesses. Plans such as fat taxes—or Samoa Airlines’ mental health. We decide what to eat and what to avoid eating,
pay-what-you-weigh ticket prices—tell us that issues related to health whether to exercise or relax on the couch. Some people choose to

586 :: Module 14.1 : : Behaviour and Health

 Table 14.1 :: Health Costs of Tobacco Use
● Tobacco use causes an estimated 5 million deaths worldwide each year.

● Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in North America.

● One in five Canadian deaths is due to cigarette smoking.

● Close to 1000 Canadians die each year as a result of second-hand smoke.

Sources: CDC, 2009b; Rehm et al., 2006; Statistics Canada, 2012b.

light up a cigarette whenever the chance arises. Others smoking-related illnesses (Jones et al., 2010). The life
make a point of avoiding places where people are expectancy of the average smoker is between 7 and 14
likely to smoke. The choices people make about their years shorter than that of a nonsmoker (U.S. Centers
career paths similarly influence their health. Workplace for Disease Control [CDC], 2002; Streppel et al., 2007).
stress levels for air traffic controllers are quite different This number depends upon how much, and for how
from those experienced by small-town librarians. The long, a person smoked. Quitting by the age of 30
numerous and complex connections between behav- greatly reduces the likelihood that a person will die of
iour and health certainly have created an important smoking-related cancers, a statistic that is quite relevant
niche for health psychologists . These researchers study to university students (Statistics Canada, 2012b)! The
both the positive and negative effects that humans’ costs in lives and money attributable to smoking are
behaviour and decisions have on their health, survival, massive, as shown in Table 14.1. Despite these starkly
and well-being. ominous figures, 19.9% of Canadian adults—22.3% of
The need for health psychologists has increased males and 17.5% of females—smoke cigarettes (Statis- Watch
considerably over the last century, as most premature tics Canada, 2012b). In other words, 5.8 million Cana- The Big Picture: Health
deaths today are attributable to lifestyle factors. In the dians perform a behaviour that is quite likely to harm Psychology

early 1900s, people in Canada were likely to die from or even kill them. It should come as no surprise that
influenza, pneumonia, tuberculosis, measles, and other such a statistic would interest psychologists.
contagious diseases. Advances in medicine
have served to keep these conditions under
much better control. Instead, people are
now much more likely to die from tobacco
use, alcohol use, obesity, and inactivity. In
fact, more than half of all deaths in Canada
in 2009 were caused by heart disease, can-
cer, stroke, and diabetes; although genet-
ics plays a role in these diseases, they have
also been linked to unhealthy behaviours
such as a poor diet and smoking (Statistics
Canada, 2012a). Clearly, then, our physical
and mental well-being are connected to the
health decisions that we make.

Smoking
One of the most widely studied health
behaviours is tobacco use. Smoking ciga-
rettes causes life-shortening health prob-
lems including lung, mouth, and throat
cancer; heart disease; and pulmonary A. Ramey/PhotoEdit
diseases such as emphysema. Recent The tobacco industry attempts to make everyone think of cigarettes as a familiar part of life;
it spends more than $36 million each day on cigarette advertisements (U.S. Federal Trade
reports indicate that 21% of all deaths in Commission, 2011). This is approximately three times the amount of money spent on lung cancer
Canada over the past decade were due to research world wide.

Behaviour and Health :: Module 14.1 :: 587

 geographic regions and socioeconomic groups (Sargent
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC et al., 2005). The adolescents reported their age and indi-
LITERACY MODEL cated whether they smoked, and were asked to identify
whether they had seen specific popular movies that fea-
Media Exposure and Smoking tured smoking. The more exposure the adolescents had to
movies that featured smoking, the more likely they were
to have tried smoking. This relationship persisted even
If smoking is so dangerous, why do people do it? Why
after the researchers controlled for important variables
don’t they do something safer, like juggle scorpions? This
such as socioeconomic status, personality, and parental
is a perplexing question not only for psychologists, but
and peer influences on smoking (Heatherton & Sargent,
also for many smokers. One reason may be the exposure
2009). Although this study showed a clear correlation link-
young people have to other people who smoke: parents,
ing smoking in movies and adolescent smoking, it did not
friends, and even characters on television and in the
explain why this correlation exists.
movies.
It appears that how people identify with smokers may influ-
ence their decision to smoke. An experimental study showed
What do we know that adolescents who had positive responses to a protago-
about media influences nist in a movie clip who smoked were much more likely to
on smoking? associate smoking with their own identities. This correlation
Each day approximately 250 ado- was observed in both adolescents who already smoked and
lescents in Canada try their first even those who did not smoke (Dal Cin et al., 2007).
cigarette , and many will go on
to become full-time smokers (Health Canada, 2008). Can we critically
An important question that health psychologists grapple evaluate this evidence?
with concerns the societal factors that lead young peo-
ple to smoke. Many such factors come into play, includ- It is very difficult to establish that
ing whether family members smoke, whether smoking is watching movie stars smoke ciga-
common in their culture, personality characteristics, and rettes causes adolescents to take
socioeconomic status. Adolescents may also begin smok- up smoking, even though the cor-
ing because they associate it with particular traits such as relations might suggest that it does.
attractiveness, rebelliousness, and individualism. One fac- When researchers tracked the amount of smoking featured
tor that has received an increasing amount of attention in popular movies from 1990 to 2007, they found that as
from psychologists and health-care providers is the role of the incidence of smoking in movies rose, smoking among
the media. Specifically, does exposure to smoking in mov- adolescents increased after a short period of time. Like-
ies and entertainment lead teens to begin smoking? Actors wise, when smoking in movies decreased, a decline in ado-
in many popular television shows and movies smoke. Addi- lescent smoking followed (Heatherton & Sargent, 2009).
tionally, photographs in fashion and entertainment maga- However, the problem with these correlations is that mul-
zines show stars such as Johnny Depp and Kristen Stewart tiple explanations could be put forth for why they exist.
looking cool and smoking cigarettes. Indeed, many smokers Although the researchers would like to demonstrate that
are portrayed as sophisticated and self-assured, traits that smoking in movies influences audience members, perhaps
many adolescents hope to possess. In contrast, very few the truth is the other way around: People who are already
movies and magazines show someone with emphysema or willing to smoke might be more attracted to movies that
lung cancer. feature smoking.

How can science Why is this relevant?

help us analyze Smoking by young people
the effects of raises serious concerns
smoking in the about the health and well-
being of those individuals
movies? who start smoking at such an early age. In addition, ciga-
To what extent do positive images of smoking in movies rette-related illness imposes a major societal burden in
(and TV and magazines) contribute to adolescent smok- terms of lost work productivity and rising health-care costs.
ing? This question has been addressed using a variety of As the research shows, cigarette smoking in movies is just
methods. In one study, researchers conducted a random- one of many influences on smoking behaviour. Of course, it
digit-dialing survey of 6522 U.S. adolescents from all major may be one influence that could be easier to control than,

588 :: Module 14.1 : : Behaviour and Health

 Tobacco incidents per movie, by MPAA rating, 2002–2012
50

R-rated PG-13 G/PG

40

30

20

10

0
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

{fig. 14.1} Number of Smoking Images in Popular Movies from 2002–2012 This graph depicts the number times tobacco
appears in movies from 2002–2012; note the recent increase in these incidents (from Polansky et al., 2013).

say, peer pressure. With scientific research in hand, advo-

cacy groups such as Smoke Free Movies, the (U.S.) National
Association of Attorneys General, and Physicians for a
Smoke-Free Canada have a sound basis for arguing against
smoking in movies—especially those that adolescents are
likely to watch.

Unfortunately, the rate of smoking in films appears to be

increasing (see Figure 14.1). After peaking in 2004, the num-
ber of scenes involving cigarettes decreased steadily until
2010; but, the numbers rose again in 2011 and then again
in 2012. Importantly, the number of “tobacco incidents” in
PG-13 movies specifically targeted to teens increased from
565 in 2010 to 1155 in 2012; therefore, the curtain hasn’t
Splash News/Newscom
fallen on this issue.

EFFORTS TO PREVENT SMOKING Given the had relatively little effect. However, in 2001, Canada
health problems (to the smokers and to the people who became the first country to require companies to include
are around them) and enormous health-care costs associ- graphic pictorial warnings on cigarette packages. These
ated with smoking, both health-care workers and gov- images included rotting teeth, black lungs, diseased
ernment officials recognize that more work has to be hearts, and sick children; they were also paired with a
done to reduce smoking levels. Provincial and municipal verbal message. Researchers found that the image-based
laws are reducing the risks posed by secondhand smoke warnings were much more likely to be noticed by both
exposure by banning smoking in many public places— smokers and non-smokers than were text-only messages
especially restaurants and public buildings. As mentioned (Fong et al., 2009; Hammond et al., 2003). They were
at the beginning of the module, steep taxes applied to also more useful than text-only messages in educating
unhealthy products such as tobacco also act as a deter- people about the risks associated with smoking (Envi-
rent against their use. Not only does such a policy tend ronics Research Group, 2007; Li & Yong, 2009).
to reduce the number of smokers, but it also raises funds Image-based warnings on cigarette packages are now
for health care and anti-smoking campaigns. used in over 30 countries (Hammond, 2011). Numer-
In the 1990s, several countries added written warn- ous studies have shown that these warnings are quite
ings to cigarette packages (e.g., “Smoking seriously memorable and are having the desired effect. Over 40%
harms you and others around you”) in an attempt to of Canadian smokers indicated that the graphic warn-
reduce smoking rates. Unfortunately, these labels have ings motivated them to quit (Hammond et al., 2007).

Behaviour and Health :: Module 14.1 :: 589

 Left: Pierre Roussel/Getty Images News/Getty Images; right: David J. Green – studio/Alamy
Research shows that images warning about the dangers of smoking are more effective at reducing smoking rates than written warnings.

And, although it is impossible to accurately state how

3 Which of the following statements is the best

ANALYZE . . .
many people avoided smoking because of the ads, sur- evidence that viewing smoking in movies plays a causal
veys of Canadian adolescents suggest that these warn- (rather than correlational) role in influencing people’s
ing labels do discourage teens from taking up smoking perception of smoking and willingness to try smoking?
(Environics Research Group, 2007). These smoking- A Long-term trends show that increased or
prevention programs are therefore a wonderful example decreased incidence of smoking by adolescents
follows increases or decreases in rates of smoking
of psychologists and government officials working
in movies.
together to improve people’s health.
B The more adolescents smoke, the more smoking
Indeed, there is some good news related to smok-
occurs in movies.
ing rates. The prevalence of smoking in Canada declined
C Advertisements for smoking occur more frequently
steadily over the 1990s and early 2000s (Statistics Canada, when smoking rates decrease.
2012b); in 2001, 28.1% of men and 23.8% of women
D Adolescent smoking occurs at roughly the same
smoked, 5.8% and 6.3% higher than the current rates. rate regardless of how smoking is depicted in films.
But, there is still work to be done.
Answers can be found on page ANS-3.

Quick Quiz 14.1a Obesity

Smoking You have likely heard the term “freshman 15”—the sup-
1 What does a health psychologist study? posed number of pounds university students can expect
KNOW . . .

A The positive impacts that our behaviour has on our to gain during their first year of school (15 pounds equals
health 6.8 kg). This term has stuck because weight gain during
B The negative impacts that our behaviour has on the first year of university (at least in North America)
our heath has seemingly become so common, if not expected. It
C The chance that we will survive based on our is unclear exactly how the term originated, and research
decisions has shown that the 15-pound estimate is actually
D Both the positive and the negative impacts that our inflated. In reality, those male and female students who
behaviour and decisions have on our health and gain weight during their early university career put on
survival
an average of 6 pounds, or 2.7 kg (Gropper et al., 2009).
What accounts for this phenomenon? Several fac-
2 In modern times, the leading causes of death in tors that are probably all too familiar to many readers:
industrialized nations such as Canada are ________ .
increased food intake, decreased physical activity, and, for
A viral infections
many students, increased levels of alcohol consumption.
B bacterial infections
The lifestyle changes that students face during university
C lifestyle factors
affect physical health. In addition, university in general,
D each of these are equal contributors and the first year in particular, presents new challenges

590 :: Module 14.1 : : Behaviour and Health

that bring on a great deal of both positive and negative noted that Canadians—particularly males—are becom-
stress. The freshman 15 (or 6) and other health-related ing obese earlier in life, which means that weight-related
issues are based on lifestyle decisions we make. Six pounds health problems could occur at an earlier age than they
(2.7 kg) is not a lot of weight—but habits formed during have for previous generations. In fact, some researchers
any period of time, first year or otherwise, can be difficult are concerned that these health problems could lead to
to break. In this section, we will examine factors that lead shorter life expectancies than were enjoyed by previous
us to put on weight as well as ways to use our knowledge generations (Olshansky et al., 2005).
of psychology to help us lose it. It should be pointed out that Canada is not alone in
facing these problems. Obesity is also a significant prob-
DEFINING HEALTHY WEIGHTS AND OBESITY As lem in the United States as well as in other regions of
you’ve read in different modules of this text, it is impor- the world—particularly in urban areas—in which the
tant to define your terms when discussing a concept. culture of fast food and processed, prepackaged meals has
Doing so ensures that all researchers are talking about spread. The World Health Organization (WHO, 2009)
the same thing when they use terms like overweight or estimates that 1 billion people across the world are over-
obese. When discussing weight, psychologists and health- weight and 300 million are obese.
care workers must also factor in a person’s height; being Given that obesity is common and has a number of
200 pounds (91 kg) is healthy for someone who is 6’4” negative health consequences, researchers are actively
(193 cm), but would be quite unhealthy for someone trying to understand its causes. As discussed in Mod-
who is 5’2” (157 cm). To account for height differences, ule 11.1, weight is gained because of a positive energy
people use the body mass index (BMI), a statistic com- balance, meaning that too many calories come in and
monly used for estimating a healthy body weight given an not enough are expended. Obviously overeating can
individual’s height. The BMI is calculated by dividing the lead to obesity. But why might a 6-foot-tall (183 cm)
person’s weight (kg) by the square of the person’s height male weigh 170 pounds (77 kg) while enjoying massive
(in metres). So, if a person were 180 cm tall and weighed amounts of food and a relatively inactive lifestyle, while
100 kg, the BMI would be 100 / 1.82; the outcome of another person of similar height and lifestyle weighs in
this equation, 30.9, would be found on a table of BMI at 200 pounds (91 kg)? Several factors explain this differ-
scores. In everyday usage, the BMI is used to screen peo- ence, including genetic, lifestyle, and social variables.
ple for weight categories that indicate whether they are
considered normal weight, underweight, overweight, or GENETICS AND BODY WEIGHT Twin, family,
obese. Someone in the healthy weight range would have and adoption studies all suggest that genes account for
a BMI between 18.5 and 24.9. People with a BMI that is between 50% and 90% of the variation in body weight
less than 18.5 are considered to be underweight and may (Maes et al., 1997). Genetic factors influence body type,
be at risk of having an eating disorder (see Module 11.1). metabolism, and other physiological processes that con-
A BMI of 25–29.9 is considered overweight, and a tribute to body weight and size.
BMI over 30 is considered obese. Obesity is becoming Some researchers have suggested that genes con-
a growing concern across Canada. It is associated with tribute to the development of a set point, a hypothe-
numerous detrimental health consequences, such as car- sized mechanism that serves to maintain body weight around
diovascular disease, diabetes, osteoarthritis (degeneration a physiologically programmed level. The set point is not an
of bone and cartilage material), and some forms of cancer. exact number of pounds or kilograms, but rather a rela-
According to Statistics Canada (2011), 24% of Canadian tively small range encompassing 10% to 20% of one’s
adults are obese, with almost identical percentages for weight (Garrow & Stalley, 1975; Harris, 1990).Your ini-
males and females. Although this number is significantly tial set point is controlled by genetic mechanisms, but
lower than the 34.4% obesity rate in the U.S. (Shields et your actual weight can be modified by environmental
al., 2011), we cannot afford to become arrogant. With factors—namely, what and how much you eat. Accord-
a quarter of our population being obese and another ing to set point theory, if an individual gains 10% of his
quarter reporting a body-mass index that is overweight body weight (e.g., increasing from 150 to 165 pounds,
(Statistics Canada, 2008), it is clear that body weight is or 68 to 75 kg) his set point would make a correspond-
a major health issue in our society. Even more alarm- ing shift upward—the body acts as though its normal
ing is that obesity rates are on the rise. When examining weight is now the larger 165 pounds. Metabolism slows
obesity rates from the mid-1970s until 2004, researchers correspondingly, such that this person now requires
found that these rates remained constant until the mid- additional energy expenditure to take the weight
1990s, at which point they spiked upward to the cur- off . This process explains why people who gain extra
rent levels (Shields & Tjepkema, 2005). This report also weight may shed a few pounds with relative ease, but

Behaviour and Health :: Module 14.1 :: 591

 find it overwhelmingly diffi cult to continue losing or females who spent more than 11 hours/week in front
even maintaining their weight once they reach an initial of a computer had a slightly higher rate of obesity than
goal. Their bodies naturally pull their weight back to the those who spent little time using a computer (18.2% vs.
set point. 15.3%, respectively). Why was there a strong relation-
Set point theory has a long tradition in the field of ship between television viewing and obesity and a weak
nutrition, but its validity is challenged by research sug- relationship between computer use and obesity? Both
gesting that weight gain and difficulty with weight loss involve sitting in front of glowing rectangles. One pos-
are unrelated to a physiological set point. Rather, indi- sibility is that computer use—be it video games, using
vidual differences in physical activity may be a stron- social media like Facebook or Twitter, or even typing
ger determinant of who succeeds at losing weight and up an essay for history class—involves a greater degree
keeping it off. Specifically, people who gain weight of engagement than sitting on the couch and passively
expend less energy in their normal day-to-day activities watching television. It is therefore more likely that peo-
(Weinsier et al., 2002). Thus, the difficulty with losing ple will snack while watching television.
the weight may be related to lower activity levels, rather Studies of children’s obesity rates are less ambiguous.
than to any elevation of a set point. In addition to the strong relationship between television
viewing and weight, researchers also have found that the
Listen THE SEDENTARY LIFESTYLE How do you spend amount of time that children spend playing video games
Psychology in the your time when you’re not at school or at work? Do you is positively correlated with levels of obesity (Stettler
News: Sleep Obesity watch television? Or do you work out, or curl up with a et al., 2004). Although some video games such as the
good book? Research shows us that how you spend your Wii involve physical activity, these options claim only a
Watch time can have a large effect on your waistline. small portion of the overall market. Instead, many games
What’s in It for Me?: Although there are number of activities that could involve sitting in front of a computer or television screen
The Challenge Of increase the likelihood of someone being obese, data rather than engaging in exercise; this sedentary lifestyle
Quitting Bad Health from the 2007 Canadian Community Health Survey can lead to poor dietary and exercise habits (which may
Habits (CCHS) suggest that television is the biggest culprit (see
Figure 14.2). This survey showed that as the number
of hours of television viewing increased, so did obesity
rates. Only 13.7% of men who watch five or fewer hours
of television per week were obese; compare this to the
25.0% obesity rate for men who watched 21 or more
hours of television. Similar patterns were observed for
females.
In contrast, the number of hours spent in front of
a computer did not affect obesity rates, at least in males;

30
0

Males Females
25
5

20
Obesity rate (%)

15

10

0
5 or fewer 6 to 10 11 to 14 15 to 20 21 or more
Hours of television per week

{fig. 14.2} Obesity Rates and Television Viewing in Canadian Adults Aged foto-begsteiger/vario images GmbH & [Link]/Alamy
20–64 For both males and females, obesity rates were positively correlated with the The number of hours children spend playing video games is
number of hours spent watching television each week. directly related to increased body weight.

592 :: Module 14.1 : : Behaviour and Health

continue into adulthood), and helps to explain the high positively about themselves (e.g., friendships, religious
childhood obesity rates found in many industrialized beliefs, relationships) or about other values. At a follow-
countries, including Canada. up session two-and-a-half months later, the self-defined
value group weighed less, had lower body-mass indices,
SOCIAL FACTORS In addition to genetics and activ- and had smaller waistlines (Logel & Cohen, 2012). It is
ity levels, obesity rates are also affected by social factors, likely that the positive emotion manipulation reduced
including influences from one’s family. Similarities in the participants’ stress regarding dieting. Given that stress
body weight among family members are naturally influ- leads to an increase in the number of calories consumed
enced by what and how much they are eating. What (see Module 11.1), reducing stress would likely lead to a
children eat is largely based on what their parents pro- reduction in the amount of food consumed.
vide and allow them to eat, and eating patterns devel- Of course, losing weight is only half the battle; we
oped in childhood are generally carried into adulthood. also have to maintain that weight loss. There are a num-
Sociocultural influences on eating certainly extend ber of challenges involved with this. First, obese individ-
beyond the family. Food advertisements trigger eating— uals pay more attention to food cues (Polivy et al., 2008)
after watching a commercial for buttery microwave and find them more rewarding than non-obese people
popcorn, you have probably found yourself rummaging (Stice et al., 2008). Additionally, the drive to eat and the
around in the kitchen in search of that last bag you hope perceived value of food increase as more time passes since
is still there. If your popcorn supply is depleted, you are the last meal (Raynor & Epstein, 2003); this makes it dif-
still far more likely to snack after watching commer- ficult to remove snacks from one’s routine. Several stud-
cials about food (Harris et al., 2009). Researchers have ies have shown that girls and adolescents who attempt
found that children who see food commercials while to diet are heavier later in life (Field et al., 2003; Stice
watching a 30-minute cartoon program consume 45% et al., 2005). The restraint involved in dieting—especially
more snack food than do children who view nonfood avoiding certain highly reinforcing foods—may actually
commercials. The researchers estimated that this differ- make the foods even more reinforcing in the long run.
ence could lead to an additional 10 pounds (4.5 kg) of All of these factors help explain why obesity is such a
extra weight gained each year (Harris et al., 2009). Of difficult condition to overcome—it’s not simply a matter
course, corporations selling unhealthy food are aware of of losing a few pounds.
the power of advertising and use clever marketing tech-
niques to promote unhealthy foods, often targeting chil-
dren by linking their food with positive emotions (and
toys). Luckily, in some regions of North America, law-
makers are attempting to prevent the corporations from
BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
directly targeting children by limiting when commercials PERSPECTIVES
can air (e.g., not during Saturday morning cartoons) and Obesity
preventing them from including toys in kids’ meals. The
hope is that these restrictions will reduce unhealthy eat- Genetics, social influences, and lifestyle factors all play roles
in obesity. But what about broader influences, such as socio-
ing behaviours in children, thus helping them avoid the
economic status and ethnicity? To address this question, start
dangers of obesity.
by classifying the following statements about obesity as either
true or false:
PSYCHOLOGY AND WEIGHT LOSS Given that
obesity is quite common and needs to be dealt with, 1. In Canada, obesity rates are unrelated to ethnicity.
how can people use psychological research to help 2. Obesity has no effect on a person’s wages.
them lose weight? The first step is to think critically
about the weight-loss options that are out there. Some 3. Obesity is related to socioeconomic factors in Canadian
adults.
advertisements tell people that they can lose weight
without exercising, just by taking a pill. Such options 4. Obesity can have a negative, long-term impact on the
are often gimmicks. Instead, we need to find a way to brain.
effectively motivate people to change their behaviours Nutritious, nonprocessed foods tend to be more expen-
(i.e., to eat healthy foods and exercise). A recent study sive, which might have led you to predict that obesity would
from the University of Waterloo suggests that thinking be more prevalent in people in lower socioeconomic brackets
positively about oneself can promote healthy weight (e.g., low income or poverty). Also, diet seems to be influenced
loss. In the first part of the study, participants wrote by sociocultural factors, including the types of foods people
about either self-defining values that made them feel grow up eating. What do the data say about these issues?

Behaviour and Health :: Module 14.1 :: 593

 1. False. Statistics Canada reports that First Nations people
4 To avoid gaining weight during the first year of

APPLY . . .
who did not live on reserves, Métis, and Inuit people university, a person should do all of the following
have, on average, a greater prevalence of obesity than except
other Canadians (Statistics Canada, 2013). A increase physical activity.
2. False. Research on employment statistics indicates that B decrease caloric intake.
workers who are overweight or obese are paid less than C be aware of the new stressors the individual will
thin colleagues with similar qualifications—a finding that face.
has led economists to suggest that the disparity in wage
D increase alcohol intake.
earnings is about equal to the size of the difference in
medical costs incurred by thin versus overweight and Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
obese people (Bhattacharya & Bundorf, 2005).
3. False. Recent Statistics Canada reports show that
although obesity used to be more common in people
with lower income levels, this difference is disappearing.
There are even some patterns based on gender. Men Psychosocial Influences on Health
at high income levels are more likely to be obese than The environments where we work, live, and play and
men at lower levels. Conversely, among women, obesity the people with whom we interact influence both our
increases at lower income levels. One difference that still physical and mental health. University dormitories are
exists, however, is the availability of healthy food options.
a prime example, especially in the fall of each academic
Fast-food outlets are still more numerous in low-
year. Frequently, dormitory space is overbooked, leaving
income neighbourhoods than in richer areas (Hemphill
et al., 2008).
some students without an established living space, and
forcing people to live in cramped conditions. Perhaps
4. True. Obesity can have a negative, long-term impact on
not surprisingly, these conditions lend themselves to the
the brain. Researchers have found that people who are
obese have, on average, 8% less brain tissue than people
increased spread of influenza and other viruses amid a
who are lean. The average brain of an individual with fairly stressed group of individuals. In addition, these
obesity in his 70s looks approximately 16 years older conditions affect the way that individuals interact with
than a lean person of the same age (Raji et al., 2010). one another.
Years ago psychologists compared students who
lived in well-designed dormitory arrangements versus
those living in improvised and poorly designed condi-
Quick Quiz 14.1b tions. The crowded, poorly designed accommodations
Obesity caused students to lose their sense of control over whom
they could interact with or avoid. The researchers found
1 ________ is a hypothesized mechanism that serves
KNOW . . .

to maintain body weight around a physiologically

that students living in the stressful environment were less
programmed level.
A BMI C Obesity
B Set point D A sedentary lifestyle

2 In Canada, researchers have found that obesity rates

are related to ethnicity in what way?
A Obesity rates are not related to ethnicity.
B Caucasian adults have a greater prevalence of
obesity.
C First Nations adults have a greater prevalence of
obesity.
D Asian adults have a greater prevalence of obesity.

3 Which of the following factors is not related to a

UNDERSTAND . . .

person’s weight?
Visions of America, LLC/Alamy
A Exposure to food advertisements
People who are of low socioeconomic status are at increased
B Sedentary lifestyle risk for poor health. Numerous factors, including limited access
C Ethnicity to health care, stress, poor nutrition, and discrimination,
collectively place children growing up in these communities at
D All of these are related to weight. greater risk for developing health problems.

594 :: Module 14.1 : : Behaviour and Health

socially interactive with strangers, had difficulty with and discrimination is linked to increased blood pres-
working in small groups, and gave up more easily in a sure, heart rate, and secretions of stress hormones, which
competitive game (Baum & Valins, 1977). These students when experienced over long periods of time compro-
also seemed to feel helpless, which in turn affected how mise physical health. For example, when people perceive
they interacted with others. For most students, better that they are the targets of racism, their blood pres-
accommodations await them at home, and larger spaces sure remains elevated throughout the day, and it recov-
open up at the end of the semester. However, for many ers poorly during sleep (Brondolo et al., 2008a, 2008b;
living with very low incomes, the stresses of poor hous- Steffen et al., 2003). Discrimination also puts people at
ing may be permanent. greater risk for engaging in unhealthy behaviours such
as smoking and substance abuse (Bennett et al., 2005;
POVERTY AND DISCRIMINATION Health and Landrine & Klonoff , 1996). Finally, discrimination, or
wealth increase together, and it appears that socioeco- even the perception of discrimination, can put the body
nomic factors have numerous positive and negative on sustained alert against threats. The stress response that
effects. People who live in affluent communities not only this state elicits can have negative, long-term effects on
enjoy better access to health care, but also have a greater physical health, as you will read in Module 14.2.
sense of control over their environments and have the
resources needed to maintain a lifestyle of their choos- FAMILY AND SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT Our
ing. Individuals who lack this sense of control live in close, interpersonal relationships have a major impact
circumstances that can compromise their health. People on health. In fact, chronic social isolation is as great a
who experience poverty, discrimination, and other social mortality risk as smoking, obesity, and high blood pres-
stressors have higher incidences of depression, anxiety, sure (House et al., 1988). Marriage is typically the pri-
and other mental health problems (Tracy et al., 2008). mary social relationship that people establish and has
Furthermore, health problems are magnified by stress. been shown to have long-term health benefits. Married
Heart disease is prevalent in socioeconomically disadvan- people tend to live longer and have better mental and
taged populations, and children who experience adverse physical health than do nonmarried adults. Married cou-
socioeconomic circumstances (e.g., less than 12 years of ples enjoy the benefits of social support and combined
education or living in a low-income household) are at resources, and they tend to have better health habits
greater risk for developing heart disease in adulthood (Kiecolt-Glaser & Newton, 2001).
(Fiscella et al., 2009; Galobardes et al., 2006).This relation- This is good news for married couples, but are both
ship likely reflects the compound effects of stress, as well members of a heterosexual marriage benefiting equally
as the poorer diet that is often found among individuals from their union? It turns out that men enjoy greater
residing in communities of low socioeconomic status. health benefits from marriage. Unmarried women are
Discrimination is another stressor that can compro- 50% more likely to die from heart disease, several forms
mise both physical and mental [Link] kind of stressor of cancer, cirrhosis of the liver, and other preventable dis-
is particularly problematic because it is often uncon- eases than are married women; this effect of marriage is
trollable and unpredictable. Being a target of prejudice even higher in men, with unmarried men being 250%
more likely to die from these causes (Berkman & Breslow,
1983; Ross et al., 1990). Several possible reasons for this
disparity in the health benefits gained from marriage have
been suggested. One likely contributor is the greater role
that women take in recognizing and supporting healthy
behaviours in others. It should be noted that heterosexual
marriages are not the only form of relationship. Currently,
there are relatively little data about the health benefits of
homosexual marriages; as more countries and U.S. states
legalize these marriages, it will be possible to investigate
whether both partners benefit equally or if, like hetero-
sexual marriages, one partner appears to gain more health
benefits than the other.
Of course, marriage can also be a considerable
leungchopan/[Link]
source of stress. Marital problems are among the most
People living in economically disadvantaged neighbourhoods
feel as though they have less control over their environments. stressful experiences that people can have. Married cou-
This leads to greater stress levels and poorer health. ples who are experiencing ongoing problems with their

Behaviour and Health :: Module 14.1 :: 595

 relationship tend to experience more depression and weight, smoking, and other health-related behaviours has
greater incidences of physical illness than happily married been documented in the Framingham Heart Study. The
couples (Kiecolt-Glaser & Newton, 2001). Marital prob- U.S. National Heart Institute began this ongoing study
lems and divorce also affect the emotional and physical in 1948 to track 15 000 residents of Framingham, Massa-
health of children, particularly if they are younger dur- chusetts. Participants made regular visits to their doctors,
ing problematic periods of a marriage or during the par- who recorded important health statistics such as heart
ents’ actual divorce. Adolescents of divorced parents are rate, body weight, and other standard physical measures.
at a slightly higher risk of engaging in delinquent behav- Scientists working with the Framingham data noticed
iours (Amato, 2001). While divorce can negatively affect that over time, clusters of people from this study group
the health of children, parents who continue engaging became increasingly similar in certain characteristics—
in high-quality parenting during marital discord protect such as body weight increases or decreases, starting or
children from many of the negative effects on health quitting smoking, and even levels of happiness (Christa-
attributable to divorce (Hetherington et al., 1998). kis & Fowler, 2007, 2008; Fowler & Christakis, 2008). It
turns out that the groups who showed similar patterns in
SOCIAL CONTAGION Families are not the only their health statistics were also friends with one another.
interpersonal influence on how we think and act. The This work demonstrates just how powerful social factors
social group(s) that we belong to can also have a large can be. Of course, this research doesn’t only mean that
effect on our health-related behaviours. Social scientists you should be wary of your friends and their unhealthy
have found unhealthy behaviours such as smoking or behaviours. It also shows that through social contagion,
having a poor diet spread throughout one’s social group. you can be a positive force in the lives of the people
You have likely observed this phenomenon in action—if around you.
one or two people in a group of friends start to eat a
lot of junk food, it is easy for the others in the group
to pick up this habit as well. These changes can work in
either direction, positive or negative. Just as social groups Quick Quiz 14.1c
can lead to smoking, they can also lead to training for a Psychosocial Influences on Health
half-marathon. KNOW . . .
1 Which psychological term refers to the often subtle,
These phenomena are examples of social conta- unintentional spreading of a behaviour as a result of
gion, the often subtle, unintentional spreading of a behaviour social interactions?
as a result of social interactions. Social contagion of body A Health psychology C Discrimination
B Social contagion D Observational learning

2 Based on the research discussed in this module, which

of the following is the lowest risk factor for health
problems?
A Being an unmarried adult
B Experiencing discrimination
C Having an identical twin who is overweight
D Being a married adult

3 Which of the following statements about how

UNDERSTAND . . .

discrimination influences health is most accurate?

A Discrimination is unrelated to poor health.
B People who experience discrimination are likely to
compensate for it by making positive health-related
choices.
C An immediate increase in heart rate is the
Barbara Stitzer/PhotoEdit biggest problem associated with experiencing
Social contagion in the dorms. Your roommate may influence your GPA more discrimination.
than you know—for better or for worse. At Dartmouth College in the U.S., D Experiencing discrimination stimulates the stress
students are randomly assigned to their dorm rooms rather than matched on response, which can bring about long-term health
various characteristics, as is customary at many schools. This practice makes problems.
Dartmouth’s roommate pairs a diverse mixture. Professor Bruce Sacerdote
(2001) found that GPA levels are influenced by one’s roommate. Students with Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
high GPAs elevate the GPAs of their lower-scoring roommates, and vice versa.

596 :: Module 14.1 : : Behaviour and Health

 Module Summary
Module Now that you have read this module you should
14.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology related to health psychology:

body mass index (BMI) (p. 591) social contagion (p. 596)
set point (p. 591)

stock_wales/Alamy
UNDERSTAND . . .

● How genetic and environmental factors influence “I wish I had never

WARNING

started smoking.” Another

obesity. Some research suggests that genetics influences “I was diagnosed with cancer
of the larynx when I was 48.
premature death...
Smoking is the leading
our set point, a weight (or range of weights) that our body I had to have my vocal cords
removed, and now I breathe
through a hole in my throat.”
preventable cause of
premature death in Canada.

tends to maintain; however, weight is influenced by several – Leroy About 100 people die from
tobacco use each day.
Need help to quit? You can quit. We can help.

other factors as well. Environmental influences on weight 1-866-366-3667

[Link]/quit
1-866-366-3667
[Link]/quit
Health Canada Health Canada

gain are abundant. Cultural, family, and socioeconomic WARNING WARNING

factors influence activity levels and diet, even in very A single stroke CHRONIC
subtle ways, such as through social contagion. can leave you BRONCHITIS
helpless. Smoking causes chronic
bronchitis, a permanent
Cigarettes are a major condition that leads to
cause of stroke. a constant fight for each
and every breath.
You can quit. We can help.
You can quit. We can help.
1-866-366-3667
APPLY . . . [Link]/quit 1-866-366-3667
[Link]/quit
Health Canada Health Canada

WARNING WARNING
● Your knowledge of persuasion and health to examine Tobacco Smoke: BLADDER CANCER
the effectiveness of different types of cigarette No thanks. Toxic chemicals in tobacco
smoke damage the lining
Second-hand smoke contains
warnings. In this module, you read about efforts by many toxic chemicals that
can harm an unborn baby.
of the bladder causing cancer.
The most common sign is blood
in the urine.

different countries to reduce smoking rates. In Canada, You can quit. We can help.
1-866-366-3667
You have the will. There is a way.
1-866-366-3667

cigarette packages contain different types of emotional [Link]/quit

Health Canada
[Link]/quit

Health Canada

images depicting the dangers of smoking. But, the audience Health Canada
for these packages is diverse—some people viewing the
images are life-long smokers who should quit whereas
others are teenagers who are considering smoking.
When looking at the images on the right, which images
ANALYZE . . .
are targeting young people and which images are targeting
longtime smokers? What differences do you see between ● Whether associations with people who smoke affect
the two types of images? What types of imagery do you smoking in adolescents. Correlational trends certainly
think would be most effective in influencing the behaviour show that smoking in popular movies is positively related
of the two groups? to smoking among adolescents (e.g., increased exposure
Now try using a search engine like Google Image to look is related to increased incidence of smoking). Controlled
at cigarette packages from different countries. How does laboratory studies suggest a cause-and-effect relationship
the packaging differ from Canadian cigarette packages? exists between identification with story protagonists
Why do you think these cultural differences exist? who smoke and smoking behaviour by young viewers.

Behaviour and Health :: Module 14.1 :: 597

 Imagesource/Glow Images

Module

14.2 Stress and Illness

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology The physiological reactions A measure of stressful The claim that ulcers
After reading associated with that occur under stress events to your own are caused by stress
this module stress and illness experiences
How the immune system is
you should connected to stress responses

The frustration and embarrassment of choking under pressure is unde- did not perform well, both the volunteer and the partner would lose
niable. Whether the stakes are a championship title or admission to an money. Beilock and her colleagues have found that this type of pressure
elite university, a sudden, inexplicable shift to subpar performance can be draws resources away from the working memory processes needed for
devastating. According to psychologist Sian Beilock, the culprit in such a success (Beilock, 2008, 2010). Stressful thoughts readily occupy working
case may be the negative effects that stress has on working memory— memory space and cause the unfortunate experience of choking under
the short-term capacity to hold and manipulate information. Calculating pressure. The fact that the physiological response of stress can be caused
a 15% tip for a bill of $43.84 at a restaurant, or while the pizza delivery by a social situation and can then affect a cognitive ability like working
person waits, requires working memory processes. The pressure of your memory demonstrates, once again, the importance of the biopsychoso-
date watching you or the pizza delivery person looking on impatiently cial model in understanding human behaviour.
may result in your appearing either foolishly generous or just plain cheap.

Beilock has conducted experiments on how stress affects the cogni- Focus Questions
tive resources needed for problem solving. For example, in one study, 1 How does stress affect the brain and body?
research volunteers were asked to solve math problems. Some were
told that if they solved the problems correctly, they would earn money 2 How do individuals differ in how they handle stress?
for themselves as well as for a partner they were paired with; if they

598 :: Module 14.2 : : Stress and Illness

Imagine a student near the end of the semester with he will probably assess the situation as stressful even
several papers due and final exams looming. Now though it was a minor collision; his stomach may feel
imagine someone who has worked at the same job for like it is in a knot and he may begin to worry about
25 years being told that he needs to learn a new com- the consequences. As the stress sets in, his secondary
puter system or he will be laid off . Or, think about a soc- appraisal may help him cope if he remembers that he
cer player in a championship game that will be decided has insurance to cover the damage, he considers that
by penalty kicks; she walks up to place the ball on the nobody was injured, and remembers how his parents
penalty spot, knowing that if she misses her team will have always been supportive and understanding. If,
lose. If you were asked to find one work that connected instead, he were illegally driving his older sister’s car
all of these scenarios, what word would that be? For with no insurance, then his secondary appraisal would
most people, that word would be stress. Stress is a psy- lead to a continuation (or an increase) of the initial
chological and physiological reaction that occurs when perceived stress response.
demands exceed existing resources to meet those demands . Although the causes of stress can vary from per-
Stress refers to both events (stressors) and experiences son to person, there are some patterns that tend to
in response to these events (the stress response). Stressors emerge. In the workplace, Canadians experience stress
can take a wide variety of forms, such as acute events due to long hours, high work demands, safety con-
(giving a speech, experiencing an assault, getting in a car cerns, and interpersonal relationships (Statistics Canada,
accident) and chronic events (illness, marital problems, 2003). Life changes such as marital difficulties, the
job-related challenges); the effects these stressors have birth of a child, or the death of a family member are
on performance can be positive or negative. also a major source of stress. Of course, not everyone
finds all of these events or situations are equally stress-
WHAT CAUSES STRESS? Have you noticed how inducing. Psychologists have actually ranked stressful
some people seem overwhelmed by stressful events events according to their magnitude, as can be seen
while others seem calm and focused? These differ- in the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS) in
ences are not a figment of your imagination—people Table 14.2 (Holmes & Rahe, 1968). The highest-stress
do differ in their responses to stress. To attempt to events include death of a spouse and divorce, while
explain why and how people differ, psychologists holidays and traffic tickets occupy the lower end of the
Richard Lazarus and Susan Folkman developed a cog- spectrum. According to the psychologists who devel-
nitive appraisal theory of stress (Lazarus & Folkman, oped this scale, as the points in the left column of
1984). Here, the term appraisal refers to the cognitive Table 14.2 accumulate, a person’s risk for becoming ill
act of assessing and evaluating the potential threat and increases. For example, 300 or more points put people
demands of an event. These appraisals occur in two at signifi cant risk for developing heart problems, ill-
steps. First, the individual perceives a potential threat nesses, and infections.
and begins the primary appraisal by asking herself, “Is Importantly, life-stress exper iences for adults
this a threat?” Threats can be physical (e.g., someone will not necessarily be the same across all age groups.
trying to harm you) or psychosocial (e.g., trying to Students can have all of the stressors discussed above
study for two exams on the same day or trying to deal along with the obvious additions of school work, a
with interpersonal conflicts). If the answer is no, then lack of money, and all of the social excitement associ-
she will not experience any stress. But, if the answer is ated with one’s late teens and early 20s. In addition
yes, she will experience a physiological stress reaction to these stressors, students from immigrant minority
(perhaps a racing heart beat and sweaty palms) as well groups must overcome additional challenges such as
as an emotional reaction (perhaps anxiety and fear). As harassing comments from people who are not part
these events unfold, the secondary appraisal begins—she of the person’s minority group (Lay & Safdar, 2003).
must determine how to cope with the threat. During They also must deal with family confl icts associated
the secondary appraisal, she may determine that she with balancing the family’s traditions with the desire
knows how to cope with the stressor (e.g., studying for to embrace Canadian culture (Safdar & Lay, 2003).
the exams over the course of several days); in this case, Clearly, stress can be caused by a number of different
she will not feel much stress. However, if she believes forces.
that the stressor goes beyond her ability to cope, the At this point in the module, it would appear as
physiological and emotional reactions to the stress will though stress were always a bad thing. However, some
continue. level of stress can actually be helpful—without it,
Imagine that a teenager experiences his first traf- the motivation to perform can decline. Researchers have
fic accident. During his primary appraisal of the event, found that stress has positive effects on performance

Stress and Illness :: Module 14.2 :: 599

 Table 14.2 :: Life Stress Inventories for the General Adult Population and for University Students
ORIGINAL SOCIAL READJUSTMENT RATING SCALE (HOLMES & RAHE, 1967)
RATING ITEM
100 Death of a spouse
73 Divorce
65 Marital separation
63 Jail term
63 Death of a close family member
53 Personal injury or illness
50 Marriage
47 Fired at work
45 Marital reconciliation
45 Retirement
44 Change in health of family member
40 Pregnancy
39 Sex difficulties
39 Gain of new family member
39 Business readjustment
38 Change in financial state
37 Death of close friend
36 Change to different line of work
35 Change in number of arguments with spouse
31 Mortgage exceeding $10 000
30 Foreclosure of mortgage or loan
29 Change in responsibilities at work
29 Son or daughter leaving home
29 Trouble with in-laws
28 Outstanding personal achievement
26 Wife begins or stops work
26 Begin or end school
25 Change in living conditions
24 Revision of personal habits
23 Trouble with boss
20 Change in work hours or conditions
20 Change in residence
20 Change in schools
19 Change in recreation
19 Change in church activities
18 Change in social activities
17 Mortgage or loan less than $10 000
16 Change in sleeping habits
15 Change in number of family get-togethers
15 Change in eating habits
13 Vacation
12 Christmas
11 Minor violations of the law
Total

600 :: Module 14.2 : : Stress and Illness

 High Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3
Difficult task Easy task Alarm reaction Resistance Exhaustion
High
Performance

Ability to cope
Normal
state

Low
Low High Low

Arousal level Time

{fig. 14.3} Arousal and Performance Performance is
{fig. 14.4} The General Adaptation Syndrome This graph depicts the body’s
related to at least two critical factors—the difficulty of the task
resistance to stress. After the initial shock associated with the stressor (see the dip
and the level of arousal/stress while they are being performed.
in resistance early in the Alarm phase), the body recruits resources to allow it to deal
For easy tasks, moderately high arousal helps; for difficult
with the stressful situation or event. This ability to cope with the stressor peaks in
tasks, lower levels of arousal are optimal.
the Resistance phase of the GAS. However, if the individual doesn’t overcome the
stressor, eventually he or she will be unable to resist the stress; this final phase is
known as the Exhaustion Phase.
when the tasks being completed are relatively simple
(see Figure 14.3). In this case, even if the stress consumes
the person’s cognitive resources, it will still be possible to
complete the task. However, if a task is complex, stress Hans Selye (1950, 1956) of the Université de Simulate
will harm performance. This is because stress uses up Montréal looked beyond the immediate fight-or-flight Will This Survey

many of our cognitive resources; a stressed-out person response and saw the unfolding of a larger pattern Stress You Out?

may find that she does not have the mental resources during responses to stress. He named this pattern the
available to perform at the level she would be capable of general adaptation syndrome (GAS), a theory of stress
if she were not experiencing stress. This pattern of data responses involving stages of alarm, resistance, and exhaustion
leads to the obvious question: How does a physiologi- (see Figure 14.4). As GAS illustrates, a stressful event,
cal response—stress—affect our mental life and cognitive such as a mild shock if you are a rat or a pop quiz (or
abilities? In other words, what is stress? a mild shock) if you are a university student, first elicits
an alarm reaction. Alarm consists of your recognition of
the threat and the physiological reactions that accom-
Physiology of Stress pany it including increases in blood pressure, muscle
Think about the last time you experienced stress. How tension, heart rate, and adrenaline release. As the stress-
did you feel? Although stress depends upon our men- ful event continues, the individual enters the second part
tal appraisal of a situation or event, the physiological of this adaptive response, known as resistance. Resistance
response to stress occurs throughout most of the body. is characterized by an individual using his or her physi-
Indeed, you can literally feel yourself react to acute cal and mental resources to respond to the stressor in an
stressors, such as giving a presentation in class, as well as appropriate way (e.g., furiously studying for a quiz or
chronic stressors, such as the cumulative effect of a chal- running away from predators). However, an animal (or
lenging school year. Walter Cannon, an early researcher student) can’t maintain this level of energy use forever.
into the phenomenon of stress (as well as emotion; see The third and final stage of the GAS is often referred to
Module 11.4), noted that the physical responses to stress- as exhaustion; this occurs when the stressful experience
ors were somewhat general, despite the fact that stress depletes your physical resources and your physiological Listen
can come from a variety of sources that may be biologi- stress response declines. Pop Quiz
cal, cognitive, or social in nature. Cannon described this Since the work of Cannon and Selye, psycholo-
general reaction as a fight-or-flight response, a set of gists have further uncovered the highly complex physi-
physiological changes that occur in response to psychological or ological interactions that occur during and after stress.
physical threats. This discovery laid the foundation for the In their search, two key pathways have been identified: Explore

modern study of stress, with several researchers building the autonomic nervous system (ANS) pathway and the Virtual Brain: Emotion,

upon Cannon’s pioneering work. hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Health, and Stress

Stress and Illness :: Module 14.2 :: 601

 THE STRESS PATHWAYS Sweaty palms, an the endocrine system (pituitary and adrenal glands). Think of
increased heart rate, and gastrointestinal sensations the HPA axis as a series of steps leading to the body’s
(i.e., “butterflies in the stomach”) are part of stress stress response. When you perceive that you are in a
responses to both positive and negative events. Many stressful situation, the hypothalamus releases a substance
of these bodily responses are the result of activity in called corticotrophin-releasing factor, which stimulates the
the autonomic pathway, which originates in the brain pituitary gland to release adrenocorticotrophic hormone. This
and extends to the body where you feel stress the hormone in turn stimulates the release of cortisol, a
most. Recall from Module 3.3 that the nervous sys- hormone secreted by the adrenal cortex (the outer part of the
tem consists of the central nervous system (brain and adrenal gland) that prepares the body to respond to stressful cir-
spinal cord) and the peripheral nervous system, which cumstances. For example, cortisol may stimulate increased
includes the ANS. In response to stress, the hypothal- access to energy stores or lead to decreased inflamma-
amus stimulates part of the ANS known as the sym- tion. In summary, both the sympathetic nervous system
pathetic nervous system, which then causes the inner (through the release of epinephrine and norepinephrine)
part of the adrenal glands known as the adrenal medulla and the HPA axis (through the release of cortisol) func-
(found on top of the kidneys) to release epinephrine tion to prepare us to respond to stress.
and norepinephrine (also known as adrenaline and With rare medical exceptions, humans mount
noradenaline). These chemicals then trigger the bodily both autonomic and HPA axis responses to stress. These
changes associated with the fight-or-flight response responses are highly adaptive and promote behaviours
(see Figure 14.5). that help our survival (e.g., being more vigilant or run-
Another physiological system involved in the stress ning extra fast). However, as we will see later, chronic
response is the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal stress responses, which can occur under circumstances
(HPA) axis, a neural and endocrine circuit that provides com- such as having legal or financial problems, impact long-
munication between the nervous system (the hypothalamus) and term health (Chrousos & Gold, 1992). Also, individuals
differ in how their ANS responds to stress. These indi-
vidual differences may be traceable to our early
experiences with stressful events. Human and
Stress animal studies reveal that childhood stress, such as
deprivation of maternal care, has lasting effects on
(H) the stress response system (Chrousos, 2009) as well
Sympathetic branch Hypothalamus
of autonomic
as on some neurotransmitter systems (Robbins
nervous system et al., 1996).
Researchers have also discovered that the
(P) release of chemicals called glucocorticoids (corti-
Anterior pituitary
sol is a type of glucocorticoid), which are a part of
the HPA axis, is affected by social stressors such as
being excluded from a conversation (Kirschbaum
(A) et al., 1993). These cortisol responses to social
Adrenal glands
Adrenal medulla Adrenal cortex stressors are larger in individuals with depres-
sion or a history of childhood maltreatment
(Harkness et al., 2011), suggesting that these fac-
tors may interact in some psychological disorders.
Epinephrine and Cortisol
norepinephrine In a study investigating the relationship between
Suppress immune glucocorticoids and childhood stress, researchers
Increased heart rate, system (reduce
perspiration, blood inflammation) conducted autopsies on people who had experi-
flow to muscles enced extensive childhood abuse and eventually
Increase availability
of blood sugar committed suicide. The researchers were specifi-
cally interested in the number of glucocorticoid
receptors in the hippocampus. They assumed that
{fig. 14.5} Stress Pathways of the Body The stress pathways of the body include the
autonomic nervous system and the HPA axis. Both systems converge on the adrenal glands. if an individual experienced a lot of stress during
The autonomic response involves stimulation of the adrenal medulla by the sympathetic ner- childhood, glucocorticoid receptors in the brain
vous system, resulting in the release of epinephrine and norepinephrine—chemicals that stim- would start to become inactive. This response
ulate the fight-or-flight response. Activity of the HPA axis results in stimulation of the adrenal
cortex, which releases cortisol into the bloodstream. Click on this figure in your eText to sounds strange, but it actually makes sense; if
see more details. these receptors were being overstimulated due

602 :: Module 14.2 : : Stress and Illness

to the child’s awful experiences, his or her brain would wound healing, and orgasm (although not all at the
respond by trying to bring the glucocorticoid activ- same time; Caldwell & Young III, 2006; Lee et al., 2009).
ity back down to normal levels. Because the brain Although oxytocin is clearly involved in a number of
couldn’t control the stress from the outside world, its behaviours, its role in stress is particularly important.
only option would be to reduce the number of places Animal studies have shown that stimulating the release
(receptors) that the stress could have its effect. If there of oxytocin reduces activity in the sympathetic ner-
were fewer glucocorticoid receptors available to stimu- vous system (one of the parts of the stress network) and
late HPA activity, then the high levels of stress experi- blood pressure (Carter et al., 1998). In humans, women
enced by abuse victims wouldn’t continuously use up who are breast-feeding and thus have high levels of
their body’s resources. The results of this study were oxytocin show lower stress responses to physical and
consistent with the researchers’ expectations. Compared psychological stress (Light et al., 2000); similar findings
with the autopsies of controls, the brains of the deceased were reported in men who were given doses of oxy-
individuals who had been abused had significantly fewer tocin (Heinrichs et al., 2003). And, most relevant to
receptors for glucocorticoids (McGowan et al., 2009). the tend-and-befriend hypothesis, women who receive
Fewer receptors for these chemicals have also been more frequent hugs from their romantic partners also
found in well-controlled rat studies involving maternal have higher oxytocin levels and lower stress responses
deprivation. Thus, the experiences that we have during (Light et al., 2005). That’s something to think about
development can influence how our brains and bodies when studying for exams.
respond to stress in adulthood.

OXYTOCIN: TO TEND AND BEFRIEND One

observation you have likely made is that males and Quick Quiz 14.2a
females respond to stress and threat in different ways. Physiology of Stress
Although people are often cautious about making claims
1 Which of the following is not a component of Selye’s
KNOW . . .

about sex differences, there are in fact some differences in

general adaptation syndrome?
the HPA axis of males and females (Kudielka & Kirsch-
A Resistance C Flight
baum, 2005). Shelley Taylor and her colleagues at UCLA
B Alarm D Exhaustion
have suggested that whereas men are more likely to react
to stress or threats with a fight-or-flight response, women
are more likely to have a more social tend-and-befriend 2 Which of the following is a major player in the
chemical response comprising the autonomic fight-
response (Taylor et al., 2000; Taylor, 2006). This view or-flight stress response system?
makes sense if you think about the history of our species. A Cortisol C Dopamine
Over the course of our species’ evolution, females have B Epinephrine D Oxytocin
had to care for dependent and vulnerable children. Run-
ning away from a stressful situation would have required
3 A major difference between the tend-and-befriend
UNDERSTAND . . .

abandoning offspring; getting into a fight risked the pos- stress response and the responses mediated by the
sibility of death or injury. Both of these responses would autonomic pathway and the HPA axis is that
have reduced the likelihood that their offspring would A the tend-and-befriend response involves cortisol
have survived. Instead, it made more sense to seek out activity.
stable friendship networks for support during times of B men are more likely to express the tend-and-
stress. Doing so provided comfort, but also the poten- befriend response.
tial for additional resources to help with offspring. This is C the tend-and-befriend response facilitates care for
not to say that women don’t have any instinctive fight- offspring and others in a social group.
or-flight response or that men have no need to tend and D the tend-and-befriend response is a negative stress
befriend; rather, these researchers are suggesting that reaction, whereas the autonomic pathway and HPA
axis responses are positive reactions.
there are sex differences in which response is more likely
to occur.
The tend-and-befriend reaction may be promoted 4 High ________ levels and low ________ levels are
associated with elevated stress.
by the release of oxytocin, a stress-sensitive hormone that
A epinephrine; cortisol
is typically associated with maternal bonding and social rela-
B epinephrine; oxytocin
tionships. Oxytocin influences a number of behaviours
C cortisol; oxytocin
including the contraction of the uterus when a woman
is in labour, romantic attachment, social bonding, trust, D cortisol; testosterone

Stress and Illness :: Module 14.2 :: 603

 5 According to the Social Readjustment Rating Scale bad for you. In this investigation, medical students pro-

APPLY . . .
(SRRS), which of the following is most likely to cause vided blood samples during the term and again during
you the most stress? the final exam period. Analysis of these blood samples
A A jail term showed reduced immune responses during the high-
B The death of a family member stress period at the end of the term (Kiecolt-Glaser,
C A pregnancy 1984). This is not an isolated phenomenon; dozens of
D A divorce experimental and correlational studies have shown, for
example, that stress increases the likelihood that people
Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
Simulate will succumb to the cold virus (Cohen et al., 1998).
How Stressed Are Psychologists are finding that the stress–illness rela-
You? tionship is a very complex one, involving numerous
physiological systems. Also, the effects of mental stress
Stress, Immunity, and Illness on physical functioning are diverse. Recall that stress can
Stress and physical health are closely related. The come in a variety of forms—at the very least, we can
immune system, which is responsible for protecting divide it into acute and chronic variations. It appears that
the body against infectious disease, has numerous con- stress also has dual influences on immunity. Acute stress-
nections with the nervous system, including the stress ors tend to activate the immune system, whereas chronic
response systems just discussed (Maier & Watkins, 1998; exposure to stress generally causes suppression of the
Selye, 1955). Psychoneuroimmunology is the study of immune system (Segerstrom & Miller, 2004).
the relationship between immune system and nervous system Importantly, the interactions between stress and
Watch functioning. You have likely had the unfortunate expe- immunity are influenced by social factors: specifically, the
Basics: Stress and rience of getting sick in the midst of a period of high intimate relationships that play such an important part of
Your Health stress. In fact, one study suggests that final exams may be our lives.

Two hormones, oxytocin and vasopressin, are involved in

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC social behaviour and bonding. We previously discussed the
LITERACY MODEL role of oxytocin in moderating stress responses, particularly
in females. Oxytocin has been shown to inhibit activity in
Hormones, Relationships, and Health the amygdala, a brain region involved with fear and threat
responses (Kirsch et al., 2005). It may also prevent the
release of both adrenocorticotropic hormone and cortisol,
Social relationships can be a major source of both posi-
hormones related to stress (Heinrichs et al., 2003). Vaso-
tive and negative stress, and they can provide a great deal
pressin also has stress-reducing functions. Like oxytocin, the
of support during our most stressful times. Given the links
release of vasopressin is controlled by the hypothalamus and
between stress and health, it seems reasonable to ask: How
pituitary gland; it also affects the levels of stress hormones
do our personal relationships relate to health?
released by the adrenal gland (Goland et al., 1991). People
with high vasopressin levels tend to report better relation-
What do we know about ship quality with their spouses (Walum et al., 2008). How-
hormones, relationships, ever, oxytocin and vasopressin have health functions that
go beyond improving social bonds. Both of these hormones
and health?
also interact with the immune system, specifically to reduce
Many family events and relationships inflammation.
can be stressful. Almost everyone
has argued with their parents or
siblings. Holidays and weddings can How can science
be fun, but they also involve a lot of planning and, at times, explain connections
“intense discussion.” Sometimes relationships—particularly between hormones,
with close friends or romantic partners—become very diffi- relationships, and
cult and tense, and may even lead to chronic stress responses
health?
that adversely affect a person’s health. However, other rela-
tionships can be quite fulfilling, and can lead to strong social A common, if not surprising method for measuring immu-
bonds that will last a lifetime. These positive relationships nity and health is to see how quickly people recover from
have been linked to specific hormonal responses in the body. a minor wound. In one study, the effect of marital stress on

604 :: Module 14.2 : : Stress and Illness

 27

Couple’s positive behaviour

25

23

21

19

17

15
Low vasopressin High vasopressin Low oxytocin High oxcytocin
level level level level

{fig. 14.6} Relationship Quality Is Related to Physiological Responses Higher oxytocin and vasopressin levels are associ-
ated with positive social interactions between married couples.

wound healing was tested in a group of 37 married couples physical health. Although the studies you just read about are
(Gouin et al., 2010). Each couple was asked to sit together related to these important qualities, it is important to avoid
with no other couples or researchers present and complete oversimplifying what their results mean. Claims that homeo-
a series of marital interaction tasks, including a discussion pathic oxytocin remedies can make anyone happier and bet-
of the history of their marriage and a task in which both ter at love, marriage, sex, and even “mind reading” should
spouses were instructed to discuss something they wished be looked at with skepticism. Advertisements for such prod-
to change about themselves. These interactions were video- ucts are not hard to find. However, scientists are still in the
taped. The researchers also took blood samples to measure relatively early stages of learning just how oxytocin and
oxytocin and vasopressin levels. Additionally, each participant vasopressin affect social behaviour in humans, and how they
consented to receiving a suction blister on the forearm, are related to immune system function (Gouin et al., 2010;
which is a very minor wound created with a medical vacuum Macdonald & Macdonald, 2010).
pump.

During the marital interaction tasks, those who engaged Why is this relevant?
their partner with positive responses including acceptance, Although these studies were con-
support, and self-disclosure had higher levels of oxytocin and ducted with married couples, the
vasopressin. Those who responded with hostility, withdrawal, physiological and physical heal-
and distress had lower levels (Figure 14.6). In addition, the ing benefits of close, positive social relationships extend to
suction blister wounds healed more quickly over an eight- romantic relationships, friendships, and family. Procedures for
day period in individuals with high oxytocin and vasopressin healing physical injury currently focus on repair to damaged
levels. (Suction wounds heal to 100% within 12 days.) areas and preventing infection from setting in. In addition to
The health-promoting effects of oxytocin are also evident these critical steps, it appears that managing psychological
from placebo-controlled studies. In another experiment, stress is also important for facilitating recovery from wounds
married couples were given either an intranasal solution (Gouin & Kiecolt-Glaser, 2011). As we shall see, stress can
of oxytocin or a placebo. The couples then engaged in dis- also affect a number of other aspects of our physical health.
cussion about conflict within their marriage. Those who
received a boost of oxytocin showed more positive, con-
structive behaviour during their discussion compared to
couples in the placebo group. The researchers also measured
cortisol levels from saliva samples obtained from each indi-
vidual. Those in the oxytocin group had lower levels of this
stress hormone compared to couples in the placebo group
(Ditzen et al., 2009).

Can we critically evaluate

this evidence?
It might be tempting to conclude
that a boost of oxytocin or vaso-
pressin could be the key to mari-
tal happiness, stress reduction, and DAJ/Glow Images

Stress and Illness :: Module 14.2 :: 605

 STRESS, FOOD, AND HEART DISEASE In addi- system so that it is closer to normal levels (Adam & Epel,
tion to making people more prone to catching viruses, 2007; Dallman et al., 2003). Additionally, as discussed in
high stress levels appear to put people at greater risk Module 11.1, people who are stressed are mobilizing the
for developing coronary heart disease—a condition in body’s resources in case action is required; eating fatty
which plaques form in the blood vessels that supply the heart and sugary foods provides the body with extra calories in
with blood and oxygen, resulting in restricted blood flow. For anticipation of the person having to use additional energy
example, one study followed 12 000 healthy males for a to deal with a stressor.
nine-year period and found that men who experienced However, as we learned earlier, males and females
ongoing stress with their families or at work were 30% differ in how they handle stress. In one study, psycholo-
more likely to die from coronary heart disease than were gists offered male research participants snacking options of
men who were not chronically stressed (Matthews & healthy foods (peanuts and grapes) or unhealthy options
Gump, 2002). Coronary heart disease begins when injury (M&Ms and potato chips) while they were given an
and infection damage the arteries of the heart. This dam- unsolvable anagram puzzle (stressful) or a solvable ana-
age triggers the inflammatory response by the immune gram (nonstressful). Consistent with what you’ve read in
system—white blood cells travel to affected areas in an this module, female participants ate more junk food when
attempt to repair the damaged tissue. These cells gather
cholesterol and form dangerous plaques, which can rup-
ture, break off , and block blood flow. So how does stress MYTHS IN MIND
fit into this picture? Stress causes an increased release of Stress and Ulcers
those molecules that cause the inflammation that leads to
heart complications (Segerstrom & Miller, 2004). The link between stress and eating is not the
Stress influences heart functioning in other, indirect, only health issue that is oversimplified or misunderstood.
People typically associate ulcers—open sores in the lining
ways as well. Survey research has consistently shown that
of the esophagus, stomach, and small intestine—with people
people are drawn toward sweet and fatty foods when
working in high-stress jobs, such as police officers or air traf-
they are stressed (Oliver & Wardle, 1999; Steptoe et al., fic controllers. The belief that stress causes people to develop
1998). Laboratory-based studies have shown similar ulcers is widespread. In actuality, most ulcers are caused by
trends. In one experiment, female participants were given a bacterium, Helicobacter pylori, which can cause inflamma-
anagram puzzles to solve (e.g., turning YOGHPOSCYL tion of the lining of various regions of the digestive tract.
into PSYCHOLOGY). The women who had the high- This bacterium is surprisingly common, and approximately
est levels of the stress hormone cortisol ate more sweet, 10% to 15% of people who are exposed to it will develop an
high-fat snacks than did the less-stressed women (Epel ulcer resulting from inflammation. Thus stress does not cause
et al., 2001). The relationship between stress and ulcers, although it can worsen their symptoms. Also, smok-
unhealthy food extends to other species as well. Low- ing, alcohol, pain relievers, and a poor diet—anything that can
status females in a colony of monkeys are often bullied irritate the digestive system—increases problems associated
with ulcers.
and harassed by high-status females; researchers have
noted that the low-status females ate more banana-
flavoured pellets than their social superiors (Wilson et
al., 2008). Interestingly, similar results were found when
monkeys had the opportunity to self-administer cocaine;
the subordinate monkeys pressed a lever much more
often than the dominant monkeys who presumably had
less stress (Morgan et al., 2002).
Obviously, overeating unhealthy food (or doing
cocaine) is not a good long-term solution to stress. So,
why do some people (and monkeys) use food and drugs
to deal with stress? Although it is possible that these
substances directly affect the hormones and brain areas
associated with stress, most scientists agree that food (and
drugs) influence the brain’s dopamine reward system
(see Modules 5.3 and 6.2). Some research suggests that Lifesize/Getty Images
Contrary to popular belief, chronic stress, like that experienced
chronic stress suppresses the reward system (so stressed
by air traffic controllers, will not cause a stomach ulcer.
people would find less joy in things). It is possible that
eating rewarding foods increases the activity in this

606 :: Module 14.2 : : Stress and Illness

they were stressed (Zellner et al., 2006). In contrast, male experiences stress, the autonomic nervous system and
participants at more M&Ms and chips in the easy anagram HPA axis naturally respond, but their reactions compro-
condition (Zellner et al., 2007). While this difference was mise how well the individual can fight the disease.
surprising, the experimenters quickly found an explana- For many people, stress levels can be changed and
tion: Unlike the male participants, many of the female par- the course of a disease such as cancer can be slowed.
ticipants were on diets. Stress caused the females to yield For example, individuals who have undergone assertive-
to temptation and eat chocolate and chips. Males, on the ness training and learn anger management techniques
other hand, snacked more in the easy condition because show reduced autonomic activity and hormonal activ-
they finished the puzzle quickly and therefore had more ity associated with the HPA axis (Antoni et al., 2007).
time left to eat (men are wonderfully simple sometimes). Also, those who are optimistic, cope by using humour,
These results show us that the relationship between stress and have a positive outlook on the disease (and thus
and unhealthy behaviours is not simple, but can also be less stress) show physiological benefits such as greater
influenced by a number of outside social factors. immune responses (Lutgendorf et al., 2007). This sug-
gests that a person’s personality can influence the effect
AIDS Although stress is often linked to cardiovascular stress has on her immune system.
problems like heart attacks and strokes, its negative effect
on the immune system makes stress a factor in other con-
ditions as well. Acquired immune deficiency syndrome Quick Quiz 14.2b
(AIDS) is a disease caused by infection with the human Stress, Immunity, and Illness
immunodeficiency virus (HIV). This disease saps the
1 What is psychoneuroimmunology?
KNOW . . .
immune system’s ability to fight off infections, to such an
A A condition in which plaques form in the blood
extent that even conditions that are relatively harmless to vessels that supply the heart with blood and
most of the population can be devastating to an individ- oxygen, resulting in restricted blood flow
ual with AIDS. Patients in industrialized countries with B The study of both the positive and negative effects
more medical options have a better prognosis than those that our behaviour and decisions have on health,
living in impoverished areas. Retroviral therapies have survival, and well-being
greatly increased the longevity, health, and overall quality C The study of the relationship between immune
of life of patients. However, people who are HIV positive system and nervous system functioning
need regular vaccination treatments. Unfortunately, stress D A hormone secreted by the adrenal gland
impedes the body’s ability to respond to vaccinations. In
turn, studies have shown that those who experience seri- 2 A direct effect of stress on coronary health would be
UNDERSTAND . . .

ous emotional distress are less responsive to HIV treat- A a stress-related increase in inflammation that
ments. Stress-induced elevation of the neurotransmitter results in buildup of cholesterol in the arteries.
norepinephrine—which is involved in emotional arousal B eating more fattening foods in response to stress.
and stress responses—can also worsen the condition of C engaging in increased risky behaviour due to stress.
the various illnesses associated with AIDS. Patients who D increased moodiness during periods of stress.
Explore
have elevated activity of the autonomic nervous system AIDS Timeline
are slower to respond to antiretroviral therapies, which 3 How does stress affect cancer?
increases their risks of developing certain types of cancer A Stress decreases the number of white blood cells Watch
such as B-cell lymphoma (Cole et al., 1998). in the body, which results in cancer progression. IT Video: AIDS
B Hormones from the autonomic nervous system
CANCER Researchers are also finding numerous links stimulate cells that reside in tumours, which can
between psychosocial factors and cancer progression in turn stimulate growth and proliferation of the
tumours.
(Antoni & Lutgendorf, 2007). Several factors, such as the
type of cancer and an individual’s age, account for why C Stress decreases the growth of cancer cells.

some people rapidly succumb to cancer while others are D Stress does not affect cancer.
able to win the battle. In addition, stress levels affect the
progression of cancer. Why is this? It appears that nor- 4 Researchers have concluded that the actual cause of
ANALYZE . . .

epinephrine supports cancer cell growth, and that corti- ulcers is ________.

sol magnifies this effect. Hormones from the autonomic A stress C genetics

nervous system stimulate cells that reside in tumours, B bacterial infection D poor diet
which ultimately results in growth and proliferation of Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
these masses (Antoni et al., 2006). Thus, when someone

Stress and Illness :: Module 14.2 :: 607

 Stress, Personality, and Illness a person copes with stress, may further elevate the risk
of coronary heart disease. People who have a Type A
How people handle and cope with stress often depends personality also engage in behaviours that compromise
on their personality. This relationship is evident very physical health, such as drinking large quantities of alco-
early in life, even during infancy. Children who are easilyhol, smoking, and sleeping less than people with a Type B
distressed tend to be more prone to illness during adult- personality. Thus, numerous correlated factors may
hood. Even cognitive activity in our early years is relatedexplain the relationship between Type A personality and
to adult health. For example, children who are able to risk of coronary heart disease.
better focus their attention on tasks tend to be health- People with Type A personalities are often success-
ier in adulthood (Kubzansky et al., 2009). Furthermore, ful. However, they are also much more likely to experi-
infants who are securely attached to their mothers show ence heart attacks and strokes than are more relaxed, less
reduced activity in their sympathetic nervous systems hostile individuals.
Watch when their mothers are absent (Frigerio et al., 2009). The distinction between Type A and B personali-
Thinking Like a As personality takes shape in adulthood, we can further ties has not satisfied all behavioural scientists and physi-
Psychologist: see how different personalities deal with stress and how cians. Being quick to anger is a characteristic of Type A
Personality and Health stress relates to health. individuals, but so is being hyper-motivated to succeed
First consider your own responses to a common at work. Perhaps there is something more specific about
stressful event. Imagine you have a one-hour break personality that increases one’s risk for developing heart
between classes, during which you need to get lunch disease. More recent research has shown that people who
and also visit one of your professors across campus. are prone to hostility and anger are at greater risk for
When you arrive at your professor’s office, you see a line developing coronary heart disease (Razzini et al., 2008).
of other students awaiting their turn, and the current Other personality characteristics linked to coronary
occupant is blathering on and on about something com- heart disease include anxiety and depression (Barger &
pletely unrelated to schoolwork (busy professors love Sydeman, 2005; Lett et al., 2004).
this, by the way). How would you tend to react in this Together, these studies show us that stress can affect
situation? Would you become agitated, angry, resentful, us in a number of different ways ranging from our
and fidgety? Or would you be more inclined to strike up heart rate and blood pressure to our survival rates when
a conversation with others in line to help pass the time? fighting long-term illnesses. But these studies show us
Your answer will likely depend on various factors—but something else as well: that how we mentally react to
each of us tends to have a common style of responding the stressors can dramatically influence how our body
to stressful events. responds. In the next module, we will pull this research
The Type A personality describes people who tend together to show how you can draw from psychology
Simulate
to be impatient and worry about time, and are easily angered,
research to help you cope with stress. Doing so will
How Healthy
Are You?
competitive, and highly motivated. In contrast, the Type B make you happier—and healthier.
personality describes people who are
more laid back and characterized by a
patient, easygoing, and relaxed disposition
(Friedman & Rosenman, 1974). The
concept of Type A and B did not origi-
nate in psychology. Rather, cardiologists
suspected that people who were prone
to stress had poorer physical health.
They identified these individuals as
Type A, and their studies revealed that
people who fall in the Type A category
are far more likely to have heart attacks
than are Type B [Link] initial find-
ing has been replicated many times,
though the correlation between levels
of Type A characteristics and coronary
heart disease is only moderate. This less-
than-strong relationship likely reflects
the fact that other factors, not just how Syda Productions/Fotolia LLC

608 :: Module 14.2 : : Stress and Illness

Quick Quiz 14.2c Stress, Personality, and Illness
1 People with ________ personality are patient and 3 Which of the following observations is a fair critique

ANALYZE . . .
KNOW . . .
easygoing, and have a relaxed disposition, whereas of the Type A and Type B categorization of personality
________ personality individuals tend to be impatient types?
and are easily angered, competitive, and highly A They were not developed by psychologists.
motivated. B They apply only to hospital patients.
A Type A; Type B C Type B; Type A
C They reflect the fact that people tend to lie on
B stressed; relaxed D relaxed; stressed personality tests.
D Their connection to health outcomes may be more
2 The health risk most likely to be associated with Type A reflective of lifestyle factors such as sleep and alco-
personality is ________. hol consumption than of personality style.
A AIDS C coronary heart disease
Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
B cancer D the cold virus

Module Summary

Module Now that you have read this module you should
14.2
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with stress and illness:

coronary heart disease (p. 606) oxytocin (p. 603)

cortisol (p. 602) psychoneuroimmunology
fight-or-flight response (p. 601) (p. 604) Imagesource/Glow Images
general adaptation syndrome stress (p. 599)
(GAS) (p. 601) Type A personality (p. 608)
hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal Type B personality (p. 608)
(HPA) axis (p. 602)
Table 14.2 on page 600. Using the values next to each
stressful event listed, add up the numbers that apply to
UNDERSTAND . . . your experiences and compute your total stress score.
Holmes and Rahe (1968) found that a score of 300 or
● The physiological reactions that occur under stress. more puts people at signifi cant risk for illness, while a
When a person encounters a stressor, the hypothalamus score of 150–299 puts people at a moderate risk.
stimulates the sympathetic nervous system to act, Years later, Renner and Mackin (1998) developed a similar
triggering the release of epinephrine and norepinephrine scale for college and university students based on data
from the adrenal medulla. This reaction is often referred gathered from a sample of 257 undergraduate students
to as the fight-or-flight response. Another part of the (range: 17–45 years; mean: 19.75 years). Do an Internet
stress response system is the HPA axis, in which the search for Renner and Mackin’s College Undergraduate
hypothalamus stimulates the pituitary gland to release Stress Scale and calculate your own stress score. They
hormones that in turn stimulate the adrenal cortex to reported an average stress score of 1247 (standard
release cortisol, which prepares the body to deal with deviation: 441), with scores ranging from 182 to 2571.
stressful situations. How did you compare with their sample?
● How the immune system is connected to stress
responses. Cortisol suppresses the immune system,
leaving people more vulnerable to illness and slowing ANALYZE . . .
recovery time from illness and injury.
● The claim that ulcers are caused by stress. Ulcers
are damaged areas of the digestive tract often caused by
APPLY . . . infection with the bacterium Helicobacter pylori. Stress and
other factors, such as diet and alcohol consumption, can
● You can compare your own life stress experiences worsen the condition of ulcers, but stress alone does not
with those of others. To complete this activity, look at cause them.

Stress and Illness :: Module 14.2 :: 609

 John Lund/Stephanie Roeser/Glow Images

Module

14.3 Coping and Well-Being

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology How control over the environment Your knowledge of the beneficial Whether activities such as
After reading associated with coping influences coping and outlook effects of optimism to help you relaxation techniques, meditation,
this module and well-being reframe stressful situations and biofeedback actually help people
Positive and negative
you should as positive opportunities cope with stress and problems
styles of coping

What is the best way to cope with a personal disaster, such as losing your differences. Similar methods have been used in Pennebaker’s studies of
job? Writing about how the event makes you feel may not seem like a pri- first-year university students, people grieving the loss of a loved one, and
ority, but according to psychologist James Pennebaker, it may be one of the other groups experiencing stressful transitions. The result was the same
best strategies for coping and regaining the emotional resources needed each time—group members who wrote meaningful narratives of their
to move on. Pennebaker, a leading researcher on the psychological benefits emotions and thoughts came out ahead, not just in terms of mental health,
of writing, decided to intervene when a local computing and electronics but physically and in terms of their performance at work or school.
firm laid off 60 professional workers. All he asked the workers to do was
to write, but their instructions on how to write were different: Half the
volunteers were randomly assigned to write about their “deepest thoughts Focus Questions
and feelings surrounding the job loss, and how their lives, both personal
1 What are the different ways people cope with stress?
and professional, had been affected” (Spera et al., 1994, p. 725). In contrast,
the control group members were told to write about their plans for the 2 Which factors make coping especially challenging?
day and how they planned to find another job, which is much less personal
and emotional. After a month of weekly 20-minute writing sessions, the
group members who were writing about their emotions were getting hired
much more frequently than the control group members. The participants This module is designed to help you. In it, you will read about
were randomly assigned to the two groups, so the differences between the some widely used solutions for coping with stress and behavioural
groups can be traced to the writing rather than to pre-existing personality methods that may potentially help in improving health. We will also

610 :: Module 14.3 : : Coping and Well-Being

discuss some topics that might be less familiar, but may the most powerful tools for coping is also one of the
prove useful in how you cope with stress and negative simplest: focusing on positive emotions.
events. Finally, we will discuss how stress and successful Although it may seem difficult to imagine experienc-
coping are closely related to your sense of control. ing positive emotions during times of stress, doing some-
thing simple like watching a funny movie can actually
help you cope with stress and negative life experiences.
Coping Barbara Fredrickson and her colleagues at the University
Although understanding how stress works—both physi- of North Carolina (Chapel Hill) have shown that posi-
cally and mentally—is important, it is the ability to cope tive emotions can affect how we perceive and think about
with that stress that will dictate whether or not you the world. For example, these researchers have shown that
are happy. Coping refers to the processes used to manage a negative mood narrows your focus of attention so that
demands, stress, and conflict. Some of us approach a prob- you attend to a small part of your environment, whereas
lem or stressor, such as large monetary debt or a setback positive moods cause the focus of your attention to
at work, by taking a problem-solving approach. In other expand (Fredrickson & Branigan, 2005). Other scientists
words, we cope by defining the problem and work- have demonstrated that positive moods can also increase
ing toward a solution. If you are stressed out by school a person’s creativity. In one experiment, participants were
demands, you could address the problem by setting up shown groups of three words (e.g., falling, actor, dust) and
a study schedule, dropping a course, or finding a tutor, were asked to find a word that related all three items (e.g.,
among many other possible solutions. However, there are star). Individuals in the positive mood condition scored
times when it is more important to focus on the emo- higher than other participants (Isen, 1987). This increase
tional effects of a stressor than on attempting to find an in flexible thinking is crucial during coping, as it would
immediate solution to a problem—in fact, not all stress- help people experiencing negative emotions reframe their
ors are brought about by problems that have identifiable stressors into something less upsetting.
solutions. For example, imagine that your beloved family Although the effects of positive emotion on our
pet has passed away. In such a situation, you obviously ability to perceive and think are interesting, the most
cannot make a list to deal with your grief; however, you stunning effect of positive emotions is their effect on
can find ways to reduce the negative effects your emo- our autonomic nervous system. When most of us watch
tions are having, both on yourself and on others. Neither a scary movie, our heart rates increase as we experience
of these styles of coping is necessarily superior to the fear. Then, after a little while, our heart rates return to
other—their suitability depends on the nature of the normal. But, the speed that this recovery occurs can be
problem (Folkman & Lazarus, 1980). In many instances, influenced by positive emotions. Researchers have found Explore
both problem-focused coping and emotion-focused coping are that when participants watched positive films after see- Coping Strategies
used to deal with a stressor. ing a scary movie clip, their heart rate returned to nor- and Their Effects
Of course, not all coping techniques actually help; mal faster than when participants viewed a sad or neutral
some may simply replace one problem with another. For film (see Figure 14.7). The positive emotions seemed to
example, some people turn to alcohol or drugs to tem-
porarily avoid feelings of stress, and some turn to food.
Amount of cardiovascular arousal

Unfortunately, sitting in front of the television and eat- Contentment

ing a litre of Häagen-Dazs® ice cream from the con- Amusement
tainer is not a healthy method of coping. In this section, Neutral
we will examine both the positive and negative methods Sadness
of coping, and then describe several techniques that can
be used to improve one’s well-being.

POSITIVE COPING STRATEGIES Psychology may 18 20 40 61

have a reputation for focusing on the negative, includ- sec sec sec sec
ing how damaging stress can be. In reality, psychologists
also study what makes people thrive, even in the face of Recovery time (sec)
extreme stress. This area of study, positive psychology,
uses scientific methods to study human strengths and {fig. 14.7} Positive Moods and Recovery from Negative Emotional
Events Research shows that positive moods speed a person’s recovery
potential. Research in this area has identified numerous
from negative events. In this study, viewing a video depicting positive emo-
adaptive and constructive ways in which people cope tions (amusement or contentment) caused heart rates to return to normal
with problems. These researchers have found that one of levels faster than a neutral or sad video (Fredrickson & Levenson, 1998).

Coping and Well-Being :: Module 14.3 :: 611

 defuse the effects of the negative emotions, thus decreas-
ing the amount of damage that stress and negative
emotions can have on the body (Fredrickson & Leven-
son, 1998). Because positive emotions allow people to
broaden their thought processes and to build new intel-
lectual, social, and physical resources, these results are
now described as the broaden-and-build theory of positive
emotions (Fredrickson, 2001, 2003).

OPTIMISM AND PESSIMISM Closely linked to posi-

tive emotions is the concept of optimism, the tendency
to have a favourable, constructive view on situations and to
expect positive outcomes. People who are optimistic tend
to initially perceive situations in a positive way and are
also more likely to find positive elements in situations. In
contrast, pessimists tend to have a negative perception of life
and expect negative outcomes. These individuals often have
what is known as pessimistic explanatory style, which Judith Collins/Alamy
is the tendency to interpret and explain negative events as inter- Is the glass half full or half empty? Long-term studies have
nally based (i.e., as being due to that person rather than to an shown that people who have a pessimistic view tend to have
increased medical problems and reduced longevity compared
external situation) and as a constant, stable quality (Burns & to optimists.
Seligman, 1989). For example, a laid-off employee who
Watch
Grieving a Loss Part 1:
struggles to find a job may attribute the problem to his
Bob, 81 Years Old perceived inability to network properly rather than to control for this possibility, a group of U.S. researchers
the fact that it is tough to find jobs in his field. conducted longitudinal (long-term) studies of a group
Watch As you might expect after reading the previous sec- of females with nearly identical lifestyles: nuns. The Nun
Grieving a Loss Part 2: tion, optimism is correlated with better physical health Study, as it is now known, was exceptional in that it
Bob, 81 Years Old than pessimism. For example, scientists have shown that allowed researchers to examine how personality factors
women who tend toward pessimism and test positive such as optimism and pessimism affected people over the
for the HPV virus (a papilloma virus known to cause course of their lifetime while controlling for variables
cervical cancer) have lower counts of white blood cells such as diet, work demands, and stress. As part of this
that fight disease than do optimistic women with the study (which is part of a longitudinal study about factors
HPV virus. Long-term studies show similar effects of leading to Alzheimer’s disease), the researchers exam-
optimism. In the U.S. Veterans Aff airs Normative Aging ined the handwritten autobiographies of 180 nuns; these
Study involving a large cohort of male participants, opti- documents were written by the nuns when they were
mists had a lower incidence of coronary heart disease entering the order in their early-to-mid twenties. The
than did pessimists (Kubzansky et al., 2001). Similarly, emotional content of the autobiographies were coded
researchers at the Mayo Clinic administered personal- by the researchers to see if positive emotions predicted
ity tests assessing optimism and pessimism to patients how long the nuns lived. Here are two excerpts from the
who came into the clinic for general medical issues dur- study (Danner et al., 2001, p. 806):
ing the 1960s. Thirty years later, the data on optimism
Sister 1 (low positive emotion): I was born on September 26,
and pessimism were compared to patient survival. The
1909, the eldest of seven children, five girls and two boys . . .
researchers found a 19% increase in mortality risk in
My candidate year was spent in the Motherhouse, teaching
people who were consistently pessimistic (Maruta et al.,
Chemistry and Second Year Latin at Notre Dame Institute.
2000). Perhaps a good attitude does more than help indi-
With God’s grace, I intend to do my best for our Order, for
viduals cope emotionally with illness; perhaps it actually
the spread of religion and for my personal sanctification.
helps them overcome it.
Although these studies present a convincing case Sister 2 (high positive emotion): God started my life off
for optimism, there is an alternative explanation for the well by bestowing upon me a grace of inestimable value . . .
results: Optimists and pessimists may simply have had The past year which I have spent as a candidate studying
different lifestyles. One of these other lifestyle variables at Notre Dame College has been a very happy one. Now I
(e.g., diet) could potentially explain the health differ- look forward with eager joy to receiving the Holy Habit of
ences between optimists and pessimists. In order to Our Lady and to a life of union with Love Divine.

612 :: Module 14.3 : : Coping and Well-Being

 The researchers found a strong correlation between Therefore, agreeableness is a trait that may help peo-
positive emotions during young adulthood and the lon- ple avoid additional interpersonal stresses (e.g., not
gevity of the nuns—people who were more positive arguing with friends when everyone is already stressed
during their twenties lived longer than less positive peo- out about a camping trip that is going poorly).
ple (Danner et al., 2001). Similar results have been found • Conscientiousness: People with high levels of consci-
with less-controlled populations (Maruta et al., 2000; entiousness tend to be quite disciplined and focused
Peterson et al., 1998), suggesting that the results of the on what is expected of them. When coping, these
Nun Study are due to optimism and positivity, not to an individuals are less likely to show their emotions than
act of divine intervention. people with low levels of conscientiousness, perhaps
so that they can reduce the effect that stress is having
PERSONALITY AND COPING Optimism and pessi-
on their other responsibilities (Newth & DeLongis,
mism provide a nice continuum for how different indi-
2004). This method of coping has been referred to as
viduals emotionally respond to the situations and people
distancing, because people attempt to distance them-
that they will encounter in their lives. Of course, as you
selves from their own emotions.
read in Module 12.1, our personalities cannot simply be
• Openness to experience: People high on this trait tend
described along one dimension. Over the past twenty
to be intellectually curious and aware of their emo-
years, a number of studies have examined the effect of
tions. In terms of coping, researchers have found them
different personality traits on coping. They have found
to respond with empathy when stressful situations
that each of the Big Five personality traits has its own
involved other people (O’Brien & DeLongis, 1996).
effect on how a person copes with stress and adversity.
They are also less likely to use emotional distancing as
• Neuroticism: People high in neuroticism have nega- a method of coping with interpersonal stressors such
tive affectivity, the tendency to respond to problems with as family issues (Lee-Baggley et al., 2005).
a pattern of anxiety, hostility, anger, guilt, or nervousness.
Although these summaries tell us how differ-
These negative emotions make it difficult for these
ent traits are related to how different people cope with
individuals to choose an appropriate coping strategy
stressors, it is important to remember that everyone has
for a given problem (DeLongis & Holtzman, 2005;
elements of all five of these traits. This combination of
O’Brien & DeLongis, 1996). For instance, someone
personality traits influences how prone we are to stress,
with high levels of negativity may deal with a dif-
how we appraise different stressful situations, and, most
ficult breakup by socially withdrawing from others,
importantly, whether we are able to overcome or cope
becoming angry and resentful, and possibly growing
with the stress.
hostile enough to threaten and harass the other per-
son with phone calls, repeated texting, or the spread- RESILIENCE Thus far, we have discussed a number of
ing of rumours. This personality trait has been linked factors that can reduce the effects of stress and promote
to frequent physical complaints and illnesses such as well-being. However, there are times when negative life
headaches, chronic pain, stomach aches, and coronary events are unavoidable. As you have likely noticed in
heart disease (Friedman & Booth-Kewley, 1987; Wat- your own life, individuals differ in their ability to bounce
son & Pennebaker, 1989). back from events such as disaster, disease, or major loss.
• Extraversion: People high in extraversion are relatively This trait is known as resilience, the ability to effectively
outgoing and social. Their social nature also has ben- recover from illness or adversity. Resilient people tend to
efits when it comes to coping with stress. Extraverts have one or more factors stacked in their favour. Finan-
are more likely than introverts to actively seek out cial and social resources, opportunities for rest and relax-
help from others rather than trying to solve a prob- ation, and other positive life circumstances contribute
lem on their own. They are also more likely to listen to resiliency. Even so, amazing stories of resiliency can
to the advice of others and to try to reframe the stress be found among individuals living with unimaginable
in a way that is more positive or constructive (Lee- stress. Thus, the personality and emotional characteristics
Baggley et al., 2005). discussed earlier are also important contributors to resil-
• Agreeableness: Agreeable people want to get along iency in the face of adversity.
with the people around them. Like extraverts, people One amazing example is that of Viktor Frankl, an Watch
who are high on the trait of agreeableness are willing early- and mid-20th-century Austrian psychiatrist. Optimism and
to seek help from others. Although this trait does not Frankl was already an influential physician and therapist Resilience

seem to be related to problem-related coping, it does when he, his wife, and family were forced into concen-
play a major role in how people experiencing stress tration camps during World War II. Frankl found him-
interact with others (Newth & DeLongis, 2004). self in the role of helping people adjust to life in the

Coping and Well-Being :: Module 14.3 :: 613

 concentration camp, even while he himself struggled Psychologists have long focused on the negative
to survive each day. He encouraged others to tap into outcomes of stress, but stories such as Frankl’s demon-
whatever psychological resources they had left to cope strate that stress and trauma can also lead people to rec-
with very bleak circumstances. Frankl found that one of ognize how strong they really are. In fact, psychologists
the most critical parts of surviving in these camps was describe the phenomenon of post-traumatic growth,
finding some sort of meaning in life. For some, this could the capacity to grow and experience long-term positive effects in
be the desire to reunite with their family when the war response to negative events (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004). It
eventually ended. For others, it was a love of poetry happens in response to events such as automobile acci-
(astoundingly, some prisoners were able to write poetry dents, sexual and physical assault, combat, and severe
in the concentration camps). But, if a prisoner seemed and chronic illnesses. Individuals who experience post-
to lose this sense of meaningfulness in his life, Frankl traumatic growth often report feeling a greater sense of
could tell that this prisoner would soon die. As Frankl vulnerability, yet over time develop an increased inner
later noted, “Despair equals Suffering minus Meaning” strength. They also report finding greater meaning and
(Gelman et al., 2000, p. 625). A key challenge, then, was depth in their relationships, a greater sense of apprecia-
to maintain this sense of meaningfulness so that people tion for what they have, and an increased sense of spiri-
had a purpose in their lives. Doing so allowed them tuality (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004).
Watch to cope and remain resilient while witnessing terrify- Post-traumatic growth is not an alternative reac-
Emotional Longevity ing events. Eventually Frankl’s wife and parents were tion to post-traumatic stress. Rather, the two conditions
deported to different concentration camps, where they occur together. Clinicians recognize that the growth
were murdered. Despite his own enormous losses, Frankl occurs during the process of coping, not because of
continued helping others to cope and find solace under the event itself. Often a clinical psychologist trained in
the worst of circumstances (Frankl, 1959). working with trauma victims helps facilitate the growth
process and assists the individual in finding the interper-
sonal and social resources needed for healing. Some of
these resources include medications and some form of
counselling. It is also becoming increasingly common for
people to use other techniques to reduce responses to
stress and negative events including meditation and yoga.

MEDITATION, RELAXATION, AND BIOFEEDBACK

As you have been reading this chapter, your circulatory
system has been pumping blood and maintaining blood
pressure, your lungs have been breathing in air, and your
digestive system may have been working on a recent
meal, all without the tiniest bit of conscious effort.
Certainly you can intentionally hold your breath for a
Listen moment, but can you hold your heartbeat or change
Psychology in the your blood pressure? If you are like most of us, you can-
News: Neurofeedback not control all of these autonomic functions, but that
for ASD does not mean it is impossible.
Biofeedback is a therapeutic technique involving the
use of physiological recording instruments to provide feedback
that increases awareness of bodily responses. The psychologists
who developed this technique believed that by seeing or
hearing a machine’s representation of bodily processes,
people could gain awareness of stress responses and bring
them under voluntary control. For example, a patient
with chronic stress could use feedback on his blood pres-
Imagno/Hulton Archive/Getty Images sure, heart rate, and tension of his facial muscles to moni-
Stories of survival like Viktor Frankl’s experiences in Nazi tor and, possibly, control his stress responses. As you can
concentration camps show us the power of human resilience.
imagine, this ability would have very useful applications
Frankl went on to become an influential psychiatrist who
developed a new method of therapy focused on finding to clinical psychology. However, after some very promis-
meaning in life. ing findings, the excitement over biofeedback faded, in

614 :: Module 14.3 : : Coping and Well-Being

part because it was found that simple relaxation tech-
niques were just as useful.
Many people report significant benefits by using
relaxation and meditation techniques to cope with stress
and life’s difficult periods. Both techniques are designed
to calm emotional responses as well as physiological
reactions to stress. People frequently regard medita-
tion as either a religious or new-age ritual—something
that takes years of practice from which only “experts”
can benefit. This is not the case—anyone can meditate.
Health benefits are often observed in novices, although
the time it takes for this to occur varies from person to
person and across meditation techniques. As discussed in
Module 5.2, meditation comes in two general varieties:
(1) concentrative or focused attention meditation, in which
the individual focuses on a specific thought or sensation, Bonnie Kamin/PhotoEdit
such as an image or a repeated sound, and (2) mindful- Biofeedback involves the use of physiological monitoring, which allows the
ness or open monitoring (OA) meditation, which involves patient to see and sometimes hear the output of his or her physiological reactions.
attending to all thoughts, sensations, and feelings without
attempting to judge or control them (Cahn & Polich,
well as instructions for heightening one’s awareness of
2006). Several studies have shown that both types of
one’s body (Tang, 2011). Similar to MBSR, this tech-
meditation are very effective in reducing blood pressure,
nique has been shown to enhance the control of atten-
which reduces the potential for long-term problems
tion (Tang et al., 2007). IMBT has also been linked to
with hypertension and cardiovascular disease (Rainforth
an increased ability to control bodily physiology. In one
et al., 2007).
study, researchers compared participants who had com-
Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) is a struc-
pleted either five days of IMBT or five days of a simpler
tured relaxation program based on elements of mind-
relaxation training program. The IMBT group showed
fulness meditation. The primary goal of MBSR is to
lower heart rates, breathing rates, and skin conductance
help people to cope and to relax by increasing the link
responses (a measure of stress) than did the relaxation
between one’s body and one’s mind. A common medita-
training group. These differences appear to be due to
tive technique used in MSBR is a body scan in which
activity in a region of the midfrontal cortex called the
participants pay attention to the sensation of their toes,
anterior cingulate gyrus; this area is involved in control-
then their feet, ankles, calves, and so on. By attempting
ling attention as well as in some emotional responses.
to focus on bodily sensations for 15–20 minutes, the
In this study, activity within the anterior cingulate was
participants engage in a great deal of attentional con-
trol; if someone’s mind wanders, she is simply asked to
bring it back to the body scan without judging herself
for the slip-up. During these relaxation exercises, partici-
pants are instructed to recognize and become aware of
any emotions they may experience, but to then let it go
so that the emotion is not part of their identity. Stud-
ies using MSBR have found that it reduces stress (Baer
et al., 2012) and increases a sense of meaningfulness in
life (Dobkin, 2008). Not surprisingly, MSBR also leads to
increased brain activity in the insula, a brain area related
to perceiving bodily sensations; this area is involved with
a person’s ability to focus on the present moment (Farb
et al., 2013).
Altered brain activity has also been found after
people learned a complex form of meditation called
integrated mind–body training (IMBT). This technique, Tyler Olson/Shutterstock
developed from traditional Chinese medicine, involves Meditation is practised in many cultures, typically to serve the function of
a combination of relaxation and posture correction, as promoting health and stress reduction.

Coping and Well-Being :: Module 14.3 :: 615

 Watch associated with the participants’ increased control over precisely how these changes to the brain and body help
In the Real World: parasympathetic nervous system responses. The increased us cope with stress and negativity.
Reducing Stress, parasympathetic activity accounted for the heightened
Improving Health sense of relaxation experienced while meditating (Tang
et al., 2009). Interestingly, later studies showed a strength-
ening of the white-matter connections between the PSYCH @
anterior cingulate and emotional structures in the base Church
of the brain (Tang et al., 2010), suggesting that IMBT
Stress-reduction techniques like mindfulness
can change how different neural regions interact. are sometimes associated with spiritualism, as many arose
Although meditation does appear to have a number of as part of different Buddhist traditions; however, a belief in
health benefits, training procedures like MBSR and IMBT a higher power is not a requirement of these techniques.
might not be for everyone. However, there is a relaxation In contrast, many people use religion as their primary cop-
technique that many people in your class already perform: ing mechanism during stressful situations, both large and
yoga. According to various organizations, approximately small. They may use any combination of religious practices,
1.5 million Canadians regularly practise yoga (in one of depending on the specific nature of the faith: prayer, medita-
its many forms). Yoga involves directed breathing while tion, religious counselling, and social support from family and
participants move their bodies into specific poses. This congregations. All of these efforts can provide strength and
voluntary breathing can influence activity in the parasym- comfort during difficult times, but they may also be associ-
ated with greater overall happiness. Many psychologists have
pathetic nervous system, leading to a decrease in emo-
become increasingly curious about the possible health ben-
tional arousal (Sovik, 2000). Consistent with this view, U.S.
efits associated with religion and spirituality. Numerous stud-
college students who performed directed breathing had ies have found that people who are very religious and are
lower levels of physical and mental stress than did con- actively engaged with religious practices do, in fact, live a bit
trol participants (Cappo & Holmes, 1984).Yoga may also longer than do people who are less religious or nonreligious;
help your immune system; when compared to people in a in fact, they were 29% more likely to be alive at any given
simple relaxation condition (nature walks and soft music), follow-up point during the study (McCullough et al., 2000).
people who performed yoga had greater changes in gene A hasty interpretation of these results might lead one
expression in the immune cells circulating in the blood- to conclude that religion causes people to live longer—that
stream (Qu et al., 2013). the experiences of prayer and of attending church lead to
Thus, scientific studies of meditation and relaxation the greater longevity. However, the studies in this area actu-
training in all their forms appear to confirm their health ally produce correlational, not experimental, data—psycholo-
gists cannot randomly assign people to be religious or not.
benefits, and are also bringing us closer to understanding
Consequently, we must consider alternative explanations. For
example, lifestyle factors are also at play. Younger and older
people of Muslim, Jewish, or Christian faith are more likely
to engage in healthy behaviours, including wearing seatbelts,
visiting the dentist, and avoiding both the consumption of al-
cohol and cigarette smoking (reviewed in McCullough & Wil-
loughby, 2009). Religions also tend to have negative views of
criminal activity, drug abuse, and risky sexual activity. Thus, the
increased longevity is probably related to the greater self-
control and self-regulation that are characteristic of many
religious belief systems.
Generally, people who are religious show greater well-
being and lower levels of depression (Smith et al., 2003). The
determination of whether religion protects people from de-
pression depends on the point of view taken, however. People
who cope with problems using positive aspects of religion
(e.g., viewing stressors with kindness or collaborating with
others in solving problems) are less prone to depression
than religious people who adopt negative appraisals of their
problems and concerns, such as viewing problems as a result
Elena Ray/Fotolia
of a wrathful God’s punishment (Ano & Vasconcelles, 2005;
Approximately one in twenty Canadians performs yoga. However, the stress-related
benefits of yoga have not been researched as thoroughly as other relaxation and
McCullough & Willoughby, 2009).
meditation techniques.

616 :: Module 14.3 : : Coping and Well-Being

EXERCISE Relaxation training and religious study
both require discipline; individuals must follow instruc- Quick Quiz 14.3a
tions or teachings in a fairly consistent manner. Stay- Coping
ing in good physical condition requires similar devotion,
1 ________ is the tendency to respond to problems

KNOW . . .
and also produces considerable physical and psycho- with a pattern of anxiety, hostility, anger, guilt, or
logical benefits. However, even short bursts of exercise nervousness.
can be useful. For example, researchers in Germany A A coping style
asked university student participants either to do all- B Negative affectivity
out sprints, to jog, or to do nothing. The students C Pessimism
who sprinted were able to learn 20% more items on a D An aggression complex
vocabulary list than the students who jogged or were
inactive (Winter et al., 2007). Why did this occur? Per-
2 What is brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF)?
haps the sprinters were more motivated than the others. A A protein in the nervous system that promotes
This explanation sounds plausible, but the research- survival, growth, and formation of new synapses
ers randomly assigned healthy participants to the three B A calorie-restricted diet that may involve eating
groups—so there should not be anything inherent to approximately 60% of the normal amount of calories,
the sprinter group that would lead them to learn more while continuing to take in the needed nutrients
words. It appears that the type of exercise they engaged C A neurotransmitter that reduces stress and
in led to increased cognitive performance. Which physi- increases overall well-being

ological processes might account for the cognitive edge D A hormone that is released in those individuals with
a healthy diet
the sprinters gained from their intense physical activ-
ity? The researchers discovered that the students who
engaged in intense exercising had increased levels of 3 ________ is a positive coping strategy, while ________
UNDERSTAND . . .

is a negative style of coping.

dopamine, epinephrine, and brain-derived neuro-
A Meditation; resilience
trophic factor (BDNF)—a protein in the nervous sys-
B Pessimistic explanatory style; negative affectivity
tem that promotes survival, growth, and the formation of new
synapses. Cardiovascular exercise also provides immedi- C Meditation; alcohol

ate benefits in cognitive processing speed, again as mea- D Post-traumatic growth; resilience
sured in university-aged students (Hillman et al., 2003).
But, these immediate benefits of exercise are not limited 4 Your partner suddenly broke up with you and did
APPLY . . .

to younger people. When sedentary adults between 60 not offer an explanation. If you attribute the breakup
to your not being a very outgoing person, you are
and 85 years of age take up weekly exercise, they show
demonstrating ________.
improved brain functioning and cognitive performance A negative affectivity
(Hillman et al., 2008; Kramer et al., 1999).
B a pessimistic explanatory style
One important issue to address is whether these
C resilience
short-term effects translate into lifelong cognitive ben-
D a coping style
efits from exercise. Results from long-term studies indi-
cate that a lifestyle that includes regular exercise helps
5 What is the most accurate conclusion regarding the
ANALYZE . . .

preserve cognitive function and the brain systems that

effects of meditation on stress and well-being?
support it (van Praag, 2009). Researchers have found
A Meditation is the absolute best way to combat
that older people who are at genetic risk for develop- stress and protect your body from disease.
ing Alzheimer’s disease and who show cognitive impair- B Advanced training in meditation will decrease
ments can slow the rate of memory decline by exercising stress in a manner similar to simple relaxation
(Lautenschlager et al., 2008). It appears that levels of techniques.
brain chemicals such as BDNF are boosted by exer- C Meditation helps the practitioner control his or
cise, which helps explain the changes in the brain that her physiological responses, thereby decreasing
account for the cognitive benefits. Furthermore, exer- stress and preventing health problems such as
cardiovascular disease.
cise supports the development of new nerve cells in the
hippocampus, a critical area for memory and cognitive D Meditation is not a commonly used way of manag-
ing stress.
activity (van Praag, 2008). Together, these studies tell us
that the benefits of exercise go far beyond helping you Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
look good.

Coping and Well-Being :: Module 14.3 :: 617

 Perceived Control the section of the box that the animal was standing
on became electrified, thus providing a shock simi-
As Dr. Pennebaker’s story from the beginning of this lar to the one experienced in the earlier part of the
module illustrates, the most stressful of circumstances study. Through trial and error, animals that were in the
are the ones that people have little or no control over. controllable stress condition learned that they could
For example, children who reside in abusive homes have jump over the divider to the other side of the shut-
no control over their circumstances, nor do the victims tle box to get away from the shock; after a few trials,
of natural disasters. Each situation can result in people this behaviour occurred immediately after the warn-
acquiring a sense that their behaviour has little effect on ing tone was presented, which allowed them to avoid
external events. the shock altogether. In contrast, the dogs who had
Laboratory experiments have demonstrated the experienced the uncontrollable shocks had difficulties
negative impact that a lack of control has on health learning to escape. Instead, they would lie down, whine,
and behaviour. A classic example comes from work and appear resigned to receive the shock. This finding
on avoidance learning in dogs conducted in the 1960s was described as learned helplessness — an acquired
by Martin Seligman and his colleagues (Seligman & suppression of avoidance or escape behaviour in response to
Maier, 1967). In this study, dogs received electrical unpleasant, uncontrollable circumstances.
shocks while strapped into a harness. Half of the dogs Later studies provided some interesting insights
learned to press a panel in order to escape the shock, into learned helplessness, with some potentially impor-
thus providing them some control over their stressor. tant implications for how humans respond to stress.
The other half of the dogs received the same number Researchers found that stress responses involve nuclei
of shocks as the fi rst group, but had no control over in the brainstem as well as the ventral (lower) regions of
when the shocks would occur. After a delay, each dog the frontal lobes. When a stressful event is controllable
was placed in a device known as a shuttle box consist- (e.g., being shocked, but having a way to escape), the
ing of two small areas separated by a low divider that brainstem produces a stress response such as increased
the animal could easily jump across (see Figure 14.8). heart rate and blood pressure; however, this response is
On each experimental trial, a tone was sounded before then inhibited by the frontal lobes (Amat et al., 2005).
When a stressful event is not controllable, the brain-
stem provides a stress response without being inhib-
ited. This finding suggests that the degree to which a
person perceives a stressor to be controllable will influ-
ence whether the stress response will be inhibited, and
Light dims, warning whether the person will experience an event as being
of impending shock stressful.
The important point about learned helplessness is
that the animal, or person, learns that their actions can-
not remove the stress in one situation (e.g., the harness)
and then generalizes that helplessness to other situations
(e.g., the shuttle box). This is similar to the thought
processes of some people with depression. People with
Grid floor in which depression are prone to hold beliefs that their actions
shocks can be have no influence on external events, and that their
administered
environment and circumstances dictate outcomes.
Learned helplessness also has similarities to anxiety
Dog will be safe from Dog will be shocked
shock on this side on this side disorders; namely, increased nervousness and a feeling
of being unable to escape a stressor (Maier & Watkins,
{fig. 14.8} The Learned Helplessness Procedure In 2005). Clearly, both aspects of learned helplessness can
Seligman and Maier’s study, dogs that could avoid a painful
negatively affect mental and physical well-being. This
shock would quickly learn to do so. Conversely, dogs that
initially learned they could not avoid a shock remained pas- phenomenon shows that the perception of control can
sive when the opportunity to do so was given. The acquired have a dramatic effect on our ability to cope. With-
failure to avoid or escape unpleasant circumstances that are out it, many humans and some nonhuman species will
perceived as uncontrollable is referred to as learned help-
lessness. Click on this fi gure in your eText to see more endure pain and stress rather than initiating ways to
details. avoid or escape it.

618 :: Module 14.3 : : Coping and Well-Being

 How can
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC science explain
LITERACY MODEL compensatory
Compensatory Control and Health control?
To study compensator y
The idea of a random world in which people lack personal control, researchers have developed a laboratory task that
control over events can be discomforting. For example, hur- manipulates people’s sense of personal control over a situ-
ricanes and tornados are often referred to as “acts of God,” ation (Whitson & Galinsky, 2008). In one study, participants
rather than the result of an unfortunate confluence of mete- completed a concept identification task in which two symbols
orological events and human-populated areas. But does hav- were presented on a computer screen, and the participant
ing a sense of control lead to better health? had to guess which symbol correctly represented the concept
that the computer had chosen (e.g., the colour of the symbol,
its shape). The computer provided feedback on whether the
What do we know participants chose the correct or incorrect symbol after each
about how people cope trial. Half of the participants received accurate feedback, while
with seemingly random the other half received completely random feedback—some-
times their correct answers were recorded as incorrect, and
events? vice versa. Participants receiving random feedback reported
Some people feel as if they are the feeling a lower sense of control on a self-report measure.
victims of random events, while
Following the concept identification task, the participants then
others believe themselves to be
viewed multiple pictures, such as those shown in Figure 14.9.
the beneficiaries of the whims of life. However, the idea that
If you look closely, you will see that one of the pictures has a
randomness dictates worldly events can create anxiety in
horse-like figure in it, whereas the other image has no discern-
people. Even if a person believes randomness is the rule, he
ible pattern. Participants in both conditions reported seeing
or she can become highly motivated to find meaning in the
faintly drawn figures, such as the horse. However, participants
world and, through this search, a sense that the course of
who had a diminished sense of control induced by the ran-
events is determined by the will of individuals or God (Kay
dom feedback they received on the computer task were more
et al., 2009). In this way, many people cope with stressful
likely to report seeing patterns within completely random
life events through compensatory control—psychological
images (Whitson & Galinsky, 2008).
strategies people use to preserve a sense of nonrandom order
when personal control is compromised (Kay et al., 2009). For It appears that when people feel their sense of control is
example, people who are skeptical of any divine purpose in undermined, they compensate by heightening their search
the world may change their view in the wake of personal for structure in the world, to the point of calling upon their
or societal tragedy. These observations are primarily cor- imagination. This is evident in other domains as well, not just
relational, but researchers have conducted experiments to detecting patterns in random, snowy images. People also gain
determine causal relationships between sense of control and a greater need for structure and become increasingly will-
beliefs about randomness versus orderliness. ing to believe in superstitious rituals and conspiracy theories

{fig. 14.9} Seeing Images Where There Are None Do you see a figure in the image on the left? You may see a figure resem-
bling a horse. What about on the right? There is no discernible image intended for this image. Psychologists have found that
individuals who feel as though they lack control are more likely to detect patterns in the image at right than are people who feel a
greater sense of control (Whitson & Galinsky, 2008).

Coping and Well-Being :: Module 14.3 :: 619

 when their sense of control is diminished (Figure 14.9; Kay et
al., 2009; Whitson & Galinksy, 2008).

Can we critically evaluate

this evidence?
A major advantage of the study
described here is that the research-
ers were able to experimentally
induce a perceived lack of control in
the participants who received ran-
dom feedback on their performance on the computerized Jyoti Sarkar/[Link]
task. The observation that these participants then perceived
images within randomness and showed a heightened belief in
superstition and conspiracies may help to explain how people researchers have also suggested that religion is sometimes
respond to lost control outside of the laboratory. Of course, used as a form of compensatory control (Kay et al., 2010).
one limitation is that a real-world lack of control, such as that What do you think?
which occurs in the face of a natural disaster or the loss of
a job, has far greater consequences. Thus, as with any labora- People may also compensate for their lack of control by per-
tory experiment, there is a limit to the degree to which the forming superstitious rituals, which can provide a sense of
results generalize. at least partial control over outcomes. This can be seen in
everyday examples, such as among athletes who follow the
same steps when preparing for a game (see Module 6.2), as
Why is this relevant? well as in extreme, maladaptive forms, such as in obsessive–
Having a sense of control compulsive disorder (covered in Module 15.3).
greatly affects how we think
about and interpret the
world. In addition, it affects
our health. Individuals who believe they can predict and influ-
ence present and future events tend to have improved physical
and mental well-being compared to people who believe the
opposite. For example, patients who are scheduled to undergo
medical procedures, such as a colonoscopy, have reduced anxi-
ety for the procedure if they are given clear, informative tuto-
rials about the procedure before it occurs (Luck et al., 1999).

Researchers have found that when people perceive that

they have lost a sense of control during an experimental
procedure, they report a greater need for structure, per-
ceive images in random arrays, become more superstitious,
and endorse conspiracy theories (Kay et al., 2009). These Russell Underwood/CORBIS/Flirt/Glow Images

2 People often turn to religion to explain natural disasters.

UNDERSTAND . . .

Quick Quiz 14.3b This behaviour demonstrates the concept of ________ .

Perceived Control A compensatory control C coping
B learned helplessness D resilience
1 ________ is an acquired suppression of avoidance
KNOW . . .

or escape behaviour in response to unpleasant,

uncontrollable circumstances.
3 A mentally healthy person who is prone to claiming
that patterns exist where there are none
A Compensatory control A is showing negative affectivity.
B Learned helplessness B is showing signs of post-traumatic growth.
C Coping C probably feels a lost sense of control over a
D Resilience problem or situation.
D has a pessimistic explanatory style.

Answers can be found on page ANS-4.

620 :: Module 14.3 : : Coping and Well-Being

 Module Summary
Module Now that you have read this module you should
14.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with coping

and well-being:
biofeedback (p. 614) optimism (p. 612)
brain-derived neurotrophic pessimism (p. 612)
factor (BDNF) (p. 617) pessimistic explanatory style John Lund/Stephanie Roeser/Glow Images
compensatory control (p. 619) (p. 612)
coping (p. 611) positive psychology (p. 611)
learned helplessness (p. 618) post-traumatic growth (p. 614) APPLY . . .
negative affectivity (p. 613) resilience (p. 613)
● Your knowledge of the beneficial effects of optimism
to help you reframe stressful situations as positive
opportunities. For each of the following four situations,
UNDERSTAND . . .
try to think of both a pessimistic and an optimistic way of
● How control over the environment influences coping interpreting the event.
and outlook. Psychologists have discovered that people 1. You find out that you are one of four people to be
(and dogs) become more willing to allow unpleasant events scheduled for an interview for a job you really want.
to occur if they learn (or believe) that their behaviour 2. Your flight home from Europe is overbooked, so your
brings no change. Having at least some degree of control return home is delayed by a day.
helps people with coping and outlook. When control is
threatened, people use compensatory responses, such as 3. Your car has a flat tire and you have to bike 10 km to
detecting order within random images. get to school in time for your 10 A.M. class.
● Positive and negative styles of coping. Whether 4. Your friend decides to stop attending the kickboxing
someone copes using a positive or negative style is class that you really enjoy.
related to personality (e.g., optimism versus pessimism). How did you feel after each optimistic and pessimistic
Positive coping includes the concept of resilience—the interpretation? Did you feel better after putting a positive
ability to recover from adversity, and even benefit from spin on things?
the experience, as is the case with post-traumatic growth.
Coping via negative affectivity and pessimism can have
both psychological and physiological disadvantages. ANALYZE . . .

● Whether activities such as relaxation techniques,

meditation, and biofeedback actually help people
cope with stress and problems. Meditation and other
relaxation methods have been found to be quite effective
in reducing stress. While some training and practice
may be necessary, these techniques are by no means
inaccessible to those who are motivated to pursue them.

Coping and Well-Being :: Module 14.3 :: 621

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Stress and Health

1 What do we know about the nature of stress?

Review Figure 14.5 on page 602, which outlined the pathways of stress
2 How can science help explain stress and
health?
in the [Link] stress starts with an event, so it is important to know the difference The effects of stress on the immune system have been the
between a stressor and stress. Recall that a stressor is an event that causes us to focus of some interesting recent research. On page 602, we
experience [Link] event can be either negative, such as getting stuck in traffic, explained how the autonomic nervous system’s response to
or positive, such as becoming a parent. It is not even necessary for the event to stress can differ depending on the individual. Human and ani-
actually occur—just the thought of an upcoming presentation can exert pressure mal studies suggest that chronic stress, like parental depriva-
on some students. Our reaction to the event is called stress, and it can take physical, tion during childhood and trauma, can have negative effects
emotional, mental, and behavioural forms. Table 14.2 on page 600 lists several on brain development. Other research has linked chronic
possible stressors; you may want to try coming up with examples of your own, stress to coronary heart disease and the progression of vari-
along with possible stress reactions. One example of a stressor would be taking ous cancers. Even if you are dealing with stressors that seem
your psychology final exam. A possible stress reaction: increased heart rate at the more mundane, you may have a reduced immune response;
thought of the exam, and worrying about the exam the night before. Keep in mind this finding came out of a study in which medical students
that the same stressor can affect people differently. were shown to exhibit reduced immune responses during the
On page 599, we covered Lazarus and Folkman’s cognitive appraisal theory stressful period of final exams. Personality also seems to play
of stress. This theory predicts that we evaluate a stressor in terms of its stakes a role in the stress response, with research on people with
or importance, and then consider our resources for coping Type A and Type B personalities suggesting that highly
before we have a stress reaction. motivated, competitive, and quick-to-anger people
(Type A) are more likely to have heart attacks than laid-
back, easygoing Type B people.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video excerpt on
reducing stress. You can access the video at MyPsychLab
or by clicking the play button in the centre of your eText.
If your instructor assigns this video as a homework activity, Ase/Shutterstock
you will find additional content to help you in MyPsychLab.
You can also view the video by using your smart phone and the 3 Can we critically evaluate claims
about stress and health?
QR code below, or you can go to the YouTube link provided.
While it is true that Type A people tend to have more heart attacks, people
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, imagine who fall into that category are also more likely to engage in other risky behav-
a friend has just lost a job that helped him cover tuition costs. iours, such as excessive alcohol consumption and smoking—both of which are
Apply Lazarus and Folkman’s cognitive theory of stress and also risk factors for heart disease. Similarly, in the Myths in Mind feature on
describe his potential reactions to this job loss. In your answer, be page 606, we debunked the idea that chronic stress causes ulcers. Ulcers are
sure to describe the following: Stressful Event; Primary Appraisal; caused by infection with a type of bacteria, but high levels of stress can cer-
Secondary Appraisal; Stress Response. tainly worsen their symptoms.
An important consideration when assessing much of the research relating
stress to physical and mental health in humans is the fact that it is correla-
tional. However, experiments using animals often do confirm the existence of
cause-and-effect relationships between stress and health.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar app or QR code). If your
instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the video clip and additional content
at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the video clip to test your understanding. [Link]/workthemodel
SCAN WITH LAYAR

622 :: Chapter 14 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 15
Psychological Disorders
15.1 Defining and Classifying
Psychological Disorders
● Defining Abnormal
Behaviour p. 626
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Labelling and Mental Disorders p. 629
● Applications of Psychological
Diagnoses p. 631
● Module Summary p. 634

15.2 Personality and Dissociative

Disorders
● Defining and Classifying
Personality Disorders p. 636
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Antisocial Personality Disorder p. 637
● Dissociative Identity
Disorder p. 641
● Module Summary p. 644

15.3 Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-

Compulsive Disorders
● Anxiety Disorders p. 646
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Specific Phobias p. 647
● Mood Disorders p. 652
● Module Summary p. 657

15.4 Schizophrenia
● Symptoms and Types of
Schizophrenia p. 659
● Explaining Schizophrenia p. 662
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: The Neurodevelopmental Irmak Akcadogan/Shutterstock
Hypothesis p. 665
● Module Summary p. 667

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 668
 MPI/Archive Photos/Getty Images

Module

15.1 Defining and Classifying

Psychological Disorders
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology associated The differences between the Your knowledge to understand Whether the benefits of
After reading with defining and classifying concepts of psychological the symptoms, stereotypes, labelling psychological disorders
this module psychological disorders disorders and insanity and stigma surrounding outweigh the disadvantages
you should psychological disorders

Over the centuries, our understanding of psychological disorders has them, as in the witch-hunting craze which saw the execution of tens of
come a very, very long way. The unfortunate people who had experiences thousands of innocent people (almost all of whom were women).
that were out of the ordinary, from odd behaviours to visions to hallu-
Thankfully, times have changed.
cinations, may well have been judged to be under the sway of evil spirits
inhabiting their bodies (Hunter & Macalpine, 1963). By the 16th century,
this led to the witch scares, which for at least two centuries created Focus Questions
mass paranoia as the public sought protection from witches who gained
1 Are psychological disorders fundamentally different from
power through allegiance to the devil. Armed with the Malleus Malefi-
physical illnesses, or should we view them the same way?
carum (Hammer of the Witches), a 1486 German text filled with detailed
instructions for identifying witches, countless people were subjected to 2 Which guidelines or criteria allow psychologists to diagnose a
“tests,” such as looking for the “Devil’s mark” on the body, a visible spot mental disorder such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)?
such as a mole or birthmark that could be interpreted as a sign of alle-
giance with the Devil.

“Treatments” for mental illness were directly based on this model of

illness as possession by evil. Brutal imprisonment, torture, and demon As the ascension of scientific thought began to displace the reli-
exorcism were not designed with human psychology in mind, as ways of gious domination of the Middle Ages, explanations for mental ill-
rehabilitating dysfunctional thoughts, emotions, and behaviours. The focus ness shifted from demon possession to physical illnesses, believing
was on driving the demon out of the person’s body, or simply executing that the person was suffering from some sort of health affliction.

624 :: Module 15.1 : : Defining and Classifying Psychological Disorders

Asylums, residential facilities for the mentally ill, were set schizophrenia and similar disorders into their families
up across Europe, with the general goal of curing the and communities.
patients’ bodily afflictions that gave rise to their symp- Unfortunately, helping people reintegrate into reg-
[Link] treatments would certainly not meet modern ular life has never been a central part of the psychiatric
standards of medical care and were generally ineffective, approach to treating mental illnesses. Of course, many
such as draining up to 40% of a person’s total blood vol- mental health workers help people at the practical level,
ume! There were even treatments such as throwing the but this level of “treatment” is generally secondary; the
person into a pit of snakes. As unbelievable as that seems emphasis is overwhelmingly on the person’s symptoms,
(not to mention how difficult it would be for doctors to and treating the symptoms directly. The problem that pre-
make house calls . . . ), the hope was to shock the person vents the field from sufficiently focusing on the larger,
out of the diseased state (Szasz, 2006). systemic challenge of helping people with mental illness
A fortunate change in society’s approach to treat- learn to function effectively in the world is essentially a
ing mental illness came with the courageous activism of problem in the whole approach to mental illness, a prob-
two heroic figures, Philippe Pinel, a physician in France, lem that is so fundamental to the discipline that it remains
and Dorothea Dix, a schoolteacher in the United States. almost invisible much of the [Link] problem is basically
Their tireless advocacy for the mentally ill led to wide- that the guiding paradigm for mental health and mental
spread reforms that ushered in a new approach, called illness is the medical model, which has held sway since the
moral treatment, which led to patients being treated with end of the Middle Ages. The medical model sees psy-
kindness and decency, able to roam the hospital halls and chological conditions through the same lens as Western medicine
get outside for fresh air. However, there were still virtu- tends to see physical conditions—as sets of symptoms, causes, and
ally no effective treatments, and many people afflicted outcomes, with treatments aimed at changing physiological pro-
with mental illness were permanently incarcerated. cesses in order to alleviate symptoms. Through this lens, psy-
By the 1950s, over half a million people were in chological disorders such as depression, post-traumatic
psychiatric hospitals in the United States, mostly long- stress disorder, or autism can be approached in the same
term, but in 1955, everything changed. Chlorpromazine manner as conventional medicine would approach diabe-
(called Thorazine in the U.S.) was introduced, and sud- tes or cancer. What the medical model is generally miss-
denly, people with schizophrenia and other disorders ing is an appreciation for the whole system of factors that
involving being “out of touch” with reality were able to affects the person’s overall functioning. Thus, the medical
function independently, even holding down jobs and liv- model could be critiqued as being overly narrow, more
ing at home with their families. The success of chlor- focused on “cure” than on promoting wellness and help-
promazine and other medications led to widespread ing the person become stronger more generally.
deinstitutionalization, which saw the number of psychi- In recent decades, the medical model has begun to
atric inpatients drop by over 80% over the next three be overturned in favour of the biopsychosocial model,
decades (Torrey, 1997). which includes physiological processes within a more
The return of hundreds of thousands of people to holistic view of the person as a set of multiple interacting
regular life had its down sides, however, greatly increasing systems (Table 15.1). For example, depression involves
the number of homeless people as a result of former in- biological factors (e.g., the neurotransmitter serotonin),
patients quitting their medications and slipping back psychological factors (e.g., negative beliefs about the
into their disorders. Also, although these treatments made self and feelings of hopelessness), and social factors (e.g.,
a substantial difference to many people’s symptoms, they social isolation or conflictual relationships). Understand-
were not cures; as a result, there were countless chal- ing the multiple systems that underlie disorders such as
lenges to overcome in order to reintegrate people with depression gives us greater insight into how to develop

Table 15.1 :: Biological, Psychological, and Sociocultural Factors Influence Both Physical and Mental Disorders
DIABETES MAJOR DEPRESSION

Biological Genetic influences on pancreatic function; excessive refined Genetic influences on neurotransmitter production and function;
sugars sleep disruption; lack of positive emotional arousal
Psychological Poor food choices; sedentary lifestyle; alcohol abuse Negative self-concept; pessimism; negative life experiences
Sociocultural Familial and cultural foods and traditions; limited budget for Lack of social support; social withdrawal; lack of psychological
groceries; lack of physical and nutritional education in the services; stigma regarding psychological treatments
schools; lack of role models

Defining and Classifying Psychological Disorders :: Module 15.1 :: 625

 more effective treatments; in particular, it becomes easier It is obviously problematic to be judging normalcy by
to see how important it is to use convergent treatment using your own particular cultural framework, although
approaches, treating more than one system at a time so as it is also practically impossible not to do so, as we are
to affect the person’s overall functioning. always operating within our cultural framework. Over-
Despite the advances of the biopsychosocial model, coming this challenge requires that each person works
one of the thorniest problems in the mental health field hard to understand the ways her own perspective may
remains how to reliably identify who has a mental dis- bias her, as well as directly learning about alternative per-
order in the first place! Given the immense range of spectives, as much as possible. But there is no easy path to
“normal” human behaviour and experience, how can we judging someone as being “abnormal.”
determine what is “abnormal?” One possible solution to this problem would be to
first understand the appropriate cultural framework and
perspective, and then find out whether most people in
Defining Abnormal Behaviour that culture or having that perspective would have similar
In some ways, you might expect it to be simple to decide experiences. If so, then even though the behaviour pattern
whether or not someone has a disorder—you just have might seem problematic from one perspective, it would
to figure out whether or not they are “normal.” How- be appropriately judged from within its own framework.
ever, what is considered normal has an enormous range, This makes a good deal of sense, but consider the problem
particularly across time and culture. Think about what is that the way that “most people” experience things may
considered normal in different cultures; the sheer diver- itself not be very healthy or desirable, or the way that a
sity is staggering. One of the main insights to have come small subgroup experiences things may be quite healthy
into our collective awareness from the study of anthro- or desirable. For example, only a minority of the popula-
pology is just how incredibly diverse human cultures and tion practises regular meditation, exercises vigorously, fol-
cultural practices can be. “Normal” can be owning slaves, lows a vegetarian diet, or completely abstains from drugs
or it can be living in a religious farming commune; nor- and alcohol during [Link] each of these practices
mal can be daily drug trafficking and regular violence can be seen to be healthy or desirable, in that they make
on a particular city block; it can be repressive board- people healthier, stronger, and generally happier. However,
ing schools, or religiously influenced societies that hold such “abnormal” behaviours are often judged negatively;
strict gender norms and provide very different amounts consider the fact that in past decades, there were various
of freedom and power to men and women. Normal can sexual disorders with which individuals could be diag-
be village dances where everyone links arms and dances nosed as a result of having non-heterosexual preferences;
together mostly naked, or it can be the current club cul- now, psychologists’ perspectives have changed, and alterna-
ture of North American youth (which is similar in some tives to heterosexuality are no longer considered disorders,
respects to the village culture, minus the linking of arms). although they are still, statistically speaking, “abnormal.”
Simulate It is amazing to pause for a moment and think In sum, determining what is normal and what is
Survey: Are You about this diversity, and how, from the “inside” perspec- abnormal is fraught with difficulty and subjective bias;
Normal? tive of the people living in that culture, their practices making this judgment is a process one should approach
seem perfectly normal and even right, the way things sensitively and with a great deal of self-awareness.
should be; but take just a small step outside that cultural The key criterion used by psychologists in decid-
framework, and look at it from a different perspective, ing whether a person has a disorder is whether the per-
and everything changes. son’s thoughts, feelings, or behaviours are maladaptive,
Of course, this means that from the “inside” per- which, according to the American Psychiatric Associa-
spective of your own mind, your own beliefs and values tion (2000), is determined by three key criteria, whether it
and lifestyle are also culturally bound, and would look causes distress to oneself or others, impairs day-to-day function-
very different from other perspectives. It can be easy to ing, or increases the risk of injury or harm to oneself or others.
forget this as we go through life, because the way we However, there are many exceptions, behaviours
see things seems to make so much sense that we often that would fulfill these criteria but not necessarily indi-
become trapped in a particular perspective. Remember- cate mental illness. Consider the following:
ing to appreciate just how constructed our perspectives
are can be quite liberating. • Heavy drug users and people with psychopathic ten-
However, this does create a real challenge for the dencies may not think they have a problem.
clinical psychologist, who is trying to determine whether • Family members may be concerned about a person’s
a person’s behaviour and experience are abnormal— involvement in a new relationship, or may disapprove
whether they have a disorder that needs to be treated. of body modifications such as tattoos or piercings.

626 :: Module 15.1 : : Defining and Classifying Psychological Disorders

• Mourning the loss of a loved one or having a reli- to this question may depend on your perspective. Some
gious conversion may interfere with one’s day-to-day would argue that as clinical science has progressed we
activities. are now better able to diagnose people, and the new
• Activists may get arrested for protesting government disorders are entirely valid categorizations of symp-
actions and extreme sports enthusiasts may risk death toms. Another more disturbing possibility is that the
or injury out of passion for their sport. creation of ever-more categories of disorders has been
engineered in part by pharmaceutical companies as a
Obviously, the criteria are not perfect and do not
way of increasing the number of disorders people will
account for all circumstances, as noted in the examples
need to be treated for. This topic has become a battle-
above. But generally speaking, when a person’s behav-
field between those who believe science is continually
iour and experience meet these criteria, there is cause
improving our understanding of mental illness, and those
for possible concern; thus, these guiding principles are a
who believe that more aspects of human experience are
useful starting point for the diagnostic process. In order
being pathologized in order to feed the profits of phar-
to make more specific diagnoses and determine exactly
maceutical companies.
what type of disorder a person may have, mental health
Whatever the ultimate reason, the DSM remains the
professionals rely on a carefully designed system.
standard reference manual in the mental health field, par-
PSYCHOLOGY’S PUZZLE: HOW TO DIAGNOSE ticularly in North [Link] latest edition, the DSM-5,
PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS The attempt to was published in May 2013. In order to aid in the process of
develop a rigorous system for diagnosing mental illness diagnosis, the DSM-5 describes three important pieces
goes back to at least 1840, when the U.S. government of information for each disorder: a set of symptoms and
wanted to collect data on mental illness in the country the number of symptoms that must be met in order
and included in the official census a single category to to have the disorder; the etiology (origins or causes) of
denote mental illness, “idiocy/insanity.” By 1917, this had symptoms; and a prognosis or prediction of how these
evolved into a guide for mental hospitals, called the “Sta- symptoms will persist or change over time.
tistical Manual for the Use of Institutions for the Insane.” One of the big changes in the DSM-5 compared to
In World War II, American psychiatrists were hired in previous versions is that it discarded the five-axis system
large numbers by the U.S. military to aid in the selec- that was used in the past. Until DSM-5 clinicians guided
tion of soldiers and treatment for mental disturbances as by the DSM made their evaluations along five sepa-
a result of military duty. rate axes or dimensions of functioning, the assumption
Building on the military’s diagnostic system, as well being that integrating these different types of informa-
as the sixth edition of the World Health Organization’s tion would result in a more complete diagnostic under-
International Statistical Classification of Disease (which standing of the individual. The five axes were as follows:
included mental disorders), the American Psychiatric Axis I: clinical disorders (including depression, anxiety
Association created the Diagnostic and Statistical disorders, ADHD, or substance abuse problems); Axis
Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) , a standard- II: personality disorders and mental retardation; Axis III:
ized manual to aid in the diagnosis of disorders; this edition general medical conditions; Axis IV: psychosocial and
described the symptoms of 106 different “mental dis- environmental problems (i.e., life circumstances, such as Simulate
orders.” The purpose for developing the DSM was to relationship or work problems, which can impact psy- Overview of Clinical
provide mental health workers with a reliable method chological functioning); and Axis V: the global assessment Assessment Methods
for diagnosing mental illness and to ensure consistency of functioning (GAF).
across different institutions and hospitals. In place of this system, the DSM-5 has separate cat- Simulate
It is worth noting that from the very beginning, egories for the different disorders that used to appear Overview of Clinical

the DSM was rooted in a psychobiological view, which under different axes (especially axes I and II). Also, sev- Assessment Tools

argued that mental disorders represented specific reac- eral disorders were reorganized or renamed; for example,
tions that an individual’s personality had to psychological, mental retardation was replaced with the term intellec-
social, and biological processes. However, other emphases tual disability (or intellectual developmental disorder), and
changed over the years, from an initial focus on psycho- obsessive-compulsive and related disorders became their
dynamic views to a later focus on cognitive and biologi- own category, whereas in the past they were subtypes of
cal perspectives. By the mid-1990s, the DSM had gone anxiety disorders.
through several revisions, and expanded to include a The creation of the DSM-5 was a highly con-
much greater number of disorders (more than 350!). tentious process that received a great deal of criticism
Why are there so many more disorders (about four within the field of mental health. In particular, critics
times more) now than half a century ago? The answer of the new approach have argued that pharmaceutical

Defining and Classifying Psychological Disorders :: Module 15.1 :: 627

 companies have had too much influence over the guide- behind in school. Imagine how welcome such a diagno-
lines described in the DSM (the net result being to make sis would be, especially perhaps to the parents or teach-
it easier for individuals to be given a diagnosis, thereby ers who would appreciate having some help in the form
increasing the demand for pharmacological treatments). of medication that can help children function effectively
The overall impact of these changes remains to be deter- and, ideally, reach their full potential, or at the very least,
mined, as the mental health community is only now at become more manageable.
the beginning of transitioning from using the DSM-IV Interestingly, since being included in the DSM,
to the DSM-5. ADHD diagnoses have skyrocketed, although only in
Furthermore, the DSM-5 does not resolve the cri- North America; in Europe, ADHD only seems to occur
tiques that have been lodged against past versions. For 10% as often. Also, there is a very wide range of estimates
one, the diagnosis of specific disorders is often not highly as to how many children have ADHD, ranging from the
reliable, definitions are not always based on empirical most common rate of 3–5% up to about 20% (Shaywitz
evidence, and different disorders often share many com- & Shaywitz, 1991). Whether North Americans are mas-
mon symptoms. This leads to a lack of agreement among sively overdiagnosing ADHD, or whether Europeans
mental health professionals about how to classify many and others are missing the vast numbers of people with
disorders, and the frequent possibility that a given person ADHD in their population, is not something we can
will receive a different diagnosis if she goes to different know, but it is worth thinking about, because if ADHD
therapists or doctors. The DSM also sends the implicit is so highly subjective and susceptible to being used as a
message that disorders can be objectively defined, way of pharmacologically controlling people, then this
although the entire process of deciding a given pattern would be a problem.
of behaviour implies mental illness is highly subjective Along this line of reasoning, critics charge that the
and depends upon prevailing beliefs and norms operat- handy availability of the ADHD diagnosis makes it too
ing in a given time and culture; consider, for example, easy to pathologize children and then medicate them to
that homosexuality was once considered a disorder, fix the pathology. The critics’ argument that generations
and as we discussed earlier, there is no objectively cor- of children are being exposed to the long-term effects of
rect way to determine whether a person’s symptoms are stimulant medications that are generally used for treat-
indicative of a mental illness or not. ing ADHD is especially troublesome in light of stud-
Critics also express concern that giving men- ies showing that many children, between 20% to 70%
tal health workers more labels with which to diagnose of children diagnosed with ADHD, no longer meet the
clients is not necessarily a good thing and may lead to criteria once they reach adulthood (Weiss & Hechtman,
overdiagnoses. This is especially problematic in certain 1993). Given that medications inevitably bring increased
contexts, because the diagnosis provides both an expla- risk of a wide variety of problems, particularly when
nation for what is happening with a person who is strug- relied upon over time, it is of utmost importance to
gling, and that there is hope that the problem can be ensure that diagnoses are made in as careful and unbiased
treated. Think of how powerful the temptation would be a manner as possible.
in many situations to reach for readily available solutions, Perhaps one solution for improving the diagnos-
such as drugs that purport to treat the disorder, without tic accuracy of the DSM is to develop more objective,
fully considering the costs that might result, or alterna- biological indicators such as genetic markers, indicators
tive perspectives and potential solutions to the problems of neurotransmitter dysfunction, or brain abnormalities,
one is experiencing. that are involved in the symptoms and functional deficits
As one example, consider attention deficit/hyper- experienced by the individual. These efforts are under
activity disorder (ADHD), which is commonly applied way, although the field has a long way to go before such
to children who are having problems adjusting to ele- biological markers can be substantially incorporated
mentary school (especially boys, who are at least three into diagnostic criteria (Hyman, 2007). A focus on the
times more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD than biological markers of functional deficits and symptoms
girls; Barkley, 1998). For most children, by the time their would also potentially help to shift mental health practi-
parents and teachers decide to get them assessed for a tioners away from the reliance on classifying people into
psychological disorder such as ADHD, they will all likely particular disorder categories, and instead develop more
have been witnessing an accumulation of problematic individualized approaches for understanding the partic-
behaviours on the part of the child—getting in trouble ular manifestation of symptoms for each individual. In
for being restless or misbehaving in class, forgetting to other words, by understanding what is not working for a
do homework, interrupting frequently during conversa- person, we can develop ways of fixing the necessary sys-
tions, not paying attention in class, and steadily falling tems, thereby “fixing” the disorder. There is a subtle shift

628 :: Module 15.1 : : Defining and Classifying Psychological Disorders

in this line of reasoning, away from thinking in terms of by one doctor who checks off symptom boxes a little
disorders themselves, as though there are “diseases of the more readily, but be deemed normal by another doctor
mind” that we must cure, and instead thinking in terms who has more strict and conservative interpretations of
of actual processes (cognitive, emotional, neurological) people’s symptoms. The long-term effects of this can
that are being affected. be substantial. Imagine a person with a considerable
One additional weakness of the DSM approach is amount of anxiety, odd behaviour patterns, and a strong
that there is a fine, and essentially arbitrary, line between need to control the environment who is evaluated by
whether a person is considered to have a disorder or a clinician in early adulthood when these patterns are
not. For each disorder, the DSM provides a list of pos- just starting to develop. Depending on exactly what had
sible symptoms, and guidelines as to how many of the been happening in that person’s life and recent expe-
symptoms the person must have before being given the riences, coupled with that clinician’s particular biases
diagnosis. If a person seems to have the necessary num- and ways of interpreting things, several different diag-
ber (e.g., five out of nine possible symptoms), then he noses might be possible, such as obsessive-compulsive
has the disorder, but with one symptom less, he doesn’t. disorder, or generalized anxiety disorder, or potentially
In practice, what this means is that the diagnosis a per- borderline personality disorder; or he could be seen as
son receives, and even whether a person receives any “sub-clinical,” meaning that his symptoms do not quite
diagnosis at all, can depend on a single symptom. The meet the criteria for diagnosis, from which the person
accuracy problem this creates is then compounded by may conclude that he is “normal” and be resistant to
the fact that symptoms themselves are often thought of ever admitting that he has problems he would benefit
by a clinician in an either/or fashion: Either you have from working on.
the symptom or you do not. However, many symptoms As people enter the world of mental health care,
consist of quite normal thoughts and behaviours (e.g., they enter a system that offers very powerful treatments
difficulty sleeping, anxious thoughts), but to be consid- and ways of managing what can otherwise be devastat-
ered actual symptoms of a disorder they must be more ing psychological conditions. However, they also enter
severe or longer-lasting than usual, or occur in inappro- a decision-making system that is less accurate than we
priate contexts or without any clear reason. Obviously, would like. This can be a serious problem, because once
making such judgment calls is a highly subjective a person has been labelled as having a disorder, the label
process that may be fraught with error, leaving it very itself may change how that person is viewed by others,
likely that a given person might be deemed mentally ill and how subsequent behaviours are interpreted.

What do we know
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC about how labels affect
LITERACY MODEL people?
Labelling and Mental Disorders It is important to put the following
information in the proper context,
What are the outcomes of diagnosing and labelling the which is the recognition that diag-
disorder a person is believed to be experiencing? On the nostic labels can be very helpful;
positive side, it is hoped that receiving a diagnosis of mental they can help people understand
illness should make people more likely to seek and receive their experiences and communicate in a standardized way
effective treatment; also, receiving a diagnosis of a specific with whoever they may need to as they manage their symp-
disorder should facilitate communication among mental toms and navigate the mental health-care system. Under-
health professionals: A label indicates a set of symptoms, standing the precise disorder can, ideally, help clinicians to
probable causes, and potential treatments, thus helping to prescribe effective treatments.
summarize a given person’s experience and highlight the However it is also, unfortunately, the case that being labelled
important pieces of information that will be useful for with a mental illness can potentially damage a person’s mate-
understanding and treating the person. However, these rial, social, and psychological well-being in a variety of ways
diagnostic labels can also have their drawbacks, such as (Link et al., 1989; Rosenfield, 1997). For example, seeing one-
biasing how people will subsequently interpret the person’s self as “mentally ill” has been shown to be associated with
actions or experiences, or changing how people feel about low self-esteem or feelings of helplessness; in some cases, a
themselves. diagnosis may lead a person to indulge in even more extreme

Defining and Classifying Psychological Disorders :: Module 15.1 :: 629

 or destructive behaviour patterns. Further problems arise problems they encounter. There is also evidence to suggest
because of the ways in which society’s general views toward that labels help individuals understand their own situation,
the mentally ill become experienced and often internalized and the labels may hold out hope for successful treat-
by the mentally ill themselves. People may begin to expect ment. Some psychologists who are in favour of labels have
others to reject and devalue them, which feeds the tendency argued that Rosenhan’s study fails to address the larger issue
to withdraw from social contact (Kroska & Harkness, 2006; of labels, because the symptoms he used were so marked
Link, 1987). People may also become demoralized about and severe; auditory hallucinations are such a hallmark of
their capabilities and themselves in general, which then inter- disorders such as schizophrenia that it would be virtually
feres with their motivations and goal-related striving. Sadly, impossible, perhaps even irresponsible, for a doctor to fail
in a classic self-fulfilling prophecy (see Module 13.2), the to diagnose an appropriate disorder and to use this diagno-
long-term effects can be that people end up experiencing sis in judging the person’s subsequent behaviours. Thus, it
the social rejection and stigmatization they initially feared seems that labels can be both helpful and harmful in certain
(Kroska & Harkness, 2006). instances. In an ideal world, we would be able to keep the
labels and get rid of the stigma. That may not be entirely pos-
How can science sible, but it is a goal for psychologists and community groups
to work toward.
explain how
labels may affect
perceptions of Why is this relevant?
another person’s Many of the potential costs
behaviour? or risks associated with being
diagnosed with a psychological
One of the most surprising and daring studies ever con- disorder stem from the more
ducted in psychology occurred in the early 1970s, when general problem of stigma toward mental illness. Research-
eight people, volunteering with David Rosenhan, decided to ers from a number of academic areas have identified some
get themselves committed to psychiatric hospitals. None of techniques that work in reducing stigmatization. For exam-
the eight were experiencing any symptoms of mental illness, ple, research shows that personal contact and knowledge
but when they went to their doctors and complained that of biopsychosocial explanations of mental illness are associ-
they were hearing voices, they received diagnoses for schizo- ated with lower stigma (Boyd et al., 2010). Education seems
phrenia or bipolar disorder, and were admitted to a psychiat- to matter, too: When individuals are instructed about the
ric hospital for observation and treatment. Once they were first-person experience of mental illness, they show greater
in the hospital, the challenge was to convince the doctors acceptance than groups that simply learn the facts about
that there was, in fact, nothing wrong with them and they mental illness (Mann & Himelien, 2008). On campus, you
could be released back to their regular lives. might find a chapter of a student organization known as
Once admitted, the volunteers exhibited no further symp- Active Minds, a group that operates in several countries
toms and simply tried to behave “normally.” Nevertheless, including Canada and the United States, and has had suc-
their behaviours were often interpreted as abnormal in some cess in reducing the stigma associated with mental illness
way by their doctors, so that even normal behaviours such as at some campuses (McKinney, 2009). Keep these findings in
asking a question to a doctor, or talking about one’s relatively mind as you read the rest of this chapter; as an informed
normal childhood, would be interpreted as abnormal by doc- student you will be less likely to judge others and more
tors or hospital staff. Despite the volunteers’ best efforts to likely to seek help yourself, or recommend it to others, if it
be released, it took from 7 to 59 days for their doctors to be is ever needed.
convinced their symptoms were “in remission”; interestingly,
Watch in that time period, they were also given a total of 2100 pills
Special Topics: to take (which they merely pretended to take but were able
Diagnosing Mental to dispose of when nobody was looking) (Rosenhan, 1973).
Disorders

Can we critically evaluate

this information?
It is tempting to ask whether the
labels applied to psychological dis-
orders are beneficial or harmful,
but this question may actually over-
simplify the situation. For one, the
advantages of this system are clear for professionals: Labels
are a necessary means of identifying and describing the Michael Mercer/Alamy

630 :: Module 15.1 : : Defining and Classifying Psychological Disorders

 psychology. Being able to reliably diagnose particular
Quick Quiz 15.1a disorders is a central and ongoing challenge to the men-
Defining Abnormal Behaviour tal health fields, having an impact on problems that range
from individuals knowing how to effectively navigate the
1 Rosenhan’s classic study “On Being Sane in Insane
KNOW . . .

Places” showed that mental health system (i.e., getting the appropriate treat-
A psychiatric institutions actually make disorders ment they need), to the stigmatization of the mentally
more likely, because they reinforce odd behaviour ill (i.e., the problem of being misdiagnosed or having
and they offer ready-made labels that people use labels misapplied), to the use of the insanity defence in
to “pathologize” themselves.
criminal trials (i.e., being able to accurately determine
B therapists who come from a Freudian, psycho-
whether or not a person is criminally responsible for
analytic background can easily be tricked into
believing people have a disorder that they do not
a crime they committed). Each of these issues is made
in fact have, whereas therapists who are trained more difficult to deal with by the fact that our measure-
in a modern cognitive-behavioural-therapy type of ments of psychological disorders are not nearly as accu-
framework do not make this same mistake. rate as we would like; in many cases, we cannot even
C once people have been labelled with a specific say with confidence whether someone is mentally ill and
disorder, this will change how other people inter- what psychological illness or disorder they have.
pret their behaviour and behave toward them.
D the presence of a mentally healthy person in a THE MENTAL DISORDER DEFENCE (AKA THE
group of mentally ill patients can dramatically INSANITY DEFENCE) This lack of diagnostic accu-
improve the functional scores of the patients. racy plays a big role in the criminal justice system. You
have no doubt heard that in some trials a defendant will
2 One problem with the DSM is that plead “not guilty by reason of insanity,” which is now
UNDERSTAND . . .

A there is no objectively definable line separating called the mental disorder defence in Canada. This
normal from abnormal; thus, determining whether defence does not deny that the person committed the
a person has a disorder or not relies upon criteria
offence, but claims that the defendant was in such an extreme,
for distinguishing normal from abnormal, and those
criteria are essentially arbitrary.
abnormal state of mind when committing the crime that he or
she could not discern that the actions were legally or morally
B the construction of the DSM may reflect the influ-
ence of the pharmaceutical industry. wrong. For example, a person could cause a car accident
C it may lead to overdiagnoses, because it provides
or commit murder when in a severely dissociated state,
diagnostic labels that can be appealing to people such as could occur due to schizophrenia or PTSD.
for a variety of reasons (such as offering hope that Thus, whether or not we can objectively and accu-
treatment is possible, or making a child’s behaviour rately measure “sanity” is extremely important, poten-
more manageable). tially making the difference between a person being
D all of the above. a convicted felon or being in a psychiatric treatment
program. However, determining that a person was not
3 Which of the following is not a psychiatric criterion “sane” when committing a crime is not an easy thing
for mental illness? to do, and the legal definition of sanity doesn’t always
A Expression of behaviour that causes distress to self
reflect our intuitions.
or others
B The condition must be categorical
Consider the following cases:
C Impairment of functioning On June 20, 2001, Andrea Yates drowned all five of
D Increased amount of high-risk behaviours (e.g., drug her children in the bathtub, one by one, carefully laying
use, speeding) their bodies on her bed, side by side. This horrific murder
seems impossible to comprehend. How could a person do
Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
such a thing? Surely she must be “insane!” As her psycho-
logical history was revealed to the public, it became appar-
ent that in the years preceding the murders, Andrea Yates
Applications of Psychological had experienced bouts of severe post-partum depression
and psychosis, with multiple suicide attempts and psychi-
Diagnoses atric hospitalizations, and had been put on anti-psychotic
Perhaps one of the most important things to appreci- medications. Although her initial trial resulted in a guilty
ate about psychological disorders is that there is no per- verdict and life sentence, she was able to successfully
fect test for identifying them, nor a rigid line separating appeal, and in 2006 was found not guilty by reason of
“normal” from “abnormal” when it comes to human insanity. Assuming that such a verdict is accurate, one can

Defining and Classifying Psychological Disorders :: Module 15.1 :: 631

 see the value of this defence; it would be horrific beyond
belief to murder one’s own children in a state of uncon-
trollable psychosis, and then, after the fact, to be found
guilty of their murders and the rest of your life is to be
spent behind bars. The amount of suffering such a person
would go through is practically inconceivable.
Between 1978 and 1991, Jeffrey Dahmer murdered
at least 15 men, committing utterly horrific acts to them
both before and after they died. He engaged in sexual and
cannibalistic acts with the corpses of his victims, and fully
dismembered and dissected them, keeping various body
parts in his refrigerator. With some of the victims, Dah-
mer had drilled holes into their skulls while they were still
alive, and injected acid or boiling water into their brains. ALLEN FREDRICKSON/Reuters/Landov
It seems necessary to pause for a moment and Jeffrey Dahmer, however, was found to be sane. His admission
reflect on just how outrageous the above paragraph is. of guilt and remorse suggested he did understand that what he
To think that a human being could be so disconnected did was wrong.
from normal human connection that he could commit
such atrocities and to think of just what happened in his profound self-hatred that he projected onto his victims.
little apartment over those years is the worst of night- There is no doubt that Jeffrey Dahmer was severely psy-
mares. Surely such a person must be “insane!” However, chologically disturbed. But in terms of his legal status, he
in 1992, the jury rejected Dahmer’s insanity defence. was sane. Dahmer was sentenced to 15 consecutive life
Dahmer’s crimes had been carefully orchestrated and terms in prison. Two years later, in 1994, he was mur-
planned, and were undertaken with his full intention to dered by a fellow inmate.
commit the harm that he did. He was aware that what he The reasoning behind these decisions about why
was doing was legally wrong, and he took steps to hide Jeffrey Dahmer is considered sane while Andrea Yates
his actions and abduct his victims carefully so that they is considered “insane” is based on the M’Naghten rule.
would not be able to get away. Dahmer also drank very That case happened in 1843 in Great Britain. Daniel
heavily, and seemed to use alcohol as a way of lowering M’Naghten was found to have assassinated the Prime
his inhibitions in many of the cases of his most horrific Minister’s secretary, but a jury was convinced that he was
acts. He had a long history of alcohol and drug abuse not to be found guilty, and they did not send him to jail.
and behaviour patterns consistent with extreme border- They believed that he had been incapable of knowing
line personality disorder, various sexual paraphilias, and a that what he did was wrong, so M’Naghten was com-
mitted to a mental institution, and the plea “not guilty
by reason of insanity” entered the legal profession.
Applying the M’Naghten rule is extremely tricky,
and indeed, it is rarely used. One study showed that this
defence is used in fewer than 1% of federal cases in the
United States—and it has a success rate of only 20%
(Melton et al., 2007).

BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
PERSPECTIVES
Symptoms, Treatments, and Culture
Another key issue with diagnosing psychological disorders
Steve Ueckert/Pool/ZUMA Press/Newscom is that they may not present the same across different cul-
Andrea Yates was found not guilty by reason of insanity. The
tures, and a lack of appreciation for these cultural differences
jury believed she could not distinguish right from wrong at the can potentially lead to misdiagnoses. For example, post-
time of the murders. traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common psychological

632 :: Module 15.1 : : Defining and Classifying Psychological Disorders

illness affecting almost 10% of the Canadian population (Van physiological mechanisms operating within individuals. As we
Ameringen et al., 2008). The disorder can be very long-lasting become better at developing a full-systems understanding
and debilitating, interfering with many aspects of a person’s of disorders, by integrating the insights from the biological,
life because of recurring thoughts, images, and nightmares psychological, and social levels of analysis, we should become
that induce symptoms of tension and often severe anxiety. better at learning to properly identify, manage, and ideally
And as the world is showing no signs of exposing people to cure people of their psychological afflictions.
fewer disasters, wars, and trauma, PTSD is going to be an
unfortunate companion for many on the road of life.
Despite the seemingly universal physiological symptoms
of PTSD, researchers have found interesting differences in the
cognitive and emotional symptoms between some samples of
people. For example, people who experienced trauma in the
U.S.-led war in Afghanistan and the 2004 tsunami in the Indian
Ocean showed somewhat different symptoms, depending
on whether they were Americans or natives to the region
(i.e., Afghans during the war, or Sri Lankans during the tsu-
nami). Americans tended to report difficult internal experi-
ences such as flashbacks, whereas Afghans and Sri Lankans
were more likely to experience worries about the welfare of
their families and communities more generally. Thus, recur-
ring personal flashbacks seem to be more of an individual-
istic phenomenon, whereas recurring worries about others
seem to be more of a collectivistic phenomenon (Fernando,
2008; Miller et al., 2006). It is important for mental health
Hou Yu/ZUMAPRESS/Newscom
professionals to be sensitive to the cultural differences that
Survivors of major disasters are at risk for developing PTSD. Cultural factors
may arise in the experience of a particular psychological dis- influence the nature of the anxiety that people experience in the wake of such
order, and factoring such cultural differences into diagnostic disasters.
research and practice remains an ongoing challenge.
Cultural differences play a role in treatments as well,
in many different ways. For example, one of the more con-
troversial possible breakthroughs in the treatment of PTSD
involves psychological therapy combined with carefully pre-
scribed doses of MDMA (the psychoactive component in the
Quick Quiz 15.1b
street drug ecstasy). Thus far, MDMA, in combination with Applications of Psychological Diagnoses
psychological therapy, has proven to be an effective treat-
1 As described in this section, insanity
UNDERSTAND . . .

ment for cases of PTSD that resist other forms of treatment A is itself a psychological disorder.
(Mithoefer et al., 2013; Oehen et al., 2013). The effectiveness
B describes a person with any psychological
seems due to multiple mechanisms. For example, the oxytocin disorder.
release induced by MDMA helps with the emotional bonding
C is not recognized by the legal profession or
and trust that is essential to the therapeutic alliance between
judicial system.
therapist and client (see Module 16.1), and the effects on
D means that an individual could not distinguish
serotonin seem beneficial for helping to reduce the anxiety
between right and wrong when he or she broke
that is key to PTSD. In short, MDMA helps people attain an
a law.
open and secure state of mind so that they can more effec-
tively face the trauma and begin to address, through therapy,
2 Which of the following statements about PTSD is
APPLY . . .

the reactions it provokes. Of course, there are large cultural

true?
and sub-cultural differences in the acceptance of drugs such as
A People of all cultures experience the exact same
MDMA, which is illegal in the United States and is associated
concerns after trauma.
with “rave culture,” widespread abuse, and even occasional
B Some cultures are immune to stress reactions.
deaths in the minds of many. Andrew Feldmar, a psychologist
in Vancouver involved in the research of MDMA, who advo- C Physiological symptoms of PTSD may be common
cates strongly for the potential benefits of psychedelics, has among people of different cultures, but the specific
concerns people have can vary.
been permanently banned from entering the United States.
In sum, fully understanding disorders, from diagno- D PTSD occurs only in cultures that use a medical
sis to treatment, involves understanding the multiple sys- model.
tems involved in determining the individual’s psychological Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
health, from broad cultural attitudes and perspectives to the

Defining and Classifying Psychological Disorders :: Module 15.1 :: 633

 Module Summary
Module Now that you have read this module you should
15.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with defining and

classifying psychological disorders:

asylums (p. 625) maladaptive (p. 626)

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual medical model (p. 625)
of Mental Disorders (DSM) mental disorder defence MPI/Archive Photos/Getty Images
(p. 627) (insanity defence) (p. 631)
etiology (p. 627)
ANALYZE . . .
UNDERSTAND . . .
● Whether the benefits of labelling psychological
● The differences between the concepts of psychological disorders outweigh the disadvantages. To evaluate the
disorders and insanity. It is important to make distinctions importance of the DSM-5’s labels, it would be helpful to
between the psychological concept of a disorder and the legal consider their functions. They organize large amounts of
concept of [Link] legal consideration of sanity hinges on information about symptoms, causes, and outcomes into
whether people know, at the time when committing a crime, terminology that mental health professionals can work
that their actions are wrong, in a legal or a moral [Link], with. From a practical point of view, this system meets
to be found legally insane is much more severe than being the requirements of the insurance companies that pay for
given a diagnosis for a psychological disorder. Obviously, psychological services. One downside to this process is
the vast majority of people with disorders are considered that once the label is applied, people have the tendency
sane, and even if people have a disorder and commit a to misinterpret behaviours that are perfectly normal.
crime, the disorder by no means excuses them from their Another downside is that if insurance and pharmaceutical
actions. It is important to remember that, in order to have companies have influence over how the guidelines are
a disorder, the primary criterion is whether the behaviour decided, then the whole system could be biased in favour
is maladaptive, whereas in order to be found criminally not of over-diagnosing and over-medicating people.
responsible, the primary criterion is whether the person
knew what they were doing was wrong.

APPLY . . .

● Your knowledge to understand the symptoms ,

stereotypes, and stigma surrounding psychological
disorders. Researchers have created some simple
measures of stigma. See how you compare to others by
completing the scale in Table 15.2.

Table 15.2 :: Attitudes toward Mental Illness

Complete the following scale to measure your attitude toward mental illness. For each of the items, circle the number that best describes how much
you agree or disagree with the statement.
ITEM COMPLETELY DISAGREE COMPLETELY AGREE
If I had a mentally ill relative, I wouldn’t want anyone to know. 1 2 3 4 5
Most of my friends would see me as being weak if they thought that I had a mental illness. 1 2 3 4 5
I would be very embarrassed if I were diagnosed as having a mental illness. 1 2 3 4 5
Mentally ill people scare me. 1 2 3 4 5
I would cross the street if I saw a mentally ill person coming in order to avoid passing 1 2 3 4 5
him/her.
I think that mentally ill people are strange and weird. 1 2 3 4 5
Find your total score by adding up the numbers you circled and dividing by 6.

Interpretation:This scale measures stigma toward individuals who have a mental illness. Compare your score to a large sample of high school [Link] average on this
same scale was 2.13, with higher scores indicating greater levels of stigma. For those with a family member diagnosed with a mental disorder, the mean dropped to 2.05.
Source: Watson et al., 2005.

634 :: Module 15.1 : : Defining and Classifying Psychological Disorders

 News-Journal/AP images

Module

15.2 Personality and Dissociative Disorders

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology The phenomenon of dissociation The biopsychosocial model The status of dissociative identity
After reading associated with personality and how a dissociative to understand the causes disorder as a legitimate diagnosis
this module and dissociative disorders disorder might occur of personality disorders
you should

Often, the people who commit harm to others have themselves suffered Aileen Wuornos grew up in a complete chaos of abuse and mental ill-
substantial harm from others; the abused person becomes the abuser, ness. Her father was incarcerated and mentally ill, thus being absent
and the person with the angry father becomes an angry father himself. from her life. Her mother abandoned her, leaving her adopted, at age 4,
Of course, this may not always happen, because experiences that we by her grandparents. Wuornos later described a childhood of being sexu-
have in life can also motivate us to change; the child of alcoholic parents ally abused and beaten by her grandfather, of prostituting herself for money
becomes a non-drinker, or the survivor of childhood abuse becomes a and cigarettes to others, and being raped and impregnated at age 13 by a
deeply compassionate person who counsels others. Both patterns, stabil- friend of her grandfather’s. The baby was given up for adoption, and by
ity and change, are possible. One of the distinct features of personality age 15, Aileen had been thrown out of the house and was supporting
disorders are their stability, generally over the person’s entire life, and as herself through prostitution.
these patterns unfold in an individual’s life, damage is invariably done to
With no stable home or healthy family relationships, she had very little
many others.
capacity to develop trust in others or emotionally connect with others.
Consider the appallingly sad case of Aileen Wuornos (note: this story When she was 20, she was, suddenly and surprisingly, wed to a wealthy yacht
is potentially triggering or upsetting, particularly to people who have club owner; this might have been her ticket to a better life, but within weeks
experienced abuse themselves). Aileen’s life was one of those saddest of it had devolved into violence and conflict, and the marriage was eventually
human stories, so relentlessly tragic that it became the inspiration for annulled. Over the next decade, Aileen struggled to keep her life together,
the 2003 movie, Monster, in which Charlize Theron won an Oscar for her but was arrested numerous times for offences ranging from forging cheques
portrayal of Aileen. to armed robbery and car theft, leading her to spend some time in prison.

Personality and Dissociative Disorders :: Module 15.2 :: 635

 Then, when she was 33 years old, Aileen Wuornos’s life of
pain and trauma came spilling back out of her in a murder-
ous frenzy. Over a one-year period spanning 1989 and 1990,
she murdered seven men across the state of Florida. She ini-
tially claimed to have killed them in self-defence, in response
to each of them attempting to rape her. Although diagnosed
with borderline personality disorder and antisocial person-
ality disorder, Wuornos was determined to be sane at the
time of her killings and fit to stand trial. She was convicted
and sentenced to death in the state of Florida (Wuornos v.
State of Florida, 1994). In 2002, she was executed by lethal
injection.

Focus Questions
1 What are personality disorders, and how do
they differ from normal personality traits?
2 What are the key characteristics of
dissociative disorders? Why does a person
develop a dissociative disorder?
Narcissus, c.1597–99 (oil on canvas), Caravaggio,
Michelangelo Merisi da (1571–1610)/Palazzo Barberini,
Rome, Italy/The Bridgeman Art Library
According to Greek mythology, Narcissus discovered his
Chapter 12 described the psychological approaches to image reflecting from the surface of a pool of water. Unable to
personality—the relatively stable patterns of thinking, tear himself away from the beauty of his own face, Narcissus
behaving, and relating to others that make each person wasted away and died at the water’s edge. In modern times,
narcissism describes a person who has an inflated sense of
unique and are bound up with that person’s identity. In
self-importance.
certain unusual cases, personality patterns can become
deeply entrenched and maladaptive or destructive,
which is described as developing a personality disorder characterized by odd or eccentric behaviour, and include
(PD). Paranoid Personality Disorder, Schizoid Personality Dis-
order, and Schizotypal Personality Disorder. Cluster B
disorders are indicated by dramatic, emotional, and
Defining and Classifying erratic behaviour, and include Antisocial Personality Dis-
Personality Disorders order, Borderline Personality Disorder, Histrionic Per-
sonality Disorder, and Narcissistic Personality Disorder.
Mental health professionals identify personality Cluster C disorders are characterized by anxious, fear-
disorders as particularly unusual patterns of behaviour (rela- ful, and inhibited behaviour, and include Avoidant Per-
tive to one’s cultural context) that are maladaptive, distress- sonality Disorder, Dependent Personality Disorder, and
ing to oneself or others, and resistant to change. For example, Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder. In addition
some people feel no empathy toward others, even those to these 10 disorders, the DSM-5 also identifies Per-
in great distress. Others have intense needs and high sonality Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, which is a
expectations for receiving the attention and admira- diagnosis given to individuals who exhibit patterns of
tion of others, and tend to feel severely rejected if their behaviour consistent with that of a personality disorder,
expectations are not met. Other people may become but which does not fit into any of the personality disor-
rapidly and obsessively attached to another person, only der categories described above.
to reject that individual at a future time. Obviously, Although each personality disorder deserves to be
many people experience these basic patterns of behav- expanded upon, we are going to explore the four disor-
iour in varying degrees; it is important to remember ders in Cluster B to get a sense of the overarching com-
that personality disorders represent extreme and persis- monalities shared by disorders in a given cluster, as well
tent cases. as the specific factors that differentiate between them.
The DSM-5 identifies 10 distinct personality dis-
orders, which are categorized into three different clus- BORDERLINE PERSONALITY One of the clear-
ters based on shared features. Cluster A disorders are est examples of the emotional dysfunction that lies at

636 :: Module 15.2 : : Personality and Dissociative Disorders

the core of personality disorders is found in border- NARCISSISTIC PERSONALITY Narcissistic per-
line personality disorder (Blashfield & Intoccia, 2000). sonality disorder (NPD) is characterized by an inflated
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is character- sense of self-importance and an excessive need for attention and
ized by intense extremes between positive and negative emo- admiration, as well as intense self-doubt and fear of abandon-
tions, an unstable sense of self, impulsivity, and difficult social ment. The central focus on the narcissistic person’s own
relationships. People with BPD experience a wide range feelings and self-importance leaves little room for empa-
of emotions including extremely positive states such as thy for others, and instead, they will tend to be manipula-
joy, excitement, and love, but also including negative and tive, putting themselves first and ensuring that their own
destructive emotions such as anger, despair, and shame. needs are met in their relationships, regardless of the toll it
Relationships are characterized by instability and takes on others. In many public situations, such as school, Watch
intensity. A person with BPD may fall in love quickly people with NPD have a strong sense of “entitlement,” Janna: Borderline

and passionately, but also be highly fearful of abandon- believing that people should satisfy their demands, and Personality Disorder

ment and thus react intensely to any sign of rejection being likely to do whatever it takes, including cheat-
or criticism, and easily become disgusted with or reject- ing, in order to ensure their own success (Brunell
ing of their partner. They also are often manipulative in et al., 2011).
relationships, attempting to keep the person attached to
them and under their control. In fact, their emotional HISTRIONIC PERSONALITY Emotional dys-
reactions and ability to be emotionally manipulative in function can also be seen in histrionic personality
relationships are so strong that many therapists will limit disorder (HPD), which is characterized by excessive atten-
themselves to only one or a very small number of clients tion seeking and dramatic behaviour. “Histrionic” comes from
with BPD, because they can be so emotionally intense a Latin word meaning “like an actor or like a theatrical
and exhausting. performance”—an apt label for this disorder. People who
It is believed that borderline personality disorder have HPD are typically high-functioning because their
arises out of the person’s attempts to deal with deeply dramatic nature makes them seem vibrant and attractive in
rooted insecurity and severe emotional disturbances social situations, and they readily use flirtatiousness, sexu-
that are ultimately rooted in traumatic or emotionally ality, and flattery to garner the social attention they crave.
difficult experiences, such as inconsistent, abusive, or Similar to the other personality disorders discussed in this
neglectful parenting. To cope with or escape from nega- section, the histrionic person often engages in indulgent
tive emotions, the person often engages in impulsive, and risky behaviours, and tends to be highly sensitive to
risky, or self-destructive behaviour, including substance criticism and generally manipulative in relationships. The
abuse, indiscriminate sex, self-injury such as cutting or key difference between histrionic and the other personal-
burning oneself, and even suicide (American Psychiatric ity disorders in this cluster is the flamboyance and exhibi-
Association, 2013; Linehan, 1993). tionistic tendencies in histrionic behaviour.

What do we know
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC about antisocial
LITERACY MODEL personality disorder?
Antisocial Personality Disorder People with APD tend to be physi-
cally and verbally abusive, destruc-
tive, and frequently find themselves
The diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder (APD)
in trouble with the law. Symptoms
is given to individuals who have a profound lack of empathy or
of the disorder typically appear during childhood and ado-
emotional connection with others, a disregard for others’ rights or
lescence, including harming or torturing people or animals,
preferences, and a tendency toward inserting their own desires,
destroying property, stealing, and being deceitful (Lynam &
often violently, onto others regardless of the consequences for
Gudonis, 2005). The term “psychopath” is often used col-
other people or, often when younger, other animals. As a psycho-
loquially to describe a person who exhibits these types of
logical condition, it is highly resistant to treatment, in part
behaviour, and indeed, the cold-blooded, remorseless mur-
because individuals with APD are not alarmed or distressed
derer often fits the category of APD.
by their actions (although others frequently are), and they are
thus rarely, if ever, motivated to change.

Personality and Dissociative Disorders :: Module 15.2 :: 637

 For some people with severe APD, the antisocial acts they com- 8
mit are severe, and their lack of guilt or remorse is truly dis-
Type of picture viewed
[Link] tendency was clearly evident in the words of Aileen
Mutilations
Wuornos when she refused to appeal her death sentence: 6
Assault
I killed those men, robbed them as cold as ice. And I’d do it Threat

Physiological response
again, too. . . . There’s no chance in keeping me alive or any- 4
thing, because I’d kill again. I have hate crawling through my
system. (CNN, 2002)
2
Keep in mind that serial killers represent only a very small
subset of people with antisocial tendencies. In fact, people
with APD are often very successful, particularly in business,
0
which often rewards the kind of calculating, aggressive dis-
position of the person with APD, particularly when coupled
with the charm and social skills that many people with APD
–2
also possess. In fact, business managers often score highly
on measures of antisocial personality tendencies, rivalling
the scores of people with APD who are in jail. It is interest- –4
ing to speculate for a moment on the implications for soci-
Controls People with antisocial
ety if we construct our business and economic systems to personality disorder
reward antisocial qualities such as manipulativeness and lack
of empathy. {fig. 15.1} Emotional Responses of Individuals with
Antisocial Personality Disorder This graph shows the
strength of autonomic response to three types of pictures:
How can science mutilations, assault, and threat. Responses are much greater
among control subjects (those who do not have APD; the three
explain antisocial bars on the left) than among the individuals with antisocial per-
personality sonality disorder (the three bars on the right).
disorder?
You may have heard sto-
ries of people who have “snapped” under stress and com- for others, and learning through fear and punishment, are
mitted horrific acts—however, this type of extreme stress dependent on the amygdala (Rolls, 1999). When the amyg-
response does not at all characterize APD. In fact, research- dala is not functioning properly, people are less able to
ers have discovered that people with antisocial personality empathically connect with others, to feel the impact of
disorder are under-reactive to stress. For example, a flash negative emotions, and to be less responsive to negativ-
of light, a loud sound, or the sudden appearance of an angry ity in general. Without the negative emotional information
face will startle most people. In contrast, people with APD and control provided by the amygdala, the person becomes
show very weak startle responses—such as blinking—when desensitized to the environment and the general experi-
exposed to unpleasant stimuli. In one study, research- ences of life, and may therefore seek more extreme experi-
ers recorded the electrical signals of the eyeblink muscles ences in order to feel something. Less able to empathize
while presenting disturbing images to a group of people with others, it may be easier for people with APD to be
with APD and a control group without APD. You can see the manipulative, abusive, or otherwise cruel; they may veer
results in Figure 15.1, in which the strength of the startle toward antisocial activities because of the feeling of excite-
response is indicated by the height of the bars. The group ment, arousal, and power it gives them, in conjunction with
of people with APD (the bars on the right side) have much the fact that they are unaffected by the guilt and other
weaker responses than the group without APD (on the left; moral emotions that would normally restrain people from
Levenston et al., 2000). committing harm.

This reduced reactivity to stress is part of a larger system of This sets them on a developmental trajectory that com-
emotion regulation processes, which corresponds to a neu- monly leads to committing violent and antisocial acts; engag-
rological system of brain areas that tie together thinking and ing in aggressive, risky, or self-destructive behaviours; and
reasoning, agency and will, and emotion. Central brain areas having volatile and generally dysfunctional interpersonal
include parts of the prefrontal cortex (in particular the orbi- relationships.
tofrontal cortex), amygdala, anterior cingulate cortex, and
Although all of us “lose control” at some point in our lives,
other regions (Davidson et al., 2000); see Figure 15.2.
most of the time, people without APD are able to control
The amygdala is centrally involved in the experience of their negative emotional reactions and are responsive to cues
one’s own emotions and those of other people. As a result, in the environment, such as signs of fear or anger in the faces
extremely important functions, including feeling empathy or behaviour of others (Davidson et al., 2000).

638 :: Module 15.2 : : Personality and Dissociative Disorders

 A B

C D

{fig. 15.2} Emotion Regulation in the Brain

Can we critically evaluate helpful for psychologists who are trying to understand the
underlying basis for these disturbing behavioural patterns.
this information?
People with APD tend to be highly resistant to psychologi-
One cautionary note to keep in cal therapies, making it even more critical to understand the
mind when reading about antiso- underlying biological processes. Also, antisocial patterns are
cial personality disorder is that we often detectable during childhood and adolescence, which
must be careful not to assume that are critical periods of brain development. If a system of
all people with APD are violent early diagnosis and treatment could be instituted, it might
criminals, gleefully harming others indiscriminantly. Ironi- be possible to more effectively intervene before the person
cally, many of the characteristics of APD may themselves be develops the full manifestation of the disorder, and before
highly desirable in our competitive corporate culture. The committing much harm.
ability to emotionally detach from people, to be manipula-
From a larger perspective, the possibility that so much of
tive and able to deceive or lie without any moral reserva-
our current post-industrial, globalizing culture rewards traits
tions, to be charming and charismatic so as to appear to
associated with APD seems to warrant taking a pause and
connect with people even though you can easily see people
asking, does this make sense? Are these the tendencies that
as tools to be used to satisfy your own desires, may well
we want to be encouraging in our society?
be rewarded in the worlds of CEOs, lawyers, salespeople,
and undoubtedly many other social environments. These
personality traits give people great power over others,
because they are able to use others for their own personal
gain without being held back by moral constraints (Lykken,
1995). Thus, the abusive boyfriend, the charming corporate
ladder-climber, the intensely focused surgeon, the serial
killer, or the socially inhibited hermit may all be outcomes of
antisocial personality disorder.

Why is this relevant?

Identifying how physiology
and brain function differ in
mark downey/Alamy
people with APD is certainly

Personality and Dissociative Disorders :: Module 15.2 :: 639

 THE BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL APPROACH TO PER- their intensely negative emotions and experiences, they
SONALITY DISORDERS It is often difficult to iden- may have effectively shut down and never sufficiently
tify the causes of personality disorders because they seem developed the emotional circuitry for empathy. This
to arise from multiple causes over a long period of time. often results in aggression and cruelty toward others,
Rather than pinpointing the exact moment a disorder including animals.
began, psychologists speak in general terms about the In general, personality disorders often involve exten-
types of events that contribute to personality disorders. sive emotional damage from childhood experiences,
Adding to the difficulty is the fact that multiple causes ranging from physical violence and sexual abuse to the
are likely at play, and it may be possible for two people to profound invalidation and insecurity of being repeatedly
develop the same symptomatic thoughts and behaviours abandoned or neglected as a child. For example, even less
through entirely different routes. The biopsychosocial severe cases of borderline personality disorder may arise
model provides a comprehensive view, examining per- from a child having his emotions treated as if they were
sonality disorders from three different perspectives. unreal or unimportant (Crowell et al., 2009). The deep
insecurity and emotional volatility that result leave adults
Psychological Factors Do people with personality
with BPD never able to master the ability to control
disorders think differently from nor mal people?
their emotions, becoming more vulnerable to everyday
Persistent beliefs about the self are a major part of the
life stressors (Glaser et al., 2008).
human personality, and the attempt to compensate for
and cope with negative beliefs about oneself is a key Biological Factors Not everyone who experiences
part of APD. People with narcissistic (NPD) or histrionic extreme stress and abuse develops a personality disorder,
(HPD) personality disorder also tend to have deeply of course. So why do some adapt successfully while
rooted negative beliefs about the self, how they are others develop personality disorders? The answer may lie
regarded, and whether they are loved by others. Much in how stress interacts with biological predispositions for
of their dysfunctional behaviour patterns stem from personality disorders. A number of specific genes seem
attempts to compensate for these negative self-beliefs. to contribute to emotional instability through serotonin
For example, the person with NPD may continually systems in the brain (Crowell et al., 2009). Research also
seek attention, adoration, and reassurance from others, points to unique activity in the limbic system and frontal
avoiding negative information about the self at all costs. lobes—brain regions that are associated with emotional
A similar pattern may be apparent in someone who responses and impulse control, respectively (Brendel
has a histrionic personality. Attention seeking through et al., 2005).
engaging in flattery and wearing provocative clothing
COMORBIDITY AND PERSONALITY DISORDERS
may help individuals with HPD avoid the negative
Personality disorders present serious challenges to men-
feelings they associate with being unnoticed.
tal health professionals, who have struggled to reach
Adults with APD and children with conduct disor-
consensus on how to categorize specific subtypes. One
ders (often a precursor to APD) have difficulty learning
issue is the high levels of comorbidity among personal-
tasks that require decision making and following com-
ity disorders. Comorbidity is the presence of two disorders
plex rules. Brain-imaging studies show that children
simultaneously. In some cases, the presence of the two dis-
with conduct disorders perform worse at these tasks and
orders interferes with their functioning or treatment. For
have reduced activity in the frontal lobes compared with
example, a person who is being treated for heart disease
healthy controls and even children with ADHD (Finger
may also have diabetes, and the presence of both diseases
et al., 2008). Thus it appears that cognitive factors and
in the same individual can complicate treatment. Simi-
their underlying brain systems are involved in personality
larly, substance abuse is often comorbid with personality
disorders.
disorders (Goldstein et al., 2007; Gudonis et al., 2009).
Sociocultural Factors Children begin to develop Their intertwining presents a challenge for treatment: Is
social skills and emotional attachments at home and it the personality disorder or the substance abuse that is
in their local neighbourhood and community. Not at the root of the problem? Comorbidity rates between
surprisingly, then, troubled homes and communities the personality disorder subtypes have led some psy-
can contribute to the development of psychopathy or chologists to suggest that the DSM-IV identified far
antisocial personality disorder (Meier et al., 2008). Such too many different types of personality disorders (Clark,
individuals have often themselves experienced trauma or 2007). These disagreements aside, APD and BPD are the
abuse, and with this history of themselves being treated most reliable to diagnose; that is, two or more mental
as objects rather than as sensitive human beings, and their health professionals are highly likely to agree on whether
need to defend themselves against and dissociate from someone has APD or BPD.

640 :: Module 15.2 : : Personality and Dissociative Disorders

 difficulty determining whether an event, perhaps some
Quick Quiz 15.2a long ago story, really happened the way you now remem-
Defining and Classifying Personality ber it, or whether it was a story that happened to some-
Disorders one else, or even a dream? These types of experiences can
be thought of as dissociative experiences, because they are
1 Which of the following is not a characteristic of
KNOW . . .

personality disorders?
characterized by a sense of separation—a dissociation—
A Traits that are inflexible and maladaptive between the person and her surroundings. Dissociative
B Significant functional impairment or subjective
experiences may arise while you are intensely focused
distress on one activity, or when you drift off while not doing
C Marked deviation from cultural expectations anything in particular, such as daydreaming during a long
D Typically diagnosed with medical tests lecture. People differ in their tendencies to dissociate, but
such experiences seem completely normal.
In a few cases, some people have such extreme dis-
2 Which of the following individuals demonstrates the
sociative experiences that they may be diagnosed with a
definition of comorbidity?
A A person who has both borderline personality dissociative disorder, a category of mental disorders charac-
disorder and a substance abuse disorder terized by a split between conscious awareness from feeling, cog-
B A person who is histrionic who both seeks exces- nition, memory, and identity (Kihlstrom, 2005). Dissociative
sive attention and is emotionally hyper-reactive disorders include the following conditions:
C A person with borderline personality disorder who
• Dissociative fugue: A period of profound autobio-
is impulsive and tends to be in unstable relationships
graphical memory loss. People in fugue states may go
D A person who experiences a personality disorder
that turns out to be fatal
so far as to develop a new identity in a new location
with no recollection of their past.
• Depersonalization disorder: A strong sense of the surreal,
3 ________ refers to a condition marked by a habitual
UNDERSTAND . . .

pattern of willingly violating others’ personal rights, with the feeling that one is not connected to one’s body,
very little sign of empathy or remorse. the feeling of disconnection from one’s regular iden-
A Borderline personality disorder tity and awareness.
B Narcissistic personality disorder • Dissociative amnesia: A severe loss of memory, usually
C Histrionic personality disorder for a specific stressful event, when no biological cause
D Antisocial personality disorder for amnesia is present.

Probably the most familiar member of this category

4 ________ involves intense extremes between positive is dissociative identity disorder (DID; sometimes
and negative emotions, an unstable sense of self,
referred to as multiple personality disorder), in which
impulsivity, and difficult social relationships.
A Borderline personality disorder
a person experiences a split in identity such that they feel dif-
ferent aspects of themselves as though they were separated from
B Narcissistic personality disorder
each other. This can be severe enough that the person constructs
C Histrionic personality disorder
entirely separate personalities, only one of which will generally
D Antisocial personality disorder
be in control at a time.
These distinct personalities, or alters, may be so dif- Explore
5 Which of the following biopsychosocial factors is least
APPLY . . .

ferent from one another as to have different genders, Dissociative Identity

likely to be related to personality disorders?
sexual orientations, memories, personality, and autobio- Disorder
A Stress reactivity
graphical sense of self and “who they are.” The dissoci-
B History of abuse
ation of alter identities can be so strong that one alter
C Decreased activity of the frontal lobes
may have no memory of events experienced by other
D Enjoyment of pain alters. From Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde to Tyler Durden
Answers can be found on page ANS-4. in Fight Club, we have been both fascinated and fright-
ened by the possibility that a single individual can house
radically different personalities within that individual’s
consciousness.
Dissociative Identity Disorder In most cases, dissociative disorders such as DID
Have you ever been so engaged in driving, reading a are thought to be brought on by extreme stress. Some
book, or playing a game that you were totally unaware psychologists have hypothesized that, during a traumatic
of what was going on around you? Have you ever had event, such as being a victim of violence, individuals

Personality and Dissociative Disorders :: Module 15.2 :: 641

 may cope with the experience by shifting their con- of DID. After all, any different state of mind or emo-
sciousness to a different perspective, possibly going to tional experience will involve different patterns of brain
another place in their mind, or feeling as though they activity; the fact that the two “alters” produce different
are standing back from their physical selves watching patterns of brain activation may simply reflect that the
what was happening to them, as though it was hap- person is thinking about and experiencing things differ-
pening to somebody else. With repeated experiences, ently in the two states of mind, not that the alters are
this type of dissociation could become an individual’s actually distinct personalities.
habitual way of coping with the trauma, as well as other Another questionable aspect of DID is the huge
stressful situations, producing a tendency to enter a change in the number of cases over time. By 1970, there
completely different kind of consciousness, as though were only 79 documented cases of DID (then referred
one had become a different person or developed a dis- to as multiple personality disorder). In 1986, there were
tinct personality (van der Kolk, 1994). Consistent with around 6000; by 1998, the number had risen to more
this, most cases of DID do include reports of a stressful than 40 000 (Lilienfeld & Lynn, 2003). Also, 80% of
event or series of events that precipitated the onset of patients diagnosed with DID were unaware of having the
the condition (Putnam, 1989). disorder before starting therapy (Putnam, 1989). These
DID is a very rare condition, affecting only about observations suggest that DID may have its origins in
1% of psychiatric patients, and therefore only a very the context of therapy, rather than being a response to
small fraction of 1% of the general population (Rifkin trauma. Also interesting, the number of alters changed
et al., 1998). There has been a longstanding contro- dramatically; in the early decades up to the 1970s, a
versy surrounding whether DID is “real” or whether person would typically have only one alter; but by the
the symptoms are created by people. For example, many 1980s, people generally had many different alters, even
of the different characteristics of different alters can be dozens or hundreds!
faked, either through people explicitly adopting differ- Why did the rate of DID skyrocket from 79 cases
ent personas, through hypnosis, or other means. A related to more than 40 000 cases in fewer than three decades?
critique is that the personalities are “real” insofar as the This increased prevalence could simply be a product of
person believes them and they do describe different pat- awareness: After professionals learned how to identify the
terns of behaviour, but those personalities themselves disorder, they could begin to diagnose it more effectively.
were formed through the collusion of the person and Or it could simply be too easy for therapists who believe
therapists; in a sense then, the alters are mere inventions, in DID to steer their clients in that direction, even unin-
but inventions that have begun to function like real per- tentionally, creating a way for clients to interpret their
sonalities. A key problem in this debate is that a condi- experience in terms of multiple alters, and using highly
tion like DID is very difficult to test for in a rigorous suggestive practices such as hypnosis. A more plausible
fashion, given how personal and subjective the experi- explanation is that a small subset of psychologists find the
ence of identity is. disorder compelling and are more willing to diagnose it,
One approach to testing for DID is to check for so they interpret symptoms through that framework, and
memory dissociations between alter identities. For exam- may (even unintentionally) provoke dissociative symp-
ple, in one study, patients viewed words and pictures and toms in the context of therapy (Frankel, 1993).
were tested for recall of the stimuli either when they Researchers have examined social and therapist
were experiencing the same alter as when they learned effects on DID by observing what happens when the dis-
them, or when they were experiencing a different alter. order is introduced to other parts of the world. In these
The results suggested that some types of learning do not cases it appears that DID—whether a disorder or not—has
transfer between alter identities (Eich et al., 1997). This a strong sociocultural component. For example, the disor-
finding would suggest that the two alters are truly sepa- der was nonexistent in Japan in 1990 (Takahashi, 1990),
rate identities. but Japanese psychologists began diagnosing patients with
Another approach to examining DID is to record DID when the disorder was described by North Ameri-
patterns of brain activity. One study using positron emis- cans (An et al., 1998). In India, the disorder is recognized,
sion tomography (PET) actually found differing fron- but how the disorder manifests itself is different from in
tal lobe activity for people with DID while they were America: Americans with DID switch from alters upon
experiencing each of their alters (Reinders et al., 2003). suggestion, whereas people in India who have DID switch
(In case you wondered, the researchers obtained consent alters only upon awakening (North et al., 1993). These
to participate in the study by both alters.) Although the observations point to a predominantly sociocultural disor-
results of both of these studies are thought provoking, der in which cultural beliefs and therapists determine how
they do not provide solid evidence for a biological basis the symptoms are manifested (Lilienfeld et al., 1999).

642 :: Module 15.2 : : Personality and Dissociative Disorders

Quick Quiz 15.2b Dissociative Identity Disorder
KNOW . . .
1 Dissociative identity disorder is best described as 4 Skeptics have argued against the validity of DID in a

ANALYZE . . .
A a lost grasp on reality. number of different cases. What is their reasoning?
A The disorder appears to be based on cultural
B a lack of regard for the feelings of others.
expectations.
C a splitting of identity.
B Most people who experience trauma do not
D a problem with memory, attention, and the ability dissociate.
to form coherent thoughts.
C The vast majority of cases come from a very small
number of therapists.
2 Fugue is a form of dissociative disorder most
UNDERSTAND . . .

D Skeptics have cited all of these arguments.

commonly associated with
A a belief that you no longer exist or are real. Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
B loss of sensation in an appendage with no physical
or neurological evidence.
C housing multiple personalities in one body.
D loss of identity and memories of the self.

3 Which of the following is believed to typically bring on

dissociative identity disorder?
A A physical injury to the head
B Extreme stress or trauma
C Old age
D Genetics

Personality and Dissociative Disorders :: Module 15.2 :: 643

 Module Summary

Module Now that you have read this module you should
15.2
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with personality and

dissociative disorders:
antisocial personality disorder histrionic personality disorder
News-Journal/AP images
(APD) (p. 637) (HPD) (p. 637)
borderline personality disorder narcissistic personality disorder
(BPD) (p. 637) (NPD) (p. 637)
comorbidity (p. 640) personality disorders (p. 636)
dissociative disorder (p. 641) ANALYZE . . .
dissociative identity disorder
(DID) (multiple personality ● The status of dissociative identity disorder as a legitimate
disorder) (p. 641) diagnosis. The lack of a physical basis for the disorder
and its unusual rate and patterns of diagnosis bring about
skepticism as to whether DID is “real” or is manufactured,
UNDERSTAND . . . perhaps unwittingly, by the person. It is important to find
evidence for differences between alternate personalities
● The phenomenon of dissociation and how a dissociative that cannot be faked by people or created artificially.
disorder might occur. Dissociation can be explained in Recent research in brain imaging is beginning to look
everyday phenomena such as daydreaming. However, a for different patterns of neurological activity that could
dissociative disorder may occur when perceptions of denote distinct personalities, but this work is in its infancy.
mind, body, and surroundings are severely and chronically
separated, such that the person loses his or her previously
stable sense of self and identity.

APPLY . . .

● The biopsychosocial model to understand the causes

of personality disorders. Take antisocial personality
disorder and psychopathy for example:
1. Can you name one or two biological influences
associated with APD and psychopathy?
2. What is at least one psychological factor, consisting of
emotions, thoughts, and experiences?
3. What are at least two social or cultural factors,
including relationships, cultural expectations, and so on?
Check your answers on page ANS-4.

644 :: Module 15.2 : : Personality and Dissociative Disorders

 Matsunaka Takeya/Aflo/Glow Images

Module

15.3 Anxiety, Depressive, and

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders
Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology The different types of Your knowledge of anxiety, Whether maladaptive aspects
After reading related to anxiety, anxiety disorders depressive, and obsessive- of psychological disorders
this module depressive, and obsessive- compulsive disorders, so as might arise from perfectly
How anxiety or depressive
you should compulsive disorders to be alert to people who normal, healthy behaviours
disorders can be self-perpetuating
may benefit from some help

Of all the things to be afraid of in life, surely one of them is not the The answer seems to be that when the immune system mounts its reaction
possibility that you can “catch” a mental illness, waking up one morning to the bacterial infection, it also damages cells in the caudate, a part of the
mentally ill because of some bacteria or germ that you were exposed brain near its centre, related to many different functions including the control
to. This is generally true; we are pretty safe. In most cases, psychologi- of one’s impulses. As we will see in this module, one theory about OCD is
cal disorders develop over a period of time. There may be some initial that compulsive, repetitive behaviours (such as hand washing) are ways of
signs that everything is “not quite right” with a person, and then there is dealing with a lost sense of impulse control, the sort of loss that occurs when
a gradual unfolding of more noticeable personality, behavioural, or emo- the caudate is damaged (Huyser et al., 2009). If this theory is correct, then, at
tional problems. least in this case, a psychological disorder can be acquired virtually overnight.

Unfortunately, there are documented cases of sudden onset obsessive-

compulsive disorder (OCD), in which young children suddenly and with- Focus Questions
out prior warning developed symptoms of OCD, including repetitive
1 The experience of anxiety drives many different disorders. What
behaviours and irrational fears and obsessions. Surprisingly, this sudden
are some of the ways that problems with anxiety can manifest?
surge of OCD-like tendencies came after these children were exposed
to bacterial streptococcal infections (Snider & Swedo, 2004). How is 2 Depression is another very common disorder.
it possible that this particular infection seems capable of triggering a Why do people seem to develop depression?
sudden-onset psychological disorder in some children?

Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders :: Module 15.3 :: 645

 If you have had any personal experiences with psycho-
logical disorders—maybe you, a family member, a friend,
or a co-worker has experienced one—then there is a
good chance you will come across a description of it
in this module, because anxiety and mood disorders are
extremely common.

Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety disorders are a category of disorders involving
fear or nervousness that is excessive, irrational, and maladap-
tive. They also are among the most frequently diagnosed
disorders, affecting approximately one in every eight
Canadians (Public Health Agency of Canada, 2002), and
often occurring with other disorders, such as depressive
or obsessive-compulsive disorders, substance abuse, or
problematic behaviour patterns such as an excessive need
to always be in control of situations.
Watch Although everyone experiences feelings of anxiety
Anxiety Disorders at times, and indeed, anxiety can be functional in certain
circumstances, the experience of anxiety can become
highly maladaptive, even crippling. People often cope
with anxiety by limiting themselves to environments,
activities, and people that make them feel safe and secure, Top: Darren Bridges Photography/Alamy;
and by developing rigid habits and ways of doing things bottom: dlewis33/iStockphoto
so as to keep life predictable and under control. These Fight or flight . . . or freeze or faint? In addition to fight-or-flight
patterns evolve in order to help the anxious person man- responses, mammals can also react by freezing—as in the
“deer in the headlights” response—or by fainting, as some will
age his or her fear, but they become imprisoning, stifling do at the sight of blood (Bracha et al., 2004).
people’s growth and experience of life in countless ways.
In most people’s common experience, anxiety occurs
as a natural part of the fight-or-flight response (Nesse & typical psychological state and a disorder depends on assess-
Ellsworth, 2009). We experience this response as a rac- ments of duration and severity of symptoms, and maladap-
ing, pounding heartbeat with increased respiration, as our tive impact on the lives of the person themselves or others.
Watch autonomic systems prepare our bodies for quick action. VARIETIES OF ANXIETY DISORDERS
Edna Foa: Anxiety Some people may notice a knot in the stomach and
I had to cross that bridge twice a day to drop off my daugh-
Treatment (APS Player) sweaty or clammy hands. These physical changes reflect
ter at school. One Friday traffic slowed to a crawl and I
a shift in energy away from non-emergency tasks like
noticed my heart thumping. Out of nowhere, the idea hit
digestion and toward fighting or fleeing. This basic fight-
me: I was going to die on that bridge and there was nothing
or-flight response seems to be common to all mammals,
I could do about it. . . .The more I tried to calm myself, the
implying that it has long been evolutionarily adaptive to
worse it got. Everything was a blur. I somehow made it the
have an easily triggered system that can quickly arouse the
last 50 feet and pulled [Link] whole experience couldn’t
body for action in the face of an emergency. However,
have been more than five minutes but it seemed like forever.
living in our modern, stressed-out society, we activate this
Next Monday I felt skittish approaching the bridge. I kept
stress response system repeatedly throughout our days of
thinking about my heart beating even though I tried paying
hustling and bustling and trying to get ahead in the world,
attention to other things. Next thing I know I’m thinking,
and at this point, this system is no longer functional, but
“I’m having a heart attack—a real heart attack this time.”
ends up actually being harmful to us. The constant wear
and tear on the human body as a result of being continu- For a while, I avoided the bridge by having my wife
ally prepped for action accumulates over time and causes make the trip, but that didn’t solve the problem. . . . I was
a host of stress-related illnesses (see Module 14.2). in a meeting in the library when I thought I felt my heart
Clearly, it is important to identify specific symptoms racing again. Before long, I’d locked myself in the restroom
that indicate that one’s anxiety is becoming maladaptive. wondering if this would be the time it killed me.
As discussed in Module 15.1, the distinction between a —JMD, a 44-year-old journalist

646 :: Module 15.3 : : Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders

 Table 15.3 :: What Are We So Afraid of?
CURRENTLY EXPERIENCING HAVE EXPERIENCED THE
THE PHOBIA PHOBIA AT ONE TIME
Animals (snakes, birds, or other animals) 4.7% 50.3%
Natural environment (e.g., heights, storms, water) 5.9% 62.7%
Blood or bodily injury (including injections) 4.0% 42.5%
Situations (e.g., dentists, hospitals, crowded places) 5.2% 55.6%
Other specific objects 1.0% 10.6%

Source: Stinson et al., 2007.

What separates anxiety disorders from other forms of Not surprisingly, people with GAD often have unstable,
anxiety is a combination of an unjustifiable degree, dura- irritable moods, experience difficulty concentrating, and
tion, and source of anxiety. In all anxiety disorders, the have sleep problems. Although there are many different
experience creates distress for the individual and inter- types of factors that increase the probability of developing
feres with normal daily functioning at work, at school, GAD, ranging from innate, genetic components to current
and in personal relationships. habitual thinking patterns, a convergence of stresses, such as
As you can see in the description of JMD’s experi- occurs during major life changes, commonly precede the
ences, there does not seem to be any real source for his onset of the disorder (Newman & Llera, 2011).
anxiety, but it certainly causes distress. Anxiety is inter-
Panic Disorder Panic disorder is an anxiety disorder
fering with his daily functioning, including his family
marked by occasional episodes of sudden, very intense fear. This
life and his work. Therefore, it does seem like some type
condition is distinct from GAD because the anxiety
of anxiety disorder. Psychologists have identified distinct
occurs in short segments, but can be much more severe.
patterns of experience that have given rise to several
The key feature of this disorder is panic attacks—
major types of anxiety disorders.
brief moments of extreme anxiety that include a rush
Generalized Anxiety Disorder Generalized anxiety of physical activity paired with frightening thoughts.
disorder (GAD) involves frequently elevated levels of anxiety, A panic attack escalates when the fear of death causes
generally from the normal challenges and stresses of everyday life. increased physical arousal, and the increased physical
The person with GAD fears disaster lurking around every symptoms feed the frightening thoughts. The escalation
corner, and may experience symptoms ranging from rarely goes on for more than 10 minutes, after which the
difficulty sleeping or breathing to difficulty concentrating individual will eventually return to a more relaxed state.
because of intrusive thoughts. However, because the anxiety A substantial subset of people with panic disorder
arises out of the ongoing situations and circumstances develop a recurring fear that the panic will strike again,
of life, people often have difficulty understanding their particularly in an environment in which they would be
experience, and cannot identify specific reasons for which exposed and unable to escape from people, such as a shop-
they are anxious (Turk et al., 2005). It is also impossible ping mall or other public space. This fear can result in
to ever sufficiently resolve the anxiety by controlling agoraphobia (which is often associated with panic dis-
situations and trying to attend to every detail so that order), resulting from an intense fear of having a panic attack in
nothing goes wrong. Instead, as one detail is dealt with, public; as a result of this fear, the individual may begin to avoid
the anxiety shifts to another source, and the control- public settings and increasingly isolate himself or herself. In its
oriented person is locked into a never-ending scramble most extreme forms, agoraphobia leads an individual to
to manage life perfectly so as to keep anxiety at bay. stay inside his or her home almost all the time.

the most common phobias are listed in Table 15.3 . The

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC best-known form of phobia is a specific phobia , which
LITERACY MODEL involves an intense fear of a specific object, activity, or organ-
ism . For example, the person may be afraid of specific
Specific Phobias animals, heights, thunder, blood, and injections or other
medical procedures. Social phobias, which are very com-
mon, are a different category of phobias, related to inter-
In contrast to GAD, where an individual’s anxiety can be
personal situations and relationships; we will discus social Watch
applied to just about any situation, a phobia is a severe,
phobias later. Phobias
irrational fear of a very specific object or situation . Some of

Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders :: Module 15.3 :: 647

 What do we know Interestingly, some researchers have argued that the major-
ity of the triggers for phobias are objects or situations that
about specific phobias?
we, as a species, have reason to fear, or at the very least be
Phobias are often developed cautious about. For example, people readily develop fears of
through unpleasant or frightening spiders, snakes, heights, and drowning—dangers that would
experiences—for example, a per- have been important over evolutionary time. On the other
son who is bitten by a dog might hand, people less readily develop the same type of fear
develop a phobia of dogs. Phobias response to guns, automobile accidents, and other such dan-
can also develop without direct, gers of our modern environment. Psychologists arguing from
personal experience. Phobias can arise out of the patterns of an evolutionary perspective believe that the human species
anxiety that develop as children’s fears give rise to thoughts, has evolved to be biologically predisposed to develop certain
emotions, physiological responses (e.g., arousal), and behav- fears, based on our evolutionary history (Öhman & Mineka,
ioural reactions (e.g., avoidance) that can, in turn, feed back 2001; see also Module 6.1). This of course does not argue
to reinforce the fear. This self-reinforcing nature of anxiety is that other phobias will be impossible to develop, but rather
extremely important to understand, in order to appreciate that people will generally tend to find that they have a stron-
why disorders like phobias develop to the extreme degrees ger innate response toward categories of objects that are
that they sometimes do (Merckelbach et al., 1996). part of our evolutionary heritage.
These patterns are sensitive to the social environment as
well; if children are exposed to models, such as parents who How can science
exhibit fearful behaviours toward certain objects, this may explain why some
reinforce the children’s fears. There are likely many factors people are more
that influence whether or not a given person develops a
likely than others
phobia from a given set of experiences; after all, lots of peo-
ple get bitten by dogs without developing a phobia.
to develop specific
phobias?
It is important to understand that phobias are not a fun-
damentally different sort of experience, but rather, phobias Research on the characteristics of people who develop spe-
develop out of the very normal set of negative, fear-based cific phobias has shown that there are, as you might expect,
responses that people have to certain things in the environ- many potential causes of specific phobias, which determine
ment. For example, if a person goes through a very nega- for each individual whether he develops a phobia or not. For
tive experience in a certain environment, then cues related example, some of the risk factors for phobias include shy-
to that environment may trigger negative reactions. This is ness and temperamental inhibition, both of which are, inter-
perfectly normal; children face many of these types of fears estingly enough, partly genetically determined (Biederman
because of actual experiences but also because of their fer- et al., 1990; DiLalla, Kagan, & Reznick, 1994).
tile imaginations (just think about hiding under the covers Recently, scientists have been piecing together the genetic
when you were a kid, afraid of what might be lurking in the factors that biologically predispose some people to experi-
dark . . . ). Children end up, at different times, having fears ence more fear than others. One of the first questions to
of many different things; as just one example, almost half of answer is simply whether or not the tendency to learn fear
children six to eight years old report being at least some- associations can be transmitted genetically. One group of
what afraid of blood (Merckelbach et al., 1996; Öst, 1987). researchers attempted to answer this using selective breed-
These mild to moderate fears, which are rampant in child- ing techniques with mice. The researchers tested a strain of
hood, are the metaphoric soil out of which specific phobias mice for how easily they could learn a fear association (an
may grow. It is in this early to middle childhood phase that auditory tone coupled with an electrical shock). The fear
many specific phobias seem to develop, including animal and response was measured by the length of time the mice held
blood-injury phobias (Öst, 1987); also, people with fear of still—mice typically show fear by freezing in place (Ponder
heights or water usually report that they have always had et al., 2007).
the fear (Menzies & Clark, 1993). Claustrophobia, which
involves more of social awareness components, tends By selectively breeding the most fearful mice with each
to start later in life, in the late teens and early adulthood other, and the least fearful mice with each other, research-
(Öst, 1987). ers could see whether the fear-association response would
differ across the generations of these mice families. As
For most people, as they develop cognitively and as they Figure 15.3 shows, across four generations, fear responses
mature over time, their childhood fears subside, but for a became more and more distinct, with the third and fourth
subset of people, perhaps those who are genetically prone generations being very different from each other—the mice
to a stronger fear response, some of these fears become sta- bred from the most fearful families became even more easily
ble patterns of emotion, thought, and behaviour, and transfer conditioned than their [Link] the fear-based
into adulthood. This is what becomes a phobia. learning system is, at least in part, genetically determined.

648 :: Module 15.3 : : Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders

 Can we critically 40
evaluate this

Percentage freezing
to altered context
information? 30

Learning that fear responses

in mice are genetically trans- 20
missible does not, in truth,
contribute much to our 10
understanding of phobias, in particular to our func-
tional understanding of how a phobia develops in a 0
specific person and how it might best be treated. Any F2 S1 S2 S3 S4
level of analysis must, of course, be integrated with Selection generation
others into a full understanding of how disorders
{fig. 15.3} Anxiety Levels Are Inherited in an Animal Model Over the course of just a few
work. Furthermore, although identifying specific genes generations, mice from the highly fearful genetic strain show increasingly strong fear responses
in mice that are related to fear responses may point as indicated by the height of the red bars.
to genes that are involved in human fear responses as
well, the full manifestation of a phobia involves many
processes and, therefore, would only be partially
explained by a genetic understanding.

Why is this relevant?

Understanding the genetic con-
tributions to fear responses
and anxiety disorders is clearly
important, opening up whole
fields of possible treatment options and enhancing our bio-
logical understanding of how disorders work. A challenge for
the future remains to understand the interaction between the
genetic and other levels of analysis, leading to genetic testing
possibilities, matching treatments to key genetic markers in
order to make therapy as effective as possible. Sergio Azenha/Alamy

Think back to the case of JMD from the begin-

ning of this section, the 44-year-old having problems
with sudden attacks of anxiety. What information do you
think is relevant to diagnosing JMD?
The overall extent of his fears and the fact that they
are short term and limited in scope rather than general
and long-lasting suggests that GAD is not a good match.
The fact that his reaction seems to be triggered in vari-
ous locations rather than being associated with some-
thing specific suggests that this is not a phobia. JMD’s
diagnosis would likely be a panic disorder, best charac-
terized by the sudden and overwhelming attacks of fear
and anxiety that strike him occasionally.
In reality, of course, this is a diagnosis that only a
professionally trained clinical psychologist or psychiatrist
would be able to make, but given what we know, panic
disorder is the closest match.
Everett Collection Social Phobias Social anxiety disorder is a very
In the novel and miniseries It, by Stephen King, an evil life form strong fear of being judged by others or being embarrassed or
would become a clown to lure children into a trap. This type
of imagery can be the basis for which many people come to humiliated in public. People who experience social anxiety
experience fear of certain objects—even clowns. deal with going out in public by developing familiar

Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders :: Module 15.3 :: 649

 routines and retaining control over their ability to exit
circumstances if their anxiety becomes too strong.
Social anxiety generally leads people to limit their social
activities in favour of not exposing themselves to anxiety,
thus making it difficult to succeed and live a normal life Notice increased Fear of
in many different ways. heart rate heart problem
Consider the day of a university student who has
social anxiety:

• This student always shows up to class right as it

begins so he does not have to risk awkward conversa-
tion with classmates he does not know, or potentially {fig. 15.4} The Vicious Cycle of Panic Attacks Click on
worse, sitting conspicuously alone and unable to con- this figure in your eText to see more details.
nect to anyone around him.
• Despite being hungry, the student will not go into the Avoiding or interrupting this vicious cycle is cen-
cafeteria because his roommate is not around. He can- tral to the treatment of anxiety disorders. Instead of try-
not face the prospect of sitting with strangers, espe- ing to minimize contact with feared situations, which
cially without his roommate. He finds a quiet spot near only serves to reinforce the fear, the person must begin
the library and gets lunch from a vending machine. to practise confronting the fear. Only through exposing
• Walking across a quiet part of campus, he sees his themselves to fear can people learn how to manage their
professor approaching. Not knowing if the professor responses or learn how to effectively manage the feared
would recognize him, he wonders if he should say situation. For example, imagine a young girl who gets
hello. Thinking about this issue makes him so tense, scratched by the neighbour’s cat while trying to pet it.
he pretends to stop and read a text message to avoid The girl may avoid cats in the future and, years later, still
eye contact. feel nervous and unsure of herself around cats. Only by
learning to tolerate and eventually interact with cats will
As you can see, the day is a series of very unpleas-
the girl be able to reduce her anxiety. It is unsurprising
ant, tense moments in situations that most people would
that the most important part of psychological therapy
find completely ordinary, and it is a series of sacrificed
for anxiety disorders is exposure, in which the person is
opportunities as the person fails over and over again to
repeatedly and in stages exposed to the object of his fear so that
take advantage of potential opportunities for connec-
he can work past his emotional reactions.
tion and social contact. The distress the student feels and
the degree to which he shapes his life around his social OBSESSIVE–COMPULSIVE DISORDER (OCD)
phobia suggest that he has social anxiety disorder. Of Until 2013, obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) was
course, to make a formal diagnosis of this disorder, a psy- categorized as one of the anxiety disorders, although in the
chologist would need to evaluate the student’s full set of DSM-5 OCD was placed into its own category. Individuals
symptoms and their duration. with OCD are often plagued by unwanted, inappropriate, and
persistent thoughts (obsessions), and tend to engage in repetitive
THE VICIOUS CYCLE OF ANXIETY DISORDERS almost ritualistic behaviours (compulsions). Generally, the
One of the most dangerous aspects of anxiety disorders obsessions and compulsions are linked together, with
is that they tend to be self-perpetuating (Figure 15.4), the compulsive behaviour serving as a means of coping
with anxiety leading to circumstances that provoke fur- with the anxiety produced by the obsessive thoughts (see
ther anxiety (Hofmann, 2007). For example, people with Table 15.4). For example, a common manifestation of
social anxiety disorder may avoid many social situations OCD is a person who is extremely concerned about germs
because they feel awkward and insecure and don’t want and cleanliness; he may wash his hands many times each
to embarrass themselves. As a result, they become even day, insist on only touching other objects through gloves,
less confident about their ability to socially interact with or become extremely vigilant about the chemicals in food
people, making them even more likely to avoid social and cleaning products. Although everybody has unwanted
contact in the future, or if it is unavoidable, to be so thoughts that seem to stick in their heads from time to
Watch overly anxious and incapable of functioning effectively time, obsessions take root and can last for a very long time,
Margo: Obsessive- that the social opportunity turns into a negative experi- even many years. Also, these thoughts tend to be distressing
Compulsive Disorder ence, further reinforcing the anxiety. Through many of or generally inappropriate.
these self-fulfilling prophecy types of processes, anxiety We introduced this disorder at the outset by describ-
disorders tend to reinforce themselves over time. ing how it can occur suddenly in [Link] is obviously

650 :: Module 15.3 : : Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders

 As these types of intrusive thinking patterns develop
and become more extreme and ever-present, they begin
to increasingly interfere with the person’s life. Imagine
people who obsessively think about cleanliness and germs;
everywhere they go in life, they encounter new micro-
biological terrors, forcing them to adopt elaborate rituals
for how to sufficiently clean themselves and how to avoid
making contact with germs in many different situations.
This is how compulsions arise, stemming from anxi-
ety related to the obsessive thoughts. These types of feel-
ings are also familiar to all of us, in some way. Have you
ever experienced any kind of reaction about walking
Miramax/courtesy Everett Collection under a ladder, or spilling salt, or seeing a black cat cross
The Aviator (2004) depicted Howard Hughes’s struggles with
your path? Have you ever had the almost uncontrollable
OCD. urge that you just had to say something to that person,
or you just didn’t want to get on that elevator, or drive
home with that person? Or you’ve found yourself pack-
exceedingly rare, and not at all representative of the way ing your suitcase in just a certain way, or arranging your
that OCD develops. OCD generally develops over time, desk in just a certain way, or checking the stove just one
ranging from childhood into early adulthood, by which more time before leaving the house.
time most cases of OCD will have manifested themselves. Many psychologists believe that the compulsive
The two components of OCD, obsessions and com- behaviours that people with OCD engage in are ways of
pulsions, are easy enough to understand on their own, asserting control over their anxiety. Compulsive behav-
because they are simply more extreme versions of expe- iours often arise from specific obsessions. Someone who
riences we all have had in varying degrees. worries about starting a fire might develop compulsive
For example, you may have struggled with jealous checking behaviours. For example, before she can leave Simulate
thoughts in your relationship, or you may occasionally be her house, she might check that all lamps and appliances The Obsessive-
plagued with thoughts of death and the meaninglessness are unplugged. She may make the rounds two more Compulsive Test

of existence, or self-defeating thoughts like “I am a loser; times, ensuring that the electrical cords are secured by
I can’t do anything right.” Or maybe you have been left fasteners at least two feet from the outlet. Finally, she
alone at night and images from horror movies or scary might turn off the light to leave but, to avoid the possi-
stories have come to your mind, leaving you beginning bility that the light switch is halfway between on and off,
to panic and wonder if you should cower in your closet she might count out a series of one to seven in which
clutching a kitchen knife. And certainly you have had an she turns the light off repeatedly, followed by one last
annoying song stuck in your head at some point, going downward swipe to ensure the switch is fully off . Only
around and around in your mind despite your attempts then can she feel secure in leaving the house.
to think about other things. In these ways and many Although the compulsive behaviour patterns associ-
others, all of us have experienced obsessive thinking. ated with OCD can create all sorts of problems, such as

Table 15.4 :: Prevalence of Symptoms in a Survey of 293 Individuals with Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder
PERCENTAGE OF SAMPLE EXPERIENCING OBSESSION SPECIFIC TYPES OF OBSESSIONS

58% A fear of being contaminated

56% Persistent doubting
48% Need to arrange things in a symmetrical pattern
45% Aggressive thoughts
PERCENTAGE OF SAMPLE EXPERIENCING COMPULSION SPECIFIC TYPES OF OBSESSIONS

69% Checking
60% Cleaning
56% Repeating actions

Source: Pinto et al., 2006.

Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders :: Module 15.3 :: 651

 conflict and irritation within the family, these patterns 6 If anxiety leads to the onset of so many different

ANALYZE . . .
also tend to be quite responsive to treatment. The anxious disorders, how can it be a beneficial, adaptive process?
thought patterns and emotional reactions that give OCD a A It cannot be an adaptive process.
great deal of its emotional energy can also be substantially B The physiological response underlying anxiety
improved through appropriate treatment, in many cases. prepares us to fight or flee.
In fact, anxiety, depressive, and obsessive-compulsive C Anxiety is a good way to gain sympathy.
disorders are all generally amenable to treatment. Of D The anxiety response evolved to help attract
course, there are exceptions, but most individuals who mates.
experience one of these disorders will find that they Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
have multiple treatment possibilities available to them
that can make a difference.

Mood Disorders
Quick Quiz 15.3a There was a two-week period when I was on top of the
Anxiety Disorders world. I thought I could do anything. I took on extra
tasks at work that I had no idea how to do and had
1 Which of the following is not classified as an anxiety
KNOW . . .

no time to do them. I went around boasting about how

disorder?
A Panic attack C Depression
well my work was going, bought a car I couldn’t afford
or didn’t even want. I was so energized that I couldn’t
B GAD D Social phobia
fall asleep. I wound up taking four or five people out for
drinks and buying rounds for everyone, sometimes having
2 The difference between obsessions and compulsions is that
18 to 20 drinks a day before passing out for an hour or
A obsessions are repetitive behaviours, whereas
compulsions are fears about specific events. two and then waking up to start all over again. But I
B obsessions are repetitive, unwanted thoughts,
didn’t think it was slowing me down. The only ill effect
whereas compulsions are repetitive behaviours. it seemed to have was that I was getting really annoyed
C obsessions are temporary, whereas compulsions with everyone—everyone was slowing me down. It was
are practically permanent. like having road rage but it occurred in my house, at my
D obsessions and compulsions are the same thing. work, at the store. Nobody could move fast enough. And
I started to get so annoyed that I decided I just needed to
sleep. So I took a few sleeping pills, but that didn’t do it.
3 Allison has an intense fear of flying, so much so that
UNDERSTAND . . .

she cannot even bear to close her eyes and imagine The next night I took about twice as many and I finally
that she is on a plane. From this brief description, succeeded in getting myself admitted to the hospital—the
Allison may be experiencing psychiatric unit to be exact.
A a specific phobia. C a generalized phobia.
Then everything crashed. I just started crying nonstop
B a social phobia. D normal levels of anxiety.
for about three days; they put me on medication and said
it would take about two weeks to work. In that time, I lost
4 Which condition is marked by a strong feeling of tension
and worry, no matter what the situation may be?
A A specific phobia
B A panic attack
C Generalized anxiety disorder
D Normal feelings of anxiety

5 The idea that anxiety disorders can be self-perpetuating

means that
A anxiety in one situation always causes anxiety in
another situation, regardless of what is happening
in those situations.
B the emotions associated with anxiety lead to
physiological responses, which in turn lead to
stefanolunardi/Shutterstock
more anxious emotions, creating a vicious cycle.
Many people have experienced problems with a mood disor-
C you choose when and what to be anxious about. der. Those with depression may experience extended periods
D anxiety is always limited to one situation or place. of sadness and hopelessness that have no apparent cause.

652 :: Module 15.3 : : Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders

 about 5 or 10 pounds from my total lack of appetite. Even which the depressed person likely knows, which then
when they decided I was okay to go home, I wasn’t really leads the depressed person to feel even worse about
ready to function. I lay in bed; I refused to answer the himself, as well as publicly exposed and perhaps embar-
phone or respond to emails from friends. I guess I hit bot- rassed—and you begin to understand how depression
tom when I was halfway up the stairs in my house. I was becomes such a monster in people’s lives, and leads to
so confused: I couldn’t figure out if I really wanted to go all so many tragic stories.
the way up, or if I just wanted to go back down. I was so Bipolar disorder (formerly referred to as manic
confused by that simple decision that I just sat down and depression ) is characterized by extreme highs and lows in
cried on the middle steps. mood, motivation, and energy. It shares many symptoms
with major depression—some distinguish the two by
—NS, 35-year-old research scientist
referring to major depression as unipolar—but it occurs
Statistics show that NS is not alone with his experiences, only 38% as often as depression (NIMH, 2008). Bipolar
which are symptoms of a condition known as bipolar disorder involves depression at one end and mania (an
disorder: Mood disorders such as bipolar disorder and extremely energized, positive mood) at the other end.
depression are particularly common, affecting almost Mania may take several forms: talking excessively fast,
10% of adults in Canada and the U.S. (Health Canada, racing thoughts, impulsive and spontaneous decisions,
2002; Kessler et al., 2005). Due to a combination of bio- or high-risk behaviours. The experience of a manic epi-
logical, cognitive, and sociocultural differences, rates of sode can be exhilarating and parts of it can be highly
depression are twice as high among women as among enjoyable, but the costs of such excessive, indiscriminate,
men, and three times as high among people living in risky behaviour can be very high. Unfortunately, dur-
poverty (Hyde et al., 2008). There is also a genetic sus- ing a manic state, individuals feel little concern about
ceptibility to mood disorders. In this section we discuss the potential consequences of their actions. Later, as
the two major types of mood disorders—major depres- they come into a more normal frame of mind, they may
sion and bipolar disorder. feel a great deal of remorse and embarrassment for their
actions, which contributes to their counterswing into
MAJOR DEPRESSION AND BIPOLAR DISORDER depression.
Feelings of sadness and depression are normal aspects of Bipolar disorder encompasses both ends of an emo- Watch
human experience. By comparison, major depression tional continuum, and individuals with bipolar disorder Speaking Out:

can be very severe and may occur even when there are can move from one end to the other at different rates. Feliziano: Living With

no events or circumstances we normally associate with Bipolar Disorder

Some people with bipolar disorder experience only
depressed mood. Major depression is a disorder marked a few manic episodes in their lives, whereas others go
by prolonged periods of sadness, feelings of worthlessness and through several episodes each year. A small number of Watch
hopelessness, social withdrawal, and cognitive and physical “rapid cyclers” experience very abrupt mood swings, Nathan: Bipolar
sluggishness. With this definition, it should be clear that even within a matter of hours. Disorder
depression involves more than just feeling sad for a long
period of time; cognitive activities such as concentrat- COGNITIVE AND NEUROLOGICAL ASPECTS OF
ing and making decisions are affected as well, while DEPRESSION Depression affects cognition as well as
memories shift toward unpleasant and unhappy events. emotion. People with depression can become confused
Physiologically, affected individuals may be lethargic and and have difficulty concentrating and making decisions,
sleepy, yet also experience insomnia. They may experi- all of which contribute to the growing feeling of help-
ence changes in appetite and the onset of digestive prob- lessness and feeling incapable of doing anything right.
lems such as constipation or loss of appetite. As the depressed person begins to emphasize negative,
To fully understand depression requires consider- self-defeating, and self-critical thoughts, they develop Watch
ing the cumulative, daily impact of life spiralling down a characteristic depressive, or pessimistic explanatory style Helen: Major

into despair, problems piling up at work or at home, (Abramson, Seligman, & Teasdale, 1978; Sweeney et al., Depression

relationships being strained or crumbling, bills being 1986). This describes a set of habitual ways of explaining
unpaid and financial problems starting to interfere with events to oneself which tend to be dysfunctional. When some-
daily life. People deep in depression may find it almost thing bad happens, such as the person failing to suc-
impossible to find the energy to answer the phone or ceed at a task or a project, she makes internal, or personal
to take care of more than the barest necessities of their attributions, for the event, blaming herself excessively
lives; their social lives begin to suffer the strain as well, for what happened (“It’s all my fault! I did everything
as they stop returning phone calls or emails. Other peo- wrong! I messed the whole thing up!”). Depressed indi-
ple start to notice, get annoyed, or have hurt feelings, viduals also tend to make stable attributions, assuming that

Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders :: Module 15.3 :: 653

 the most negative conclusions possible, adding
I’m so stupid! I always lose as much stress and draining as much energy as
I’m so stupid! It’s my
my keys when I’m in a hurry.
This ruins everything.
Internalizing fault; I’m a bad person; they can. Thus, explanatory style tends to pre-
I am worthless.
dict a huge host of life outcomes from stress
and health to success and relationships. To get a
It’s always going to be sense of how this might work in specific events
Stabilizing this way; things will during a person’s day, imagine an individual
never change.
with depression who does something as minor
as losing his keys; refer to Figure 15.5 to see
And this applies to the depressive explanatory style at work. Then
Globalizing everything, not just extrapolate that same set of patterns across many
the current situation.
different events, throughout one’s life, and you
will get a sense of the cumulative burden that
this places on the individual, potentially leading
{fig. 15.5} Three Elements of the Depressive Explanatory Style The three elements of
the depressive explanatory style are internalizing, stabilizing, and globalizing. to depression.
There is a substantial amount of research on
the biological aspects of depression. For example,
the situation is going to persist (“It’s always going to be twin studies suggest an underlying genetic risk for devel-
like this. The problem is fundamental and is never going oping major depression (Figure 15.6). In addition, brain-
to change.”). And as they spiral into catastrophic ways imaging research has identified two primary regions
of thinking, they make global attributions, expanding the of interest related to depression: (1) the limbic system,
impact of the negative event into other domains or into which is active in emotional responses and processing,
overall life (“I just can’t do anything right; I’m going to and (2) the dorsal (back) of the frontal cortex, which
mess up everything”; or “This relationship is ruined; it’s generally plays a role in controlling thoughts and con-
horrible; this has fundamentally changed how I see you centrating. As is the case with panic disorder, a vicious
and it affects everything about us!”). cycle appears to occur with depression. The overactive
Watch Explanatory style is important as a psychologi- limbic system responds strongly to emotions and sends
Jutta Joormann: cal precursor to psychological problems. People with signals that lead to a decrease in frontal lobe activity, and
Interaction of Cognition a pessimistic explanatory style tend to take the inevi- the decrease in frontal lobe functioning reduces the abil-
and Emotion (APS table negative events of life, and instead of making the ity to concentrate and control what one thinks about
Player)
best of them, they make the worst of them, drawing (Gotlib & Hamilton, 2008).
Various neurotransmitters—especially serotonin,
dopamine, and norepinephrine—appear to be involved
in depression. In Module 16.3, we will discuss drug ther-
Female monozygotic apies that are used to alter these neurotransmitters. These
brain regions and their neurotransmitters tie in to other
physiological systems. The negative emotions of depres-
Female–female dizygotic
sion co-occur with stress reactions throughout the body,
thereby involving the endocrine system, the digestive
Male monozygotic system, and the immune system. As a result, individuals
with depression are at higher risk for a variety of ill-
nesses, as well as cardiovascular disease and higher risk
Male–male dizygotic
of mortality in given time periods; this link to mortal-
ity even persists once researchers statistically account
Male–female dizygotic for health behaviours and suicide (Penninx et al., 1999;
Roblaes et al., 2005). Clearly, depression has implications
for a person’s health.
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5
Genetic concordance
Research at the genetic level is also uncover-
ing factors that contribute to the likelihood of being
{fig. 15.6} Genetic Relatedness and Major Depression Identical (monozy- diagnosed with depression. For example, people who
gotic) twins have a greater chance of both developing major depression com-
pared to fraternal (dizygotic) twins. Notice that the genetic correlation is highest inherit “short” copies of a gene responsible for sero-
for female monozygotic twins. tonin (5-HTT) activity are predisposed to depressive

654 :: Module 15.3 : : Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders

episodes in response to stress, whereas those who inherit youth, suicide is the second leading cause of death
“long” copies are less prone to depression (“short” and (behind transportation accidents).
“long” refer to the structure of the different versions of There is significant variation in who is most likely
the genes). Individuals who inherit short copies of the to die by suicide. Suicide is four times more likely among
5-HTT gene are also more prone to suicide attempts males than among females, and two to three times more
(Caspi et al., 2003; see also Module 3.1). Thus, one of the likely among Native Americans and European Ameri-
differences between people who thrive after adversity cans than among individuals of other ethnicities. In
and people who develop depression may be hard-wiring addition, many people believe that adolescents are par-
that starts in the genes. ticularly vulnerable to suicide, but the highest suicide
rates are actually observed among the elderly population:
SOCIOCULTURAL INFLUENCES ON MOOD The suicide rate for people 65 and older is nearly 60%
DISORDERS Biological and cognitive factors of higher than the rate for teens (CDC, 2010). Fortunately,
depression interact with environmental influences. In research, treatment, and public awareness have signifi-
particular, socioeconomic and environmental factors cantly reduced the suicide rate among youth since the
leave some individuals more vulnerable to mood dis- 1980s (Gould et al., 2003).
orders. Just living in a specific neighbourhood can be a Suicide often comes as a surprise to the family and
risk factor for three main reasons (Cutrona et al., 2006). friends of the victim, although in some cases clear warn-
First, poor neighbourhoods are associated with higher ing signs are evident (Table 15.5). Among people in their
daily stress levels due to substandard housing and facili- teens and early 20s, the most significant risk factors are
ties, increased crime rates, and other difficulties. Second, mood disorders, recent and extremely stressful life events,
people living in these neighbourhoods are more vulner- a family history of mood disorders (with or without
able to stressors such as unemployment because they suicide), easy access to a lethal means of suicide (most
often lack connections, mentors, and job opportunities significantly, firearms), and the presence of these factors
that professionals have access to in high-income neigh- in conjunction with substance abuse (Gould et al., 2003;
bourhoods. Third, social ties tend not to be as strong Moscicki, 2001). For younger individuals, being the vic-
in poor neighbourhoods. Low rates of home ownership tim of bullying and ostracism is a risk factor, but it is a
combined with difficulty making rent can lead to high greater concern when youth are both the victims and
turnover; people may not know their neighbours very the perpetrators of bullying (Klomek et al., 2007). Fam-
well and, therefore, take less interest in one another’s ily and friends have reported that in the weeks before a
well-being. suicide, individuals have behaved in ways that are now
recognized as warning signs. For example, an individual
SUICIDE It is difficult to imagine a worse outcome may verbally express despair and hopelessness (I just
from a mood disorder than suicide. For many people, it want to give up; Nothing matters anymore; They’ll be
is equally difficult to imagine how anyone could reach sorry when I’m gone), give away personal possessions,
such a low point. Nonetheless, suicide remains a seri- suddenly withdraw from work or school, have crying
ous public health concern. Particularly among Canadian spells, or obtain a means of committing the act.

Table 15.5 :: Warning Signs of Suicide

Learn how to recognize the danger signals. Be concerned if someone you know ● Gives away prized possessions
● Talks about committing suicide ● Has attempted suicide before
● Has trouble eating or sleeping ● Takes unnecessary risks
● Exhibits drastic changes in behaviour ● Has recently experienced serious losses
● Withdraws from friends or social activities ● Seems preoccupied with death and dying
● Loses interest in school, work, or hobbies ● Loses interest in his or her personal appearance
● Prepares for death by writing a will and making final arrangements ● Increases alcohol or drug use

Source: American Psychological Association, 2011.

Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders :: Module 15.3 :: 655

 PSYCH @ distressed person, assess the level of risk, and get the appro-
priate medical or psychological help.
The Suicide Helpline It turns out that good crisis telephone responders effec-
tively use both styles, depending on the circumstances. First-
Thousands of people contact suicide tele-
time callers tend to benefit more from an active listener, who
phone helplines every day. Is there even a “best practice”
will be nonjudgmental, compassionate, and reflective. Repeat
when it comes to helping an individual who is suicidal? The
callers also need compassion, but tend to benefit more if the
first telephone suicide helplines were operated by religious
listener engages in problem-solving strategies (Mishara et al.,
organizations and emphasized empathy and active listen-
2007; Mishara & Daigle, 1997).
ing. Although this may certainly be a helpful approach, it may
Some helpful resources can be found at [Link]
not meet the needs of every caller. Modern suicide helplines
.[Link]/.
are staffed by well-trained volunteers with access to suicide
prevention specialists who can aid in effectively helping the

Quick Quiz 15.3b Mood Disorders

1 ________ is characterized by periods of intense 3 First-time callers to suicide prevention lines benefit
KNOW . . .

APPLY . . .
depression as well as periods with elevated mood and most from
energy levels. A empathy and active listening.
A Major depression B firm, demanding instructions.
B Unipolar depression C extensive problem-solving interventions.
C Bipolar disorder D direct referral to the hospital.
D Generalized anxiety disorder
Answers can be found on page ANS-4.

2 Depression is associated with lower activity in the

UNDERSTAND . . .

frontal lobe, which may result in

A lack of appetite.
B difficulty concentrating and thinking.
C periods of elevated mood and energy.
D constipation.

656 :: Module 15.3 : : Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
15.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology related to anxiety, depressive,

and obsessive-compulsive disorders:

agoraphobia (p. 647) obsessive–compulsive disorder

anxiety disorders (p. 646) (OCD) (p. 650)
bipolar disorder (p. 653) panic disorder (p. 647)
exposure (p. 650) phobia (p. 647) Matsunaka Takeya/Aflo/Glow Images
generalized anxiety disorder social anxiety disorder (p. 649)
(GAD) (p. 647) specific phobia (p. 647)
major depression (p. 653) ANALYZE . . .

● Whether maladaptive aspects of psychological

disorders might arise from perfectly normal, healthy
UNDERSTAND . . .
behaviours. To analyze this issue, we need to examine
the specific symptoms that occur in someone who has
● The different types of anxiety disorders. Although
a phobia and is showing an adaptive response (fear,
anxiety disorders share many similarities in symptoms,
anxiety) but to an inappropriate stimulus or situation.
they differ in terms of what brings about the symptoms
It is perfectly reasonable and healthy to be cautious
and the intensity of the symptoms. The cues that trigger
about heights, for example, in the sense that falls can
anxiety range widely: In generalized anxiety disorder, just
be dangerous, even life-threatening. This reaction is
about anything may cause anxiety; in specific phobias, an
maladaptive only when the fear response is so intense
individual fears only certain objects. Likewise, the intensity
or out of context that it interferes with daily life. Imagine
can range from near-constant worrying to brief periods of
a house painter who cannot climb a ladder or scaffold;
highly intense anxiety in phobias and panic disorder.
unless he overcomes his fear (or finds very short houses
● How anxiety or depressive disorders can be self- to work on), he will have to make major adjustments to
perpetuating. Both depression and anxiety are accommodate his fear.
characterized by a vicious cycle: With anxiety, anxious
or fearful thoughts can lead to physiological arousal;
physiological arousal can lead to escape and avoidance
to get rid of the immediate fear, which in turn reinforces
the anxious thoughts. In depression, a similar pattern can
occur with depressed thoughts, self-blame, and social
withdrawal.

APPLY . . .

● Your knowledge of anxiety, depressive, and obsessive–

compulsive disorders, so as to be alert to people who
may benefit from some help. To do so, write down at
least five warning signs for suicide, and identify the number
of the suicide helpline. Check your answers on page ANS-4.

Anxiety, Depressive, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders :: Module 15.3 :: 657

 Mark Owen/Blackout Concepts/Alamy

Module

15.4 Schizophrenia

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology How different neurotransmitters Your knowledge to Claims that schizophrenia
After reading associated with schizophrenia affect individuals with schizophrenia identify different forms is related to genius or
this module of schizophrenia violent behaviour
The genetic and environmental
you should contributions to schizophrenia

John Nash is a remarkable story in many ways. He is remarkable for being marriage ended shortly thereafter, and Nash eventually spent almost a
the inspiration for a movie, A Beautiful Mind. He is remarkable for being a decade in a psychiatric institution. The voices in his head continued to
genius, a mathematician, and winner of a Nobel Prize for his mathematical haunt him for decades. But eventually, he learned how to manage his
work on game theory (Google “Nash equilibrium”), which has become symptoms and function again in the world. He was able to return to
a cornerstone of modern economics and has immense importance in work, and even remarried his original wife (in 2001). He remains an active
understanding society. He is also remarkable for being an underachiever, mathematician and frequent speaker today.
you might say, in the sense that Nash undoubtedly has not risen to his full
potential, or anything close to it. The world was, at least partially, deprived John Nash’s case raises some central questions about schizophrenia.
of one of its most brilliant minds, because Nash also has the remarkable What are the underlying neurological and cognitive processes that are
characteristic of having schizophrenia. affected by the disorder and produce the symptoms a person experi-
ences? Are there ways of gaining control over symptoms, by strengthen-
In 1959, while a professor at MIT, and with his wife expecting their first ing the underlying systems in other ways? What factors contribute to
child, Nash started experiencing delusional patterns of thought, devel- better management of schizophrenia symptoms, and to slowing or halting
oping strange and rigid beliefs, feeling that he was playing some sort of its long-term progression?
special role as a messenger of some kind, hearing and seeing things that
weren’t there, even thinking he was being contacted by aliens who were Nash’s story also challenges some common assumptions about schizo-
leaving messages for him in newspapers. His ability to function in daily phrenia, such as the belief that it is a one-way ticket to insanity and the
life fluctuated greatly, as he veered between his lucid, brilliant mind and person is going to get steadily worse. Or the belief that people with
the confused, schizophrenic mind into which he was also developing. His schizophrenia are to be feared, because they are perpetually unstable and

658 :: Module 15.4 : : Schizophrenia

likely to do random, unpredictable, even violent or danger- is not in touch with reality in different ways, whereas
ous things. Nash himself managed to live a productive, quiet, at other times symptoms could be in remission and the
peaceful, and generally happy life. There are obviously not person capable of functioning normally.
always such happy endings that people with schizophrenia In most cases of schizophrenia, there are three dis-
can look forward to, but it is encouraging to know that it is
tinct phases: prodromal, active, and residual. These tend
possible.
to occur in sequence, although individuals may cycle
through all three many times.
Focus Questions In the prodromal phase, people may become easily
1 Why do some people develop schizophrenia? confused and have difficulty organizing their thoughts, they may
What are its causal factors? lose interest and begin to withdraw from friends and family, and
they may lose their normal motivations, withdraw from life, and
2 What brain changes are associated with schizophrenia?
spend increasing amounts of time alone, often deeply engrossed
in their own thoughts. It is not uncommon for other peo-
ple to get upset as a result of these behaviours, assuming
the person is lazy or otherwise being irresponsible.
Schizophrenia is often regarded as one of the more dev-
In the active phase, people typically experience delu-
astating psychological illnesses, and indeed, severe cases
sional thoughts, hallucinations, or disorganized patterns of
of schizophrenia involve a shocking loss of basic func-
thoughts, emotions, and behaviour. This phase usually transi-
tioning. Although schizophrenia is not common (affect-
tions into the residual phase, in which people’s predomi-
ing only between approximately 4 to 8 out of every
nant symptoms have disappeared or lessened considerably, and
1000 adults worldwide [Bhugra, 2005; Saha et al., 2005]),
they may simply be withdrawn, have trouble concentrating, and
schizophrenia seems to be universal, appearing in cul-
generally lack motivation.
tures all over the world and across history. Some of our
There is huge variety in terms of the progression
earliest writings describe people who seem to have lost
of schizophrenia. Some people cycle through the three
touch with reality, who hear voices from within, and
stages only a couple of times in their lives, whereas oth-
produce bizarre speech and behaviours. At the time,
ers may cycle repeatedly through the three stages; typi-
it may have been thought that they were possessed
cally, the severity of their withdrawal in the residual
by demons or spirits. Now, we would likely diagnose
phase tends to increase with repeated episodes, and their
schizophrenia.
ability to function normally seems to decrease after each
active phase they go through.
Symptoms and Types The most significant and characteristic symptoms of
schizophrenia are the tendency to experience hallucina-
of Schizophrenia tions, delusions, and disorganized patterns of thinking,
Schizophrenia refers to what many psychologists and feeling, and behaving. These are most pronounced in the
psychiatrists believe is a brain disease that causes the person active phase of the disease, but one must always remem-
to experience significant breaks from reality, a lack of integra- ber that the transitions between these phases will not
tion of thoughts and emotions, and problems with attention and be perfectly clean, so that the hallucinations and delu-
memory. Symptoms may begin to occur and escalate very sions, for example, are either consistently there or are
Simulate
gradually, remaining unnoticeable for a long time before completely gone. The person with schizophrenia may
Schizophrenia
family members start to perceive a pattern. In other cases, experience short-term resurgences of symptoms, perhaps Overview
however, symptoms can begin and escalate very rapidly. associated with stressful periods or other factors and, in
There are many popular but misguided beliefs general, may experience fluctuations in symptoms due to Explore
regarding schizophrenia. For example, people believe any number of possible reasons. Types and Symptoms

that people have schizophrenia when they have more Hallucinations are alterations in perception, such that of Schizophrenia

than one personality; however, this is dissociative identity a person hears, sees, smells, feels, or tastes something that does
disorder (see Module 15.2). Nor is schizophrena solely not actually exist, except in that person’s own mind.
an organic brain disease that only responds to medica- Delusions are beliefs that are not based on reality (at
tion. In fact, schizophrenia is strongly affected by social least from the perspective of the person’s general culture). For
factors such as family support and life events that cause example, people may believe that they are someone
stress. Also, as we saw with John Nash, schizophrenia famous, like Jesus or the president of the United States, or
does not necessarily get steadily worse. In most cases, that their bodies are not under their own control but are
the person’s symptoms fluctuate over time, sometimes being controlled by alien beings. They may find special
throwing the person into acute psychosis in which he significance in common events in the world, and feel like

Schizophrenia :: Module 15.4 :: 659

 they have a special connection with reality or some sort • Disorganized schizophrenia : Symptoms include
of unusual power, like the ability to control the wind. thoughts, speech, behaviour, and emotion that are poorly inte-
Consider the following personal account of a man grated and incoherent. People with disorganized schizophre-
named Kurt Snyder, who wrote a book about his expe- nia may also show inappropriate, unpredictable mannerisms.
riences with schizophrenia during college: • Catatonic schizophrenia: Symptoms include episodes
in which a person remains mute and immobile—sometimes
I thought about fractals and infinity for many years. I in bizarre positions—for extended periods. Individuals may
always told myself I was on the verge of discovery, but also exhibit repetitive, purposeless movements.
I simply had to think a little bit harder about it. I just • Undifferentiated schizophrenia : This category
wasn’t thinking hard enough. The reality is that the prob- includes individuals who show a combination of symptoms
lems I was trying to solve were far beyond my mental abil- from more than one type of schizophrenia.
ities, but I didn’t recognize this fact. Even though I had no • Residual schizophrenia: This category reflects indi-
evidence to substantiate my self-image, I knew in my heart viduals who show some symptoms of schizophrenia but are
that I was just like Einstein, and that someday I would either in transition to a full-blown episode or in remission.
get a flash of inspiration. I didn’t recognize the truth—
that I am not a genius. I kept most of my mathematical Another distinction is often made between posi-
ideas to myself and spoke to very few people about them. I tive and negative symptoms (Harvey & Walker, 1987).
was paranoid that someone else would solve the riddle first Positive symptoms refer to the presence of maladaptive
if I provided the right clues. (Snyder, 2006, p. 209) behaviours, such as confused and paranoid thinking, and inap-
propriate emotional reactions. In contrast, negative symp-
Kurt’s experiences, and those of many other indi- toms involve the absence of adaptive behaviour, such as absent
viduals diagnosed with schizophrenia, attest to the mind- or flat emotional reactions, lack of interacting with others in a
altering experiences that characterize this disorder. social setting, and lack of motivation.
Disorganized behaviour describes the considerable dif- Individuals with schizophrenia experience several
ficulty people with schizophrenia may have completing the tasks of problems with cognitive functioning. These range from
everyday life—cooking, taking care of one’s hygiene, social- basic, low-level physiological responses, such as exces-
[Link] have great difficulty organizing their behaviour sive eye blinking in response to stimulation (Perry et al.,
enough to complete tasks before getting distracted by other 2002), to more complex cognitive skills, such as those
thoughts or things to do, and never being able to follow required for standardized achievement tests—test scores
a project to completion, or even tend to drop during adolescence as the disorder begins
a train of thought, finding their and progresses (Fuller et al., 2002). Many complex
minds jumping from thought to
thought uncontrollably.
In addition to disorganized
thinking, numerous other symp-
toms accompany schizophre-
nia. For some individuals, the
symptoms cluster into different
patterns, leading mental health
professionals in the past to iden-
tify subtypes of the disorder.
These subtypes were dropped
from official practice in 2013 (at
least, according to the DSM-5),
but they are still commonly used:

• Paranoid schizophrenia :
Symptoms include delusional beliefs
that one is being followed, watched,
or persecuted, and may also include
delusions of grandeur or the belief
Provided by Kurt Snyder, author Grunnitus Studio/Science Source
that one has some secret or insight
Kurt Snyder began experiencing schizophrenia People who experience catatonic schizophrenia will remain
in college. Me, Myself, and Them is his per- or power or some other characteristic immobile, even if in a bizarre position, for extended periods
sonal account of living with schizophrenia. that makes one particularly special. of time.

660 :: Module 15.4 : : Schizophrenia

cognitive abilities involve the prefrontal cortex, a brain People also commonly believe that the “madness” of schizo-
region that shows significant neurological decline in phrenia is also associated with being a genius. It can be dif-
individuals with schizophrenia (Wright et al., 2000). ficult to dispel such myths, especially with high-profile cases
This may be the reason for deficits in working mem- that provide an example of the myth, such as John Nash
or Ted Kaczynski (aka the “Unabomber”). Similar to Nash,
ory that connect to symptoms associated with schizo-
Kaczynski was a very bright mathematician, who seemed to
phrenia, such as the inability to keep track of a train of
slip into schizophrenic delusions. Contrary to Nash, how-
thought, organize the sequence of a conversation, and
ever, Kaczynski’s delusions led him to take violent actions
handle multiple memory tasks for a short period of time. against what he perceived to be the evil system of our soci-
Working memory deficits may partially explain the dis- ety. This earned him his Unabomber nickname, because he
organized thoughts and speech characteristic of schizo- sent bombs, through the mail, to prominent researchers at
phrenia (Park et al., 1999). various universities.
Social interaction is often very difficult for many The truth is that schizophrenia is not associated with
people with schizophrenia. They typically have difficulty genius but, in fact, with cognitive deficits as noted earlier in
reasoning about social situations and show relatively this module. Contrary to Ted Kaczynski and John Nash, peo-
poor social adjustment (Done et al., 1994). In addition, ple with schizophrenia typically score slightly below aver-
their emotional expressions and ability to react to the age on IQ tests (Woodberry et al., 2008). Also, people with
schizophrenia are only rarely violent, and in almost all cases
emotions of others may be impaired (Penn & Combs,
in which they are, other factors such as substance abuse play
2000). For example, people with schizophrenia may
a big role; their overall propensity for violence is not mean-
maintain a neutral mask-like expression on their faces,
ingfully different from the rest of the population (Douglas et
and show little response to smiles or other expressions al., 2009; Fazel et al., 2009). Rather than being violent, people
from people around them. As a result, the person with with schizophrenia are likely to isolate themselves and end
schizophrenia generally is not as socially competent and up in situations in which they are likely to get harmed them-
strikes others as a little “odd”; this can set social feedback selves. In fact, ironically, it’s the people with schizophrenia
processes in motion (such as others then avoiding eye who should perhaps fear the rest of society; people with
contact or extended discussions with the schizophrenic mental illnesses are approximately 10 times more likely
person), which then cause the person with schizophrenia to be victims of crime than the non-mentally ill (Teplin
to become aware of this negative social feedback, to feel et al., 2005).
self-conscious and uncomfortable, and to be more likely
to socially withdraw in the future.
Social withdrawal and isolation is a very common
consequence of schizophrenia and may even be related
to the long-term outcomes of the disease; helping people
with schizophrenia deal with their own social behaviours
and skills, as well as working to further reduce stigma
in society so that people may not behave as negatively
toward people with schizophrenia, are important chal-
lenges for society to address in helping individuals with
this disorder. Unfortunately, a great deal of stigma does
remain toward schizophrenia, in part because of com-
mon misunderstandings that many have of the disease.

MYTHS IN MIND
Schizophrenia Is Not a Sign
Elaine Thompson/AP Images Robert P. Matthews/Princeton
of Violence or Genius
Ted Kaczynski’s case is unusual because University/Getty Images
Although schizophrenia is a widely recognized term, it is his illness led him to send bombs to John Nash is a math genius and the
also widely misunderstood. As was mentioned in the open- researchers through the mail. Most people subject of A Beautiful Mind. Stories like
with schizophrenia do not present a threat Nash’s lead some to incorrectly associ-
ing story about John Nash, people may believe that schizo-
to others. ate genius with certain types of mental
phrenia makes people violent or dangerous, or causes illness, including schizophrenia.
people to have different personalities (which is actually
called dissociative identity disorder; see Module 15.2).

Schizophrenia :: Module 15.4 :: 661

 Quick Quiz 15.4a Explaining Schizophrenia
Symptoms and Types of Schizophrenia So far we have described schizophrenia based on its psy-
chological and physical characteristics. Researchers are
1 A person with schizophrenia who experiences

KNOW . . .
also very curious about the underlying sources of these
delusions that she is royalty is experiencing a(n)
________ symptom.
characteristics and have employed a wide range of tech-
A positive C catatonic niques to discover what causes schizophrenia. Although
B negative D undifferentiated a single definitive answer has not yet emerged, a holistic
understanding is emerging through the application of
the biopsychosocial model.
2 A patient who is nonresponsive and remains still in
APPLY . . .

odd postures may be diagnosed with which subtype of

GENETICS Studies using twin, adoption, and fam-
schizophrenia?
ily history methods have shown that as genetic related-
A Disorganized C Catatonic
ness increases, the chance that a relative of a person with
B Undifferentiated D Residual
schizophrenia will also develop the disorder increases
(see Figure 15.7). For example, if one identical twin has
3 An individual showing poor integration of thinking
schizophrenia, the other twin has a 25% to 50% chance
and emotion visits a psychiatrist claiming that all of
her neighbours are watching her. Into which category of developing it. This rate is significantly higher than the
of schizophrenia might the psychiatrist classify the 10% to 17% rate found in dizygotic (fraternal) twin pairs
individual? (Gottesman, 1991).
Watch A Residual C Disorganized For decades, behavioural genetic studies have shown
Genetics Research in B Undifferentiated D Paranoid that genes contribute to schizophrenia, but they cannot
Schizophrenia identify the specific genes that contribute to the disor-
4 Which of the following statements best summarizes der. However, with the benefit of recent technological
ANALYZE . . .

the relationship between schizophrenia and advances and the data from the Human Genome Proj-
violence? ect, researchers are beginning to make progress at the
A Generally, people with schizophrenia are no more molecular level. For example, scientists have discovered
likely to become violent than non-mentally ill
a distinct pattern of genetic irregularities that is found in
people, and if violence occurs, other factors, such
as substance abuse, are likely to contribute to its
15% of individuals with schizophrenia, compared with
cause.
B People with schizophrenia are twice as likely to
be violent as non-mentally ill people.
General population
C People with schizophrenia are far more peaceful Spouses of patients
than non-mentally ill people.
First cousins
D People with schizophrenia cannot differentiate Uncles/Aunts
right from wrong, and therefore are prone to Nephews/Nieces
violence.
Grandchildren
Half siblings
5 There have been several famous cases of people with Children
superior intellectual abilities as well as schizophrenia. Siblings
Does this mean that schizophrenia is the cause or the Siblings with one
result of genius? schizophrenic parent
A No; in fact, the average IQ of people with Dizygotic twins
schizophrenia may be slightly lower than average. Parents
B Yes; in fact, the average IQ of people with Monozygotic twins
schizophrenia is approximately 15% higher than Offspring of two
average. schizophrenic parents

C Yes, because people who are that smart are likely

0 10 20 30 40 50
to develop schizophrenia simply because they
know too much. Lifetime risk of developing
schizophrenia (%)
D No, because schizophrenia is associated with
very low IQs. {fig. 15.7} Genetic Influences for Schizophrenia The
more genetic similarity an individual has to a person with
Answers can be found on page ANS-4. schizophrenia, the more likely that he or she will also develop
the disorder.

662 :: Module 15.4 : : Schizophrenia

only 5% of healthy controls (Walsh et al., 2008). On the by approximately 2% in those individuals with schizo-
one hand, this relationship suggests a possible genetic phrenia. In particular, the reduced volume can be found
contribution to schizophrenia. On the other hand, the in structures such as the amygdala and hippocampus
genetic abnormality was not found in 85% of the indi- (Wright et al., 2000).
viduals with schizophrenia. Thus, like most disorders, The brains of people with schizophrenia are not just
schizophrenia cannot be diagnosed by testing for a single different in size; they also function differently. People
gene, and the search for the complex genetic combina- with schizophrenia have a lower level of activity in their
tions that may underlie schizophrenia has barely begun. frontal lobes than those without schizophrenia. People
Researchers at the University of Alberta have made who have a long history with the disorder show lower
major contributions to this search. Their first break- levels of activity in their frontal lobes during a resting
through came by chance, as is often the case. Researcher state, and even when their frontal lobes are activated by
Diane Cox was looking at samples of genetic material a cognitive task (Hill et al., 2004). Also, as mentioned
for research that had nothing to do with schizophrenia, above, they also tend to have smaller amygdala and hip-
but she noticed samples from a mother-daughter pair pocampal regions, which are also less active during tasks
that showed a remarkable similarity; each sample had that would normally activate those brain areas (Hempel
a break in one of the genes on a specific chromosome, et al., 2003).
#14 (Kamnasaran et al., 2003), and as it turned out, both Not only changes in brain regions, but also in brain
of them had schizophrenia. This important clue led to chemistry, are part of the development of schizophrenia.
further breakthroughs about genetic contributions to Specifically, individuals with schizophrenia have overac-
schizophrenia and the mechanisms through which genes tive dopamine receptors (Heinz & Schlagenhauf, 2010),
affect the development of the disease (Wong et al., 2013). and excess dopamine can produce the types of positive
Another way to examine the biological factors symptoms associated with schizophrenia, such as hallu-
involved in schizophrenia is to examine brain anatomy cinations and delusions; however, dopamine levels can-
and chemistry. not account for the negative symptoms such as flattened
emotion and lack of speech (Andreasen et al., 1995).
SCHIZOPHRENIA AND THE NERVOUS SYSTEM Glutamate, another neurotransmitter, appears to be
One important neurological characteristic of people underactive in certain brain regions, including the hip-
with schizophrenia is the size of the brain ventricles, pocampus and the frontal cortex, of individuals with
the fluid-filled spaces in the core of the brain. People schizophrenia. Glutamate is a primary excitatory neu-
with schizophrenia have ventricular spaces that are 20% rotransmitter, so a reduction of glutamate in those areas
to 30% larger than people without schizophrenia (see would correspond to a reduction of their functioning.
Figure 15.8; Gottesman & Gould, 2003). The reason for Interestingly, glutamate receptor activity is also inhibited
these larger ventricular spaces is a loss of brain matter,
which amounts to a reduction of total brain volume

Unaffected Affected
Werner Bachmeier/imagebroker/Alamy
Psychologists have long noted that individuals who are being
Courtesy of E. Fuller Torrrey and Daniel Weinberger treated with antipsychotic drugs that block dopamine tend
{fig. 15.8} Brain Volume in One Monozygotic Twin with to be heavy smokers. One possible reason is that both the
Schizophrenia and Another without Schizophrenia The rewarding experiences and the impaired concentration asso-
brains of two genetically identical individuals, one affected with ciated with dopamine are reduced by the medication. Heavy
schizophrenia and the other unaffected, are shown here. The nicotine use stimulates the reward and cognitive centres of the
arrows point to the spaces created by the ventricles of the brain. brain, thereby helping compensate for the dampening effects
Note the significant loss of brain matter in the affected individual. the medication has on dopamine (Winterer, 2010).

Schizophrenia :: Module 15.4 :: 663

 by the drug PCP (angel dust), which in high doses can Long after prenatal development, certain events
cause symptoms that mirror those of schizophrenia. can increase one’s risk of developing schizophrenia.
In summary, scientists have found several neurologi- For example, some research suggests that a very small
cal differences associated with schizophrenia, although proportion of people who use marijuana develop psy-
researchers are still far from having a clear picture about chotic symptoms, possibly because the drug interacts
the biological basis of this disorder. To further our with the genes involved in schizophrenia (Caspi et al.,
understanding of the disorder we need to examine how 2005). Head injuries occurring prior to age 10 also put
these biological variables interact with environmental people who are genetically vulnerable to schizophrenia
influences. at greater risk for developing the disorder (AbdelMalik
et al., 2003). Also, being raised in an environment where
ENVIRONMENTAL AND CULTURAL INFLUENCES
psychosocial stressors (e.g., interpersonal conflict, social
ON SCHIZOPHRENIA Research on the neurosci-
isolation, poverty) are more abundant, such as modern
ence of schizophrenia has made inroads toward discov-
urban environments, puts individuals at greater risk for
ering its causes. But remember a few observations: First,
developing schizophrenia (van Os et al., 2004), because
many people who do not have mutant versions of the
schizophrenic episodes are often triggered by acutely
genes involved in schizophrenia may still develop the
stressful circumstances.
disorder. Second, an identical twin has roughly a 50%
chance of developing schizophrenia if her twin has it,
Social Factors One of the big findings in the
despite sharing 100% of her genes. Finally, although
schizophrenia literature has been that the progression
approximately 1% of the world population may have the
of the disease seems to be highly related to psycho-
disorder, as much as 10% of the population is at a genetic
social factors, and in particular by how emotionally
risk for developing schizophrenia (Meehl, 1990). Taken
supportive or cr itical members in the family are
together, these observations are reminders that a genetic,
toward the person with schizophrenia. Families high
or even complete biological, understanding will not tell
in “emotional expressiveness” (EE) tend to be overly
the full story of schizophrenia; in order to fully under-
critical and controlling, whereas families low in EE tend
stand this disease, we must consider the role of environ-
to be more supportive, accepting, and non-judging. As
mental factors.
several teams of researchers have found, there are huge
Environmental and Prenatal Factors As discussed differences between people with schizophrenia who live
in Module 10.1, environmental influences shape our in high-EE versus low-EE families. In high-EE families,
development even before birth, while we are still in people with schizophrenia are three to four times more
the womb. One intriguing finding in the literature is likely to experience a relapse of their symptoms within
that people with schizophrenia are more likely to have a nine-month period (Brown et al., 1972; King &
been born during winter months (Tochigi et al., 2004). Dixon, 1999). This has led to the creation of therapeutic
One hypothesis is that winter births carry a higher interventions designed to help families reduce their
risk of eventual schizophrenia because the fetus’s brain negative behaviours and learn to be more appropriately
is developing a great deal during the second trimester, assertive. The assumption has been that the amount of
which coincides with the onset of flu season; maternal emotional expressiveness in families causes the relapse of
exposure to the influenza virus at such a critical time symptoms, presumably because in high-EE families the
of neurological development may be one contributing schizophrenic person would be much more stressed, and
factor. More generally, environmental factors that cause the stress then exacerbates their symptoms.
stress for the mother while pregnant, such as losing her However, it is not clear exactly what the relation-
spouse or experiencing trauma such as war or violence, ship between EE and schizophrenia may be. One line of
can impact fetal development; the massive release of research, headed by Suzanne King of McGill University,
stress hormones during such difficult events has a variety has shown that the causal pathway might be the opposite
of neurological and cognitive effects on the developing of what is assumed; that is, people with more severe cases
fetus (see Module 10.1), which could increase the risk of of schizophrenia are more difficult to manage, put more
developing schizophrenia (Brown & Derkits, 2010; King stress on the family, and therefore end up causing greater
et al., 2010). Clearly, more research needs to be done emotional expression in their families (King, 2000).
on the environmental contributions to schizophrenia, Nevertheless, research that has examined the impact
which might give us greater ability to understand the of therapeutic interventions on families has shown
sorts of emotional support pregnant women need, which that changing the EE of the family has a causal influ-
then might serve to prevent cases of schizophrenia from ence on the likelilhood of schizophrenic relapse (Lam,
developing in the first place. 1991). Thus, the full relationship between schizophrenia

664 :: Module 15.4 : : Schizophrenia

and emotional expressiveness may involve a two-way to be virtually absent in Indonesians. Kraepelin attrib-
causal process, with each factor affecting the other over uted this difference to the low use of speech in this cul-
time; untangling this causal story remains a challenge for ture (Jilek, 1995).
future research. Beliefs about mental illness are linked to varying cul-
tural views of the world (McGruder, 2004). Many people
Cultural Factors In Module 15.1, we introduced the
throughout the world, such as the Swahili of Tanzania,
topic of cultural perceptions of mental illness. Differing
believe that what we call schizophrenia is really a sign
cultural perspectives are evident when it comes to
that spirits have invaded the body. In many cultures, the
schizophrenia. For example, ethnicity influences the types
self is not perceived to be as separate and self-contained
of experiences that individuals report having. Anglo-
as in Western culture, but rather it is understood that the
Americans tend to focus on the mental experiences of
self is “permeable” to other entities or beings. Spirits,
the disorder, such as disorganized thinking and emotions.
which are thought to overpower humans, can therefore
In contrast, Mexican Americans focus more on how
invade the mind and body.
schizophrenia affects the body, such as by producing
As you think about the different ways that a person
tension or tiredness. They conceive of the disorder as any
with schizophrenia would be treated in these different
other form of illness, whereas Americans tend to view
cultural contexts, and the presumed sophistication of our
mental disorders as separate from other types of illness
scientific understanding of what we call “schizophrenia,”
(Weisman et al., 2000).
consider one surprising fact—the long-term outcomes
You have probably heard the term “running amok”
for people who have symptoms that would be diagnosed
to describe violent and out-of-control behaviour. This
as schizophrenia are actually better in developing coun-
term is actually Indonesian in origin. Psychiatrist Emil
tries and traditional cultures that have been minimally
Kraepelin concluded that amok is more similar to what
influenced by the Western medical system. Understand-
we call psychosis, albeit with some notable differences.
ing why that may be is a discussion for another time, but
For example, auditory hallucinations—a very common
for now, just think about that for a moment . . .
symptom of schizophrenia as Westerners know it—seem

may even be set in motion through environmental factors

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC while the person is still in the womb, such as exposure to flu
LITERACY MODEL viruses. The sensitivity to environmental conditions exhibited
by schizophrenia may indicate that the development of schizo-
The Neurodevelopmental Hypothesis phrenia in adulthood can be traced back to the disruption of brain
development early in life, even during prenatal development.
Schizophrenia is obviously a complex disorder, and no one
explanation has been able to account for all the variations in How can science
symptoms, severity, and duration of this disorder. Perhaps a
combination of factors is to blame. One of the leading per-
test the neuro-
spectives on the causes of schizophrenia is the neurodevel- developmental
opmental hypothesis. hypothesis?
The neurodevelopmen-
What do we tal hypothesis draws from research on genetics and pre-
know about the natal factors. However, the developmental emphasis of the
neurodevelopmental hypothesis gains strength from behavioural evidence col-
lected during childhood and adolescence, which shows that
hypothesis? people who develop schizophrenia showed warning signs
As with most disorders, schizo- when they were very young. For example, when psycholo-
phrenia is best explained by gists viewed home movies of infants and children who sub-
interactions between various bio- sequently developed schizophrenia, they noted that these
psychosocial factors. Much research has shown that people children showed some unusual motor patterns, primarily on
who develop schizophrenia likely exhibited certain patterns the left side of the body, such as jerky, repeated, and unnec-
of behaviour earlier in life, suggesting that the adult manifesta- essary arm movements (Walker et al., 1994). Siblings who
tion of what we call “schizophrenia” is the outgrowth of disrupted did not have schizophrenia did not show these same motor
neurological development early in the person’s life. This is the patterns. This evidence suggests that a schizophrenic pro-
neurodevelopmental hypothesis. In fact, schizophrenia pensity already exists very early in life, setting in motion the

Schizophrenia :: Module 15.4 :: 665

 processes and shaping the patterns of brain activity that lead Why is this relevant?
further into the development of the disorder.
What might be some advan-
In adolescence, psychologists can detect the schizophrenia tages to understanding the
prodrome, a collection of characteristics that resemble mild early development of schizo-
forms of schizophrenia symptoms. For example, a teenager phrenia? By identifying devel-
might become increasingly socially withdrawn and have opmental patterns and catching them early, it may be
some difficulty with depression and anxiety. But the most possible to alter the progression of the disorder, thereby
telling—and most perplexing—problems include experi- preventing schizophrenia from developing, or at least con-
ences that resemble hallucinations and delusions, with the trolling its severity. In recent years, a number of attempts
exception that the affected individual does not fully believe to prevent schizophrenia from developing in high-risk
them. For example, a teen might say, “I seem to keep hearing populations have been made, but have not proved effective
my mother calling my name before I fall asleep, even when I (McGlashan et al., 2006; McGorry et al., 2002). To accom-
know she isn’t home. It is strange . . .” (Walker et al., 2010, plish this goal, researchers will have to rely on all levels
p. 206). of explanation: genetics, the function and structure of the
brain, neurotransmitters, prenatal influences, and psychoso-
Can we critically evaluate cial factors.
this information?
Perhaps the most interesting chal-
lenge to this research, and one
that has huge implications for our
understanding of developmental
disorders, is that the precursors to
schizophrenia are not unique to that disorder, but in fact are
precursors to a variety of neurodevelopmental disorders. In
fact, the traditional view that the neurodevelopmental disor-
ders are separate and discrete categories is being challenged;
instead, the developmental disorders of intellectual disabil-
ity, autism, ADHD, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder may
in fact be part of a larger syndrome of dysfunction that is
rooted in common causes (Owen et al., 2011). The fact that
cognitive deficits play such a central role in all these disor-
ders fits with this possibility. Michele Constantini/Glow Images

Quick Quiz 15.4b Explaining Schizophrenia

1 The neurodevelopmental hypothesis states that 2 Which of the following statements is most accurate
KNOW . . .

UNDERSTAND . . .

A biological factors are solely responsible for concerning the biochemical basis of schizophrenia?
schizophrenia. A The neurotransmitter dopamine is overly active.
B social factors are solely responsible for B Dopamine is underactive.
schizophrenia. C Serotonin levels are too low.
C irregular biological and environmental factors inter- D There is too much glutamate activity.
act during early development and are responsible
for schizophrenia.
D prenatal exposure to the influenza virus definitely
3 Evidence for the neurodevelopmental hypothesis
includes the fact that young children who eventually
causes schizophrenia.
develop schizophrenia
A report hallucinations as early as four years of age.
B show unusual motor patterns such as jerky,
repeated movements.
C lapse into periods of catatonia.
D had the flu during preschool.

Answers can be found on page ANS-4.

666 :: Module 15.4 : : Schizophrenia

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
15.4
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with schizophrenia:

active phase (p. 659) paranoid schizophrenia (p. 660)
catatonic schizophrenia (p. 660) positive symptoms (p. 660)
delusions (p. 659) prodromal phase (p. 659)
disorganized behaviour (p. 660) residual phase (p. 659) Mark Owen/Blackout Concepts/Alamy
disorganized schizophrenia residual schizophrenia (p. 660)
(p. 660) schizophrenia (p. 659)
hallucinations (p. 659) undifferentiated schizophrenia APPLY . . .
negative symptoms (p. 660) (p. 660)
neurodevelopmental hypothesis ● Your knowledge to identify different forms of
(of schizophrenia) (p. 665) schizophrenia. Try the activity in Table 15.6: Identify
which symptoms in the left column most closely match
UNDERSTAND . . . the form of schizophrenia (if any) in the right column.
Check your answers on page ANS-4.
● How different neurotransmitters affect individuals
with schizophrenia. Part of how we can explain
schizophrenia is by identifying the neurotransmitters that ANALYZE . . .
are affected by the disorder. Abnormal dopamine and
glutamate levels are found in schizophrenia; review the ● Claims that schizophrenia is related to genius or
effects of these neurotransmitters on page 663. violent behaviour. As you have read, some high-profile
cases highlight people with schizophrenia who are
● The genetic and environmental contributions to
intellectually brilliant. In reality, however, research tells us
schizophrenia. The neurodevelopmental hypothesis
that the average intelligence of people with schizophrenia
claims that at least some neurological abnormalities
is similar to, although a little bit lower than, the norm.
are present at birth, although it does not state to what
Similarly, the belief that schizophrenia leads to violence
degree these abnormalities are genetic or environmental.
derives from a small group of high-profile examples. In
Nevertheless, some research suggests that prenatal
truth, there does not seem to be increased risk of violence
exposure to the flu or to significant amounts of stress
associated with schizophrenia alone.
hormones are risk factors for this type of mental illness.
Genetics seem to play a role, as twin studies show that if
one identical twin has schizophrenia, the other has a 50%
chance of developing the disorder—a substantial increase
over the 1% occurrence rate in the general population.

Table 15.6 :: Application Activity for Module 15.4

1. Rosalita was helped to a chair and she has sat there, virtually motionless, A. This is not schizophrenia.
for about two hours. B. Paranoid schizophrenia
2. Eyanna refuses to go to the dentist. “Last time I went,” she said, “they put a C. Catatonic schizophrenia
transmitter in my teeth so that the agents can control my thoughts.” D. Disorganized schizophrenia
3. Jeff has begun experiencing extreme dissociations. He even has started E. Residual schizophrenia
acting differently and referring to himself as “Steve.”
4. Jinhai’s language is very difficult to understand. He seems to be talking
perfectly well but many of the words he is using are made up and other
words are totally out of place.

Schizophrenia :: Module 15.4 :: 667

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Schizophrenia

1 What do we know about schizophrenia?

Recall that psychologists evaluate mental disorders such as schizophre-
2 How can science help explain
schizophrenia?
nia using two complementary models. The medical model assumes that, like The disorganized thought processes characteristic of schizo-
diseases of the body, psychological disorders have a standard set of symptoms, phrenia may be explained by brain research that suggests a
probable causes, and likely outcomes. On page 660, you can review the sev- decline in the functioning of the prefrontal cortex in people
eral subtypes of schizophrenia, such as paranoid, catatonic, or disorganized with this disease (page 663). Twin studies suggest a strong
schizophrenia, each of which has its own set of symptoms. Table 15.1 on genetic influence in the emergence of schizophrenia, although
page 625 offers a snapshot of another approach that psychologists use to specific genes cannot entirely explain why some people develop
develop a comprehensive view of each disorder—the biopsychosocial model. the disease. Biological research, as shown in Figure 15.8,
It is likely that genetics, environment, and the brain all play key roles in the demonstrates that people with schizophrenia have larger
development of the disorder. ventricle spaces, which correspond to a loss of brain matter.
When diagnosing most mental disorders, psychiatrists and psychologists rely Research has also revealed that imbalances of chemicals in the
on the DSM-5, which offers a set of guidelines for identifying the symptoms brain may account in part for some symptoms of the disorder.
and severity of mental illnesses. For example, two symptoms experienced by Research on prenatal factors indicates that babies born in the
individuals with schizophrenia are hallucinations and delusions. These terms are winter months are statistically more likely to develop schizo-
sometimes used interchangeably, but they mean different things. Recall that hal- phrenia, suggesting a possible link between the effects of influ-
lucinations are false perceptions of reality (hearing voices), whereas delusions enza season and fetal brain development. When it comes to
are false or erroneous beliefs about reality (believ- environmental factors, those who are genetically
ing that one is God). at risk for the disorder and who suffer head inju-
ries before the age of 10 years have an increased
chance of developing the disease, as do those
individuals who are raised in an environment
characterized by psychosocial stress.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video excerpt on
psychological disorders. You can access the video
at MyPsychLab or by clicking the play button in the

3
centre of your eText. You can also view the video Irmak Akcadogan/Shutterstock
Can we critically evaluate claims about
by using your smart phone and the QR code below, or you can
go to the YouTube link provided.
schizophrenia?
The complexity of schizophrenia seems to call for an approach that uses
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, con-
multiple perspectives. On page 664, we explored the neurodevelop-
sider the following questions: Why do most researchers consider
mental hypothesis, which proposes that a combination of genetic and
schizophrenia a brain disorder? Which evidence suggests that
environmental factors work together during infant and child develop-
schizophrenia could begin in the womb?
ment to make people more susceptible to the disease. For instance,
psychologists can identify symptoms in adolescence that predict schizo-
phrenia. Detecting early precursors to the disorder might allow people
to alter the progression of schizophrenia.
While schizophrenia is a familiar disorder to most people, it is often
misunderstood. Myths in Mind on page 661 dispels the notion that,
despite famous cases such as those of John Nash and Ted Kaczynski, peo-
ple with schizophrenia are likely to be either geniuses or violent offend-
ers. To the contrary, people with schizophrenia tend to score below
average on standardized intelligence tests and are less likely to be perpe-
trators of crime (and more likely to be victims of it).

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]//wor
[Link]/workthemodel
work
kthemo
kth
hemod
de
del
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

668 :: Chapter 15 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 16
Therapies
16.1 Treating Psychological Disorders
● Barriers to Psychological
Treatment p. 671
● Mental Health Providers
and Settings p. 673
● Evaluating Treatments p. 676
Working the Scientific Literacy
Model: Can Self-Help Treatments
Be Effective? p. 677
● Module Summary p. 680

16.2 Psychological Therapies

● Insight Therapies p. 682
● Behavioural, Cognitive, and
Group Therapies p. 686
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Virtual Reality Therapies p. 687
● Module Summary p. 693

16.3 Biomedical Therapies

● Drug Treatments p. 695
Working the Scientific Literacy Model:
Is St. John’s Wort Effective? p. 697
● Technological and Surgical
Methods p. 701
● Module Summary p. 705

• Work the Scientific Literacy

Model p. 706

Gts/Shutterstock
 Ambrophoto/Alamy

Module

16.1
Treating Psychological Disorders

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology The major barriers to seeking Your knowledge to suggest what Whether self-help options,
After reading associated with mental help for psychological disorders approach to therapy is likely most such as popular books, are
this module health treatment appropriate for a given situation a useful therapy option
The arguments for and against
you should involuntary treatment

“The Power of Vulnerability” has become one of the most popular TED sign of weakness, and to view therapists as “quacks” and “shrinks,” lost
(Teaching, Entertainment, Design) talks ever given. This simple, from in their psycho-babble and out of touch with reality. There are countless
the heart talk involves a confident, brilliant, personable, and completely examples, from the brain-frying terror of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,
vulnerable woman, talking about how she went to a therapist because to Frasier dispensing psychological “wisdom” on his radio show, to real-
she was having a breakdown (although according to her therapist it life pop-culture psychologists or therapists such as Dr. Laura Schlessinger
was a spiritual awakening). Brene Brown’s talk on shame courageously or Dr. Phil McGraw providing therapeutic advice to people they have just
exposed to millions of TED viewers the deeply moving admission that met and have known for only minutes as part of their programs. To the
so many millions of us struggle with shame, and that it is normal and casual viewer, it may start to seem like psychologists have about as much
indeed healthy for a person to go to a therapist. By being so open about credibility as Lucy from Peanuts, sitting in her booth providing “psycho-
her experiences, and letting the public know that therapists themselves logical” advice to Charlie Brown for a nickel.
go to therapists, she set an example for the rest of us that a key step
Thus, it is worth paying attention when an extremely popular cultural
toward overcoming the stigma that too many people still associate with
event, like Brene Brown’s TED talk, shows the public that therapy is a
mental illness and therapy is to talk about it. In our DIY culture, with a
normal part of many people’s lives. Perhaps the stigma associated with
strong individualistic belief that people need to “pull themselves up by
mental illness and attending therapy is finally being overcome.
their own bootstraps,” it is all too common to view mental illness as a

670 :: Module 16.1 : : Treating Psychological Disorders

Focus Questions Masuda et al., 2005; Yoo & Skovholt, 2001).
There are many possible reasons for these dif-
1 What are the major barriers that hold people
ferences, ranging from the degree of stigma
back from seeking psychological help?
toward mental illness in different cultures to
2 What are the settings in which psychological financial and other barriers that make access
therapy typically occurs?
to treatment more difficult.

Barriers to Psychological
In Chapter 15 we described some of the psychological Treatment
disorders that affect people. Given that approximately Despite the optimism with which we
one in five people will experience a psychological dis- opened this chapter, it is still the case that
order in their lifetime (Narrow et al., 2002), disorders many people with a disorder do not receive
touch everyone’s life, either directly or indirectly through help. For example, in one study, of 1600
Peter Kramer/NBC/NBC
friends, family, neighbours, or co-workers. Furthermore, adults who had been diagnosed with depres- NewsWire via Getty Images
if you consider the term “disorder” more broadly, to sion or an anxiety disorder, only 30% were Brene Brown’s TED talk on shame
include experiences like shame that can markedly reduce receiving some form of therapy (Young challenges the stigma of mental
or limit a person’s overall functioning, then far more et al., 2001). In both Canada and the U.S., illness and attending therapy.
than 20% of us are limiting ourselves and could benefit surveys show that approximately two-
from having our “issues” effectively treated. Clearly, there thirds of people with mental health issues do not seek
is a pervasive need for effective psychological treatments. help from the mental health system (Lesage et al., 2006;
In this module, we provide an overarching view of the NIMH, 2011). Furthermore, even when people do seek
approach our society takes to treating psychological dis- therapy, about half of them significantly delay doing so
orders, discussing who tends to seek treatment, who pro- after first becoming aware of their mental health issues,
vides it, and how treatment approaches are evaluated. often for years (DiClemente & Prochaska, 1985; Pro-
Over the past several decades, attitudes toward chaska & DiClemente, 1984). Why would people choose
therapy have indeed changed, as Brene Brown’s TED not to seek help?
talk illustrates. It is now commonplace for celebrities to There are many barriers that prevent or delay peo-
be open about their traumatic childhoods, relationship ple from seeking psychological treatment. One prob-
problems, drug abuse, and other psychological struggles. lem that almost everyone struggles with is that disorders
Similarly, bookstores have entire sections devoted to themselves are inherently ambiguous; there is no objec-
psychology, chock-full of advice and insight for people tive, easily definable line between “mentally healthy” and
seeking to help themselves or someone they care about. “mentally ill” and no litmus test that can tell a person
These changes reflect a general normalization of the with a high degree of certainty that they need to seek
whole idea of psychological disorders and a lessening of help. Thus, a person may believe he is simply “sad,” not
the stigma toward mental illness. This shift is reflected depressed, and of course, sadness is a regular part of life,
in the high number of people who seek psychologi- and not everyone who is sad needs to go see a therapist.
cal services; each year in Canada, approximately 10% of Or a person may believe she is merely stressed or a bit
the population seeks treatment for mental health issues worried about things, not that she has an anxiety disor-
(Lesage et al., 2006). der. This inescapable ambiguity makes it unclear exactly
Nevertheless, not all groups of people are equally when it’s desirable for a person to seek treatment.
likely to seek psychological treatment. In general, women Also, people very commonly are motivated to not see
participate in therapy more often than men, and people themselves as mentally ill, so much so that they minimal-
aged 35 through 55 seek treatment more often than ize their symptoms, basically tricking themselves and oth-
younger adults and the elderly (Addis & Mahalik, 2003; ers to think that they are healthier than they really are. To
Olfson & Marcus, 2010). People from certain cultural some, such a label would feel like a sign of weakness or a
groups are less likely to use psychological services; in personal failing. Or people may be concerned that oth-
Canada, Asian Canadians and people of Native descent ers may view or treat them negatively, or be unwilling to
are both less likely to seek mental health treatment than risk the social stigma that they fear might embarrass either
Caucasians (Sue & Lam, 2002). Therapy is also a more themselves or their families. Or they may not trust the
popular choice for Canadians and Americans in gen- psychological or psychiatric professions, and be skeptical
eral relative to people from many other countries such of the efficacy and safety of different treatments (Craske et
as Israel, Hungary, Japan, and Korea (Cohen et al., 1998; al., 2005; Mansfield et al., 2005;Vanheusdan et al., 2008).

Treating Psychological Disorders :: Module 16.1 :: 671

 Overcoming such skepticism may make a big difference in it,” as though people can be expected to overcome mental
helping people seek treatment; for example, in one study, health issues through sheer force of will. These tradition-
99% of respondents said they would seek mental health ally male gender roles certainly don’t promote talking
treatment if they believed it would be helpful (Fox et al., about emotions and acknowledging vulnerabilities, steps
2001). There is an important role to be played by educa- that would put people on a path toward healing (Berger
tional programs that help people become aware of what et al., 2005; Mahalik et al., 2003). Getting men to see
problems can be treated and help to build confidence therapy differently has presented such a challenge that
in the mental health profession (Fox et al., 2001; Sharp the NIMH has staged public awareness campaigns, such
et al., 2006). as the “Real Men, Real Depression” campaign. Initial
The cumulative impact of the different barriers to evidence indicates that social marketing messages such as
psychological treatment leaves millions of people delay- this do succeed in increasing the likelihood people will
ing or simply never receiving the kind of therapy and seek help, perhaps partially overcoming resistance based
support that could, literally, change their lives (Wang et on traditional gender roles (Bell et al., 2010; Rochlen
al., 2005). Understanding these barriers is an important et al., 2006).
step toward overcoming them.
LOGISTICAL BARRIERS: EXPENSE AND AVAIL-
STIGMA ABOUT MENTAL ILLNESS One com- ABILITY Two of the main barriers to mental health
mon barrier that we alluded to earlier is stigma toward treatment are about access—whether people can afford
mental illness and toward the process of therapy itself the money and the time (Colonna-Pydyn et al., 2007;
(Corrigan, 2004; Vogel et al., 2009). You may already Craske et al., 2005). Money has a particularly profound
understand the effects of stigma—just imagine a busi- influence on the way that the mental health system func-
ness executive needing to take some time off work to tions, and the kinds of treatments that are available for
undergo an operation. Imagine the support he would many people. For example, psychotherapy can be very
receive from his colleagues, the openness with which he expensive, generally costing more than $100 per hour,
would be able to talk to people about his health. Now and often much more than [Link] is also associated
imagine that same executive needing to take some time with numerous indirect costs, such as time away from
off for mental health issues, and as you do so, the whole work, transportation, and possibly child care. Unfortu-
situation changes! Very few people may be told; the per- nately, government health-care coverage in Canada gen-
son will have very little support because people gener- erally only includes treatment by psychiatrists, leaving
ally won’t know what is going on. Think of the impact counsellors, psychologists, and many types of therapists
this could have on, for example, a person trying for a less able to reach many people who can’t afford their
promotion, or trying to find new employment. In many services. The net result of these sorts of funding deci-
professions, mental illness carries a strong stigma, result- sions is to give a heavy advantage toward the medical
ing in people with psychological disorders experiencing approaches, and treatment providers, for psychological
discrimination at the workplace. There may also be social disorders. In practice, this means that most of the money
costs, such as being treated differently by friends, fam- flows toward the pharmaceutical industries and hospitals,
ily, or potential romantic partners. For example, one out and medically-based treatments retain their dominance
of every two Canadians admits that they would likely over the field. What often happens, especially for indi-
not socialize with a friend who had a serious mental viduals from lower-income families, is that they simply
illness, and one in four Canadians admits that they are attempt to cope with their lives, while all too often their
Simulate afraid to be around people with serious mental illnesses situation becomes increasingly dysfunctional and ready
How Do You Take Care (Canadian Medical Association, 2008). Obviously, we still to collapse until finally, a major problem occurs and they
of Your Mental Health? have a long way to go before mental illnesses are viewed can no longer avoid it. This often results in the treatment
in the same way as physical ailments. process beginning in a hospital emergency room, which
Watch
places an extra burden on the public health-care system
Alan Kazdin: What sort
GENDER ROLES In many countries with strong gen- (Snowdon, 1999).
of treatments have you
der norms, including Canada and the U.S., there are extra To help overcome these barriers, some commu-
been developing for
pressures on men to avoid treatment, because “need- nity organizations provide offices in lower-income areas
clinical problems?
ing help” and going to therapy seem incompatible with where private psychotherapists are scarce and needed.
the idea of being “strong” and independent, key aspects Community mental health centres often provide ther-
of the male gender role. This emphasis on strength and apy on a sliding scale, which means the cost of a one-
independence leads people to deny that they have any hour session varies depending on the patient’s income
problems, or to believing that they need to “just get over and insurance status. Drug treatments can also be made

672 :: Module 16.1 : : Treating Psychological Disorders

more affordable by using generic products as opposed reasons, such as prejudice and the general lack of legal
to brand-name ones, although this tends to be resisted power wielded by people of lower socioeconomic status
by pharmaceutical companies who spend huge sums of or from marginalized ethnic groups. Thus, supporters of
money researching and promoting their drugs. involuntary treatment continue to point to its apparent
benefits for some people, whereas opponents point to its
INVOLUNTARY TREATMENT In some cases, people apparent costs for others. The debate continues.
are required (that is, forced) to enter the mental health
system against their will. In Canada and the United
States, as well as many other countries, people can be Quick Quiz 16.1a
compelled through the courts or on the advice of social Barriers to Psychological Treatment
service agencies or doctors to be treated for mental ill-
1 People who would argue against the practice of

KNOW . . .
ness. The majority of these cases arise due to the per- involuntary commitment tend to believe that
son engaging in highly erratic or disturbing behaviour, A committing people against their will is wrong because
which results in legal trouble and the perception that the it removes people’s basic human rights and freedoms.
person may be a risk to themselves or others. Involuntary B imposing treatments, such as drug treatments, onto
treatment can also be required after the person commits people is unethical because the side effects and
harm to others, as in some cases of domestic violence. unintended consequences of the treatment itself
This “outpatient commitment” is a highly conten- may further harm the person.

tious issue in the field of mental health and in the legal C the decision to commit people to treatment can be
biased due to prejudice and stereotypes that exist
system, because it effectively strips people of some of
in society.
their basic rights. Proponents of this practice argue that it
D all of the above
improves mental health, reduces the costs of mental illness
on society, and increases the effectiveness of treatment by
2 Which type of barrier is in evidence when people believe
UNDERSTAND . . .

ensuring that people with severe disorders receive treat- their problems are not important enough for a therapist?
ment that they might otherwise avoid; it also may protect A Financial
society from people who may otherwise commit harm.
B Minimalizing
People who are opposed are concerned that this practice
C Skepticism about therapy
is unethical because it can restrict the freedom and take
D Procrastination
away the rights of people who have not done anything
harmful to themselves or others, force people to receive
3 People’s fears that they may be stigmatized for having
APPLY . . .

medications that may alter brain function and have dan- a mental illness
gerous side effects, and can easily be misapplied to certain A are unfounded; our society has advanced too far to
ethnic groups and lower socioeconomic classes (Kisely still be stigmatizing mental illness.
et al., 2011). B are based on fear that they may be exposed to
Research has thus far failed to clear up the contro- severe treatments against their will.
versy. For example, some studies show that a significant C are the sign of delusions, possibly indicating
number of people benefit from mandated treatment, as schizophrenia.
indicated by their adherence to treatment and reduced D are understandable; unfortunately, there may often
encounters with law enforcement (Hough & O’Brien, be professional or social costs when others know
2005; Pollack et al., 2005). On the other hand, many someone has had a psychological disorder.

people placed in involuntary treatment programs feel Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
coerced and resentful, and not everyone benefits. The
concern that involuntary treatment decisions can be
biased has also been backed up by research. A survey of
records in the U.S. indicated that individuals who are Mental Health Providers
lower in socioeconomic status and from African-American
or Latino backgrounds are significantly more likely to
and Settings
receive court-ordered treatment (Takeuchi & Cheung, A wide variety of treatment settings are available for
1998). Some of this bias may be due to fairly benevolent people in need of mental health care. The type of treat-
reasons; for example, if poorer individuals are unable to ment people receive depends on several factors, includ-
afford treatment, then a court-ordered treatment may ing their age, the type and severity of the disorder, and
be relied upon to get people the help that they need. the existence of any legal issues and concerns that coin-
But much of this bias may be due to more undesirable cide with the need for treatment. Mental health services

Treating Psychological Disorders :: Module 16.1 :: 673

 hospital, or they may conduct psychologi-
cal testing and research. Other people with
different levels of training and background
also conduct therapy; for example, clinical
social workers and psychiatric nurses con-
duct therapy to help people cope with psy-
chological problems.
Psychiatrists are medical doctors who spe-
cialize in mental health and who are allowed to
diagnose and treat mental disorders through pre-
scribing medications. It is important to note that
many psychiatrists also work within an inte-
grative biopsychosocial perspective, and per-
form psychological counselling and therapy,
or work closely with other professionals who
provide such services. In Canada and most U.S.
states, clinical psychologists cannot prescribe
medications, so in many settings psychologists
and psychiatrists work together and offer an
approach combining medications with psy-
Guildhall Library & Art Gallery/Heritage Images/Glow Images chological therapies. Like clinical psycholo-
Today, some people with severe mental disorders reside in an institution or hospital that specializes in gists, psychiatrists work in a variety of settings,
mental health care. These settings are dramatically different than they were just a few decades ago, but they are most frequently found in hospitals
when they were called “insane asylums” and other unfortunate names. and other institutional settings, treating people
with relatively severe psychological disorders.

include inpatient care, outpatient office visits, the use of INPATIENT TREATMENT AND DEINSTITUTION-
Watch
Alan Kazdin: How do
prescription drugs, attending therapy sessions, and taking ALIZATION Throughout much of human history,
we reach out to people part in support groups. Different types of care tend to people experiencing severe disorders—such as the pro-
who need help for be delivered by professionals with different training and found disturbances associated with schizophrenia or
mental illness? skill sets. Alzheimer’s disease—were often separated from society.
They may have been physically removed from the city
MENTAL HEALTH PROVIDERS In popular culture, or, in the 1800s and 1900s, locked in an asylum. These
the terms psychologist and psychiatrist are often (and actions hardly qualify as treatments because there was no
Explore erroneously) used as if they mean the same thing. In fact, hope that the individuals would get better. Instead, the
Psychotherapy
there are some major differences between the two, and goals were to protect the public and to provide basic care
Practitioners and Their
even within a category there can be huge differences; for individuals whose families could not do so (Wright,
Activities
certainly not every psychologist nor every psychiatrist 1997).
takes the same approach as their peers. Sadly, many of the mental institutions of past gen-
Clinical psychologists are perhaps the best-known erations were terrible places for the patients. The cre-
type of psychologist in the mental health field. Clini- ation of large institutions for housing the mentally
cal psychologists have received Ph.D. level of training, unwell began around the 14th century due to a rapidly
and are able to formally diagnose and treat mental health growing population and mass migration to the cities;
issues ranging from the everyday and mild to the chronic and these trends tended to disrupt the normal family and
severe . Counselling psychologists are mental health community traditions that would have provided struc-
professionals who typically work with people needing help ture to individuals’ lives and the bonds of collective
with more common problems such as stress, coping, and mild responsibility that people would have had for the men-
forms of anxiety and depression, rather than severe mental tally ill members of their families. As a result, society’s
disorders ; counselling psychologists may have either outcasts grew in number, until institutions were built to
a Master’s or Ph.D. level of training. Practitioners of house them. For the next few centuries, the inmates of
clinical and counselling psychology work in many these institutions were subjected to brutal confinement,
capacities and settings. They may provide individual torture, and an almost complete lack of humane con-
or group therapy in an office or institution such as a ditions. In fact, the modern word bedlam derives from

674 :: Module 16.1 : : Treating Psychological Disorders

this time. In 1403, St. Mary of Bethlehem, a hospital and then be released. Thus, whereas the goal in the past
in London, England, began admitting patients with seemed to be to remove the mentally ill from society,
mental issues; the hospital’s treatment of these patients now inpatient treatment is geared more toward protect-
was so awful and the hospital’s operations were so cha- ing the individual patient from harm, and providing as
otic that a mispronunciation of Bethlehem as “bedlam” quick a return to society as possible.
stuck, thereafter referring to chaos and madness in gen- Of course, some people still require more inten-
eral (Foucault, 1975). sive, long-term care, although in place of the asylum,
In the late 1700s, attitudes toward mental ill- many chronic inpatients live in residential treatment
ness finally started to change; two key figures emerge centres, which tend to resemble a dormitory or motel
from this period as heroes who helped to re-humanize more than an asylum. Low-level residential treat-
the institutionalized inmates of psychological hospi- ment centres are housing facilities in which residents
tals. Philippe Pinel, in 1792, was the first to be granted receive psychological therapy and life skills training, with the
permission to remove the chains from the inmates of explicit goal of helping residents become re-integrated into
French hospitals. Slowly, people began to think that society as well as they can. Medium- to high-level cen-
the psychologically disturbed would benefit from more tres have the same emphasis as low-level centres, but
humane treatment. In the mid-1800s in North America, also place restrictions on individuals’ freedoms. These
Dorothea Dix campaigned heroically to improve the centres function like hospitals inside medium-security
conditions of institutionalized patients and was highly prisons, with a high staff -to-resident ratio ensuring
instrumental in shifting society’s attitudes. By the end of that residents remain under control, residents’ move-
the 19th century, psychology was gaining credibility as a ments and freedom under restr iction, and escape
science, and asylums were built both to house the men- prevented by a security system and physical barriers
tally ill and to attempt to treat their conditions. Unfor- (e.g., locked doors that bar escape). These facilities are
tunately, these asylums quickly became overcrowded, intended for individuals with a more dangerous history—
and there were not many effective treatments at the time perhaps people who have committed physical or sex-
for most disorders, and so in practical terms, the asylums ual assault.
became little more than giant warehouses that separated
the mentally ill from the rest of society. O U T PAT I E N T T R E AT M E N T A N D P R E V E N -
This pattern continued until the 1960s, when TION Outpatient therapy and inpatient housing
people started to take a dim view toward merely hous- simultaneously grew in popularity through the early
ing those with disorders in dismal asylums. Eff ective 20th century. Their emergence paved the way for dein-
treatments also started to be developed for some dis- stitutionalization, which was essentially a call to move
orders, largely in the form of medications that were the mentally ill to the community where they could
useful for alleviating different symptoms. As patients’ receive outpatient treatment. After deinstitutionaliza-
symptoms became more treatable, a society-wide tion began, however, homelessness and substance abuse
movement toward deinstitutionalization occurred, became a major problem for the severely mentally ill,
whereby mental health patients were released back into their who were not always able to reintegrate into society or
communities, generally after having their symptoms alleviated were not cared for by their families.
through medication. The next three decades saw about an To meet these needs, some psychologists began
85% decrease in the number of psychiatric inpatients spending time away from individual, one-on-one
(Sealy & Whitehead, 2004), both in Canada and many therapy to see what they could do for the community
other countries (Fakhoury & Priebe, 2002). Although at large—thus arose a fi eld now known as commu-
a small subset of people remained who required inpa- nity psychology , an area of psychology that focuses on
tient care, the vast majority of patients now entered identifying how individuals’ mental health is influenced by
the hospital for a very short stay before they were sta- the neighbourhood, economics and community resources, social
bilized, given medication, and sent back to the care of groups, and other community-based variables. By operating
their families. at this level, community psychologists work to pre-
In the decades since this movement began, men- vent the development of disorders, seeking to enhance
tal health care providers have gathered together many the factors, such as healthy family relationships, that
resources and strategies to help people in some form of strengthen people and make them more resilient to the
distress. For example, in as little as three or four days, kinds of stresses that can otherwise undermine mental
a patient admitted after a suicide attempt may be fully health. For example, to prevent depression, community
evaluated, begin medication and therapy, receive educa- psychologists may conduct research into the environ-
tion about emergency resources such as suicide hotlines, mental and neighbourhood factors that contribute to

Treating Psychological Disorders :: Module 16.1 :: 675

 stress, anxiety, and depression, and then work with com-
munity groups to resolve these problems. In addition, Quick Quiz 16.1b
they may develop programs to counter negative cog- Mental Health Providers and Settings
nitive patterns and bolster positive thinking in schools
1 Which type of provider is generally permitted to

KNOW . . .
and in afterschool programs. Community psychologists, prescribe medications?
such as those at Wilfrid Laurier University in Water- A Psychiatrist C Clinical social worker
loo, Ontario, are involved with issues other than mental B Clinical psychologist D Medical psychologist
health as well, such as environmental sustainability and
social justice. Regardless of the focal issue, their basic 2 ________ study how individuals’ mental health is
approach involves applying psychology to the whole influenced by the neighbourhood, economics, social
socio-ecological context in which individuals live, and groups, and other community-based variables.
seeking to improve human welfare by improving this A Residential treatment centres
larger context through collaboration with community B Community psychologists
organizations. C Psychiatrists
D Social workers

3 The social movement against keeping the mentally ill

in asylums is known as ________ .
PSYCH @ A empirically validated treatments
The University Mental Health B social work
Counselling Centre C deinstitutionalization
D community psychology
In many workplace or education-based communities, mental
health services are available to the population through the Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
institution’s own services. A good example is university cam-
puses. As you are no doubt aware, it is not at all uncommon
that the stresses of university life can bring about temporary
struggles with mental well-being. Most university students
experience the stresses of managing a heavy workload, begin- Evaluating Treatments
ning a career path, developing an adult identity, and finding a way
Given the diversity of treatment approaches and set-
to pay for college, also often juggling work and family obli-
tings that are available, it is important to know which
gations along with school. Also, some students face lifelong
struggles with mental illness. Approximately 15% of university
approaches are effective. Aside from the obvious eco-
students exhibit symptoms of depression; one study on first- nomic logic of society not wasting money on ineffec-
year students at Acadia University found that 7% of male and tive treatments, it is important for individuals seeking
14% of female students experienced a major depressive dis- help to get help that actually, well, helps! In the mid-
order in their first year at school alone (Price et al., 2006)! In 1990s, the American Psychological Association set up
Watch general, mental health issues seem to be on the rise in univer- task forces to evaluate different therapy practices; as
What’s in It for Me?: sity students; over the past two decades, rates of depression of 2005, these task forces had made their findings and
Finding a Therapist if have increased more than 50%, with anxiety disorders and recommendations available online (APA, 2009). The
You Need One other issues also increasing (American College Health Asso- general philosophy is that properly designed research
ciation, 2007). studies are needed to examine the effectiveness of dif-
University counselling centres typically employ a resi-
ferent therapeutic approaches, and these approaches
dent psychologist or psychiatrist, along with a staff of coun-
should evolve depending on what research suggests
sellors trained to help with psychological problems. These
counselling centres are in great demand; some are so busy
does and does not work.
they even have waiting lists. Counsellors are well trained to
E M P I R I C A L LY S U P P O RT E D T R E AT M E N T S
help with the more common student issues, such as stress,
Empir ically supported treatments (also called
anxiety, time management, depression, and relationship issues,
but they also often encounter students with more severe
evidence-based therapies) are treatments that have been
disorders than most counselling centres are designed to tested and evaluated (Chambless & Ollendick, 2001; De
accommodate (Gallagher, 2007; Voelker, 2003). In these cases, Los Reyes & Kazdin, 2008). The most rigorous way of
counsellors are trained to provide information that can help testing whether a certain therapy works is through an
the student seek the appropriate mental health professional experiment. Recall from Module 2.2 that an experi-
and, potentially, advocate on their behalf. ment would involve randomly assigning volunteers
to a treatment group (e.g., a type of therapy) and to

676 :: Module 16.1 : : Treating Psychological Disorders

a control group. Ideally, experiments are also double- are more open to the process, more willing to trust the
blind, which in this case means that neither the patient therapist, and more willing to recognize and work on
nor the individual evaluating the patient is aware of their issues are more likely to benefit from therapy (Pro-
which treatment the patient is receiving. However, this chaska & Norcross, 2002).
level of rigour is often close to impossible to attain Therefore, even though a therapist may implement
when evaluating therapies. One common problem is the same steps and procedures in a therapy, each session
that it is ethically problematic to place people into a is different and each combination of client and thera-
control group, because it effectively denies them treat- pist is unique. As a result, it is very difficult to adequately
ment that they need. It is also generally impossible to test the effectiveness of many therapeutic approaches
use double-blind procedures, given that a therapist, of to the rigorous extent required for empirical support
course, knows which type of treatment she administers, (DeRubeis & Crits-Cristoph, 1998).
and many clients likely do as well. Many psychologists believe that evaluating psy-
Also, testing the effectiveness of therapy using some chological therapies in the same way we evaluate, for
therapists may not generalize to others, because some example, the efficacy of drugs ignores many of the
therapists will be much more skilled than others. Each nuances and complexity that exist in the process of
client and therapist is unique, and much of the effective- therapy (Westen & Bradley, 2005), and provides a mis-
ness of therapy comes from the therapeutic alliance—the leading picture of how effective therapy can be in
relationship that emerges in therapy. In fact, the specific specific instances. This same problem has held back
type of therapy used is actually less important than these research on the effectiveness of self-help treatments,
“common factors” of therapist and client building a rela- because of course, any individual book or approach may
tionship. Establishing a positive relationship therefore work differently for different individuals. What benefits
depends on various qualities of the therapist and client, one person, at a certain time in her life, may be use-
as well as the “fit” between the two. Therapists who are less to someone else. Nevertheless, some research tries
more socially skilled, who show warmth, concern, and to address this issue, given the explosion of self-help lit-
empathy, tend to be more effective. Similarly, clients who erature in the past few decades.

the books also do not always agree with one another as

WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC to how to best approach whatever issue they are discuss-
LITERACY MODEL ing. For example, if you read the popular literature on how
to help children deal with emotional struggles, you could
Can Self-Help Treatments Be Effective? catalogue several approaches that were not only different,
but actually would work against each other. How can one
know which approach is right? How can one know whether
Many people opt to address their psychological problems by
the use of self-help literature is effective in general? There
using resources that do not involve visiting an actual thera-
is some research on this issue, examining whether biblio-
pist, such as self-help books, online information, or commu-
therapy, the use of self-help books and other reading materials
nity workshops. Are these approaches helpful?
as a form of therapy, improves people’s symptoms.

What do we know
about the availability How can
of self-help treatments? science test the
effectiveness
There is a huge variety of self-help of self-help
materials available to the pub-
lic. Just walk down to your local
treatments?
bookstore and check out the psy- One study attempted to assess the effectiveness of bib-
chology section, where you will find books on everything liotherapy over a three-month period in 170 elderly pri-
from anxiety and depression to how to raise children, deal mary care patients who were experiencing depression. The
with divorce, and optimize your well-being. A quick perusal patients were evenly divided into two groups: both groups
will reveal that many of these books are written by people with received a “standard care” approach, but the self-help group
Ph.D.s in the relevant fields (although many are not), but also read a self-help book on depression. After three months,

Treating Psychological Disorders :: Module 16.1 :: 677

 McKendree-Smith
(2000)
Floyd (2004)

Scogin (1987)

Studies
Jamison (1995)

Scogin (1989)

Bowman (1995)

–30% –25% –20% –15% –10% –5% 0%

Percentage decrease in depression scores

{fig. 16.1} Results of Six Studies Evaluating the Self-Help Book Feeling
Good Research on the book Feeling Good shows successful results in reducing
symptoms of depression. Comparisons across six studies (identified by author
name and publication date) indicate statistically significant improvement in each
case (Anderson et al., 2005).

the group who read the self-help book in addition to the Another issue is that it is always important to consider
standard care showed no signs of reduced depression com- the source. Self-help gurus may be focused more on the
pared to the control group (Joling et al., 2010). However, as business and entertainment side of things rather than on
discussed earlier, this is hardly a definitive test of the effec- producing long-term positive benefits to those in need.
tiveness of self-help. Maybe that particular book wasn’t In addition, some of these individuals do not have profes-
effective for this population, but a different one could have sional degrees in psychology or other mental health fields.
been. Or maybe different books would appeal to different As a consequence, we should not expect all self-help mate-
people, so testing a single book on a whole group may show rials to have the same success rates; it is even possible
no overall improvement, but a few individuals could have that some could do more harm than good. Before judging
benefited substantially. a specific self-help treatment as effective or not, we should
determine whether it is supported by sound scientific
A slightly stronger approach to this question is to perform a
research.
meta-analysis, combining numerous studies testing a similar
hypothesis. One such analysis combined six separate stud-
ies that had tested whether the book Feeling Good reduced Why is this relevant?
depressive symptoms. The researchers found that over four Major advantages of using
weeks, those who read the book had reduced depression self-help options include that
compared to those who did not (see Figure 16.1; Anderson they are typically low in cost,
et al., 2005). Thus, there may be reason to believe that biblio- are convenient, and provide anonymity for those who
therapy can be helpful. want it. Self-help options are easy to find. In fact, many
people consult online resources to get help for depres-
Can we critically sion, anxiety, substance-abuse problems, and sexual health
evaluate this evidence? (Fox, 2005). If you do turn to self-help resources for your
psychological problems, remember to choose wisely, which
It may strike you as impersonal means to look into the credibility of the sources and the
to turn to a computer, televi- extent to which their claims seem based on solid research.
sion, or book for assistance with It is also important to not merely read the book, but to
mental health problems. How- also apply the exercises it recommends. As we know from
ever, this impersonal nature of research on neural plasticity (see Module 3.3), people can
these treatments may be an important advantage, help- change their brains (and therefore their well-being) enor-
ing people to gather information anonymously (Rainie & mously through practice, but simply reading a book and
Packel, 2001). expecting to be mentally healthier is not much different

678 :: Module 16.1 : : Treating Psychological Disorders

from reading a workout book and expecting to get big-
ger muscles. In both cases, you have to do the exercises
described in order to reap the benefits. Research does
suggest that putting insights into practice tends to be
lower for self-help approaches than face-to-face therapy
sessions (O’Kearney et al., 2006), which likely limits the
effectiveness of these approaches. If you are experienc-
ing psychological distress, it is probably advisable to speak
with a mental health professional at least once—especially
if symptoms are severe—to find out whether self-help
is appropriate for your situation. They may also be able
to suggest resources that they believe are high quality,
which can save you a great deal of wasted energy wading
through the burgeoning self-help literature to find quality Emilio Ereza/Alamy
information.

Quick Quiz 16.1c Evaluating Treatments

1 ________ is the relationship that emerges in therapy 2 What does it mean to say that a therapy has
KNOW . . .

UNDERSTAND . . .

between the therapist and client, and is an important “empirical support”?

determinant of the therapy’s effectiveness. A Insurance companies prefer it.
A Client insight B Therapists prefer to use it.
B Bibliotherapy C Research studies confirm that it is effective
C Therapeutic alliance compared to no treatment and possibly compared
D Friendship to other alternatives.
D Research studies demonstrate that it can do a
better job than drugs.

3 Which of the following conclusions best summarizes

the effectiveness of bibliotherapy?
A It has no benefit whatsoever.
B It is more effective than other forms of therapy.
C It works, but is addictive.
D It may be helpful to many people, but its results are
not consistent.

Answers can be found on page ANS-4.

Treating Psychological Disorders :: Module 16.1 :: 679

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
16.1
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with mental health

treatment:
Ambrophoto/Alamy

bibliotherapy (p. 677) empirically supported

clinical psychologist (p. 674) treatments (p. 676)
community psychology (p. 675) psychiatrist (p. 674) APPLY . . .
counselling psychologist (p. 674) residential treatment centre
(p. 675) ● Your knowledge to suggest what approach to therapy
deinstitutionalization (p. 675)
is likely most appropriate for a given situation. The
appropriate kind of therapeutic setting depends on a
host of factors, from what is available and within the
UNDERSTAND . . . person’s means to afford to what sorts of issues the
person is experiencing. For common problems such
● The major barriers to seeking help for psychological
as stress and milder forms of depression and anxiety,
disorders. These barriers include expense, availability,
seeing a counselling psychologist is likely the best first
gender, and attitudes toward therapy, which are often
step; for students, most universities offer counselling
influenced by the stigma against therapy that may be held
services on campus. For more severe and debilitating
by a particular group (e.g., males in general).
problems, such as severe anxiety, depression, or
● The arguments for and against involuntary treatment. schizophrenia, a clinical psychologist or psychiatrist
Proponents of involuntary treatment argue that it helps is likely most appropriate. A psychologist will likely
to protect innocent people who may otherwise end up engage in a form of psychological therapy, whereas
being victims of violence at the hands of a psychologically a psychiatrist will likely take a more physiological
disturbed individual. Proponents also argue that such approach involving prescribing medication.
treatment improves mental health, and ensures that
people with severe disorders receive the appropriate
treatment. Opponents argue that there is no good ANALYZE . . .
evidence that involuntary treatment benefits the individual,
and instead, receiving involuntary treatment may result in ● Whether self-help options, such as popular books, are
the patient feeling coerced or resentful, suggesting that a useful therapy option. Self-help books alone are not
such treatments are not without cost. likely to be life-changing or stand-alone treatments for
serious problems with depression, anxiety, and substance
abuse, for example. Even so, research on bibliotherapy
indicates that in some cases, when used in conjunction
with other methods, reading self-help books can bring
about modest improvements. It is, of course, always
possible that for a specific individual, any specific self-help
book may be profoundly helpful and even life-changing;
however, on average, reading self-help books has only a
small therapeutic benefit.

680 :: Module 16.1 : : Treating Psychological Disorders

 i love images/Alamy

Module

16.2 Psychological Therapies

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Objectives The key terminology related The general approaches to conducting Your knowledge to identify The pros and cons of the major
After reading to psychological therapies major types of psychological therapy major therapeutic techniques types of psychological therapy
this module
you should

Medical doctors are generally required to follow the Hippocratic Oath— and incarcerated. In fact, if anything, the program seemed to backfire;
an agreement that states they will cause no harm to their patients. One according to some analyses, participation in the program is associ-
way of honouring this oath is to use the safest and most effective treat- ated with an increased chance that adolescents would commit crimes
ments. We do not generally associate the Hippocratic Oath with psychol- (Petrosino et al., 2003).
ogists, but they also follow the basic tenet. Like physicians, psychologists
Scared Straight and other methods for helping people can, in fact, do
must be aware of the possibility that a specific type of treatment might
more harm than good (Lilienfeld, 2007). Although a rare case, this exam-
worsen a condition and, therefore, should be avoided.
ple reminds us that therapy can be done in many different ways, and we
For example, Scared Straight was a program developed in the 1970s should be cautious in determining which ones are best.
that involved exposing at-risk youth to prisons and prisoners. The
interventions were based on the premise that shocking or scaring
the youths with the harsh realities of prison life would deter criminal Focus Questions
activity. These scare tactics involved blunt descriptions of prison vio-
1 Which options for therapy are available?
lence, along with verbal aggression directed at adolescents attending
the sessions. The program may have succeeded in scaring and shocking 2 Are all well-established options equally
adolescents, but the youths who attended these sessions did not nec- effective at treating problems?
essarily go down a straight path. Many were later convicted of crimes

Psychological Therapies :: Module 16.2 :: 681

 In Module 16.1, we introduced psychological therapy behaviour, and thus of our psychological issues, lie in the
as a set of processes for resolving personal, emotional, unconscious. This led Freud to emphasize the impor-
behavioural, and social problems and improving well- tance of “making the unconscious conscious,” believing
being. Psychological therapy is a broad term, and mental that the process of bringing material from the uncon-
health providers have a veritable smorgasbord of thera- scious into consciousness allowed clients to gain insight
peutic approaches to choose from. In this module, we will into their problems and the past experiences from which
study several of these approaches. Although the methods they stem. This understanding was believed to liberate
are diverse, they share the common feature of each being clients from the grips of the previously unknown forces
a type of psychological therapy, rather than biological or that were impacting their lives.
medical therapy. In psychological approaches, techniques Freud and his followers based their practice on some
for resolving problems rely heavily upon communication core ideas summarized in Table 16.1. These core ideas
between client and therapist. may sound straightforward, except for one crucial point:
Most forms of psychological therapy work best with Accessing the unconscious mind is tricky business. The
a specific type of disorder. It is therefore important to client cannot tell you much about it because, by defini-
match the client’s symptoms to the appropriate thera- tion, people are not consciously aware of the contents of
peutic technique. their unconscious. Freud and his associates came up with
several methods they believed would help them access
the mysterious unconscious realm.
Insight Therapies 1) During the practice of free association, clients are
Psychologists have long believed that self-knowledge encouraged to talk or write without censoring their thoughts in
and understanding can lead to positive changes in behav- any way, just allowing everything that pops into the mind
iour. This is certainly the case for insight therapies, to come spilling out, no matter how odd or meaningless
which is a general term referring to therapy that involves dia- it may seem. Freud believed that this uncensored thought
logue between client and therapist for the purposes of gaining barrage would reveal clues to aspects of the unconscious
awareness and understanding of psychological problems and that clients normally wouldn’t allow to be expressed.
conflicts . Historically, the formal beginning of insight 2) Dreams were also believed to be useful sources
therapy came with the development of psychoanalysis by of information about unconscious conflicts. Freud
Sigmund Freud and its evolution into psychodynamic believed that in the relatively unguarded dreaming mind,
Explore
Key Components of therapies, forms of insight therapy that emphasize the need to the unconscious would be better able to express itself;
Therapies discover and resolve unconscious conflicts. however, because the unconscious doesn’t communi-
cate through the same language-based way of thinking
PSYCHOANALYSIS: EXPLORING THE UNCON- that the conscious mind uses, it expresses itself through
SCIOUS Psychoanalysis sprung out of Freud’s under- symbols that need to be properly interpreted. Dream
standing of consciousness. As described in Module 12.3, analysis is a method for understanding the unconscious by
Freud hypothesized that much of our consciousness examining the details of what happens during a dream (the
occurs at the unconscious level, outside of our conscious manifest content), in order to gain insight into the true mean-
awareness. In particular, many fundamental urges, such ing of the dream, the emotional, unconscious material that is
as sexuality, appetites, and aggression, were thought to communicated symbolically (the latent content). Dreams take
be constantly influencing how we think and behave, the form of imagery (sometimes bizarre and nonsensical
although we would not be explicitly aware of these pro- imagery) and loose storylines, but within this confusing
cesses. In fact, because these urges are generally socially jumble, symbolic truths are hidden. The psychoanalyst’s
unacceptable, we would actively protect ourselves from role was to help clients properly understand these sym-
becoming aware of them through a variety of psy- bolic truths in order to gain insight into their uncon-
chological defences. As a result, the true causes of our scious conflicts.

Table 16.1 :: Core Ideas Forming the Basis of Psychoanalysis

Adults’ psychological conflicts have their origins in early experiences.
These conflicts affect the thoughts and emotions of the individual, and their source often remains outside of conscious awareness.
The unconscious conflicts and their effects are called neuroses (anxieties).
By accessing the unconscious mind, the analyst and client can gain a better understanding of the early conflicts that lead to neuroses.
Once the conflicts are brought to the surface, the analyst and the client can work through them together.

682 :: Module 16.2 : : Psychological Therapies

 For example, consider one of Freud’s dream analy- experience. They also acknowledge the effect of cul-
ses: A client dreamed he was riding his bicycle down a tural and interpersonal influences on individual behav-
street when suddenly a dachshund ran him down and bit iour, as well as the impact of important needs such as
his ankle as he attempted to pedal away. Meanwhile, two love, power, belonging, security, and status. Finally, they
elderly ladies sat by and laughed at the incident. are more optimistic about people’s ability to reach
Those details are the manifest content, but what healthy functioning.
might the dream mean—what is the latent content? One example is object relations therapy, a varia-
Freud pointed out that in his waking life the cli- tion of psychodynamic therapy that focuses on how early child-
ent had repeatedly seen a woman walking a dog and, hood experiences and emotional attachments influence later
although he was very attracted to her, he felt great anx- psychological functioning (which we discussed in Mod-
iety about approaching her. The man had consciously ule 10.2). In contrast to psychoanalysis, object relations
devised a plan to use the dog as an excuse to strike therapy does not centre on repressed sexual and aggres-
up a conversation with the woman. Unfortunately, the sive conflicts. Instead, the focus is on “objects,” which are
anxiety caused by fear of rejection manifested itself in the clients’ mental representations of themselves and
an unpleasant dream about being attacked by a dog, others. The early relations between the child and these
accompanied by the humiliation of being laughed at “objects” results in the development of a mental model
(Freud, 1920, pp. 165–166). for the child; as a consequence, she will form and main-
3) Resistance occurs as the treatment brings up uncon- tain relationships as an adult based on her representations
scious material that the client wishes to avoid, and the client of childhood relationships. The object relations thera-
engages in strategies for keeping the information out of con- pist’s job is to help the client understand these underly-
scious awareness. Resistance may be subtle, such as the ing patterns in relationships, which often involve issues
client using humour to avoid talking about something of trust, fear of abandonment, or dependence on others.
painful, or it may be obvious, such as the client skipping Once therapy produces insight, then the client and the
sessions, becoming angry at the therapist, or becoming therapist can work through any problems they may have
cynical about the whole process. Ironically, this is consid- identified.
ered a promising signal for the psychoanalyst because it Both object relations therapy and psychoanalysis
means that they are beginning to access the unconscious share the goal of helping individuals gain insight into
motives of clients’ present difficulties. Psychoanalysts how and why their current functioning was affected by
then attempt to push through the resistance by making early events. In addition to these approaches, other varia-
clients aware of how and what they are resisting. tions on the process of therapy have been developed.
4) Transference is a psychoanalytic process whereby A strong emphasis on interpersonal relationships
clients direct the emotional experiences that they are reliving informed Harry Stack Sullivan’s interpersonal psycho-
toward the therapist, rather than the original person involved therapy. In this approach, the therapist assumes the role
in the experiences (e.g., their parents). For example, if the of participant observer, through which the therapist both
patient is addressing a hidden sexual conflict, then her interacts with and observes the client over time in order
transference may involve developing sexual feelings for to understand any unrealistic expectations the client may
the analyst. As another example, if the client’s mother have toward their relationships as well as other situations
made him feel criticized, he may begin to feel criticized in daily life. Sullivan’s work influenced Interpersonal
by the analyst and respond defensively. Thus, the client’s Therapy (IPT; Klerman et al., 1984). IPT was origi-
interaction with the analyst becomes a kind of stage nally developed as a treatment for depression that would
on which conflicts with other people are revealed and work quickly, focusing on improving clients’ social skills
explored. Transference is a significant milestone in the and guiding them through their interpersonal issues
process of psychotherapy. Once it is reached, the thera- and life transitions. IPT has been found to effectively
pist and client can begin to work through specific prob- treat depression, substance abuse, and eating disorders
lems and discuss ways of coping with them. (Klerman & Weissman, 1993; Weissman et al., 2000).

MODERN PSYCHODYNAMIC THERAPIES Today, HUMANISTIC-EXISTENTIAL PSYCHOTHERAPY

Freudian-based psychoanalysis is practised by a relatively One important movement in psychotherapy arose dur-
small number of therapists. Nevertheless, Freud’s ideas ing the 1950s, when humanistic psychologists broke
have remained influential and several newer therapies from psychoanalytic approaches, creating a new disci-
have evolved from traditional psychoanalysis. Divert- pline based on at least five fundamental differences (listed
ing from Freud, these approaches are more concerned in Table 16.2). Therapies operating within this orienta-
with the client’s conscious rather than unconscious tion emphasize individual strengths and the potential

Psychological Therapies :: Module 16.2 :: 683

 Table 16.2 :: Contrasting Psychoanalytic and Humanistic Views of Major Psychological Issues and Debates
ISSUE PSYCHOANALYSIS HUMANISTIC THERAPY
Conscious versus unconscious Focuses on unconscious drives Focuses on conscious experience
Determinism versus free will Behaviour is determined by repressed sexual Behaviour is chosen freely
and aggressive instincts
Weaknesses versus strengths Everyone has neuroses Everyone has strengths
Responsibility for change The analyst interprets and explains to the The therapist asks the client what is wrong and attempts
client what is wrong to help clarify issues
Mechanism of change Insight into unconscious conflicts allows Unconditional positive regard allows a person to develop
problems to be worked through and heal

for growth, as well as the belief that human nature is of worth are also imposed by parents who show exces-
essentially positive, rather than the essentially negative sive attention and praise when their children behave in
perspective advanced by psychoanalytic approaches. This desired ways, sending the message that the child is only
shift toward the positive was believed to help individuals lovable when she is “good.” If people give the impression
access their own personal power and agency for over- that their respect and love for a person are contingent
coming their problems. upon the person behaving in certain ways or meeting
Humanistic and existential therapies share many sim- certain expectations, then they have imposed condi-
ilarities: to help people express their authentic selves, to tions of worth. Conditions of worth can produce long-
overcome alienation, to become more loving, and to take term consequences to psychological health because they
responsibility for their experiences so that they learn to increase insecurities within the individual; as a result, the
dwell fully in the present. The major difference between individual is likely to change his behaviour in an attempt
them is that humanistic therapists focus on removing to regain affection. If this happens frequently, then the
the obstacles that prevent self-actualization from unfold- individual’s behaviour starts to be primarily about gain-
ing naturally, whereas existential therapists emphasize the ing affection and approval, living in order to please oth-
importance of facing painful experiences such as feelings ers rather than being able to express his own authentic
about isolation, death, and meaninglessness, believing that self. That, to Carl Rogers, is a key aspect of most psycho-
self-actualization involves transforming by facing one’s logical dysfunction.
fears and negativity. Even though attaining insight is still The most important aspect of client-centred therapy
an important aspect of these therapies, rather than inter- lies within the dialogue that unfolds between therapist
preting the hidden meanings of dreams and free associa- and [Link] therapist must show unconditional positive
tions, the therapist’s role is to listen empathically in order regard through genuine, empathetic, and non-judgmental
to understand the clients’ internal [Link] is referred to attention. If the therapist can remove all conditions of
as a phenomenological approach, which means that worth, clients may begin to express themselves without
the therapist addresses the clients’ feelings and thoughts as they fear and begin to develop inner strength. Finally, with self-
unfold in the present moment, rather than looking for uncon- confidence and strength, clients can accept disagreements
scious motives or dwelling in the past. with others and focus on living their lives to the fullest.
American psychologist Carl Rogers (1902–1987)
developed a version of humanistic therapy called client- EVALUATING INSIGHT THERAPIES As discussed
centred therapy (or person-centred therapy), which in Module 16.1, therapies should be used only if there
focuses on individuals’ abilities to solve their own problems and is empirical support that they actually work, although it
reach their full potential with the encouragement of the thera- is worth remembering that a given approach may work
pist. As a humanist, Rogers believed that all individuals for a given individual, even if it doesn’t work for most
could develop and reach their full potential. However, people. Thus, even though it is important to generally
people experience psychological problems when others practise empirically supported approaches to treatment,
impose conditions of worth, meaning that they appear it is also important to balance this with the idiosyncratic
to judge or lose affection for a person who does not live needs and beliefs of particular clients. Just because a ther-
up to expectations. Conditions of worth are imposed, apy doesn’t work for most people, doesn’t mean it won’t
for example, by a father who is never satisfied with his work for some people.
child’s report card or a wife who gets angry at her spouse Psychodynamic therapies meet some of the rigor-
over failing to keep his promises; interestingly, conditions ous criteria for empirically supported therapies, though

684 :: Module 16.2 : : Psychological Therapies

surprisingly few studies in this area have been con- thoughts and emotions. Research suggests that this is about
ducted with proper research design and control condi- as effective at treating mood disorders as cognitive behaviour
tions. Ultimately, the effectiveness of insight therapies therapy, part of the group of therapies we examine next.
depends on the condition being treated. Studies that
have used the most rigorous research designs have
shown that psychodynamic therapy has not been effec-
tive in treating severe depression or schizophrenia, but
Quick Quiz 16.2a
it has shown promise for treating panic disorder, depen- Insight Therapies
dence on opiate drugs (e.g., heroin), and borderline per- 1 _______ refers to a phenomenon of psychoanalysis in

KNOW . . .
sonality disorder (Gibbons et al., 2008). Psychodynamic which the client begins directing emotional responses
therapy may help with major depression if combined toward the therapist.
with drug treatment—an approach we will describe in A Resistance C Objectifying
greater detail in Module 16.3. B Befriending D Transference
Insight therapies can help people gain understand-
ing and awareness of the nature of their psychologi- 2 In psychoanalysis, resistance occurs when
cal problems. As we will soon read, many people with A a client develops sexual attraction for the analyst.
psychological disorders are able to successfully learn to B a client begins to divert the analysis by joking, becoming
function effectively without digging into the possible cynical, or perhaps just refusing to answer questions.

“root causes” by instead cultivating new, adaptive behav- C a therapist begins to have the same feelings as the
client.
iours (Weisz et al., 1995). Some people are also not well
suited to insight therapy, such as young children or peo- D the therapist refuses to continue a therapy session.
ple with severe disorders such as schizophrenia.
Research shows that Carl Rogers was accurate in
3 In psychoanalysis, treatment for psychological
UNDERSTAND . . .

emphasizing the importance of the therapeutic rela- problems seems to come from
tionship for successful therapy (Horvath & Bedi, 2002; A the client becoming more conscious of the work-
Wampold, 2001). In fact, a strong alliance is a good pre- ings of their unconscious.
dictor of successful therapy over and above the specific B the client receiving unconditional positive regard.
type of therapy delivered (Bohart et al., 2002). Positive C the therapist understanding and explaining the
regard (Farber & Lane, 2002) and empathy (Bohart et manifest content of a dream.
al., 2002) are modestly related to the outcome of therapy, D the therapist diagnosing the psychological disorder
although Rogers may have overemphasized their impor- and providing appropriate drug therapy.
tance somewhat (Bohart, 2003).
Research on the effectiveness of person-centred 4 A kindergarten teacher (unintentionally) places conditions
APPLY . . .

therapy is somewhat inconsistent. In general, it is more of worth on her [Link] does this mean?

effective than no treatment at all (Greenberg et al., 1994). A She always lets her students know how much she
values them.
However, some studies have found it to be no more effec-
B She regularly tries to draw compliments out of her
tive than a placebo treatment (Smith et al., 1980), whereas
students.
others have found it to be as effective as cognitive behav-
C She acts as if a student no longer matters to her or
ioural therapy (Elliott, 2002; Greenberg & Watson, 1998). the school if he misbehaves.
One complicating factor in this research may be the skill
D She provides monetary rewards for good
of therapists themselves; some therapists are likely much behaviour.
better able to connect with clients and establish the proper
kind of rapport in therapy, and thus may be far more
5 What has research concluded in regard to the
ANALYZE . . .

effective than others at this kind of [Link] difference effectiveness of insight therapies?
in therapists’ skill could account for these mixed findings. A Insight therapies are always very effective.
One very promising type of person-centred therapy B Insight therapies are never effective.
has evolved from the humanistic-existential tradition C Insight therapies do not help people gain awareness
and is being heavily researched today; emotion-focused of the nature of their psychological problems, so
therapy is based on the well-supported belief that it is bet- they tend to not be effective.
ter to face and accept difficult emotions and thoughts D The effectiveness of insight therapies depends on
rather than bottle them inside (Greenberg, 2004; Hayes et the conditions that are being treated.
al., 2003).Therapists employing this form of therapy aim to Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
help clients overcome their tendency to suppress disturbing

Psychological Therapies :: Module 16.2 :: 685

 Behavioural, Cognitive, and Group situation, such as merely imagining walking up to the
front of the room where he is going to give the speech,
Therapies and as he does so, the client practises relaxing in order to
Behavioural therapies address problem behaviours, and counteract the mild anxiety he may feel. Then he pro-
the environmental factors that trigger them, as directly as pos- gresses to more realistic and concrete manifestations of
sible. At the heart of behavioural therapies is the belief the situation, each time practising relaxing until he can
that patterns of behaviour are the result of condition- learn to tolerate his feelings and counteract them with
ing and learning that have led to the automatization of a relaxation response. Eventually, he can handle the real
maladaptive habits. Thus, behavioural approaches seek thing. Behavioural therapists and their clients follow
to recondition clients, training them to adopt different three main steps in conducting systematic desensitization,
Simulate
behavioural responses to situations until they develop which are outlined in Table 16.3.
Therapy
new, more functional, habits. In some cases, the client may elect to undergo a process
called flooding. In this procedure, the client goes straight to
SYSTEMATIC DESENSITIZATION How behav- the most challenging part of the hierarchy, exposing him-
ioural therapy works is clearly illustrated by examining self to the scenario that causes the most anxiety and panic.
how it is applied to one of the most common types of For example, he may elect to give a long speech in front
social anxiety, public speaking. Most people experience of 100 strangers. The idea here is that, rather than avoiding
at least some anxiety about public speaking, but for some, the anxiety-provoking situation, the client dives right in
their reaction is so intense that even thinking about and (one hopes) discovers that there are no truly negative
making a speech can bring on major anxiety, physiologi- consequences to giving a well-prepared speech.
cal arousal, and even panic attacks. As the moment to Fear and anxiety responses can be acquired through
give the speech approaches, environmental cues, such as observing others (Olsson & Phelps, 2007). Fortunately,
the professor standing at the front, the dreaded podium, these responses can also be reversed by observation. Thus
the ticking clock, can all trigger anxious feelings and another technique is based on observational learning
heighten the person’s arousal. or “modelling” (Module 6.3; Bandura, 1977). With this
Listen To help people learn to handle such fear-inducing method, the client observes another person engage with
IT Audio: Hierarchy of
situations, therapists may choose the behavioural tech- the feared object or situation. For example, an ophidio-
Fears
nique known as systematic desensitization, in which phobe (a person with a phobia of snakes) might observe
Watch gradual exposure to a feared stimulus or situation is coupled another person as he handles a snake. In some cases, such
IT Video: Public with relaxation training (Wolpe, 1990). First, the client may as with a fear of heights or flying, virtual reality technol-
Speaking be exposed to a very mild version of the fear-inducing ogy has been used to provide exposure treatments.

Table 16.3 :: Applying Steps of Systematic Desensitization to Fear of Public Speaking

1. Build an anxiety hierarchy. This involves the therapist assisting the client in creating a list of stimuli that arouse fear
responses, starting with the stimulus or situation that evokes the least amount of anxiety and ending with the stimulus
that elicits the most anxiety.
Think about and visualize:
1. Doing library research for a presentation
2. Preparing slides and note cards
3. Practising the presentation alone
4. Practising the presentation with a small group of friends
5. Leaving for campus on the day of the presentation
6. Class starting
7. Being called up to give the presentation
8. Setting up and looking out at the audience
9. Beginning to speak
10. Delivering the presentation
2. Relaxation training. During this phase, the client learns to respond to relaxation suggestions from the therapist as they
work through the hierarchy. This is typically done using mental imagery while the client is visiting the therapist’s office.
3. Work through the hierarchy. Steps 1 and 2 are combined here as the therapist works through the hierarchy with the
client while engaging in relaxation techniques.

686 :: Module 16.2 : : Psychological Therapies

 WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC
LITERACY MODEL
Virtual Reality Therapies

Systematic desensitization techniques have long been a part

of behavioural treatments for fear and anxiety. However,
there are some key barriers that can prevent them from
being effective. For one, people with fear and anxiety about a
specific object or situation usually avoid any contact with it—
so even taking the first step toward a therapist’s office can
be challenging. This helps to explain why most people with
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) never seek treatment
(Kessler, 2000). Also, although mental imagery is typically the
method employed with these therapeutic techniques, it may
not transfer well to the actual anxiety-provoking situation
because mental imagery often doesn’t have the same power
as the much more vivid, real situation. One way to address
these problems is being discovered through technology.

Erika Schultz/MCT/Newscom
What do we know {fig. 16.2} Virtual Reality Exposure Combat veterans diagnosed with PTSD have
about virtual reality participated in virtual reality therapies involving simulated exposure to traumatic
events. Therapists work with clients to help them process and cope with their fears.
exposure?
V i r t u a l re a l i t y e x p o s u re
(VRE) is a treatment that uses In one set of trials, 20 active-duty soldiers who were diag-
graphical displays to create an expe- nosed with PTSD following combat activity underwent VRE
rience in which the client seems to therapy. Their PTSD symptoms were measured before and
be immersed in an actual environment. This much more vivid after therapists guided them through VRE treatment in the
environment maps on more easily to the real thing, and Virtual Iraq simulator. At the conclusion of their therapy,
shows promise for helping people learn to relax in the face the soldiers’ PTSD symptoms declined by 50%, with 16 of
of their fears. Also, virtual reality therapy may help to reduce the soldiers no longer meeting the criteria for the disor-
the tendency for people’s avoidance strategies. Over the past der (Rizzo et al., 2010). The results included fewer disturb-
decade, this technology has become increasingly common in ing thoughts about stressful events that occurred during
helping soldiers returning from the military conflicts in Iraq military service; fewer disturbing dreams; reduced physical
and Afghanistan—many of whom have developed PTSD. reactions such as heart pounding, sweating, and trouble
breathing; and less avoidance of activities that trigger mem-
How can scientists ories of military service. VRE using the Virtual Iraq simulator
appears to work.
study virtual
reality exposure?
Can we critically
Psychologists at Emor y
University in Atlanta have
evaluate this evidence?
been using a simulator called Virtual Iraq, which was devel- From an experimental stand-
oped to deliver two possible scenarios—being in a Middle point, this study should have used
Eastern city or driving a Humvee through a desert road in a placebo (control) group that
simulated war conditions (Figure 16.2). The weather, time received no treatment, or a com-
of day, background noise, civilians, aerial craft, and ground parison group that received some
vehicles can be programmed by the therapist to change other treatment method. In fact, such studies have recently
as desired during the exposure sessions. There is also the occurred; in one study of veterans who had served in Iraq
option to provide simulated gunfire and bomb explosions. or Afghanistan, the effectiveness of VRE sessions was com-
Smell cues are available using an air compressor that pumps pared to the standard approaches (e.g., prolonged expo-
in odours of burning rubber, garbage, diesel fuel, and gun- sure therapy, among other standard treatments), and the
powder (Cukor et al., 2009). Using this technology, psycholo- VRE approach outperformed the standard approaches
gists have conducted VRE sessions with combat veterans. (McLay et al., 2011).

Psychological Therapies :: Module 16.2 :: 687

 It’s also not clear from this one study whether VRE therapy therapist has extremely high control over the precise way in
would be beneficial for disorders other than PTSD. However, which the client will be exposed to the feared situation and
other research has shown that virtual reality approaches are can therefore easily tailor the approach to the client’s needs
useful for helping people in many different types of circum- (Hodges et al., 2001).
stances, including symptom reduction in people with various
phobias (Opris et al., 2012; Powers & Emmelkamp, 2008),
stress management in patients with cancer (Schneider et al.,
2011), and body image issues in clients with eating disorders
(Riva, 2005).

Why is this relevant?

Vir tual reality technolo-
gies seem to help overcome
key barriers to therapeutic
effectiveness. As discussed
earlier regarding PTSD, clients typically avoid any stimuli
associated with the original trauma, and therefore may be
resistant to therapy which will expose them to the trauma;
VRE approaches can get around this resistance because the Carol and Mike Werner/Alamy

AVERSIVE CONDITIONING Behavioural therapies

can also be used to extinguish unwanted behaviours.
Most people have at least one behaviour they would
like to reduce or eliminate, perhaps a nervous habit such
as fingernail biting, or a serious health concern such as
smoking. Behavioural principles tell us that these habits
are maintained because they bring rewards in some fash-
ion. As long as they are enjoyable or reduce stress, these
habits will be difficult to break.
Aversive conditioning is a behavioural technique
that involves replacing a positive response to a stimulus with a
negative response, typically by using punishment. One aversive
conditioning treatment involves using the drug Antabuse
(disulfiram) to reduce problem alcohol consumption.
Antabuse causes nausea and vomiting when combined
with alcohol, so the drug classically conditions an aver-
sion to alcohol. Antabuse works for some individuals, but
there are several reasons why it is not entirely effective
(Garbutt, 2009). As you can imagine, the client must have
a fairly strong motivation to quit, and must be willing
to take the drug knowing that it would make her ill. If Monika Olszewska/Shutterstock
she cheats and skips the drug one day, then the treat- The drug Antabuse is used in aversive conditioning for alcohol
ment will not have much chance of working. Thus, even consumption. When it is taken and the person subsequently
consumes alcohol, Antabuse causes nausea and vomiting.
though aversive conditioning can help people quit, it still
If successful, Antabuse treatment leads to a conditioned
requires willpower to complete the treatments. aversion to alcohol.

COGNITIVE-BEHAVIOURAL THERAPIES Behav-

ioural therapies, despite their eff ectiveness at chang- psychodynamically trained psychologists, Albert Ellis
ing problem behaviours, do not directly address (1962) and Aaron Beck (1963), found that people with
problematic thoughts. This is extremely important depression tend to interpret and think about their lives
because some disorders, most notably depression, are in a negative light. As Ellis, Beck, and others learned
caused in part by dysfunctional habits of thinking. Two more about these thought patterns, it became apparent

688 :: Module 16.2 : : Psychological Therapies

that therapies should be directed at changing nega- One set of dysfunctional thinking patterns that
tive cognitions into more realistic and rational thought powerfully reinforces depression is the tendency to make
patterns, as well as helping people learn to control internal, stable, and global attributions for negative events. This
the physiological processes (e.g., arousal) that rein- negative explanatory style results in people making
force negative thinking. Over time, this new approach the worst out of many situations. Internal attribu-
became known as cognitive-behavioural therapy. tions are the thoughts that say “it’s all my fault”; blaming
Cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) is a oneself excessively for negative things that happen, rather than
form of therapy that consists of procedures such as cognitive appreciating that, even though one may bear some responsibil-
restructuring, stress inoculation training, and exposing people ity, there were also other factors that contributed to the nega-
to experiences they may have a tendency to avoid, as in sys- tive event, such as bad luck or the behaviour of other people.
tematic desensitization (NIMH, 2009). Because avoid- Stable attributions are thoughts like “it’s never going to
ing thoughts and stressful situations tends to reinforce change”; coming to see the situation as permanent and irre-
the negative feelings that would arise, helping clients versible. Global events are thoughts like “my whole life is
to face negativity allows them the opportunity to gain ruined”; blowing things out of proportion rather than seeing
insight into their feelings, to practise a courageous a negative event as simply that, one negative event and not
response to negativity, and to learn methods for coping something that needs to spiral into greater problems (Seligman
when negativity arises. This type of therapy is far more et al., 1979). Once these self-defeating cognitive habits
about the present than about the past; rather than exca- have been identified, a therapist and client can work on Watch
vating past traumas or conflicts, CBT therapists help developing more functional and healthy ways of think- In the Real World:
clients become more aware of the thought, emotion, ing. After that, it’s the client’s job to put the therapy into Cognitive-Behavioural

and behaviour patterns that arise in their current lives; practice—noting her automatic thought tendencies as Therapy

through this heightened self-awareness, clients learn to they occur, and then actually practising her cognitive
identify their habitual dysfunctional tendencies, and principles, such as restructuring as we discussed earlier.
then work on building more functional cognitive and As the client practises interrupting old thought patterns
behavioural habits. and actively cultivating new, healthier ones, these health-
At the behavioural end of CBT, clients are given ier patterns should become more easily activated, until
exercises and guidance in gaining skills they may be eventually they become automatic behavioural habits.
lacking. For example, as with systematic desensitization, In contrast, the depressive thought patterns should fade
clients may learn relaxation techniques, enabling them with disuse, becoming less easily activated over time.
to better tolerate negative feelings when they arise. As The fact that these exercises change people’s func-
another example, a person with social anxiety who has tioning has been dramatically demonstrated through
difficulty integrating into social situations may learn and recent neuroimaging studies, which show substantial
practise certain social skills, such as making “small talk” changes to neurological function after CBT (Frewen
with people at parties or learning to be more respon- et al., 2008). For example, one study at L’Institut uni-
sive to people’s non-verbal cues, rather than the socially versitaire de gériatrie de Montréal showed that, before
anxious person’s current tendency to not express himself being treated with CBT, people suffering from spider
and generally withdraw from social settings. phobia showed activation in certain brain areas when
At the cognitive end of CBT, clients are given exer- viewing pictures of spiders: part of the prefrontal cortex
cises and strategies to build more functional cognitive (right dorsolateral PFC) which is involved with control-
habits. Cognitive restructuring involves learning to chal- ling emotional responses, and part of the hippocampus
lenge their negative thought patterns, to question their (the parahippocampal gyrus) which is involved in con-
self-defeating beliefs, and to view situations in a differ- textual fear memories. The activation of these two areas
ent light. For example, people with depression or anxiety likely reflects the automatic reactivation of fear memo-
disorders often hold extreme and irrational beliefs, such ries that underlie the phobia, plus the person’s attempt
as “I can’t do anything right,” “I have nothing worth- to override the fear response. After receiving CBT, these
while to say,” “If I fail, it’s going to be a total disaster.” As areas were no longer active when subjects viewed spider
they become more aware of these negative beliefs, they pictures, suggesting that CBT not only helped people
can question or dispute them, helping themselves appre- subjectively, but also functionally “rewired” the brain
ciate that these beliefs are far more negative than real- (Paquette et al., 2003).
ity warrants. After all, nobody can do everything wrong;
nobody has literally nothing to say that is worthwhile; MINDFULNESS-BASED COGNITIVE THER-
and any failure is not “the end of the world,” so to speak, APY One of the biggest recent advances in therapeu-
but is also an opportunity to learn and improve. tic practice, spearheaded by researchers at the Centre for

Psychological Therapies :: Module 16.2 :: 689

 Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, is the integra- attending openly and non-reactively to yourself, you
tion of meditation-based practices, such as mindfulness, become your own best friend or healthy parent. As Sie-
with traditional cognitive-behavioural approaches. In gel describes it, mindfulness is like re-parenting yourself;
this groundbreaking area of research, East meets West it’s an opportunity to rebuild yourself, actually changing
and ancient meets modern, as traditional Eastern medita- your own biological structures that are involved in emo-
tion and spiritual practices merge with Western psycho- tional security.
logical therapies and neuroscientific understanding. A second key way in which mindfulness aff ects
Mindfulness practice and cognitive-behavioural a person is through the experience of decentring ,
therapy begin in somewhat similar ways—the goal which occurs when one is able to “step back” from one’s nor-
of each is to get the client better acquainted with her mal consciousness and observe oneself more objectively, as an
thoughts and feelings, in the present moment of expe- observer. You have no doubt had the experience decen-
riencing them. Each approach emphasizes greater self- tring many times, such as when you become aware that
awareness, which comes from the practice of observing you are “talking to yourself ” as though there is a pri-
oneself. At this very basic level, mindfulness and CBT are vate voice in your mind that you can “speak” with, or
similar to each other. you may have had the experience of becoming aware
Otherwise, the two approaches differ significantly. of yourself having an experience while you are having
In CBT, there is a basic orientation of “fixing oneself.” the experience. For example, you may be dancing but
The purpose of becoming aware of one’s patterns of then you suddenly become aware of yourself dancing,
thoughts, feelings, and behaviour is to gain greater con- as though you are looking at yourself from a third-person
trol so that the negative thought patterns get replaced perspective.
with more positive ones. In contrast, the practice of The ability to decentre is a powerful antidote to
mindfulness involves consciously adopting an orienta- difficult thoughts and feelings. By “stepping back” from
tion of “accepting” oneself, fully, in the present moment. your own thoughts and feelings and observing them
Strictly speaking, from a mindfulness perspective, you dispassionately, you become able to detach yourself
don’t necessarily have to “do” anything about problem- from any damaging or troubling consequences of your
atic thoughts and feelings; instead, you make the active thoughts. It’s similar to what you might do if someone
choice to accept them as they are, to simply observe were attacking you and trying to hit you; if you could
them without reacting to them. step away from their blows, you wouldn’t be harmed by
It may sound like “just watching yourself ” is a pretty their anger. In the same way, when you are able to men-
mild and unimpressive thing to do. Just watching your- tally step away from a difficult thought, you become less
self sounds like, basically, doing nothing. However, it is in attached to the emotional consequences of the thought,
fact a highly active and intentional process. In order to and thus, less harmed by your own negative thinking
be able to watch yourself without reacting to the differ- patterns.
ent thoughts and feelings that arise, you must consciously Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT)
choose, again and again, to take an attitude of openness involves combining mindfulness meditation with standard
and acceptance toward yourself. Dr. Daniel Siegel (2007) cognitive-behavioural therapy tools. The goals are to reap the
describes this attitude as COAL—curious, open, accept- benefits of mindfulness practice described above, and
ing, and loving. COAL is, essentially, the same attitude then to work on changing dysfunctional patterns using
that parents take toward children in order to help them CBT. Many independent controlled trials have shown
develop emotional security (Module 10.2). As people that MBCT has powerful effects on people who have
develop emotional security through being involved in experienced a major depressive disorder. After the per-
loving and accepting relationships, this is reflected in the son emerges from a depressive episode, the practice of
development of certain brain areas that Siegel calls the MBCT substantially reduces the likelihood of expe-
“social circuitry.” These areas, such as the medial prefron- riencing a relapse, lengthens the amount of time that
tal cortex, are involved in experiencing and managing passes between depressive episodes, and reduces residual
emotions, feeling empathy and taking the perspective depressive symptoms for years after treatment (Bondolfi
of others, and generally speaking, reflect an interpersonal et al., 2010; Kuyken et al., 2008, 2010).
attunement between oneself and other people. The prac- MBCT seems to have great promise as a therapy
tice of mindfulness is believed to be a kind of intrapersonal for many different conditions. Initial studies suggest
attunement, a relationship between oneself and oneself; it it is beneficial for social anxiety disorder and general-
seems to involve the same social circuitry, and lead to the ized anxiety (Evans et al., 2008; Piet et al., 2010), bipo-
same emotional and neurological outcomes as the devel- lar disorder (Weber et al., 2010; Williams et al., 2008),
opment of secure attachment. Basically, by practising depression (Kingston et al., 2007; Williams et al., 2007),

690 :: Module 16.2 : : Psychological Therapies

hypochondriasis (McManus et al., 2012), and suicidal challenging the person and being clear about what the
ideation (Crane & Williams, 2010). Mindfulness exercises family will and will not tolerate. There are many differ-
are excellent tools for encouraging people to become ent ways in which family members contribute to the
more growth-oriented, and they are adaptable to both maintenance of a dysfunctional pattern of behaviour,
individual therapy and therapy in group settings. and a family systems therapist would therefore treat
the individual by also working with the other family
GROUP AND FAMILY THERAPIES In some situa- members to change the larger patterns that reinforce
tions, clients may benefit by participating in group ther- the problematic behaviours.
apy sessions. Group members share their personal stories
and experiences, and the bonding and support that EVALUATING COGNITIVE-BEHAVIOURAL THER-
occur in this context can be very powerful. To encour- APIES Behavioural therapies have been shown to be
age people to open up to each other, therapists may particularly effective at treating symptoms associated
group people together based on the issue that they are with anxiety disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive
dealing with (e.g., alcohol addiction, divorce), or other disorder and specific phobias (Chambless & Ollendick, Watch
similarities (e.g., age, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, 2001).They have also proved useful for increasing behav- Cognitive-Behavioural
etc.). A final, logistic advantage to group therapy is the cost, ioural skills (e.g., social skills) and decreasing problematic Therapy

which is usually much cheaper than individual therapy. behaviours (e.g., social withdrawal).
This makes group therapy accessible to a broad range of Cognitive-behavioural therapy has been quite effec-
people across society. tive in treating depression, which is not too surprising
In other situations, psychologists may conduct given that this method of therapy was specifically devel-
family therapy. This may occur if a client’s difficulties oped for this purpose (Hollon et al., 2002). In addition,
stem from or are reinforced by unhealthy dynamics cognitive-behavioural therapies have been successful in
within the family; for example, people with schizo- treating such conditions as anxiety, obesity, and eating
phrenia are far less likely to have their symptoms stay in disorders. In fact, CBT is the most effective treatment
remission if their families exhibit negative patterns of currently available for anxiety disorders, particularly
communication and emotional involvement (Hooley, over the long term, outperforming anti-anxiety medi-
2007). Thus, family therapy may be extremely eff ec- cations for most adult anxiety disorders (Hofmann &
tive for helping people with schizophrenia, generally Smits, 2008), and the effects last much longer than the
in conjunction with anti-psychotic drug treatments. effects of drugs, which often are effective only so long
Family therapy may also be used to help families deal as the person remains on the medication (Hollon et al.,
with specific family members who are highly dysfunc- 2006). Neuroimaging research on people with obsessive-
tional in some way, such as being addicted or having compulsive disorder showed that both SSRI and CBT
poor emotional control. treatments effect the same changes in neural activity
Family therapists generally take a systems (Schwartz et al., 1996), suggesting that these different
approach, an orientation that encourages therapists to see approaches target similar neural processes. In many cases,
an individual’s symptoms as being influenced by many dif- rather than taking an either/or approach, the best out-
ferent interacting systems ; one important system is the comes have been found by combining drug treatments
family system, which can play a big role in the develop- with cognitive behavioural therapy; this has been found
ment and maintenance of psychological disorders. For for several different disorders, including panic disorder
example, imagine a family in which one person is emo- with agoraphobia (Starcevic et al., 2004), and depression
tionally abusive and controls the other family members (McCullough, 2000).
through becoming excessively angry; a therapist taking Generally speaking, cognitive and behavioural
a systems approach would see that behaviour pattern therapies are the workhorses of psychological treat-
as stemming not only from the individual themselves, ments; they are quite versatile in their applications
but also from the other family members. For example, and can help to treat a wide variety of disorders. They
the other family members may constantly monitor that also take much less time (and are therefore much less
person and carefully choose their own behaviours so as expensive) than psychodynamic approaches, and have
to avoid making that person angry. Or the family may none of the undesirable side effects of drug treatments.
stop inviting other people to the house, allowing the Nevertheless, different treatments work best for differ-
angry person to isolate the family within the commu- ent people, and it is worth remembering that for any
nity. Or the family members may be too quick to for- given person, it is currently impossible to know ahead
give or to apologize themselves and accept the blame of time which treatment or combination of treatments
whenever the angry person loses his temper, rather than may work the best.

Psychological Therapies :: Module 16.2 :: 691

 Quick Quiz 16.2b Behavioural, Cognitive, and Group Therapies

1 _______ involves a process in which the client faces feared 4 Neil is facing difficulties with anger and depression,

KNOW . . .

APPLY . . .
situations gradually and under controlled conditions. and his parents are having trouble managing his
A Client-centred therapy C Insight therapy behaviours and responding appropriately. To address
B Family therapy D Exposure therapy all of these concerns, the most beneficial treatment in
this situation would be ________.
A cognitive-behavioural therapy
2 _________ consists of key procedures including exposure,
B family therapy
cognitive restructuring, and stress inoculation training.
A Cognitive-behavioural therapy C virtual reality exposure therapy
B Family therapy D exposure therapy
C Virtual reality exposure therapy
5 A major strength of cognitive-behavioural therapy is that

ANALYZE . . .
D Exposure therapy
A it has been particularly effective in treating
depression, anxiety, and eating disorders.
3 The key difference between mindfulness and cognitive
UNDERSTAND . . .

behavioural therapy is that B it prevents resistance from occurring.

A only mindfulness involves decentring. C it is not affected by the quality of the client–therapist
relationship.
B CBT is supported by empirical research, whereas
mindfulness is just a practice that comes from D it develops transference between client and therapist.
Buddhism but has little empirical support.
C in CBT, clients practise replacing their dysfunctional 6 Cognitive-behavioural therapies seem to be effective
thoughts with more functional thoughts; whereas because they
in mindfulness practice, clients simply watch their A help individuals restructure their maladaptive
thoughts and accept them as they are. thoughts and beliefs.
D CBT can be combined with drug treatments, but B teach individuals to brood over problems effectively.
mindfulness cannot. C systematically desensitize phobias.
D none of the above.
Answers can be found on page ANS-4.

692 :: Module 16.2 : : Psychological Therapies

 Module Summary
Module

16.2 Now that you have read this module you should

KNOW . . .

● The key terminology related to psychological therapies:

i love images/Alamy
aversive conditioning (p. 688) negative explanatory style
behavioural therapy (p. 686) (p. 689) phobia find a therapist for treatment, and you speak with
client-centred therapy (or person- object relations therapy (p. 683) three professionals about the approach each would take.
centred therapy) (p. 684) phenomenological approach Match their response with the corresponding school of
cognitive-behavioural (p. 684) thought. Note: Not all the schools of therapy will be used.
therapy (CBT) (p. 689) psychodynamic therapy (p. 682) Check your answers on page ANS-4.
decentring (p. 690) resistance (p. 683)
1. I would ask the individual to describe his train of
dream analysis (p. 682) stable attributions (p. 689) thought when he encounters the feared object. Then I
free association (p. 682) systematic desensitization would ask him to explain why it is irrational to think that
global events (p. 689) (p. 686)
way, and we would try to replace his irrational thoughts
insight therapy (p. 682) systems approach (p. 691)
with more reasonable, less anxiety-provoking beliefs.
internal attribution (p. 689) transference (p. 683)
virtual reality exposure (VRE) 2. I would ask the patient to think about his earliest
mindfulness-based cognitive
therapy (MBCT) (p. 690) (p. 687) childhood experiences with the object, and then to
speak freely about those memories at length. We
UNDERSTAND . . . would try to discover the significance of that object in
his early development.
● The general approaches to conducting major types
3. We would take an active approach. One important
of psychological therapy. Each therapy seems to be
step is to teach the client how to be calm and relaxed
different. Psychoanalysis, for example, works by uncovering
while gradually introducing the feared stimulus.
hidden conflicts, whereas humanistic therapy focuses on
removing conditions of worth that can hinder a person’s A. Humanistic therapy
growth. Behavioural and cognitive therapies target B. Cognitive-behavioural therapy
dysfunctional thought and behaviour patterns, seeking to
C. Psychodynamic therapy
replace undesirable patterns with more functional ones
that clients then practise regularly. Group and family D. Family therapy
therapies have also been developed, working with social E. Behavioural therapy
systems that are larger than one individual.
Watch
Thinking Like a
APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .
Psychologist:
Assessing Treatment ● Your knowledge to identify major therapeutic ● The pros and cons of the major types of psychotherapy.
Effectiveness techniques. Imagine you are helping someone with a See Table 16.4 below.

Table 16.4 :: Pros and Cons of the Major Types of Therapy

PROS CONS

Insight therapies • Can provide deep understanding of the self • Often (but not always) involve long-term therapy, often very
• Can facilitate substantial personal growth and personal expensive
transformation • Can have limited application to people with serious disorders
Behavioural and • Typically time- and cost-efficient • Does not necessarily offer deeper understanding of
cognitive therapies • Addresses immediate thoughts and behavioural problems psychological problems
• Addresses both mild and severe problems • When used alone, may not be effective for some severe cases
and certain disorders (e.g., schizophrenia)
Group/family • Allows individuals to empathize and relate to others with • Does not fully address individual issues (although group
therapies similar problems and family therapies are often used in combination with
• Gives family members insight into how each individual con- individualized therapy)
tributes to both positive and negative aspects of family life
• Can change the larger social dynamics that reinforce and
maintain the disorder
• Can enable individuals to change who would otherwise
not be able to (e.g., many cases of addiction)

Psychological Therapies :: Module 16.2 :: 693

 Image Courtesy of The Advertising Archives

Module

16.3 Biomedical Therapies

Learning KNOW . . . UNDERSTAND . . . APPLY . . . ANALYZE . . .

Objectives The key terminology How the drugs described in this Your knowledge of drug Whether St. John’s wort,
After reading associated with module affect brain functioning therapies to different a popular herbal remedy
this module biological treatments psychological conditions for depression, works
The other major medical
you should approaches to therapy

The word “depression” used to be taboo. Although depression likely reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) known by their brand names like Paxil and
affected a large proportion of people, it was not socially acceptable to Zoloft. For some people, these drugs were alleged to cause a wide range
admit to it; if you did, you risked being labelled as someone who was of side effects, from relatively “mild” problems such as sexual dysfunction,
weak and simply needed “to get it together.” Then in 1987 Prozac hit the weight gain, and skin rashes, to very serious problems such as seizures,
market, and everything changed. When Eli Lilly (the manufacturer of Pro- breathing problems, and even thoughts of committing suicide.
zac) found that it seemed to help a sample of people with mild depres-
Many of these side effects were acknowledged by the drugs’ manufacturers,
sion, suddenly, it seemed there was a miracle cure for the untold millions
but it was the ironic, and terrifying, possibility that anti-depressant drugs
who are suffering silently. Millions of dollars were spent on marketing
could actually increase the risk of suicide which caught the public’s atten-
campaigns, familiarizing doctors with this wonder drug, and teaching the
tion, and which the manufacturers denied. Dr. David Healy, author of the
general public about the symptoms of depression. Rates of depression
book, Let Them Eat Prozac, not only made the claim that Prozac increased
diagnoses skyrocketed, and sales of Prozac kept pace. Within a decade
the risk of suicidal behaviours, but also alleged that Eli Lilly’s own research
after its release, Prozac was making $2.5 billion per year for Eli Lilly
showed this, but the findings had been [Link] seems to be backed
(Couzin, 2004).
up by documents leaked to CNN in 2005, showing that Eli Lilly knew back
Unfortunately, a growing number of people started to voice concerns in the 1980s that patients on Prozac were more than 1200% more likely to
about this wonder drug and its “sister” drugs, the selective serotonin attempt suicide than patients on several other antidepressants.

694 :: Module 16.3 : : Biomedical Therapies

This controversy generated a great deal of bad press for the system and correct what is believed to be the underly-
SSRIs. Then, things got even worse, as research on the efficacy ing biological problem. Psychopharmacotherapy—
of these drugs turned out to be unimpressive. A recent meta- the use of drugs to attempt to manage or reduce clients’
analysis concluded that the impact of SSRIs on symptoms of symptoms—is by far the most frequently used biomedi-
depression, compared to a placebo, is extremely small (and
cal option, and is often employed in conjunction with
not “clinically significant”) for moderately or even severely
some form of therapy. Other options, such as surgery
depressed patients; only among the most depressed group did
or electrically stimulating the brain, are typically used
the SSRIs have a clinically meaningful impact greater than pla-
cebos, and that was merely because such severely depressed only in situations where no other available treatments
people were less responsive to placebos, not because of any have succeeded. In this module, we explore and evalu-
increase in the impact of the SSRIs. In short, SSRIs appear ate each of these biomedical treatment options, and
to have only a very small positive effect for most people. In examine how they may be used in conjunction with Explore
fact, the authors conclude, “Given these data, there seems other forms of therapy. Biomedical Therapies
little evidence to support the prescription of antidepressant
medication to any but the most severely depressed patients,
unless alternative treatments have failed to provide benefit” Drug Treatments
(Kirsch et al., 2008). Psychotropic drugs are medications designed to alter psy-
Nevertheless, these drugs are prescribed to tens of millions chological functioning. Drug approaches were first predomi-
of people in North America alone, making billions of dollars nantly used in institutional and clinical settings, generally
for the companies that produce them. Drug companies also targeting very severe cases. However, in more recent
fund the vast majority of the research on their product’s decades, drug treatments have become mainstream prac-
effectiveness, making for a difficult regulatory situation, when tice for many people experiencing even relatively mild Explore
the academic researchers who are “independently” testing the psychological problems and symptoms. This expansion Drugs Commonly Used
drugs are, in fact, dependent on the drug manufacturers for has made certain psychotropic drugs, such as those used to Treat Psychiatric
much of their funding.
to treat depression, among the most prescribed forms of Disorders
Where does this leave you, as a potential consumer of medicine (Olfson & Marcus, 2009).
these drugs? We hope that it leaves you with the awareness Psychotropic drugs have been developed to take
that there are important decisions to be made when tak- many different courses of action. First, all psychotropic
ing any prescription medication. For one, they don’t work drugs are designed to cross the blood–brain barrier, a
the same way with everybody; Prozac undoubtedly helps network of tightly packed cells that only allow specific types of
many people, but it also fails to work for many others, and
substances to move from the bloodstream to the brain in order
causes its own problems in many cases. Armed with this
to protect delicate brain cells against harmful infections and
knowledge and a better understanding that there are many
other substances (see Figure 16.3). Psychotropic drugs are
different ways to treat a psychological condition such as
depression, consumers should be a little more wary, more designed to cross this barrier and then affect one or more
likely to do their homework and fi nd out just how effec- specific neurotransmitters. The specific neurotransmitters
tive a drug is likely to be, and what other options may be
available.

Focus Questions
Capillary
1 What medical techniques are available for influencing
psychological disorders, and how do they work?
2 What are the risks and benefits associated
with different biomedical approaches?

Brain Drug
All of the psychological disorders that we have covered Blood brain barrier
in this text involve brain chemistry, because everything
that occurs in consciousness involves brain chemistry.
The biomedical approach to treating disorders involves {fig. 16.3} How Psychotropic Drugs Reach the Brain In order to affect the brain
in the desired way, psychotropic drugs must cross the blood–brain barrier, a network
using drugs, surgery, or other medical procedures in of densely packed cells that restrict the flow of substances between the capillaries and
order to alter the functioning of the central nervous brain cells.

Biomedical Therapies :: Module 16.3 :: 695

 Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs)
block the activity of the monoamine
oxidase enzyme, which breaks down
Selective serotonin reuptake
key neurotransmitters such as
inhibitors (SSRIs) increase the activity
norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin.
of serotonin at the postsynaptic cell by
slowing the rate of reuptake of serotonin
molecules into the presynaptic cell.
Presynaptic cell

Postsynaptic cell
Tricyclic antidepressants
block reuptake of serotonin Receptor site
and norepinephrine.

{fig. 16.4} Antidepressant Effects at the Synapse The major antidepressant drugs have different ways of increasing the trans-
mission of neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine at the synapses.

that are targeted depend on the underlying disorder that to work by blocking the reuptake of serotonin and norepineph-
is believed to best account for the client’s symptoms. rine (Figure 16.4). Unfortunately, as with MAOIs, many
side effects are associated with tricyclic antidepressants,
ANTIDEPRESSANTS AND MOOD STABILIZERS including nausea, weight gain, sexual dysfunction and, in
As the name suggests, antidepressant drugs are medi- some cases, seizures.
cations designed to elevate mood and reduce other symptoms of Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors
depression. In general, antidepressant drugs target areas of (SSRIs) are a class of antidepressant drugs that block the
the brain that, when functioning normally, are rich in reuptake of the neurotransmitter serotonin. Among the most
monoamine neurotransmitters—serotonin, norepineph- common of these are Prozac (fluoxetine), Zoloft (ser-
rine, and dopamine. With multiple neurotransmitters traline), and Paxil (paroxetine). These antidepressants
involved, antidepressants come in several varieties, each successfully alleviate some proportion of the symptoms
with its own way of altering brain chemistry (Figure 16.4). of depression in some clients, although they also come
Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) were with certain side eff ects, as discussed in the opening
the first type of antidepressant that was developed and vignette of this module.
widely used. They work by deactivating monoamine oxidase Keep in mind that enhancing mood through
(MAO), an enzyme that breaks down serotonin, dopamine, increasing serotonin function is just a hypothesis about
and norepinephrine at the synaptic clefts of nerve cells (see how these drugs work, not a fact. There are other pos-
Figure 16.4). When MAO is inhibited, fewer dopamine, sible mechanisms; for example, increasing serotonin
serotonin, and norepinephrine neurotransmitters are amounts has been shown to cause the brain stem to
metabolized, which in turn leaves more of them avail- diminish activation in order to reduce arousal, which
able at the synapses. Although MAOIs are often effective could be one way that SSRIs reduce negative emotions
at relieving the symptoms of depression, they are used in general (Maier & Watkins, 2005). SSRIs also decrease
less frequently than other antidepressants, in part because the extent to which parts of the amygdala are activated,
they can have dangerous interactions with fermented which has been shown to be hyperaroused in people
foods (e.g., aged cheeses, smoked meats, alcoholic bev- with depression; reducing this amygdala activity would
erages) and other medications, causing severely high reduce the person’s tendency to activate negative emo-
blood pressure if mixed with the wrong foods or tions in response to various stimuli (Sheline et al., 2001).
medications. If you look at the label of just about any SSRIs have been shown to lead to neurogenesis—the
over-the-counter medication, you will probably find growth of brand-new neurons—in the hippocampus,
listed warnings against using MAOIs when taking the which may help alleviate depression because reduced
nonprescription drug. MAOIs have a host of other more hippocampal volume has been connected to depres-
minor side effects as well, such as diarrhea, weight gain, sion (Jacobs, 2004). Any given drug generally has mul-
and sexual dysfunction. tiple effects on the brain, and researchers are constantly
Tricyclic antidepressants were among the ear- searching for a better understanding of these multiple
liest types of antidepressants on the market and appear effects, so as to develop a better understanding of the

696 :: Module 16.3 : : Biomedical Therapies

processes that cause and maintain disorders, and to
become better able to precisely target those processes in MYTHS IN MIND
designing treatments.
Antidepressant Drugs Are
Mood stabilizers are drugs used to prevent or reduce
Happiness Pills
the severity of mood swings experienced by people with bipo-
lar disorder. Lithium was one of the first mood stabilizers A common belief is that antidepressants are happiness in pill
to be prescribed regularly in psychiatry, and from the 1950s form—that their chemical magic not only causes depres-
to the 1980s, was the standard drug treatment for depression sion to disappear, but also brings on optimism and a rush of
positive emotion. In reality, antidepressant drugs can allevi-
and bipolar disorder. Lithium, a salt compound, can be
ate depression (in some individuals), but they do not make
quite effective, but it can also be toxic to the kidneys
people happier than they were before becoming depressed.
and endocrine system. Today, doctors generally prefer
The “happiness pill” misconception about antidepres-
to prescribe other drugs because they seem to be more sants has led some individuals to believe that taking a high
effective and safer than lithium (Thase & Denko, 2008). dose of antidepressants will induce a euphoric high, much like
For example, people with bipolar disorder now often cocaine or heroin. This is also a myth. Although some people
take anticonvulsant medications such as valproate or have attempted to abuse antidepressants by taking high doses
anti-psychotic medications. Although these medicines (even crushing and snorting them for quicker delivery to the
can be effective in preventing manic episodes, they are brain), there is no evidence that an intense rush of happiness
also associated with significant side effects, including results. In fact, SSRIs typically take a couple of weeks to work.
weight gain, nausea, and fatigue; there are also a host Taking a high dose, or snorting crushed-up pills, neither mag-
of more rare and serious side effects, including brain nifies their effects nor reduces the two-week waiting period
before effects become evident.
damage due to elevated levels of ammonia in the blood
In short, individuals without depression should not
(Wadzinski et al., 2007).
expect to feel greater happiness if they take the drugs.

What have
WORKING THE SCIENTIFIC scientific studies
LITERACY MODEL found about St.
Is St. John’s Wort Effective? John’s wort and
depression?
People often make the assumption that biomedical thera- Several groups of researchers have been testing whether
pies are limited to prescription drugs or procedures that St. John’s wort can alleviate [Link] most recent meta-
only a physician can provide. In reality, people often self- analysis of this research combined the results of 29 different
prescribe and administer treatments for depression con- studies with over 5400 patients (Linde et al., 2008).The results
sisting of over-the-counter remedies. As with any other indicate that St. John’s wort is indeed more effective than a
treatment, we should examine the evidence to determine placebo, and equally as effective as prescription antidepressant
the effectiveness of these options. In this case, we will drugs, at alleviating the symptoms of major depression. Most
examine St. John’s wort. studies have looked at mild to moderate levels of depression,
although there is some initial evidence that St. John’s wort can
What do we know work as effectively as SSRIs for more severe cases of depres-
sion as well (Jurcic et al., 2007). And as an added bonus,
about St. John’s wort? St. John’s wort has fewer and less severe potential side effects
St. John’s wort (Hypericum perfora- than the prescription drug alternatives.
tum) is an herbal remedy available
in drugstores that has a long his- Can we critically
tory of use as a treatment for vari-
ous conditions. It is very popular
evaluate this evidence?
in European countries, and is com- St. John’s wort, just like prescrip-
monly purchased in Canada and the United States. Despite its tion antidepressant drugs, produces
widespread use as a mood enhancer, medical opinion on its mixed results. For some people, it
effectiveness for depression has generally been mixed. seems to be effective; for others,

Biomedical Therapies :: Module 16.3 :: 697

 it does little or nothing. However, due to conflicting results, the only therapeutic option—especially for people experienc-
we should consider one of the most important confounds: ing relatively mild or moderate levels of depression. Indeed,
Because herbal supplements are not regulated by govern- while the efficacy of St. John’s wort has been compared to
ment agencies, the quality may vary a great deal among common drug treatments, research has not sufficiently tested
brands, which could explain the conflicting results (Klaus how it compares to psychological therapies for depression.
et al., 2008). Standardizing the quality of St. John’s wort for
research purposes would help to overcome this problem
and allow its effectiveness to be tested more precisely.

Why is this relevant?

Knowledge about alternative
treatments such as St. John’s
wort can help individuals
with depression make fully
informed choices about what treatment is best for them.
However, individuals considering the herbal remedy still need
to consult with their doctors. The FDA warns that St. John’s
wort can produce unfavourable reactions with medications
used to treat heart disease, seizures, and some cancers. Also,
drug treatments, whether herbal or prescription, may not be Fancy/Alamy

ANTIANXIETY DRUGS Sometimes referred to as possibly because of the presence of an overabundance

tranquilizers, antianxiety drugs are prescribed to alle- of receptors for dopamine in key brain regions. The first
viate nervousness and tension, and to prevent and reduce generation of antipsychotic medications (e.g., Thorazine,
panic attacks. Widely prescribed examples include Xanax Halodol) was designed to block dopamine receptors.
(alprazolam),Valium (diazepam), and Ativan (lorazepam). However, these drugs had significant side effects, such
These drugs affect the activity of gamma-aminobutyric acid as seizures, anxiety, nausea, and impotence. One of the
(GABA), an inhibitory neurotransmitter that reduces neural more severe and often permanent side effects, tardive
activity (see Module 3.2). They appear to temporarily dyskinesia, is a movement disorder involving involuntary
alter the structure of GABA receptors, allowing more movements and facial tics.
GABA molecules to inhibit neural activity. The effects The newer generation of medications is referred
of antianxiety drugs are relatively short-lived. They take to as atypical antipsychotics or second-generation
effect within minutes of ingestion and may last for only antipsychotics. Makers of atypical antipsychotics claim that
a few hours. Given that these drugs facilitate inhibi- these drugs are less likely to produce extrapyramidal side effects
tion of the nervous system, it is not surprising that their including movement disorders that commonly occur when first-
side effects include drowsiness, tiredness, and impaired generation antipsychotics are prescribed. The various atypical
attention, especially when they are taken at high doses. antipsychotics on the market vary in their exact effects,
More serious side effects include memory impairments, but generally speaking they primarily seem to reduce
depression, decreased sex drive, and many other possible dopamine and serotonin activity. Atypical antipsychotics
effects. These drugs also have the potential to induce work for almost half of the individuals who take them,
abuse and withdrawal symptoms. reducing the severity of symptoms but not necessarily
eliminating them altogether (Leucht et al., 2009). Unfor-
ANTIPSYCHOTIC DRUGS Antipsychotic drugs tunately, studies show that their effects weaken over time,
are generally used to treat symptoms of psychosis, including such that symptoms can return.
delusions, hallucinations, and severely disturbed or disorganized Second-generation antipsychotics have the advantage
thought. Antipsychotics are the common treatment for of carrying a lower risk for tardive dyskinesia. Neverthe-
schizophrenia and are sometimes prescribed to people less, they are not without risk. For example, Clozapine,
with severe mood disorders. There are several classes of which is a very effective antipsychotic drug, is known
antipsychotic drugs. to compromise the body’s white blood cells, and patients
As discussed in Module 15.4, symptoms of schizo- must have their blood regularly monitored or the conse-
phrenia are related to increased activity of dopamine, quences can be extremely severe, even leading to death.

698 :: Module 16.3 : : Biomedical Therapies

 Unfortunately, finding out exactly how psychiatric Zyprexa be prescribed to all adult patients with behavioural
drugs affect people is not always easy to do, and requires symptoms ranging from sleep disorders to aggression, and
that large numbers of people end up being unwitting agitation to depression. Eli Lilly created marketing materi-
guinea pigs, before the true effects of some medications als promoting Zyprexa for these off-label uses, and trained
are made known to the public. For example, one of the its sales force how to promote the drug illegally and how to
bigger scandals in the pharmaceutical industry in recent respond to doctors’ concerns or resistance.
years involved another of the atypical antipsychotic
The company was fined a total of $1.4 billion. In
drugs, Zyprexa. Initially, Zyprexa was hailed as a major
2010 alone, Eli Lilly made more than $5 billion from
breakthrough for individuals with schizophrenia and it
Zyprexa (Stastna, 2013).
was prescribed to massive numbers of people (eventually
more than 20 million people around the world).
EVALUATING DRUG THERAPIES Many people
Then people began to allege that Zyprexa caused
believe that drugs are designed to target the root physi-
drastic weight gain, and evidence started to accumulate
cal causes of psychological disorders, and that they should
that Zyprexa was linked to the onset of diabetes, hyper-
therefore be more effective than psychological approaches
glycemia, and pancreatitis. Although Eli Lilly officially
to therapy. This set of beliefs is not warranted, on both
denied that Zyprexa caused these consequences, as of
counts. For one, it is not necessarily the case that the phys-
2007, the drug’s manufacturer, Eli Lilly, had paid more
ical processes targeted by drugs are in fact the “root causes”
than $1.2 billion to settle lawsuits brought against it by
of disorders; they may be involved in reinforcing the disor-
almost 30 000 people (Berenson, 2007).
der, but they may not be the original cause. Also, drugs are
Much of the testing of drugs, and their promotion
not more effective than psychological therapies in many
and marketing to physicians, occurs behind a curtain
cases. For example, with regard to depression, the use of
of secrecy, making it difficult for the public to always
antidepressants has become increasingly accepted among
know whether drugs are being used appropriately. Again,
the general public, in part due to the pervasive marketing
Zyprexa is a good example. In 2009, Eli Lilly pled
campaigns from drug companies. However, these drugs
guilty to charges involving the “off-label marketing” of
are not as effective as they are widely believed to be. Only
Zyprexa. To understand just how much potential harm
approximately 50% to 60% of people who take antidepres-
can occur due to such practices, consider first of all the
sants improve within a few months—compared to 30% of
possible side effects that were discussed above. Then con-
people who improve similarly by taking a placebo (Hol-
sider some of the details of the case:
lon et al., 2002). Interestingly, 50% to 60% of people also
Zyprexa had received approval by the Food and Drug improve from psychological therapy used to treat depres-
Administration (FDA) as a treatment for schizophrenia sion. Thus, we cannot conclude that drugs either are more
and bipolar disorder. However, Eli Lilly admitted that they effective or should replace other approaches to therapy. In
marketed the drug illegally, promoting it to doctors as a many situations, a combination of treatment approaches
treatment for other conditions. may work the best; for example, combining psychological
The general media reported that Eli Lilly admitted to therapy with antidepressants has been shown to be more
illegally marketing Zyprexa for “off-label uses,” which are effective in treating major depression than medication
uses that have not been approved by the FDA. According to alone (Burnand et al., 2002; de Jonghe et al., 2001).
the U.S. Department of Justice, Eli Lilly concentrated these In other cases, such as most anxiety disorders, psy-
illegal marketing efforts to doctors who treat the elderly in chological treatments such as cognitive-behavioural
nursing homes and other assisted living situations, and pri- therapy (Module 16.2) are generally the most effective
mary care physicians. In addition to schizophrenia and bi- treatment (Hofmann & Smits, 2008). A key advantage
polar disorder, doctors were encouraged to prescribe Zyprexa of CBT is that the effects last long after the treatment
for dementia, Alzheimer’s, agitation, aggression, hostility, is completed (Hollon et al., 2006), whereas anti-anxiety
depression, and generalized sleep disorder, all of which are medications typically are effective only as long as the
common symptoms in elderly populations. Zyprexa also client maintains the drug regimen, and of course, come
has the side effect of sedation, which was promoted as a with side effects and addictive potential. This superior
therapeutic benefit for the elderly, helping to deal with any long-term effect of CBT over drugs has been found for
behavioural issues. Their sales slogan “5 at 5” was used to generalized anxiety disorder (Hofmann & Smits, 2008)
symbolize how 5 milligrams of Zyprexa given at 5 p.m. and panic disorder (Barlow et al., 2000).
would help put elderly patients to sleep for the night. One highly promising area of therapeutic develop-
Following these efforts, Eli Lilly expanded its market- ment concerns the generally superior effects of combin-
ing efforts to primary care physicians, recommending that ing different forms of therapy, such as combining drugs

Biomedical Therapies :: Module 16.3 :: 699

 and psychological treatments. Research generally shows 4 Generally speaking, which of the following is the most

ANALYZE . . .
that drugs are more effective when combined with other accurate statement about psychotropic drugs?
types of therapy. For example, combining drugs with CBT A They are superior to talking therapy.
is more effective for panic disorder with agoraphobia than B Their effects are rarely evident until weeks after
either treatment on its own (Starcevic et al., 2004). taking them.
Even schizophrenia, which is often viewed to be C They are usually more effective if combined with
an organic “brain disease,” is more effectively treated by some form of psychological treatment.
combined approaches. People with schizophrenia tend D Although drugs often had bad side effects in
to have difficulty in self-reflecting, projecting themselves the past, modern drugs have largely fixed those
problems.
into the past and future (D’Argembeau et al., 2008),
engaging in basic self-care, and integrating into regular
social life. Although drugs may reduce many symptoms, 5 Imagine that a friend asks you what you have heard
about St. John’s wort because he is considering using it
treating the symptoms just listed through psychologi- to alleviate his depression. What would you say, based
cal therapies has been shown to have a huge impact on on the research?
reducing the likelihood of experiencing further schizo- A St. John’s wort is as effective at treating depressive
phrenic episodes. Some research has shown that the like- symptoms as antidepressants for many people.
lihood of experiencing future schizophrenic episodes B St. John’s wort is superior to prescription
is affected even more strongly by social factors, such as antidepressant medications.
how much negative emotion and hostility are experi- C Your friend may as well take a placebo: St. John’s
enced in the family, than even by whether the person wort has never proved effective at reducing
symptoms of depression.
with schizophrenia takes the prescribed medication
(Hooley & Gotlib, 2000). Clearly, evaluating drug treat- D St. John’s wort is superior to cognitive-behavioural
therapies.
ments, as well as the potential for developing integrative
treatments that use multiple approaches in conjunction Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
with one another, are vitally important areas of research.

Quick Quiz 16.3a

Drug Treatments BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
1 Tardive dyskinesia is
PERSPECTIVES
KNOW . . .

A a side effect of antipsychotics that involves motion Exercise and Depression

control problems.
One of the tricky things about “mental illness” is that the
B an antidepressant that breaks down enzymes in the
very label can be misleading because disorders such as
synapse.
major depressive disorder are not strictly “mental”; they
C the growth of new neurons in the adult brain.
also involve the body. This should be no surprise when you
D a side effect of antidepressant drugs. consider the multiple feedback pathways between the body
and the brain. Consider the role that physiological arousal
2 ________ affect the nervous system by blocking plays in emotional intensity (Module 11.4) and stress
UNDERSTAND . . .

reuptake of serotonin in neurons. (Module 14.2). However, although we know that the body
A MAOIs C Mood stabilizers affects the mind, it is easy to forget this when consider-
B Antianxiety D SSRIs ing psychological disorders; people often think that they are
medications “all in your head.” As a result, when we think of therapy,
we generally think of psychological treatments and drug
3 Monoamine oxidase inhibitor drugs work by treatments that operate on neurotransmitters. But what if
A boosting the ability of an enzyme to break body-based treatments, such as physical exercise, could also
down serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine be effective, even for serious disorders like major depres-
molecules. sive disorder?
B inhibiting the ability of an enzyme to break In fact, numerous studies have shown that exercise is
down serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine more effective than placebos at relieving depressive symp-
molecules. toms, and is approximately as effective as standard SSRI medi-
C selectively blocking the reuptake of serotonin. cations, particularly for mild to moderate cases of depression
D creating new dopamine molecules. (Carek et al., 2011). Furthermore, the “side effects” of

700 :: Module 16.3 : : Biomedical Therapies

 Technological and Surgical Methods
Drugs are not the only method of biomedical therapy
available to people seeking help for psychological prob-
lems. There are a variety of other approaches, ranging
from direct surgical interventions to high-tech stimu-
lation of brain areas by magnetic pulses. Today, these
procedures are fairly safe and are carefully tested and
scrutinized, although that has not always been the case.
You have likely heard of the frontal lobotomy.
The story behind this procedure is chilling. Many neu-
rologists of the 1800s and 1900s experimented with surgi-
cally removing regions of the cortex in the hope of “curing”
psychological problems. In the 1930s, researchers started
to discover that, by damaging the prefrontal areas of
aggressive chimpanzees, they could make these unman-
ageable animals much calmer and more controllable.
When Portuguese surgeon Antonio Moniz heard about
this at a conference, he thought it might be useful for
helping people with severe psychoses and other disor-
ders. He helped to develop the leucotomy, the surgical
destruction of brain tissues in the prefrontal cortex. Drilling
small holes into the skull, Moniz would typically insert a
small wire loop, a leucotome, through the holes and into
PictureArt/Fotolia the brain matter, and with a few flips of the wrist the
damage is done and the patient is left to “recover.”
exercise are overwhelmingly positive, compared to the huge Moniz himself had limited success, reporting a gen-
range of potential negative side effects associated with anti- eral improvement in the symptoms of several severely
depressant medications. In contrast to medications that often depressed, anxious, or otherwise disturbed people, and
induce side effects that detract from the person’s quality of recommended it as a method of last resort when all
life, exercise brings a wide range of benefits that pretty much else seems to have failed. The technique was popular-
universally improve quality of life, and shows promise for pre-
ized and turned into a veritable industry by an enter-
venting relapse of depressive symptoms better than medica-
prising American surgeon, Dr. Walter Freeman, who also
tion (Babyak et al., 2000).
heard about the earlier work with chimpanzees at the
So what is it about exercise that alleviates depres-
sive symptoms? Several mechanisms are probably at work. same conference as Moniz. Freeman, with his surgical
In the short term, many exercises, such as running, cause and research partner Dr. James Watts, further developed
the release of endorphins, which reduce pain sensation and the “lobotomy” (as he called the procedure) for about a
increase mood. Exercise also more generally increases peo- decade, until he learned of a new method, developed in
ple’s energy levels and positive emotions, leading to greater Italy, for getting into the brain through the eye sockets,
participation in enjoyable activities, counteracting the tenden- thereby avoiding drilling into the skull.
cies toward social withdrawal and negative cognitive styles Freeman adapted this further into the trans-orbital
which are associated with depression. Neuroscience research lobotomy, which became known as the “icepick lobot-
even indicates that exercise increases activity in the brain’s omy.” The name was well deserved. Freeman actually
reward circuitry, thus counteracting the tendency for people
would insert a slender metal shaft, like an icepick, in
to experience less pleasure in daily activities as they slide into
between the eyeball and eyelid, then with a hammer,
a depressive episode.
would tap it through the bony roof of the eye socket
Thus, there are more treatments available for depres-
sion than traditional psychological or psychiatric approaches. and into the brain. Then he would basically swish it
This takes “therapy” in a whole new direction, in which around until the frontal lobes were detached from the
behaviour change and motivation become central foci for the rest of the brain (Valenstein, 1973). He was even able
therapist and client, and the focus starts to shift somewhat to perform this brain-slicing without anesthesia, by
from managing symptoms to engaging in healthier ways of first inducing a seizure in the patient through an elec-
living in general. troconvulsive shock. Freeman believed the procedure
to be miraculously successful. He became a passionate

Biomedical Therapies :: Module 16.3 :: 701

 FOCAL LESIONS One set of techniques involves
performing focal lesions, which are small areas of brain
tissue that are surgically destroyed. These brain lesions are
only used in some severe cases, when all other treat-
ments have not worked to satisfaction. For example,
in some cases of depression, obsessive-compulsive dis-
order, and other anxiety disorders, lesion surgery has
been targeted at a cluster of cells in the anterior cin-
gulate cortex, an area that is overactive in people with
these disorders (Cosgrove & Rauch, 2003; Fitzgerald
et al., 2005; Steele et al., 2008). This procedure, which
is called an anterior cingulotomy, has no more risks
or side effects than do many of the drugs used to treat
these disorders, and it can reduce symptoms success-
fully despite other treatments being ineffective. These
cutting-edge techniques (no pun intended) have only
become possible in recent years due to the surgical
precision allowed by the use of brain-imaging technol-
Bettmann/CORBIS
ogy, which allows surgeons to precisely target desired
Walter Freeman performing a frontal lobotomy surgery.
brain areas.

ELECTROCONVULSIVE THERAPY Electrocon-

advocate for the lobotomy, and because he was able to vulsive therapy (ECT) involves passing an electrical cur-
perform so many at a time, often more than a dozen in a rent through the brain in order to induce a temporary seizure.
single day, he travelled around the country in his van, the This procedure was introduced in the 1930s and has
“lobotomobile,” lobotomizing several thousand people been viewed negatively for much of its history, in part
in total. His procedure was always controversial, seen as because in its early days it was generally unsafe and easily
a miraculous cure by some people and as a terrible bar- abused; many people who have read the book or seen
baric practice by others, committing unknown amounts the movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest likely have
of harm and sometimes even ending in the patient’s a negative view of this procedure. In fact, many people
death from cerebral hemorrhaging. Nevertheless, Free- believe that ECT causes lasting cognitive impairments,
man was quite a medical celebrity for a while, and toured but the majority of research on people who have been
the country teaching his technique to many doctors and treated with it suggests that this is not true (Rose et al.,
psychiatrists. In total, approximately 40 000 lobotomies 2003).
are believed to have been performed in
the United States and thousands more in
western Europe. Freeman was eventually
barred from practising, although not until
1967. And despite the protestations of
many people, the man who started it all,
Antonio Moniz, was awarded the Nobel
Prize in Medicine.
By the 1950s, the popularity of the
frontal lobotomy was dwindling rapidly.
The inconsistent and often very nega-
tive results of the procedure, and the
effectiveness of new psychotropic medi-
cations, convinced most of the field to
move away from the lobotomy. Never-
theless, the basic practice of therapeuti-
cally destroying brain tissue survives to Will & Deni McIntyre/Science Source
this day, although the techniques have People with depression or bipolar disorder may elect to undergo electroconvulsive
gotten vastly more refined and precise. therapy if other treatments have not been successful.

702 :: Module 16.3 : : Biomedical Therapies

 Over the years, ECT techniques have improved dra-
matically. Patients’ experiences are much less negative as
well, as a result of the fact they are now given sedatives
and muscle relaxants to reduce the discomfort they may
experience and to prevent injury related to the convul-
sions. Thus ECT has gone from being viewed as a tor-
turous “shock treatment” to a relatively safe procedure,
although it is still reserved for the most severe cases of
disorders such as depression and bipolar disorder. The
side effects are relatively mild, typically consisting of
some amnesia, but only for events occurring around the
time of the treatment.
Why does ECT work? Frankly, we don’t know.
Despite its use for decades, the mechanisms through
which ECT affects the brain are largely unknown.
There is some neuroimaging evidence that ECT
changes the functional connectivity of the prefron-
tal cortices, diminishing some and enhancing others
(Beall et al., 2012; Perrin et al., 2012). One possible
interpretation of this emerging literature is that ECT
may alter the patient’s tendency to habitually engage
in negative thoughts (see Module 15.3), thereby dis-
rupting the dysfunctional thinking patterns that are
characteristic of depression. More research is needed
before we will fully understand why ECT works as
mysteriously well as it does.

TRANSCRANIAL MAGNETIC STIMULATION

Bonnie Weller/staff/Newscom
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a thera-
Delivering brief pulses of a strong magnetic field to the cerebral
peutic technique in which a focal area of the brain is exposed cortex has been shown to help alleviate symptoms of severe
to a powerful magnetic field (see Module 3.4). TMS does depression, and possibly other disorders.
not involve anesthesia nor induce a seizure. Clinical
researchers have discovered that stimulating parts of the
frontal lobes of the cortex reduces depressive symptoms report relief from their symptoms instantaneously, as
(Chistyakov et al., 2005) and may hold considerable soon as the electricity is applied (Mayberg et al., 2005;
promise for reducing symptoms of other mental disor- McNeely et al., 2008). Other researchers have shown
ders, such as schizophrenia (Slotema et al., 2010; Zaman DBS to be effective on symptoms of OCD as well
et al., 2008). (Aouizerate et al., 2009).
However, despite the stunning successes of DBS,
DEEP BRAIN STIMULATION Deep brain stim- there are some troublesome side effects to consider,
ulation (DBS) is a technique that involves electrically such as internal bleeding and infection from the surgi-
stimulating specific regions of the brain . The procedure cal insertion of the wires. Also, even though the wires
involves inserting thin electrode-tipped wires into the and electrodes are placed with the utmost precision, it
brain and carefully routing them to the targeted brain is possible that temporary behavioural side effects can
regions. A small battery connected to the wires is then occur. DPS can cause relatively benign experiences
inserted just beneath the skin surface. Unlike many of such as spontaneous laughter and penile erections, but
the drugs reviewed previously, DBS produces instanta- it can also trigger more troublesome states of depres-
neous results, and seems to work on even severe cases sion or aggression (Kringelbach et al., 2007).
of depression that have been unresponsive to other
treatments. As reported by researchers at the Rot- WHEN ARE TECHNOLOGICAL AND SURGICAL
man Research Institute in Toronto, who pioneered METHODS USED? Technological and surgical meth-
the application of DBS on depression, the effects seem ods are typically reserved for severe cases of disorders such
almost miraculous; patients who are severely depressed as depression, schizophrenia, or obsessive-compulsive

Biomedical Therapies :: Module 16.3 :: 703

 disorder. Some of these methods continue to be con- destroying brain tissue are used in extreme cases, and as
troversial because procedures such as the frontal lobot- less invasive methods such as DBS and TMS become
omy and ECT are the first examples to come to mind. more extensively researched and widely available, they
Lobotomies are a thing of the past, however, and ECT hold considerable promise for helping otherwise intrac-
is now a relatively safe procedure. Surgeries that involve table cases.

Quick Quiz 16.3b Technological and Surgical Methods

1 If a doctor wanted to activate a very specific brain 3 What is the key problem with a system that
UNDERSTAND . . .

ANALYZE . . .
region in the hope of alleviating symptoms of a mental attempts to treat psychological disorders using the
disorder, she would most likely use which of the two predominant approaches of pharmacological
following procedures? treatments and psychological therapy?
A Focal lesion A Psychological therapies are generally not effective
B Cingulotomy and can be replaced by pharmacological treatments.
C Electroconvulsive therapy B Pharmacological treatments are often ineffective and
carry side effects; thus, they should not be used.
D Deep brain stimulation
C The current system of practice largely ignores
other powerful factors that affect psychological
2 Which of the following techniques results in
health, such as exercise and nutrition.
intentionally killing nerve cells?
A Deep brain stimulation D The system assumes that there is such a thing as
a “disorder” in the first place, rather than simple
B Electroconvulsive therapy variability in human experience.
C Focal lesion
Answers can be found on page ANS-4.
D Transcranial magnetic stimulation

704 :: Module 16.3 : : Biomedical Therapies

 Module Summary
Module
Now that you have read this module you should
16.3
KNOW . . .

● The key terminology associated with biological

treatments:

antianxiety drugs (p. 698) lithium (p. 697)

antidepressant drugs (p. 696) monoamine oxidase inhibitors
antipsychotic drugs (p. 698) (MAOIs) (p. 696) Image Courtesy of The Advertising Archives
atypical antipsychotics (p. 698) mood stabilizers (p. 697)
blood–brain barrier (p. 695) psychopharmacotherapy (p. 695)
deep brain stimulation (DBS) psychotropic drugs (p. 695)
(p. 703) selective serotonin reuptake APPLY . . .
electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) inhibitors (SSRIs) (p. 696)
(p. 702) tardive dyskinesia (p. 698) ● Your knowledge of drug therapies to different
focal lesions (p. 702) transcranial magnetic stimulation psychological conditions. Match the drugs listed in
frontal lobotomy (p. 701) (TMS) (p. 703)
the left column with the condition they are typically
leucotomy (p. 701) tricyclic antidepressants (p. 696) prescribed to treat on the right. Check your answers on
page ANS-4.

UNDERSTAND . . . DRUG CONDITION

1. Lithium a. Anxiety
● How the drugs described in this module affect brain
functioning. Antidepressant drugs typically target 2. An SSRI b. Depression
monoamine neurotransmitter activity, with differing 3. Xanax c. Schizophrenia
mechanisms of action (review Figure 16.4, p. 696 ). 4. Clozapine d. Bipolar disorder
Many of the antipsychotic drugs on the market reduce
dopamine activity in the brain. Antianxiety drugs tend
to target GABA receptors and increase activity of this
ANALYZE . . .
inhibitory neurotransmitter.
● The other major medical approaches to therapy. ● Whether St. John’s wort, a popular herbal remedy for
Other procedures available for treating mental illness depression, works. Research into the effects of St. John’s
include electroconvulsive therapy, transcranial magnetic wort suggests it may be an effective treatment for many
stimulation, deep brain stimulation, and focal lesions. people. The herb works about as well as prescription
In some cases, particularly ECT, researchers are still antidepressants for at least mild to moderate levels
unsure about which aspect of the treatment produces of depression, but its efficacy for severe depression is
the therapeutic results. Stimulation techniques increase not well established. Using St. John’s wort carries the
the brain activity in targeted areas, whereas lesions significant advantage of not exposing the person to nearly
prevent brain activity. By targeting the areas responsible the same range of potential side effects as the prescription
for specific behaviours, thoughts, or emotions, treatments drugs, although it is also advisable to consult with a mental
can have dramatic effects on the experience of someone health professional rather than self-medicating without
with a psychological disorder. any professional support.

Biomedical Therapies :: Module 16.3 :: 705

Work the Scientific Literacy Model :: Understanding Psychological Therapies

1 What do we know about treating psychological

disorders?
2 How can science help explain psychological
therapies?
Although we categorize disorders and define them separately, the reality is First, it is important to note that many therapies stem from basic
that clinicians often treat psychological disorders with a mixture of therapeutic scientific research. For example, systematic desensitization comes
techniques. Table 16.4 (p. 693) summarizes the major types of psychothera- directly out of basic research on classical conditioning. Similarly,
pies, and you can review the major psychotropic drugs and psychosurgeries drug treatments are derived from an understanding of neurotrans-
on pages 695–704. If you are having trouble remembering the specifics of mitter functioning in the brain. Thus, one important way that sci-
these therapies, you can think about them in terms of their treatment goals. ence helps to explain psychological therapies is by providing a
For instance, while psychoanalysis and humanistic therapy are both insight theoretical and empirically informed understanding of the psycho-
therapies, the goal of psychoanalysis is to develop insight into the problem by logical and physiological processes underlying specific disorders.
revealing unconscious conflicts, whereas the humanistic approach attempts to In order to test the effectiveness of treatments themselves, the most
gain a richer understanding of those factors that bring about personal growth rigorous scientific approach would be double-blind experiments;
and self-actualization by focusing on conscious and subjective experience. The ideally, such investigations would involve control groups and follow
cognitive-behavioural model aims to change the thoughts and feelings that patients over a long period of time. These methods are certainly
lead to unwanted behaviours, and the goal of the behavioural approach is to used with the biologically based treatments, but great difficulties
change an unwanted behaviour through principles of classical conditioning and arise when researchers think about implementing these methods
observational learning. Finally, biomedical therapies aim to alleviate symptoms with psychotherapy. In particular, the therapist cannot be blinded
and, potentially, treat the neurological basis of the client’s to the type of treatment being provided, and the client often
problems. cannot as well. In addition, testing the effectiveness of psycho-
therapy in a standardized way may be difficult, because the
effectiveness of the therapy depends so heavily on the thera-
peutic alliance—the unique relationship between therapist
and patient, which is obviously impossible to standardize and
difficult to manipulate with any precision.

4 Why is this relevant?

Watch the accompanying video excerpt
on psychological therapies. You can access the video
at MyPsychLab or by clicking the play button in the cen-
tre of your eText. If your instructor assigns this video Gts/Shutterstock
3 Can we critically evaluate claims about
psychological therapies and treatments?
as a homework activity, you will find additional content Psychotherapy is clearly a powerful tool in the treatment of psychological disor-
to help you in MyPsychLab. You can also view the video by using ders. But what if someone cannot or will not see a mental health care professional?
your smart phone and the QR code below, or you can go to the Encouraging research on self-help treatments suggests that these methods can be
YouTube link provided. helpful if the treatment itself is valid, and combining the self-help treatment with at
After you have read this chapter and watched the video, compare least one face-to-face therapy session would likely achieve a better rate of success.
and contrast the following forms of psychotherapy: cognitive, The Myths in Mind feature on page 697 discussed the misconception that anti-
humanistic, and behavioural. Identify the focus of each approach depressants can alleviate depression and deliver a dose of euphoria in the form
as well as areas of agreement and difference. of a magic pill. While studies support the use of antidepressants across a range
of psychological problems, they are by no means the first and only treatment for
such patients. Herbal supplements such as St. John’s wort might be effective for
treating depression, but when considering studies of these products, we have to
keep in mind confounding variables such as the strength of the supplement (most
of these products are unregulated in Canada, and their precise strength and purity
are generally unknown) and the degree of depression in the individual. Controlled
and long-term studies of St. John’s wort indicate that the supplement is no more
effective than a placebo at treating people who are diagnosed with depression.

MyPsychLab Your turn to Work the Scientific Literacy Model: Watch the
accompanying video on YouTube, or on your phone (using the Layar
app or QR code). If your instructor has assigned this as a homework activity, you can find the
video clip and additional content at MyPsychLab. Answer the questions that accompany the
[Link]//wor
[Link]/workthemodel
work
kthemo
kth
hemod
del
video clip to test your understanding. SCAN WITH LAYAR

706 :: Chapter 16 : : Work the Scientific Literacy Model

 Answer Key

CHAPTER 1 may have been unknowingly measuring 1. Evolutionary psychologists predict that
whether they were happy.) males will be more jealous about sexual
Quick Quiz 1.1a :: p. 5
Quick Quiz 2.2a :: p. 49 infidelity because they are more interested
1. B 2. C 3. D 4. C
1. B 2. C 3. D in the reproductive qualities in a [Link]
Quick Quiz 1.1b :: p. 10
Quick Quiz 2.2b :: p. 51 statement does not mean that women will not
1. A 2. B 3. A experience jealousy; rather, it indicates that
1. B (This is a strong negative correlation.
Module Summary Apply Activity 1.1 :: p. 11 men will have a stronger response on average.
The strength of the relationship is strongest
1. The appeals to your wallet and to your 2. This graph does show that men have
because it is closer to −1.0 than either +.54
environmental conscience sound great, but stronger responses to infidelity, so these
or +.10. Correlation coefficients cannot go
it might be too good to be true! results support the hypothesis.
above 1.0.)
2. The manufacturer is trying to make Quick Quiz 3.2a :: p. 97
2. A 3. C
money. That does not make the company 1. C 2. B 3. B 4. C
Quick Quiz 2.2c :: p. 53
evil, but it might lead its marketing staff
1. C 2. B 3. A 4. A Quick Quiz 3.2b :: p. 103
to exaggerate the benefits offered by its
Module Summary Apply Activity 2.2 :: p. 54 1. B 2. B 3. D 4. A
products.
1. independent; dependent Module Summary Apply Activity 3.2 :: p. 104
3. We do not have any evidence that
2. positive; negative 1. The monoamines are a group of
the product works; we have only the
Quick Quiz 2.3a :: p. 61 neurotransmitters including serotonin,
manufacturer’s claim. Until you find the
dopamine, and norepinephrine.
evidence, you must tolerate ambiguity—you 1. B 2. C 3. B
cannot say if it is effective or not. 2. If monoamine oxidase breaks down
Quick Quiz 2.3b :: p. 62
the monoamine neurotransmitters,
Quick Quiz 1.2a :: p. 19 1. D 2. B
then an inhibitor would prevent it from
1. D 2. B 3. A 4. B Module Summary Apply Activity 2.3 :: p. 63
breaking down the neurotransmitters.
Quick Quiz 1.2b :: p. 27 1. It is not really informed consent if the The result would be more monoamine
1. A 2. D 3. A 4. C volunteers are exposed to risks before neurotransmitters in the synapse.
Module Summary Apply Activity 1.2 :: p. 28 signing the consent form. The “informed”
3. Yes, an MAOI might produce effects
1. C 2. A 3. B 4. E 5. D part of informed consent means that
resembling those of an SSRI, at least to the
individuals are fully informed about
extent that both drugs have similar end
CHAPTER 2 risks they may experience as a result of
results. Both types of drugs increase the
participating in the study.
Quick Quiz 2.1a :: p. 40 amount of a neurotransmitter in the synapse,
2. This research design is unethical because but do so in different ways.
1. A 2. B 3. C 4. A
it requires volunteers to answer all of the
Quick Quiz 2.1b :: p. 42 Quick Quiz 3.3a :: p. 108
questions in a survey. Participants generally
1. B 2. C 3. A 1. D 2. A 3. C
have the right to quit at any time, or to
Module Summary Apply Activity 2.1 :: p. 43 Quick Quiz 3.3b :: p. 118
decline to answer any specific questions
1. The problem with the instrumentation they choose. This issue is particularly 1. C 2. A 3. D 4. A
is one of reliability. One key measure of important with sensitive topics such as Module Summary Apply Activity 3.3 :: p. 119
reliability in research is the degree to which sexuality. 1. Occipital lobe
a measurement provides consistent, stable Quick Quiz 2.4a :: p. 68 2. Broca’s area (in the frontal lobe)
responses. In this case, the recording device 1. B 2. D 3. A 4. C 3. Movement and responses to rewarding
does not meet this criterion. stimuli
Quick Quiz 2.4b :: p. 71
2. The problem with Dr. Nielson’s happiness 4. Problems with balance, coordination, and
1. C 2. A
measure probably concerns its validity. timing of movement
Module Summary Apply Activity 2.4 :: p. 72
The different observers were always in Quick Quiz 3.4a :: p. 122
1. Negatively skewed 2. 90–94
agreement on how they recorded the
3. 9 (4 between 80–84 and 5 between 85–89) 1. C 2. D 3. B
children’s behaviour, so their measure is
Quick Quiz 3.4b :: p. 127
reliable. However, given what the second
1. C 2. C 3. A 4. A
group of researchers found, it is possible CHAPTER 3
that Dr. Nielson’s group is actually Module Summary Apply Activity 3.4 :: p. 128
Quick Quiz 3.1a :: p. 82 1. EEG (It provides a continuous measure of
measuring how energetic children are,
1. B 2. C 3. D 4. A brain activity.)
rather than how happy they are. (As you
may have thought, this could also go the Quick Quiz 3.1b :: p. 90 2. PET
other way around: The researcher who was 1. C 2. B 3. D 3. fMRI
recording whether children were energetic Module Summary Apply Activity 3.1 :: p. 91 4. ERP or MEG

ANS-1
CHAPTER 4 1. False 2. True 3. True 4. False 5. False learning. A teacher (you) would show the
6. True 7. True child the different steps involved with
Quick Quiz 4.1a :: p. 137
Quick Quiz 5.3a :: p. 212 kicking. If the child is having difficulties
1. D 2. B 3. A 4. D 5. B
1. C 2. A 3. C mastering each component (proper
Quick Quiz 4.1b :: p. 141 placement of the non-kicking foot, proper
1. B 2. D 3. B Quick Quiz 5.3b :: p. 219
positioning of the kicking foot, etc.), you
Module Summary Apply Activity 4.1 :: p. 142 1. D 2. A 3. C
may use operant conditioning to shape the
1. Correct rejection. There is no monster in Quick Quiz 5.3c :: p. 222
correct behaviours.
the closet, and the child is confident that she 1. B 2. C 3. A
2. Improving efficiency in an office would likely
has not heard anything. involve mentoring. Efficient members of the
2. Miss. There really are monsters in the closet,
CHAPTER 6 office would likely model their behaviour
but the child has not heard them. Quick Quiz 6.1a :: p. 230 for less efficient members. A system of
3. Hit. There really is a monster in the closet. 1. C 2. B 3. D 4. B rewards may be established to reinforce
4. False alarm. There is no monster in the Quick Quiz 6.1b :: p. 232 these newly learned behaviours. Remember,
closet, but the child insists that she heard 1. B 2. C 3. A the different types of learning discussed
something. Quick Quiz 6.1c :: p. 239 in this chapter can be used together to
Quick Quiz 4.2a :: p. 149 1. C 2. B 3. A change behaviour.
1. A 2. D 3. A 4. C Quick Quiz 6.1d :: p. 241 3. Improving sustainable behaviours requires
Quick Quiz 4.2b :: p. 157 1. A 2. B that individuals have the necessary
knowledge of what behaviours should be
1. A 2. C 3. C 4. D 5. C Module Summary Apply Activity 6.1 :: p. 242
performed. This education phase would likely
Module Summary Apply Activity 4.2 :: p. 158 1. CS = theme song, US = kiss, UR = excitement,
involve a series of examples from universities
The pictorial depth cues include: CR = excitement
or cities that are doing a good job being
1. a linear perspective (the tracks converging as 2. CS = instrument used by the eye doctor,
environmentally friendly. The instructor
they reach the horizon); US = puff of air, UR = blinking, CR = blinking
would hope that these positive behaviours
2. a texture gradient (the rocks, grass, and 3. CS = advertisement, US = delicious meal, would be picked up by the students; rewards
other nearby objects can be seen in greater UR = pleasure from the meal, CR = cravings may help reinforce these behaviours.
detail than objects farther away); Quick Quiz 6.2a :: p. 250
3. height in plane (the features that are in 1. D 2. C 3. B 4. A CHAPTER 7
the top half of the picture are perceived as Quick Quiz 6.2b :: p. 256 Quick Quiz 7.1a :: p. 277
far away relative to objects in the bottom 1. A 2. B 3. D 4. B 1. D 2. C 3. C 4. A
region of the photo); and Module Summary Apply Activity 6.2 :: p. 257 Quick Quiz 7.1b :: p. 280
4. relative size. Railroad ties are known to be 1. Negative punishment explains Bill’s change 1. C 2. B 3. A 4. B
the same size, but the ones that are closer in behaviour. This process is considered Quick Quiz 7.1c :: p. 282
appear larger than those that are far off. punishment because Bill’s behaviour of
1. C 2. D 3. B
Quick Quiz 4.3a :: p. 162 cheating stopped; it is considered negative
Quick Quiz 7.1d :: p. 285
1. A 2. C 3. D punishment because the consequence was
1. A 2. B 3. C
Quick Quiz 4.3b :: p. 166 to remove something he found reinforcing
Module Summary Apply Activity 7.1 :: p. 286
1. B 2. B 3. C 4. A (being at school).
2. Positive reinforcement explains Ericka’s 1. If Dr. Richard blocks long-term potentiation,
Quick Quiz 4.4a :: p. 173
pursuit of math. The personal and social then the rat is unlikely to form any long-
1. B 2. A 3. C 4. A
rewards are stimuli that added (positively term memories. At best, they will be weak
Quick Quiz 4.4b :: p. 177
related) to her doing math, which increased memories, and the rat will only partially
1. D 2. B 3. C 4. B 5. B remember the maze.
her interest in and pursuit of this subject.
2. A damaged hippocampus can lead to
CHAPTER 5 3. We are negatively reinforced for closing the
car doors, turning off lights, and fastening the anterograde amnesia. However, if the damage
Quick Quiz 5.1a :: p. 185 happens after the rat has committed the
seat belt. Each of these behaviours removes the
1. B 2. A 3. C maze path to memory, then memory for this
unpleasant buzzing or dinging sound. In turn,
Quick Quiz 5.1b :: p. 189 specific information should be unaffected by
the behaviours increase because they allow us
1. C 2. A 3. B to either avoid or escape the annoying sounds. the procedure.
Quick Quiz 5.1c :: p. 192 4. Hernan is using positive punishment. The Quick Quiz 7.2a :: p. 293
1. B 2. D 3. A nail and cuticle biting decrease because 1. B 2. A 3. B 4. B 5. A
Quick Quiz 5.1d :: p. 196 he introduces an unpleasant stimulus, the Quick Quiz 7.2b :: p. 296
1. B 2. D 3. B terrible-tasting lotion. 1. A 2. C 3. D
Quick Quiz 5.2a :: p. 201 Quick Quiz 6.3a :: p. 260 Quick Quiz 7.2c :: p. 299
1. B 2. C 3. C 4. A 1. C 2. A 1. B 2. B 3. A
Quick Quiz 5.2b :: p. 203 Quick Quiz 6.3b :: p. 267 Quick Quiz 7.3a :: p. 305
1. A 2. C 1. B 2. C 3. A 4. C 1. D 2. A 3. C
Quick Quiz 5.2c :: p. 208 Module Summary Apply Activity 6.3 :: p. 267 Quick Quiz 7.3b :: p. 310
1. B 2. D 1. Teaching a child how to kick a soccer ball 1. B 2. A 3. A 4. D 5. B
Module Summary Apply Activity 5.2 :: p. 208 properly will likely involve observational Module Summary Apply Activity 7.3 :: p. 311

ANS-2 : : Answer Key

 Of the 225 exonerations, 77% of the cases CHAPTER 9 CHAPTER 11
included erroneous eyewitness testimony—
Quick Quiz 9.1a :: p. 356 Quick Quiz 11.1a :: p. 447
more than any other contributing factor.
1. B 2. D 3. C 4. C 1. A 2. C 3. B
Given this high correlation, we believe
research on eyewitness testimony should Quick Quiz 9.1b :: p. 362 Quick Quiz 11.1b :: p. 449
continue to find ways of reducing errors. The 1. B 2. C 3. D 4. D 5. D 1. B 2. C 3. A 4. B
results of this research should be applied to Quick Quiz 9.2a :: p. 367 Quick Quiz 11.1c :: p. 453
investigative techniques used by law enforce- 1. D 2. B 3. D 1. B 2. C 3. C
ment officers. Quick Quiz 9.2b :: p. 374 Quick Quiz 11.2a :: p. 458
1. C 2. B 3. A 4. D 5. C 1. A 2. D
CHAPTER 8 Quick Quiz 9.2c :: p. 376 Quick Quiz 11.2b :: p. 461
Quick Quiz 8.1a :: p. 320 1. A 2. C 1. B 2. B 3. A
1. B 2. B 3. D 4. A Module Summary Apply Activity 9.2 :: p. 376 Quick Quiz 11.2c :: p. 464
Quick Quiz 8.1b :: p. 322 Katrina obviously scores high in analytical 1. C 2. D 3. A
1. C 2. B intelligence—this is apparent in her academic Quick Quiz 11.3a :: p. 470
Module Summary Apply Activity 8.1 :: p. 323 success. She is also likely to score very high in 1. B 2. B 3. C 4. A
1. For most people, a trout would be a better creativity, as she has made significant discover- Quick Quiz 11.3b :: p. 475
example for a fish. Hammerheads and eels ies and contributions to the field of chemistry. 1. A 2. B 3. C
have unique shapes, but trout are very “fish- Unfortunately, she does not seem to do as well
Quick Quiz 11.4a :: p. 480
like”—they are better prototypes for this with practical intelligence. Katrina is probably
1. C 2. B 3. C
category. about average because she may get by at work,
Quick Quiz 11.4b :: p. 485
2. For many Canadians, prototypical sports but appears to be quite dependent on others at
home, or she may be below average, given that 1. A 2. C 3. C
might include hockey, football, and baseball.
she is unable to even cook for herself. Quick Quiz 11.4c :: p. 488
For much of the rest of the world, the
prototypical sport is probably soccer. Sports Quick Quiz 9.3a :: p. 382 1. B 2. C 3. C
that are not considered prototypical by 1. B 2. A 3. D
many would include golf, badminton, and Quick Quiz 9.3b :: p. 386 CHAPTER 12
equestrian competitions. 1. A 2. B 3. D Quick Quiz 12.1a :: p. 502
3. When people respond to this category, Quick Quiz 9.3c :: p. 388 1. A 2. A 3. C 4. B 5. C
they usually settle on prototypical 1. C 2. B 3. D Quick Quiz 12.1b :: p. 504
items that are difficult or impossible to 1. A 2. B 3. A
replace—for example, photo albums and CHAPTER 10 Quick Quiz 12.2a :: p. 510
other memorabilia, prized possessions, and
Quick Quiz 10.1a :: p. 394 1. B 2. D 3. C
heirlooms.
1. C 2. D 3. A Quick Quiz 12.2b :: p. 514
Quick Quiz 8.2a :: p. 326
Quick Quiz 10.1b :: p. 399 1. B 2. B 3. C
1. B 2. B 3. B
1. A 2. B 3. D 4. C Quick Quiz 12.2c :: p. 516
Quick Quiz 8.2b :: p. 334
Quick Quiz 10.1c :: p. 403 1. B 2. B 3. A
1. D 2. C 3. D 4. C 5. A
1. A 2. C Quick Quiz 12.2d :: p. 519
Quick Quiz 8.3a :: p. 341
Quick Quiz 10.2a :: p. 411 1. C 2. C 3. B
1. D 2. C 3. D 4. A
1. C 2. A 3. C 4. B 5. C Quick Quiz 12.3a :: p. 531
Quick Quiz 8.3b :: p. 344
Quick Quiz 10.2b :: p. 417 1. A 2. D 3. A 4. C 5. C 6. B
1. B 2. A 3. A
1. C 2. B 3. D Quick Quiz 12.3b :: p. 533
Quick Quiz 8.3c :: p. 348
Quick Quiz 10.3a :: p. 423 1. D 2. C 3. D
1. B 2. C 3. A
1. B 2. A 3. C Quick Quiz 12.3c :: p. 534
Module Summary Apply Activity 8.3 :: p. 349
Quick Quiz 10.3b :: p. 429 1. B 2. A 3. A
1. This is a morpheme. We can tell in at
1. B 2. B 3. C 4. B
least two ways. First, it contains multiple
phonemes. Second, it can be added to words Module Summary Apply Activity 10.3 :: p. 430 CHAPTER 13
in a meaningful way such as in “dislike” and 1. Jeff displays conventional reasoning in his Quick Quiz 13.1a :: p. 548
“disprove.” decision. Although you would likely regard 1. A 2. D 3. A 4. D 5. D
2. On one hand, you might consider /s/ a what he did as wrong, his reasoning for Quick Quiz 13.1b :: p. 556
phoneme because it represents a single engaging in the behaviour is based on
1. A 2. C 3. D
sound. On the other hand, you might whether the act breaks a law.
Quick Quiz 13.2a :: p. 564
consider it a morpheme because it can be 2. Margaret displays postconventional moral
1. B 2. B 3. B 4. C
added to words in a meaningful way (to reasoning because she is not personally
Quick Quiz 13.2b :: p. 569
make a noun plural). Thus, in this case /s/ can affected, but is looking out for the well-being
of innocent strangers. 1. A 2. D 3. B 4. B
be either a phoneme or a morpheme.
3. This is a phoneme. It represents the sound Quick Quiz 10.4a :: p. 433
of “c” in cat. However, /k/ is not a morpheme 1. C 2. B CHAPTER 14
because it does not have any intrinsic Quick Quiz 10.4b :: p. 440 Quick Quiz 14.1a :: p. 590
meaning. 1. D 2. B 1. D 2. C 3. A

Answer Key :: ANS-3

 Quick Quiz 14.1b :: p. 594 3. People who develop psychopathy or APD 4. D: The scrambled language and thoughts
1. B 2. C 3. D 4. D are more likely to grow up in distressed represent disorganized schizophrenia.
Quick Quiz 14.1c :: p. 596 homes or neighborhoods where prosocial
1. B 2. D 3. D rules are not easily learned. A history of CHAPTER 16
childhood sexual, physical, or emotional Quick Quiz 16.1a :: p. 673
Quick Quiz 14.2a :: p. 603
abuse at the hands of adults is also 1. D 2. B 3. D
1. C 2. B 3. C 4. C 5. D
associated with APD and psychopathy.
Quick Quiz 14.2b :: p. 607 Quick Quiz 16.1b :: p. 676
Quick Quiz 15.3a :: pp. 652
1. C 2. A 3. B 4. B 1. A 2. B 3. C
1. C 2. B 3. A 4. C 5. B 6. B
Quick Quiz 14.2c :: p. 609 Quick Quiz 16.1c :: p. 679
Quick Quiz 15.3b :: p. 656
1. C 2. C 3. D 1. C 2. C 3. D
1. C 2. B 3. A
Quick Quiz 14.3a :: p. 617 Quick Quiz 16.2a :: p. 685
Module Summary Apply Activity 15.3 :: p. 657
1. B 2. A 3. C 4. B 5. C 1. D 2. B 3. A 4. C 5. D
If someone you know is considering suicide, he
Quick Quiz 14.3b :: p. 620 Quick Quiz 16.2b :: p. 692
or she can call 1-800-273-TALK (8255). Five
1. B 2. A 3. C 1. D 2. A 3. C 4. B 5. A 6. A
key signs of suicidal thinking are (1) talking
Module Summary Apply Activity 16.2 :: p. 693
about suicide; (2) withdrawing from friends or
CHAPTER 15 social activities; (3) losing interest in school, 1. B: cognitive-behavioral therapy, because it
Quick Quiz 15.1a :: p. 631 is aimed at addressing irrational thought
work, or hobbies; (4) preparing for death by
1. C 2. D 3. B patterns and cognitive restructuring.
writing a will, making final arrangements, or
Quick Quiz 15.1b :: p. 633 giving away prized possessions; and (5) losing 2. C: psychodynamic therapy, because the
interest in personal appearance. See Table 15.6 emphasis is on gaining insight into early
1. D 2. C
for additional signs. childhood experiences.
Quick Quiz 15.2a :: p. 641
Quick Quiz 15.4a :: p. 662 3. E: behavioural therapy, because the focus
1. D 2. A 3. D 4. A 5. D
is on modifying observable behaviour
Quick Quiz 15.2b :: p. 643 1. A 2. C 3. D 4. A 5. A
patterns.
1. C 2. D 3. B 4. D Quick Quiz 15.4b :: p. 666
Quick Quiz 16.3a :: p. 700
Module Summary Apply Activity 15.2 :: p. 644 1. C 2. A 3. B
1. A 2. D 3. B 4. C 5. A
1. People with psychopathy show reduced Module Summary Apply Activity 15.4 :: p. 667
Quick Quiz 16.3b :: p. 704
startle reflex and reduced activity in the 1. C: The statuesque behaviour is catatonia.
1. D 2. C 3. C
frontal lobes. 2. B: The overly suspicious delusions are signs
Module Summary Apply Activity 16.3 :: p. 705
2. Individuals with psychopathy have difficulty of paranoia.
1. D 2. B 3. A 4. C
learning and following rules. 3. A: This sounds like dissociative disorder (see
Module 15.2).

ANS-4 : : Answer Key

 Glossary

3,4-methylenedioxy- N -methylampheta- amygdala :: a group of nuclei in the medial por- appeal to authority :: the belief in an “expert’s”
mine :: see ecstasy 214 tion (near the middle) of the temporal lobes claim even when no supporting data or scientific
absolute threshold :: the minimum amount of in each hemisphere of the brain that facilitates evidence is present 41
energy or quantity of a stimulus required for it to memory formation for emotional events, medi- appeal to common sense :: a claim that appears
be reliably detected at least 50% of the time it is ates fear responses, and appears to play a role in to be sound, but lacks supporting scientific evi-
presented 134 recognizing and interpreting emotional stimuli, dence 42
accommodation :: a creative process whereby including facial expressions 111 approach goal :: an enjoyable and pleasant
people modify their belief structures based on analytic system :: operates at the explicit level of incentive that a person is drawn toward, such
experience 406 consciousness, is slower and methodical, and uses as praise, financial reward, or a feeling of sat-
acetylcholine :: one of the most widespread neu- logic and discursive thinking (i.e., reasoning using isfaction 470
rotransmitters within the body, found at the junc- language) 575 ARAS :: see ascending reticular activating system 517
tions between nerve cells and skeletal muscles; it analytical psychology :: focuses on the role of archetypes :: images and symbols that reflect
is very important for voluntary movement 99 unconscious archetypes in personality develop- common “truths” held across cultures, such as
achievement motivation :: the drive to per- ment 532 universal life experiences or types of people 532
form at high levels and to accomplish significant anchoring effect :: occurs when an individual arousal theory of extraversion :: extraver-
goals 470 attempts to solve a problem involving num- sion is determined by people’s threshold for
acquisition :: the initial phase of learning in which bers and uses previous knowledge to keep (i.e., arousal 517
a response is established 230 anchor) the response within a limited range 329 ascending reticular activating system
acronyms :: pronounceable words whose letters anecdotal evidence :: an individual’s story or (ARAS) :: plays a central role in controlling this
represent the initials of an important phrase or testimony about an observation or event that is arousal response 517
set of items 298 used to make a claim as evidence 41 assimilation :: a conservative process, whereby
action potential :: a wave of electrical activity anorexia nervosa :: an eating disorder that people fit new information into the belief sys-
that originates at the base of the axon and rapidly involves (1) self-starvation, (2) intense fear of tems they already possess 406
travels down its length 96 weight gain and dissatisfaction with one’s body, asylums :: residential facilities for the mentally
activation–synthesis hypothesis :: suggests that and (3) a denial of the serious consequences of ill 625
dreams arise from brain activity originating from severely low weight 450 attachment :: the enduring emotional bond
bursts of excitatory messages from the pons, a part antagonists :: inhibit neurotransmitter activity by formed between individuals 411
of the brainstem 189 blocking receptors or preventing synthesis of a attachment behavioural system :: focused on
active phase :: phase of schizophrenia during neurotransmitter 101 meeting our own needs for security 416
which people typically experience delusional anterograde amnesia :: the inability to form attention :: selects which information will be
thoughts, hallucinations, or disorganized patterns new memories for events occurring after a brain passed on to STM 272
of thoughts, emotions, and behaviour 659 injury 283 attitude inoculation :: a strategy for strength-
adrenal glands :: a pair of endocrine glands locat- anthropometrics :: (literally, “the measurement ening attitudes and making them more
ed adjacent to the kidneys that release stress hor- of people”) methods of measuring physical and resistant to change by first exposing people to a
mones, such as cortisol and epinephrine 102 mental variation in humans 353 weak counter-argument and then refuting that
affiliation motivation :: see need to belong 467 antianxiety drugs :: affect the activity of gamma- argument 577
agonists :: drugs that enhance or mimic the effects aminobutyric acid (GABA), an inhibitory neuro- atypical antipsychotics :: drugs that reduce
of a neurotransmitter’s action 101 transmitter that reduces neural activity 698 positive symptoms of schizophrenia and are less
agoraphobia :: often associated with panic dis- antidepressant drugs :: medications designed likely to produce extrapyramidal side effects
order, agoraphobia results from an intense fear to elevate mood and reduce other symptoms of including movement disorders that commonly
of having a panic attack in public; as a result of depression 696 occur when first-generation antipsychotics are
this fear, the individual may begin to avoid pub- antipsychotic drugs :: generally used to treat prescribed 698
lic settings and increasingly isolate himself or positive symptoms of psychosis, including delu- autonomic nervous system :: the portion
herself 647 sions, hallucinations, and severely disturbed or of the peripheral nervous system responsi-
algorithms :: problem-solving strategies based on disorganized thought 698 ble for regulating the activity of organs and
a series of rules 325 antisocial personality disorder (APD) :: a glands 107
all-or-none principle :: individual nerve cells fire profound lack of empathy or emotional connec- availability heuristic :: entails estimating the fre-
at the same strength every time an action poten- tion with others, a disregard for others’ rights or quency of an event based on how easily examples
tial occurs 97 preferences, and a tendency toward inserting their of it come to mind 328
allostasis :: motivation is not only influenced by own desires, often violently, onto others regardless aversive conditioning :: a behavioural technique
current needs, but also by the anticipation of of the consequences for other people or, often that involves replacing a positive response to a
future needs 445 when younger, other animals 637 stimulus with a negative response, typically by
Alzheimer’s disease :: a degenerative and termi- anxiety disorders :: a category of disorders using punishment 688
nal condition resulting in severe damage of the involving fear or nervousness that is excessive, avoidance goal :: an attempt to avoid an unpleas-
entire brain 433 irrational, and maladaptive 646 ant outcome such as shame, embarrassment,
amnesia :: a profound loss of at least one form of APD :: see antisocial personality disorder 637 losing money, or feeling emotional pain 470
memory 283 aphasia :: a language disorder caused by damage to avoidance learning :: a specific type of negative
amotivational :: a feeling of having little or no the brain structures that support using and under- reinforcement that removes the possibility that a
motivation to perform a behaviour 472 standing language 337 stimulus will occur 246

G-1
axon :: transports information in the form of elec- BPD :: see borderline personality disorder 637 classical categorization :: a theory that claims
trochemical reactions from the cell body to the brain death :: a condition in which the brain, spe- that objects or events are categorized according
end of the neuron 94 cifically including the brainstem, no longer func- to a certain set of rules or by a specific set of fea-
BAS :: see behavioural activation system 518 tions 204 tures 315
basal ganglia :: a group of three structures that are brain stem :: the “stem” or bottom of the brain classical conditioning :: learning that occurs
involved in facilitating planned movements, skill and consists of two structures: the medulla and when a neutral stimulus elicits a response that was
learning, and integrating sensory and movement the pons 108 originally caused by another stimulus 227
information with the brain’s reward system 110 brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) :: client-centred therapy :: focuses on individuals’
behavioural activation system (BAS) :: a a protein in the nervous system that promotes abilities to solve their own problems and reach
“GO” system, arousing the person to action in survival, growth, and formation of new syn- their full potential with the encouragement of
the pursuit of desired goals 518 apses 617 the therapist 684
behavioural genetics :: the study of how genes Broca’s area :: region of the left frontal lobe that clinical psychologists :: have received Ph.D.
and the environment influence behaviour 79 controls our ability to articulate speech sounds level of training and are able to formally diag-
behavioural genomics :: the study of how spe- that compose words 337 nose and treat mental health issues ranging
cific genes, in their interactions with the environ- bulimia nervosa :: an eating disorder that is char- from the everyday and mild to the chronic and
ment, influence behaviour 78 acterized by periods of food deprivation, binge- severe 674
behavioural inhibition system (BIS) :: a “dan- eating, and purging 450 clinical psychology :: the field of psychology that
ger” system, motivating the person to action in bystander effect :: the presence of other people concentrates on the diagnosis and treatment of
order to avoid punishments or other negative actually reduces the likelihood of helping behav- psychological disorders 16
outcomes 518 iour 549 cochlea :: a fluid-filled membrane that is coiled in
behavioural therapies :: address problem behav- Cannon-Bard theory of emotion :: the brain a snail-like shape and contains the structures that
iours, and the environmental factors that trigger interprets a situation and generates subjective convert sound into neural impulses 161
them, as directly as possible 686 emotional feelings, and that these representations cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) :: a
behaviourism :: an approach that dominated the in the brain trigger responses in the body 481 form of therapy that consists of procedures such
first half of the 20th century of North American caregiving behavioural system :: focused on as cognitive restructuring, stress inoculation train-
psychology and had a singular focus on study- meeting the needs of others 416 ing, and exposing people to experiences they may
ing only observable behaviour, with little to no case study :: an in-depth report about the details have a tendency to avoid 689
reference to mental events or instincts as possible of a specific case 45 cognitive development :: the study of changes
influences on behaviour 21 catatonic schizophrenia :: Symptoms include in memory, thought, and reasoning processes that
belief perseverance :: occurs when an indi- episodes in which a person remains mute and occur throughout the lifespan 406
vidual believes he or she has the solution to the immobile—sometimes in bizarre positions—for cognitive dissonance theory :: when we hold
problem or the correct answer for a question and extended periods. Individuals may also exhibit inconsistent beliefs, this creates a kind of aversive
accepts only evidence that will confirm those repetitive, purposeless movements. 660 inner tension, or “dissonance”; we are then moti-
beliefs 331 categories :: clusters of interrelated con- vated to reduce this tension in whatever way we
bell curve :: see normal distribution 65 cepts 315 can 580
between-subjects design :: an experimental CBT :: see cognitive-behavioural therapy 689 cohort effect :: differences between people that
design in which we compare the performance of cell body :: the part of a neuron that contains the result from being born in different time peri-
participants who are in different groups 52 nucleus that houses the cell’s genetic material 93 ods 393
bibliotherapy :: the use of self-help books and central executive :: the control centre of work- collective unconscious :: a separate, non-
other reading materials as a form of therapy 677 ing memory; it coordinates attention and the personal realm of the unconscious that holds the
binocular depth cues :: distance cues that are based exchange of information among the three stor- collective memories and mythologies of human-
on the differing perspectives of both eyes 154 age components 279 kind, stretching deep into our ancestral past 532
biofeedback :: a therapeutic technique involving central nervous system (CNS) :: consists of coma :: a state marked by a complete loss of con-
the use of physiological recording instruments to the brain and the spinal cord 106 sciousness 204
provide feedback that increases awareness of bod- central route to persuasion :: occurs when community psychology :: an area of psychol-
ily responses 614 people pay close attention to the content of a ogy that focuses on identifying how individuals’
biopsychosocial model :: a means of explaining message, evaluate the evidence presented, and mental health is influenced by the neighbour-
behaviour as a product of biological, psychologi- examine the logic of the arguments 573 hood, economics and community resources,
cal, and sociocultural factors 5 central tendency :: a measure of the central social groups, and other community-based vari-
bipolar disorder :: characterized by extreme highs point of a distribution 65 ables 675
and lows in mood, motivation, and energy 653 cerebellum :: (Latin for “little brain”) the lobe- comorbidity :: the presence of two disorders
BIS :: see behavioural inhibition system 518 like structure at the base of the brain that is simultaneously, or the presence of a second disor-
blood–brain barrier :: a network of tightly involved in the monitoring of movement, der that affects the one being treated 640
packed cells that only allow specific types of sub- maintaining balance, attention, and emotional companionate love :: related to tenderness, and
stances to move from the bloodstream to the brain responses 109 to the affection we feel when our lives are inter-
in order to protect delicate brain cells against cerebral cortex :: the convoluted, wrinkled twined with another person 469
harmful infections and other substances 695 outer layer of the brain that is involved in mul- compensatory control :: psychological strate-
BMI :: see body mass index 591 tiple higher functions, such as thought, language, gies people use to preserve a sense of nonran-
body mass index (BMI) :: a statistic commonly and personality 111 dom order when personal control is compro-
used for estimating a healthy body weight given chameleon effect :: people copy others’ behav- mised 619
an individual’s height 591 iours even without realizing it 541 computerized tomography (or CT scans) :: a
borderline personality disorder (BPD) :: char- chromosomes :: structures in the cellular nucleus structural neuroimaging technique in which
acterized by intense extremes between positive that are lined with all of the genes an individual x-rays are sent through the brain by a tube that
and negative emotions, an unstable sense of self, inherits 76 rotates around the head 123
impulsivity, and difficult social relationships 637 chunking :: organizing smaller units of informa- concept :: the mental representation of an object,
bottom-up processing :: occurs when we per- tion into larger, more meaningful units 273 event, or idea 315
ceive individual bits of sensory information (e.g., circadian rhythms :: internally driven daily concrete operational stage :: (ages 7 to 11
sounds) and use them to construct a more com- cycles of approximately 24 hours affecting physi- years) children develop skills in logical thinking,
plex perception (e.g., a message) 139 ological and behavioural processes 182 and manipulating numbers 408

G-2 :: Glossary
conditioned emotional responses :: consist coronary heart disease :: a condition in which demand characteristics :: inadvertent cues
of emotional and physiological responses that plaques form in the blood vessels that supply the given off by the experimenter or the experimen-
develop to a specific object or situation 232 heart with blood and oxygen, resulting in restrict- tal context that provide information about how
conditioned response (CR) :: the learned ed blood flow 606 participants are expected to behave 36
response that occurs to the conditioned stimu- corpus callosum :: a collection of neural fibers dementia :: mild to severe disruption of mental
lus 228 connecting the two hemispheres 115 functioning, memory loss, disorientation, poor
conditioned stimulus (CS) :: a once-neutral correlational research :: involves measuring the judgment, and decision making 432
stimulus that later elicits a conditioned response degree of association between two or more vari- dendrites :: small branches radiating from the cell
because it has a history of being paired with an ables 49 body that receive messages from other cells and
unconditioned stimulus 228 cortisol :: a hormone secreted by the adrenal transmit those messages toward the rest of the
conditioned taste aversion :: acquired dislike cortex (the outer part of the adrenal gland) that cell 93
or disgust of a food or drink because it was paired prepares the body to respond to stressful circum- dependent variable :: the observation or meas-
with illness 235 stances 602 urement that is recorded during the experiment
cones :: photoreceptors that are sensitive to the counselling psychologists :: mental health profes- and subsequently compared across all groups 52
different wavelengths of light that we perceive as sionals who typically work with people needing descriptive statistics :: a set of techniques used
colour 146 help with more common problems such as stress, to organize, summarize, and interpret data 65
confirmation bias :: occurs when an individual coping, and mild forms of anxiety and depression, determinism :: the belief that all events are
searches for only evidence that will confirm his rather than severe mental disorders 674 governed by lawful, cause-and-effect relation-
or her beliefs instead of evidence that might dis- CR :: see conditioned response 228 ships 13
confirm them 331 critical thinking :: involves exercising curiosity and developmental psychology :: the study of
confounding variable :: a variable outside of the skepticism when evaluating the claims of others, human physical, cognitive, social, and behavioural
researcher’s control that might affect or provide and with our own assumptions and beliefs 9 characteristics across the lifespan 393
an alternative explanation for the results 52 cross-fostered :: being raised as a member of a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
conscious mind :: your current awareness, contain- family that was not of the same species 346 Disorders (DSM) :: a standardized manual to
ing everything you are aware of right now 523 cross-sectional design :: used to measure and aid in the diagnosis of disorders 627
consciousness :: a person’s subjective awareness, compare samples of people at different ages at a DID :: see dissociative identity disorder 641
including thoughts, perceptions, experiences of given point in time 393 difference threshold :: the smallest difference
the world, and self-awareness 181 crystallized intelligence (Gc) :: a type of intel- between stimuli that can be reliably detected at
conservation :: the knowledge that the quantity ligence that draws upon past learning and experi- least 50% of the time 134
or amount of an object is not the same as the ence 369 diffusion of responsibility :: the responsibility
physical arrangement and appearance of that CS :: see conditioned stimulus 228 for taking action is spread across more than one
object 407 CT scan :: see computerized tomography 123 person, thus making no single individual feel per-
consolidation :: the process of converting short- dark adaptation :: the process by which the rods sonally responsible 549
term memories into long-term memories in the and cones become increasingly sensitive to light diffusion tensor imaging (or DTI) :: a form of
brain 283 under low levels of illumination 147 structural neuroimaging allowing researchers or
construal-level theory :: describes how infor- Dark Triad :: three traits— Machiavellianism, Psy- medical personnel to measure white-matter path-
mation affects us differently depending on chopathy, and Narcissism—that describe a person ways in the brain 124
our psychological distance from the informa- who is socially destructive, aggressive, dishonest, discrimination :: (1) occurs when an organism
tion 574 and likely to commit harm in general 497 learns to respond to one original stimulus but not
constructive memory :: a process by which we DBS :: see deep brain stimulation 703 to new stimuli that may be similar to the original
first recall a generalized schema and then add in debriefing :: the researchers should explain the stimulus; (2) behaviour that disfavours or disad-
specific details 303 true nature of the study, and especially the nature vantages members of a certain social group in
contact hypothesis :: social contact between of and reason for the deception 58 some way 232
members of different groups is extremely impor- decentring :: occurs when one is able to discriminative stimulus :: a cue or event that
tant to overcoming prejudice 569 “step back” from one’s normal consciousness indicates that a response, if made, will be rein-
continuous reinforcement :: every response and observe oneself more objectively, as an forced 248
made results in reinforcement 251 observer 690 dishabituation :: the recovery of responsiveness
control group :: the group that does not receive deception :: misleading or only partially inform- to a habituated stimulus as the result of the pres-
the treatment or stimuli targeting a specific ing participants of the true topic or hypothesis entation of a new stimulus 409
behaviour; this group therefore serves as a base- under investigation 57 disorganized behaviour :: the considerable dif-
line to which the experimental group is com- declarative memories :: memories that we are ficulty people with schizophrenia may have com-
pared 52 consciously aware of and that can be verbalized, pleting the tasks of everyday life 660
control processes :: shift information from one including facts about the world and one’s own disorganized schizophrenia :: Symptoms include
memory store to another 271 personal experiences 280 thoughts, speech, behaviour, and emotion that are
convenience samples :: samples of individuals deep brain stimulation (DBS) :: a technique poorly integrated and incoherent. People with dis-
who are the most readily available 35 that involves electrically stimulating specific organized schizophrenia may also show inappro-
conventional morality :: regards social conven- regions of the brain 703 priate, unpredictable mannerisms. 660
tions and rules as guides for appropriate moral defence mechanisms :: unconscious strategies display rules :: the unwritten expectations we
behaviour 426 the ego uses to reduce or avoid anxiety 525 have regarding when it is appropriate to show a
convergence :: occurs when the eye muscles con- deinstitutionalization :: a social movement in certain emotion 487
tract so that both eyes focus on a single object 154 North America in the 1960s which sought to dispositional attribution :: see internal attri-
coping :: the processes used to manage demands, relocate the mentally ill from living in institutions bution 562
stress, and conflict 611 to living within their community 675 dissociation theory :: explains hypnosis as a
core knowledge hypothesis :: infants have delaying gratification :: putting off immediate unique state in which consciousness is divided into
inborn abilities for understanding some key temptations in order to focus on longer-term two parts: an observer and a hidden observer 199
aspects of their environment 409 goals 422 dissociative disorder :: a category of mental dis-
cornea :: the clear layer that covers the front por- delusions :: beliefs that are not based on reality (at orders characterized by a split between conscious
tion of the eye and also contributes to the eye’s least from the perspective of the person’s general awareness from feeling, cognition, memory, and
ability to focus 145 culture) 659 identity 641

Glossary :: G-3
dissociative identity disorder (DID; some- elaboration likelihood model :: a model of evidence-based therapies :: see empirically sup-
times referred to as multiple personality persuasion that states when audiences are suffi- ported treatments 676
disorder) :: a person experiences a split in ciently motivated to pay attention to a message evolution :: the change in the frequency of genes
identity such that they feel different aspects of (i.e., they care about the issue) and they have the occurring in an interbreeding population over
themselves as though they were separated from opportunity for careful processing (i.e., they have generations 82
each other. This can be severe enough that the the cognitive resources available to understand experiential system :: operates implicitly,
person constructs entirely separate personalities, the message), they will be persuaded by the facts quickly, and intuitively and is predominantly
only one of which will generally be in control at of the argument, the substance; when either of emotional 575
a time. 641 these two factors, motivation and opportunity, experimental group :: the group in the experi-
divided attention :: paying attention to are missing, people will tend to be persuaded by ment that receives a treatment or the stimuli tar-
more than one stimulus or task at the same other factors 573 geting a specific behaviour 52
time 140 elaborative rehearsal :: prolonging exposure to explicit memories :: see declarative memories 280
dizygotic twins :: fraternal twins who come information by thinking about its meaning 289 explicit processes :: correspond to “conscious”
from two separate eggs fertilized by two differ- electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) :: involves thought: deliberative, effortful, relatively slow, and
ent sperm cells that share the same womb; these passing an electrical current through the brain in generally under our intentional control 559
twins have approximately 50% of their genetics order to induce a temporary seizure 702 exposure :: repeatedly and in stages exposing an
in common 79 electroencephalogram (or EEG) :: measures individual to the object of his fear so that he can
DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) :: a molecule patterns of brain activity with the use of multiple work past his emotional reactions 650
formed in a double-helix shape that contains four electrodes attached to the scalp 124 external attribution :: the observer explains
amino acids: adenine, cytosine, guanine, and thy- embryonic stage :: spans weeks two through the actor’s behaviour as the result of the situa-
mine 76 eight of the gestational period, during which tion 562
doctrine of specific nerve energies :: first time the embryo begins developing major physi- extinction :: (1) in classical conditioning, the loss
proposed in 1826 by the German physiologist cal structures such as the heart and nervous sys- or weakening of a conditioned response when
Johannes Muller, the doctrine states that the dif- tem, as well as the beginnings of arms, legs, hands, a conditioned stimulus and unconditioned
ferent senses are separated in the brain 133 and feet 395 stimulus no longer occur together; (2) in oper-
door-in-the-face technique :: involves asking emotion :: a behaviour with the following three ant conditioning, the weakening of an oper-
for something relatively big, then following with components: (a) a subjective thought and/or ant response when reinforcement is no longer
a request for something relatively small 579 experience with (b) accompanying patterns of available 231
dopamine :: a monoamine neurotransmitter neural activity and physical arousal and (c) an extrinsic motivation :: motivation geared
involved in such varied functions as mood, con- observable behavioural expression (e.g., an emo- toward gaining rewards or public recognition, or
trol of voluntary movement, and processing of tional facial expression or changes in muscle avoiding embarrassment 471
rewarding experiences 99 tension) 478 facial feedback hypothesis :: our emotional
double-blind study :: a study in which neither emotional dialects :: variations across cultures in expressions can influence our subjective emo-
the participant nor the experimenter knows the how common emotions are expressed 487 tional states 481
exact treatment for any individual 39 empirically supported treatments :: treat- factor analysis :: a statistical technique that exam-
dream analysis :: a method for understanding the ments that have been tested and evaluated 676 ines correlations between variables to find clus-
unconscious by examining the details of what empiricism :: a philosophical tenet that knowl- ters of related variables, or “factors” 365, 494
happens during a dream (the manifest content), edge comes through experience 13 FAE :: see fundamental attribution error 563
in order to gain insight into the true meaning encoding specificity principle :: retrieval is false consensus effect :: tendency to project the
of the dream, the emotional, unconscious mate- most effective when it occurs in the same context self-concept onto the social world 562
rial that is communicated symbolically (the latent as encoding 290 false memory :: remembering events that did
content) 682 encoding :: the process of storing information in not occur, or incorrectly recalling details of an
drive :: a biological trigger that tells us we may be the LTM system 272 event 305
deprived of something and causes us to seek out endogenous rhythms :: biological rhythms that falsifiable :: the hypothesis is precise enough that
what is needed, such as food or water 445 are generated by our body independent of exter- it could be proven false 41
DRM procedure :: participants study a list of high- nal cues such as light 182 fast mapping :: the ability to map words onto
ly related words called semantic associates 308 endorphin :: a hormone produced by the pitui- concepts or objects after only a single expo-
DSM :: see Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Men- tary gland and the hypothalamus that functions to sure 342
tal Disorders 627 reduce pain and induce feelings of pleasure 102 fetal alcohol syndrome :: abnormalities in men-
DTI :: see diffusion tensor imaging 124 entity theory :: the belief that intelligence is a tal functioning, growth, and facial development in
dual coding :: occurs when information is stored fixed characteristic and relatively difficult (or the offspring of women who use alcohol during
in more than one form 298 impossible) to change 361 pregnancy 396
dual-process models :: models of behaviour entrainment :: when biological rhythms become fetal stage :: spans week eight through birth of
that account for both implicit and explicit pro- synchronized to external cues such as light, tem- the gestational period, during which time the
cesses 559 perature, or even a clock 182 skeletal, organ, and nervous systems become more
ecological validity :: the results of a laboratory epigenetics :: changes in gene expression that developed and specialized 395
study can be applied to or repeated in the natural occur as a result of experience and that do not fight-or-flight response :: a set of physiological
environment 35 alter the genetic code 81 changes that occur in response to psychological
ecstasy (3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylam- episodic buffer :: a storage component of work- or physical threats 601
phetamine or MDMA) :: a drug that is ing memory that combines the images and first-letter technique :: uses the first letters of a
typically classified as a stimulant, but also has sounds from the other two components into set of items to spell out words that form a sen-
hallucinogenic effects 214 coherent, story-like episodes 279 tence 298
ECT :: see electroconvulsive therapy 702 episodic memories :: declarative memories for Five Factor Model :: a trait-based theory of
EEG :: see electroencephalogram 124 personal experiences that seem to be organized personality based on the finding that personal-
ego :: the decision maker, frequently under tension, around “episodes” and are recalled from a first- ity can be described using five major dimen-
trying to reconcile the opposing urges of the id person (“I” or “my”) perspective 280 sions 494
and superego 524 escape learning :: occurs if a response removes a fixation :: becoming preoccupied with obtain-
egocentric :: seeing the world only from one’s stimulus that is already present 246 ing the pleasure associated with a particular
own perspective 414 etiology :: origins or causes 627 stage 527

G-4 :: Glossary
fixed-interval schedule :: reinforces the first GABA (gamma-amino butyric acid) :: the graded membership :: the observation that
response occurring after a set amount of time primary inhibitory neurotransmitter of the nerv- some concepts appear to make better category
passes 253 ous system, meaning that it prevents neurons members than others 315
fixed-ratio schedule :: reinforcement is delivered from generating action potentials 98 groupthink :: the stifling of diversity that occurs
after a specific number of responses have been GAD :: see generalized anxiety disorder 647 when individuals are not able to express their true
completed 252 GAS :: see general adaptation syndrome 601 perspectives, instead having to focus on agreeing
flashbulb memory :: an extremely vivid and gate-control theory :: explains our experience with others and maintaining harmony in the
detailed memory about an event and the con- of pain as an interaction between nerves that group 544
ditions surrounding how one learned about the transmit pain messages and those that inhibit gustatory system :: functions in the sensation
event 295 these messages 170 and perception of taste 173
fluid intelligence (Gf) :: a type of intelligence Gc :: see crystallized intelligence 369 habituation :: a decrease in responding with
used in learning new information and solv- gender roles :: the accepted attitudes and repeated exposure to a stimulus or event 409
ing new problems not based on knowledge the behaviours of males and females in a given hallucinations :: alterations in perception, such
person already possesses 369 society 461 that a person hears, sees, smells, feels, or tastes
Flynn effect :: the steady population level increas- gene knockout (KO) studies :: involve remov- something that does not actually exist, except in
es in intelligence test scores over time 385 ing a specific gene and comparing the character- that person’s own mind 659
fMRI :: see functional magnetic resonance imag- istics of animals with and without that gene 380 hallucinogenic drugs :: substances that produce
ing 125 general adaptation syndrome (GAS) :: a the- perceptual distortions 214
focal lesions :: small areas of brain tissue that are ory of stress responses involving stages of alarm, haptics :: the active, exploratory aspect of touch
surgically destroyed 702 resistance, and exhaustion 601 sensation and perception 169
foot-in-the-door technique :: involves making general intelligence factor (g) :: a basic cog- Hawthorne effect :: behaviour change that
a simple request followed by a more substantial nitive trait comprising the ability to learn, rea- occurs as a result of being observed 35
request 579 son, and solve problems, regardless of their heritability :: statistic, expressed as a number
forebrain :: the most visibly obvious region of the nature 365 between zero and one, that represents the degree
brain, consists of all of the neural structures that generalizability :: the degree to which one set to which genetic differences between individuals
are located above the midbrain, including all of the of results can be applied to other situations, indi- contribute to individual differences in a behav-
folds and grooves on the outer surface of the brain; viduals, or events 34 iour or trait found in a population 79
the multiple interconnected structures in the fore- generalization :: a process in which a response heuristics :: problem-solving strategies that
brain are critical to such complex processes as that originally occurs to a specific stimulus stem from prior experiences and provide an
emotion, memory, thinking, and reasoning 110 also occurs to different, though similar, stim- educated guess as to what is the most likely
formal operational stage :: (ages 11 to adult- uli 231 solution 325
hood) the development of advanced cognitive generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) :: involves HEXACO model of personality :: a six-factor
processes such as abstract reasoning and hypo- frequently elevated levels of anxiety, gener- theory that generally replicates the five factors of
thetical thinking 408 ally from the normal challenges and stresses of the Five Factor Model and adds one additional
fovea :: the central region of the retina 146 everyday life 647 factor: Honesty–Humility 497
free association :: clients are encouraged to talk generativity :: being engaged in meaningful and hippocampus :: critical for learning and mem-
or write without censoring their thoughts in any productive work, as well as making contributions ory, particularly the formation of new memo-
way 682 to future generations 439 ries 111
frequency :: the number of observations that fall genes :: the basic units of heredity; genes are histrionic personality disorder (HPD) :: char-
within a certain category or range of scores 65 responsible for guiding the process of creating the acterized by excessive attention seeking and dra-
frequency theory :: the perception of pitch proteins that make up our physical structures and matic behaviour 637
is related to the frequency at which the basilar regulate development and physiological processes homeostasis :: the body’s physiological processes
membrane vibrates 163 throughout the lifespan 76 that allow it to maintain consistent internal states
frontal lobes :: important in numerous higher genotype :: the genetic makeup of an organism— in response to the outer environment 445
cognitive functions, such as planning, regulating the unique set of genes that comprise that indi- hormones :: chemicals secreted by the glands of
impulses and emotion, language production, and vidual’s genetic code 76 the endocrine system 102
voluntary movement 113 germinal stage :: the first phase of prenatal devel- HPA axis :: see hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis 602
frontal lobotomy :: surgically removing regions opment, which spans from conception to two HPD :: see histrionic personality disorder 637
of the cortex 701 weeks 395 humanistic psychology :: focuses on the unique
functional fixedness :: occurs when an individ- gestalt psychology :: an approach emphasizing aspects of each individual human, each person’s
ual identifies an object or technique that could that psychologists need to focus on the whole freedom to act, his or her rational thought, and
potentially solve a problem, but can think of only of perception and experience, rather than its the belief that humans are fundamentally differ-
its most obvious function 326 parts 25 ent from other animals 23
functional magnetic resonance imaging Gf :: see fluid intelligence 369 humourism :: explained both physical illnesses
(fMRI) :: measures brain activity by detecting glial cells :: specialized cells of the nervous system and disorders of personality as resulting from
the influx of oxygen-rich blood into neural areas that are involved in mounting immune responses imbalances in key fluids in the body 517
that were just active 125 in the brain, removing waste, and synchronizing hypnosis :: a procedure of inducing a heightened
functional neuroimaging :: a type of brain scan- the activity of the billions of neurons that consti- state of suggestibility 199
ning that provides information about which areas tute the nervous system 94 hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis :: a
of the brain are active when a person performs a global events :: thoughts like “my whole life is neural and endocrine circuit that provides communi-
particular behaviour 124 ruined”; blowing things out of proportion rather cation between the nervous system (the hypothala-
functionalism :: the study of the purpose and than seeing a negative event as simply that, one mus) and the endocrine system (pituitary and adrenal
function of behaviour and conscious experi- negative event and not something that needs to glands) 602
ence 21 spiral into greater problems 689 hypothalamus :: a brain structure that regulates
fundamental attribution error (FAE) :: ten- glucose :: a sugar that serves as a primary basic biological needs and motivational sys-
dency to over-emphasize internal (dispositional) energy source for the brain and the rest of the tems 102
attributions, and under-emphasize external (situ- body 446 hypothesis :: (plural: hypotheses) a testable pre-
ational) factors 563 glutamate :: most common excitatory neuro- diction about processes that can be observed and
g :: see general intelligence factor 365 transmitter in the brains of vertebrates 98 measured 3

Glossary :: G-5
hypothesis test :: a statistical method of evaluat- insomnia :: a disorder characterized by an extreme lithium :: one of the first mood stabilizers to be
ing whether differences among groups are mean- lack of sleep 192 prescribed regularly in psychiatry, and from the
ingful, or could have been arrived at by chance intelligence :: the ability to think, understand, 1950s to the 1980s, was the standard drug treat-
alone 69 reason, and adapt to or overcome obstacles 354 ment for depression and bipolar disorder 697
IAT :: see Implicit Associations Test 566 intelligence quotient, or IQ :: a measure of locked-in syndrome :: a disorder in which the
id :: a collection of basic biological drives, includ- intelligence computed using a standardized test patient is aware and awake but, because of an
ing those directed toward sex and aggres- and calculated by taking a person’s mental age, inability to move his or her body, appears uncon-
sion 524 dividing it by his chronological age, and then scious 207
identifiable victim effect :: people are power- multiplying by 100 354 longitudinal design :: follows the develop-
fully moved to action by the story of a single suf- intermittent reinforcement :: see partial rein- ment of the same set of individuals through
fering person compared to information about a forcement 251 time 393
whole group of people 575 internal attribution :: the observer explains the long-term memory (LTM) :: holds informa-
identity :: a clear sense of what kind of person you behaviour of the actor in terms of some innate tion for extended periods of time, if not perma-
are, what types of people you belong with, and quality of that person 562, 689 nently 275
what roles you should play in society 428 intersexual selection :: a situation in which long-term potentiation (LTP) :: demonstrated
idiographic approach :: creating detailed descrip- members of one sex select a mating partner based that there is an enduring increase in connectivity
tions of a specific person’s unique personality char- on their desirable traits 84 and transmission of neural signals between nerve
acteristics 493 intrasexual selection :: a situation in which cells that fire together 282
imagination inflation :: the increased confidence members of the same sex compete in order to LTM :: see long-term memory 275
in a false memory of an event following repeated win the opportunity to mate with members of LTP :: see long-term potentiation 282
imagination of the event 307 the opposite sex 83 magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) :: a struc-
imitation :: recreating someone else’s motor intrinsic motivation :: the process of being tural imaging technique in which clear images
behaviour or expression, often to accomplish a internally motivated to perform behaviours and of the brain are created based on how different
specific goal 263 overcoming challenges (e.g., a genuine desire to neural regions absorb and release energy while in
Implicit Associations Test (IAT) :: measures master a task rather than being motivated by a a magnetic field 123
how fast people can respond to images or words reward) 472 magnetoencephalography (MEG) :: a neuro-
flashed on a computer screen 566 introjection :: the internalization of the condi- imaging technique that measures the tiny mag-
implicit memories :: see nondeclarative memo- tional regard of significant others 418 netic fields created by the electrical activity of
ries 280 iris :: a round muscle that adjusts the size of the nerve cells in the brain 125
implicit processes :: correspond to “uncon- pupil; it also gives the eyes their characteristic maintenance rehearsal :: prolonging exposure
scious” thought: intuitive, automatic, effortless, colour 145 to information by repeating it 288
very fast, and operate largely outside of our inten- James-Lange theory of emotion :: our physi- major depression :: a disorder marked by pro-
tional control 559 ological reactions to stimuli (e.g., a racing heart) longed periods of sadness, feelings of worthless-
inattentional blindness :: a failure to notice precede the emotional experience (e.g., the ness and hopelessness, social withdrawal, and
clearly visible events or objects because attention fear) 481 cognitive and physical sluggishness 653
is directed elsewhere 141 jet lag :: the discomfort a person feels when sleep manifest content :: the images and storylines
incremental theory :: the belief that intelli- cycles are out of synchronization with light and that we dream about 189
gence can be shaped by experiences, practice, and darkness 188 MAOIs :: see monoamine oxidase inhibitors 696
effort 361 kinesthesis :: the sense of bodily motion and posi- marijuana :: a drug comprising the leaves and
independent variable :: the variable that the tion 169 buds of the Cannabis plant that produces a combi-
experimenter manipulates to distinguish between KO :: see gene knockout studies 380 nation of hallucinogenic, stimulant, and relaxing
two or more groups 52 language :: a form of communication that involves (narcotic) effects 216
inductive discipline :: involves explaining the the use of spoken, written, or gestural symbols mastery motive :: see intrinsic motivation 472
consequences of a child’s actions on other people, that are combined in a rule-based form 338 materialism :: the belief that humans, and other
activating empathy for others’ feelings 418 latent content :: the actual symbolic meaning of living beings, are composed exclusively of physi-
inferiority complex :: the struggle many people a dream built on suppressed sexual or aggressive cal matter 14
have with feelings of inferiority, which stem from urges 189 MBCT :: see mindfulness-based cognitive therapy 690
experiences of helplessness and powerlessness latent learning :: learning that is not immediately MCS :: see minimally conscious state 207
during childhood 532 expressed by a response until the organism is MDMA :: see ecstasy 214
informational influence :: occurs when people reinforced for doing so 259 mean :: the arithmetic average of a set of num-
internalize the values and beliefs of the group, learned helplessness :: an acquired sup- bers 66
coming to believe the same things and feel the pression of avoidance or escape behaviour in median :: the 50th percentile—the point on the
same ways themselves 545 response to unpleasant, uncontrollable circum- horizontal axis at which 50% of all observa-
informed consent :: a potential volunteer must stances 618 tions are lower, and 50% of all observations are
be informed (know the purpose, tasks, and risks learning :: a process by which behaviour or knowl- higher 66
involved in the study) and give consent (agree to edge changes as a result of experience 226 medical model :: sees psychological conditions
participate based on the information provided) lens :: a clear structure that focuses light onto the through the same lens as Western medicine tends
without pressure 57 back of the eye 145 to see physical conditions—as sets of symptoms,
ingroup bias :: as positive biases toward the self lesioning :: a technique in which researchers causes, and outcomes, with treatments aimed at
get extended to include one’s ingroups, people intentionally damage an area in the brain 121 changing physiological processes in order to alle-
become motivated to see their ingroups as supe- leucotomy :: the surgical destruction of brain tis- viate symptoms 625
rior to their outgroup 563 sues in the pre-frontal cortex 701 meditation :: any procedure that involves a shift
ingroups :: groups we feel positively toward and libido :: the motivation for sexual activity and in consciousness to a state in which an individual
identify with 563 pleasure 456 is highly focused, aware, and in control of mental
insight therapies :: a general term referring to limbic system :: an integrated network involved processes 202
therapy that involves dialogue between client and in emotion and memory 111 MEG :: see magnetoencephalography 125
therapist for the purposes of gaining awareness linguistic relativity :: the theory that the lan- menarche :: the onset of menstruation 421
and understanding of psychological problems and guage we use determines how we understand the menopause :: the termination of the menstrual
conflicts 682 world 321 cycle and reproductive ability in women 432

G-6 :: Glossary
mental age :: the average intellectual ability score multiple personality disorder :: see dissociative nociception :: the activity of nerve pathways that
for children of a specific age 354 identity disorder 641 respond to uncomfortable stimulation 170
mental disorder defence :: claims that the myelin :: a fatty sheath that insulates axons from nomothetic approach :: examines personal-
defendant was in such an extreme, abnormal state one another, resulting in increased speed and effi- ity in large groups of people, with the aim of
of mind when committing the crime that he or ciency of neural communication 95 making generalizations about personality struc-
she could not discern that the actions were legally naive realism :: the assumption that the way we ture 493
or morally wrong 631 see things is the way that they are 562 nondeclarative memories :: include actions or
mental set :: a cognitive obstacle that occurs narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) :: behaviours that you can remember and perform
when an individual attempts to apply a routine characterized by an inflated sense of self-impor- without awareness 280
solution to what is actually a new type of prob- tance and an excessive need for attention and nootropic substances :: substances that are
lem 326 admiration, as well as intense self-doubt and fear believed to beneficially affect intelligence 387
method of loci :: a mnemonic that connects of abandonment 637 noradrenaline :: see norepinephrine 99
words to be remembered to locations along a narcolepsy :: a disorder in which a person experi- norepinephrine :: (also known as noradrenaline)
familiar path 297 ences extreme daytime sleepiness and even sleep a monoamine synthesized from dopamine mole-
midbrain :: resides just above the hindbrain, pri- attacks 195 cules that is involved in regulating stress responses,
marily functions as a relay station between sen- natural selection :: the process by which favoura- including increasing arousal, attention, and heart
sory and motor areas 109 ble traits become increasingly common in a pop- rate 99
mimicry :: taking on for ourselves the behav- ulation of interbreeding individuals, while traits normal distribution :: a symmetrical distribu-
iours, emotional displays, and facial expressions of that are unfavourable become less common 82 tion with values clustered around a central, mean
others 540 naturalistic observations :: observations that value 65
mindfulness-based cognitive therapy unobtrusively observe and record behaviour normative influence :: a social pressure to adopt
(MBCT) :: involves combining mindfulness as it occurs in the subject’s natural environ- a group’s perspective in order to be accepted,
meditation with standard cognitive-behavioural ment 47 rather than rejected, by a group 545
therapy tools 690 nature and nurture relationships :: the NPD :: see narcissistic personality disorder 637
minimal group paradigm :: a description of inquiry into how heredity (nature) and environ- obesity :: a disorder of positive energy balance, in
how easily people will form social categories, Us ment (nurture) influence behaviour and mental which energy intake exceeds energy expendi-
vs. Them, even using criteria that are meaning- processes 18 ture 450
less 564 need to belong :: the motivation to maintain object permanence :: the ability to understand
minimally conscious state (MCS) :: a disor- relationships that involve pleasant feelings such as that objects exist even when they cannot be
dered state of consciousness marked by the abil- warmth, affection, appreciation, and mutual con- directly perceived 407
ity to show some behaviours that suggest at least cern for each person’s well-being 467 object relations therapy :: a variation of psy-
partial consciousness, even if on an inconsistent negative affectivity :: the tendency to respond to chodynamic therapy that focuses on how early
basis 207 problems with a pattern of anxiety, hostility, anger, childhood experiences and emotional attach-
misinformation effect :: when information guilt or nervousness 613 ments influence later psychological function-
occurring after an event becomes part of the negative explanatory style :: the tendency to ing 683
memory for that event 306 make internal, stable, and global attributions for objective measurements :: the measure of an
mnemonic :: a technique intended to improve negative events 689 entity or behaviour that, within an allowed mar-
memory for specific information 297 negative punishment :: occurs when a behav- gin of error, is consistent across instruments and
mode :: the category with the highest frequency iour decreases because it removes or diminishes a observers 32
(that is, the category with the most observa- particular stimulus 247 observational learning :: involves changes in
tions) 66 negative reinforcement :: involves the strength- behaviour and knowledge that result from watch-
monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) :: ening of a behaviour because it removes or dimin- ing others 260
work by deactivating monoamine oxidase (MAO), ishes a stimulus 246 obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) :: plagued
an enzyme that breaks down serotonin, dopa- negative symptoms :: the absence of adaptive by unwanted, inappropriate, and persistent thoughts
mine, and norepinephrine at the synaptic clefts of behaviour, such as absent or flat emotional reac- (obsessions), and tend to engage in repetitive almost
nerve cells 696 tions, lack of interacting with others in a social ritualistic behaviours (compulsions) 650
monocular cues :: depth cues that we can per- setting, and lack of motivation 660 occipital lobes :: located at the rear of the brain and
ceive with only one eye 155 negatively skewed distribution :: a distribu- are where visual information is processed 112
monozygotic twins :: twins who come from a tion in which the curve has an extended tail to OCD :: see obsessive–compulsive disorder 650
single ovum (egg), which makes them genetically the left of the cluster 65 olfactory epithelium :: a thin layer of cells that
identical (almost 100% genetic similarity) 79 neurodevelopmental hypothesis :: the adult are lined by sensory receptors called cilia 175
mood stabilizers :: drugs used to prevent or manifestation of what we call “schizophrenia” is olfactory system :: involved in smell—the detec-
reduce the severity of mood swings experienced the outgrowth of disrupted neurological develop- tion of airborne particles with specialized recep-
by people with bipolar disorder 697 ment early in the person’s life 665 tors located in the nose 175
morphemes :: the smallest meaningful unit of a neurons :: one of the major types of cells found operant conditioning :: a type of learning
language 339 in the nervous system, which are responsible for in which behaviour is influenced by conse-
motivation :: concerns the physiological and psy- sending and receiving messages throughout the quences 244
chological processes underlying the initiation of body 93 operational definitions :: statements that describe
behaviours that direct organisms toward specific neuroplasticity :: the capacity of the brain to the procedures (or operations) and specific meas-
goals 444 change and rewire itself based on individual ures that are used to record observations 33
MRI :: see magnetic resonance imaging 123 experience 116 opiates :: (also called narcotics) drugs such as her-
multimodal integration :: the ability to com- neurotransmitters :: the chemicals that function oin and morphine that reduce pain and induce
bine sensation from different modalities such as as messengers allowing neurons to communicate extremely intense feelings of euphoria 218
vision and hearing into a single integrated per- with each other 94 opponent-process theory :: a theory of colour
ception 175 night terrors :: intense bouts of panic and arousal perception stating that we perceive colour in
multiple intelligences :: a model claiming that that awaken the individual, typically in a height- terms of opposing pairs: red to green, yellow to
there are eight (now updated to at least nine) ened emotional state 193 blue, and white to black 148
different forms of intelligence, each independent nightmares :: particularly vivid and disturbing optic nerve :: a dense bundle of fibres that con-
from the others 372 dreams that occur during REM sleep 193 nect to the brain 146

Glossary :: G-7
optimism :: the tendency to have a favourable, personality disorders :: particularly unusual pat- followed by a particular, usually unpleasant, stim-
constructive view on situations and to expect terns of behaviour (relative to one’s cultural con- ulus 247
positive outcomes 612 text), that are maladaptive, distressing to oneself or positive reinforcement :: the strengthening
outgroups :: those “other” groups that we don’t others, and resistant to change 636 of behaviour after potential reinforcers such as
identify with 563 personality trait :: a person’s habitual patterns of praise, money, or nourishment follow that behav-
oxytocin :: a stress-sensitive hormone that is typi- thinking, feeling, and behaving 493 iour 246
cally associated with maternal bonding and social person-centred perspective :: founded on the positive symptoms :: the presence of maladap-
relationships 603 assumption that people are basically good, and tive behaviours, such as confused and paranoid
panic disorder :: an anxiety disorder marked given the right environment their personality will thinking, and inappropriate emotional reac-
by occasional episodes of sudden, very intense develop fully and normally 533 tions 660
fear 647 person-centred therapy :: see client-centred positively skewed distribution :: a distribu-
paranoid schizophrenia :: Symptoms include therapy 684 tion in which the long tail is on the right of the
delusional beliefs that one is being followed, pessimism :: the tendency to have a negative cluster 65
watched, or persecuted, and may also include delu- perception of life and expect negative out- positron emission tomography (or PET) :: a
sions of grandeur or the belief that one has some comes 612 type of scan in which a low level of a radioactive
secret or insight or power or some other charac- pessimistic explanatory style :: the tendency isotope is injected into the blood, and its move-
teristic that makes one particularly special. 660 to interpret and explain negative events as inter- ment to regions of the brain engaged in a particu-
parasympathetic nervous system :: helps main- nally based (i.e., as being due to that person rather lar task is measured 125
tain homeostatic balance in the presence of change; than to an external situation) and as a constant, postconventional morality :: considers rules
following sympathetic arousal, it works to return stable quality 612 and laws as relative 426
the body to a baseline, nonemergency state 107 PET :: see positron emission tomography 125 post-traumatic growth :: the capacity to grow
parietal lobes :: involved in our experiences of phenomenological approach :: the therapist and experience long-term positive effects in
touch as well our bodily awareness 112 addresses the clients’ feelings and thoughts as they response to negative events 614
partial reinforcement effect :: a phenomenon unfold in the present moment, rather than look- pragmatics :: the study of nonlinguistic elements
in which organisms that have been conditioned ing for unconscious motives or dwelling in the of language use 340
under partial reinforcement resist extinction past 684 preconventional morality :: characterized by
longer than those conditioned under continuous phenotype :: physical traits or behavioural charac- self-interest in seeking reward or avoiding pun-
reinforcement 253 teristics that show genetic variation, such as eye ishment 426
partial reinforcement :: only a certain number colour, the shape and size of facial features, and prejudice :: an affective, emotionally driven pro-
of responses are rewarded, or a certain amount even personality 76 cess, including negative attitudes toward and criti-
of time must pass before reinforcement is avail- phobia :: a severe, irrational fear of a very specific cal judgments of other groups 565
able 251 object or situation 647 preoperational stage :: (ages two to seven)
passionate love :: associated with a physical and phonemes :: the most basic of unit of speech language development, using symbols, pretend
emotional longing for the other person 468 sounds 339 play, and mastering the concept of conserva-
peer review :: a process in which papers submit- phonological loop :: a storage component of tion 407
ted for publication in scholarly journals are read working memory that relies on rehearsal and preparedness :: the biological predisposition to
and critiqued by experts in the specific field of that stores information as sounds, or an auditory rapidly learn a response to a particular class of
study 39 code 278 stimuli 235
perception :: involves attending to, organizing, phrenology :: the theory that personality charac- preserve and protect hypothesis :: suggests
and interpreting stimuli that we sense 132 teristics could be assessed by carefully measuring that two more adaptive functions of sleep are pre-
perceptual constancy :: the ability to perceive the outer skull 517 serving energy and protecting the organism from
objects as having constant shape, size, and colour physical dependence :: the need to take a drug harm 186
despite changes in perspective 153 to ward off unpleasant physical withdrawal symp- preterm infant :: an infant born earlier than 36
performance motive :: see extrinsic motivation 471 toms 211 weeks of gestation 397
peripheral nervous system (PNS) :: a divi- pitch :: the perceptual experience of sound wave primary auditory cortex :: a major perceptual
sion of the nervous system that transmits signals frequencies 160 centre of the brain involved in perceiving what
between the brain and the rest of the body and pituitary gland :: the master gland of the endo- we hear 164
is divided into two subcomponents, the somatic crine system that produces hormones and sends primary reinforcers :: reinforcing stimuli that
system and the autonomic system 106 commands about hormone production to the satisfy basic motivational needs—needs that affect
peripheral route to persuasion :: depends other glands of the endocrine system 102 an individual’s ability to survive (and, if possible,
upon features that are not directly related to the place theory of hearing :: how we perceive reproduce) 247
message itself, such as the attractiveness of the pitch is based on the location (place) along the primary sex traits :: changes in the body that are
person delivering the information 573 basilar membrane that sound stimulates 163 part of reproduction 421
persistent vegetative state :: state of minimal placebo effect :: a measurable and experienced proactive interference :: a process in which the
to no consciousness in which the patient’s eyes improvement in health or behaviour that cannot first information learned (e.g., in a list of words)
may be open, and the individual will develop be attributable to a medication or treatment 38 occupies memory, leaving fewer resources left to
sleep–wake cycles without clear signs of con- pluralistic ignorance :: occurs when there is a remember the newer information 276
sciousness 204 disjunction between the private beliefs of indi- problem solving :: accomplishing a goal when
person perception :: the processes by which viduals and the public behaviour they display to the solution or the path to the solution is not
individuals categorize and form judgments about others 550 clear 325
other people 560 polysomnography :: a set of objective measure- problem-solving theory :: the theory that
personal unconscious :: a vast repository of ments used to examine physiological variables thoughts and concerns are continuous from wak-
experiences and patterns that were absorbed dur- during sleep 183 ing to sleeping, and that dreams may function to
ing the entire experiential unfolding of the per- population :: the group that researchers want to facilitate finding solutions to problems encoun-
son’s life 532 generalize about 35 tered while awake 190
personality :: a characteristic pattern of thinking, positive psychology :: uses scientific methods to procedural memories :: patterns of muscle
feeling, and behaving that is unique to each indi- study human strengths and potential 611 movements (motor memory) 281
vidual, and remains relatively consistent over time positive punishment :: a process in which a processing fluency :: the ease with which infor-
and situations 493 behaviour decreases in frequency because it was mation is processed 578

G-8 :: Glossary
prodromal phase :: phase of schizophrenia dur- Raven’s Progressive Matrices :: an intelligence restore and repair hypothesis :: the idea that
ing which people may become easily confused test that is based on pictures, not words, thus mak- the body needs to restore energy levels and repair
and have difficulty organizing their thoughts, they ing it relatively unaffected by language or cultural any wear and tear experienced during the day’s
may lose interest and begin to withdraw from background 356 activities 185
friends and family, and they may lose their nor- reciprocal determinism :: behaviour, internal retina :: lines the inner surface of the eye and con-
mal motivations, withdraw from life, and spend (personal) factors, and external (situational) fac- sists of specialized receptors that absorb light and
increasing amounts of time alone, often deeply tors interact to determine one another, and that send signals related to the properties of light to
engrossed in their own thoughts 659 our personalities are based on interactions among the brain 146
projective tests :: personality tests in which these three aspects 503 retinal disparity :: (also called binocular dispar-
ambiguous images are presented to an individual recovered memory :: a memory of a traumatic ity) the difference in relative position of an object
to elicit responses that reflect unconscious desires event that is suddenly recovered after blocking as seen by both eyes, which provides information
or conflicts 529 the memory of that event for a long period of to the brain about depth 154
prototypes :: mental representations of an average time 309 retrieval :: brings information from LTM back
category member 316 recovered memory controversy :: a heated into STM 272
pseudoscience :: an idea that is presented as sci- debate among psychologists about the validity of retroactive interference :: the most recently
ence but does not actually utilize basic principles recovered memories 310 learned information overshadows some older
of scientific thinking or procedure 4 reflexes :: involuntary muscular reactions to spe- memories that have not yet made it into long-
psychiatrists :: medical doctors who specialize in cific types of stimulation 400 term memory 276
mental health and who are allowed to diagnose refractory period :: (1) brief period in which retrograde amnesia :: a condition in which
and treat mental disorders primarily through pre- a neuron cannot fire; (2) a time period during memory for the events preceding trauma or injury
scribing medications 674 which erection and orgasm are not physically is lost 285
psychoactive drugs :: substances that affect think- possible 95, 458 reuptake :: a process whereby neurotransmitter
ing, behaviour, perception, and emotion 213 rehearsal :: repeating information until you do molecules that have been released into the syn-
psychoanalysis :: a psychological approach that not need to remember it anymore 278 apse are reabsorbed into the axon terminals of the
attempts to explain how behaviour and per- reinforcement :: a process in which an event or presynaptic neuron 97
sonality are influenced by unconscious pro- reward that follows a response increases the likeli- Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) :: a
cesses 17 hood of that response occurring again 244 highly problematic set of personality characteris-
psychodynamic therapies :: forms of insight reinforcer :: a stimulus that is contingent upon a tics that involve three key tendencies: 1) obeying
therapy that emphasize the need to discover and response, and that increases the probability of that orders and deferring to the established authori-
resolve unconscious conflicts 682 response occurring again 245 ties in a society; 2) supporting aggression against
psychological dependence :: occurs when addic- reliability :: consistent and stable answers across those who dissent or differ from the established
tion develops without any physical symptoms of multiple observations and points in time 34 social order; and 3) believing strongly in main-
withdrawal 211 REM sleep :: a stage of sleep characterized by taining the existing social order 497
psychology :: the scientific study of behaviour, quickening brain waves, inhibited body move- rods :: photoreceptors that occupy peripheral
thought, and experience, and how they can be ment, and rapid eye movements (REM) 185 regions of the retina; they are highly sensitive
affected by physical, mental, social, and environ- replication :: the process of repeating a study and under low light levels 146
mental factors 3 finding a similar outcome each time 40 Rorschach inkblot test :: a test in which people
psychoneuroimmunology :: the study of the representativeness heuristic :: making judg- are asked to describe what they see on the ink-
relationship between immune system and nerv- ments of likelihood based on how well an exam- blot, and psychologists interpret this description
ous system functioning 604 ple represents a specific category 327 using a standardized scoring and interpretation
psychopharmacotherapy :: the use of drugs research ethics board (REB) :: a committee of method 529
to attempt to manage or reduce clients’ symp- researchers and officials at an institution charged RWA :: see Right-Wing Authoritarianism 497
toms 695 with the protection of human research partici- sample :: a select group of population mem-
psychophysics :: the study of the relationship pants 56 bers 35
between the physical world and the mental rep- residential treatment centres :: housing satiation :: the point in a meal when we are no
resentation of that world 14 facilities in which residents receive psychological longer motivated to eat 446
psychotropic drugs :: medications designed to therapy and life skills training, with the explicit savant :: an individual with low mental capacity
alter psychological functioning 695 goal of helping residents become re-integrated in most domains but extraordinary abilities in
punisher :: a stimulus that is contingent upon a into society as well as they can 675 other specific areas such as music, mathematics,
response, and that results in a decrease in behav- residual phase :: phase of schizophrenia during or art 364
iour 245 which people’s predominant symptoms have dis- scaffolding :: a highly attentive approach to teach-
punishment :: a process that decreases the future appeared or lessened considerably, and they may ing in which the teacher matches guidance to the
probability of a response 245 simply be withdrawn, have trouble concentrating, learner’s needs 411
pupil :: regulates the amount of light that enters and generally lack motivation 659 schedules of reinforcement :: rules that deter-
by changing its size; it dilates (expands) to allow residual schizophrenia :: This category reflects mine when reinforcement is available 251
more light to enter and constricts (shrinks) to individuals who show some symptoms of schizo- schemas :: organized clusters of memories that
allow less light into the eye 145 phrenia but are either in transition to a full-blown constitute one’s knowledge about events, objects,
quasi-experimental research :: a research tech- episode or in remission. 660 and ideas 302
nique in which the two or more groups that resilience :: the ability to effectively recover from schizophrenia :: a brain disease that causes the
are compared are selected based on predeter- illness or adversity 613 person to experience significant breaks from
mined characteristics, rather than random assign- resistance :: occurs as the treatment brings up reality, a lack of integration of thoughts and
ment 52 unconscious material that the client wishes to avoid, emotions, and problems with attention and
random assignment :: a technique for divid- and the client engages in strategies for keeping the memory 659
ing samples into two or more groups in which information out of conscious awareness 683 scientific literacy :: the ability to understand,
participants are equally likely to be placed in any resting potential :: relatively stable state during analyze, and apply scientific information 6
condition of the experiment 51 which the cell is not transmitting messages 95 scientific method :: a way of learning about the
random sample :: a sampling technique in which restless legs syndrome :: a persistent feeling of world through collecting observations, develop-
every individual of a population has an equal discomfort in the legs and the urge to continu- ing theories to explain them, and using the theo-
chance of being included 35 ously shift them into different positions 193 ries to make predictions 3

Glossary :: G-9
sclera :: is the white, outer surface of the eye 145 serotonin :: a monoamine involved in regulating consists of nerves that receive sensory input from
secondary reinforcers :: stimuli that acquire mood, sleep, aggression, and appetite 99 the body 107
their reinforcing effects only after we learn that set point :: a hypothesized mechanism that serves somnambulism :: or sleepwalking, a disorder
they have value 247 to maintain body weight around a physiologically that involves wandering and performing other
secondary sex traits :: changes in the body that programmed level 591 activities while asleep 194
are not part of reproduction 421 sex guilt :: negative emotional feelings for having sound localization :: the process of identifying
sedative drugs :: sometimes referred to as violated culturally accepted standards of appro- where sound comes from 162
“downers,” depress activity of the central nervous priate sexual behaviour 462 specific phobia :: an intense fear of a specific
system 219 sexual orientation :: the consistent preference object, activity, or organism 647
selective attention :: involves focusing on one for sexual relations with members of the opposite spermarche :: during puberty, a male’s first ejacu-
particular event or task 140 sex (heterosexuality), same sex (homosexuality), lation of sperm 421
selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or either sex (bisexuality) 459 spontaneous recovery :: the reoccurrence of
(SSRIs) :: a class of antidepressant drugs that sexual response cycle :: the phases of physiolog- a previously extinguished conditioned response,
block the reuptake of the neurotransmitter sero- ical change during sexual activity, which com- typically after some time has passed since extinc-
tonin 696 prises four primary stages: excitement, plateau, tion 231
self-actualization :: the drive to grow and fulfill orgasm, and resolution 458 SSRIs :: see selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors 696
one’s potential 533 sexual scripts :: the set of rules and assump- stable attributions :: thoughts like “it’s never
self-awareness :: the ability to recognize one’s tions about the sexual behaviours of males and going to change”; coming to see a situation as
individuality 414 females 461 permanent and irreversible 689
self-determination theory :: an individual’s shaping :: a procedure in which a specific oper- standard deviation :: a measure of variability
ability to achieve their goals and attain psycho- ant response is created by reinforcing successive around the mean 68
logical well-being is influenced by the degree to approximations of that response 251 Stanford-Binet test :: a test intended to measure
which he or she is in control of the behaviours short-term memory (STM) :: a memory store innate levels of intelligence 354
necessary to achieve those goals 471 with limited capacity and duration (less than a state :: a temporary physical or psychological
self-efficacy :: an individual’s confidence that he minute) 273 engagement that influences behaviour 501
or she can plan and execute a course of action in signal detection theory :: whether a stimulus is statistical significance :: the means of the groups
order to solve a problem 471 perceived depends on both sensory experience are farther apart than you would expect them to
self-fulfilling prophecies :: a first impression (or and judgment made by the subject 135 be by random chance alone 70
an expectation) affects one’s behaviour, and then single-blind study :: a study in which partici- stereotype :: a cognitive structure, a set of beliefs
that affects other people’s behaviour, leading one pants do not know the true purpose of the study, about the characteristics that are held by mem-
to “confirm” the initial impression or expecta- or else do not know which type of treatment bers of a specific social group; these beliefs func-
tion 561 they are receiving (for example, a placebo or a tion as schemas, serving to guide how we process
self-reporting :: a method in which responses are drug) 39 information about our social world 565
provided directly by the people who are being situational attributions :: see external attribu- stimulants :: a category of drugs that speed up the
studied, typically through face-to-face interviews, tion 562 nervous system, typically enhancing wakefulness
phone surveys, paper and pencil tests, and web- sleep apnea :: a disorder characterized by the and alertness 213
based questionnaires 48 temporary inability to breathe during sleep 194 STM :: see short-term memory 273
self-serving biases :: biased ways of processing sleep deprivation :: occurs when an individual storage :: the time and manner in which infor-
self-relevant information to enhance our positive cannot or does not sleep 186 mation is retained between encoding and
self-evaluation 562 sleep displacement :: occurs when an individual retrieval 288
semantic memories :: declarative memories that is prevented from sleeping at the normal time stores :: retain information in memory without
include facts about the world 280 although she may be able to sleep earlier or later using it for any specific purpose 271
semantic network :: an interconnected set of in the day than usual 187 strange situation :: a way of measuring infant
nodes (or concepts) and the links that join them social anxiety disorder :: a very strong fear of attachment by observing how infants behave
to form a category 316 being judged by others or being embarrassed or when exposed to different experiences that
semantics :: the study of how people come to humiliated in public 649 involve anxiety and comfort 413
understand meaning from words 339 social contagion :: the often subtle, unintentional stress :: a psychological and physiological reac-
sensation :: the process of detecting external spreading of a behaviour as a result of social inter- tion that occurs when perceived demands exceed
events by sense organs and turning those stimuli actions 596 existing resources to meet those demands 599
into neural signals 132 social desirability (or socially desirable structural neuroimaging :: a type of brain scan-
sensitive period :: a window of time during responding) :: research participants respond ning that produces images of the different struc-
which exposure to a specific type of environmen- in ways that increase the chances that they will be tures of the brain 123
tal stimulation is needed for normal development viewed favourably 36 structuralism :: an attempt to analyze conscious
of a specific ability 393 social facilitation :: occurs when one’s perfor- experience by breaking it down into basic ele-
sensorimotor stage :: from birth to two years, mance is affected by the presence of others 543 ments, and to understand how these elements
a time during which infants’ thinking about and social loafing :: occurs when an individual puts less work together 20
exploration of the world are based on immedi- effort into working on a task with others 542 Substance P :: a neurotransmitter involved in the
ate sensory (e.g., seeing, feeling) and motor (e.g., social norms :: the (usually unwritten) guidelines experience of pain 100
grabbing, mouthing) experiences 407 for how to behave in social contexts 542 superego :: comprised of our values and moral
sensory adaptation :: the reduction of activity social roles :: are more specific sets of expec- standards 524
in sensory receptors with repeated exposure to tations for how someone in a specific position sympathetic nervous system :: responsible
a stimulus 133 should behave 551 for the fight-or-flight response of an increased
sensory memory :: a memory store that accu- social-cognitive theory :: explains hypnosis by heart rate, dilated pupils, and decreased sali-
rately holds perceptual information for a very emphasizing the degree to which beliefs and expec- vary flow—responses that prepare the body for
brief amount of time 272 tations contribute to increased suggestibility 200 action 107
serial position effect :: in general, most people soma :: see cell body 93 synapses :: the microscopically small spaces that
will recall the first few items from a list and the somatic nervous system :: consists of nerves separate individual nerve cells 96
last few items, but only an item or two from the that control skeletal muscles, which are responsi- synaptic cleft :: the minute space between the axon
middle 275 ble for voluntary and reflexive movement; it also terminal (terminal button) and the dendrite 97

G-10 :: Glossary
synaptic pruning :: the loss of weak nerve cell tolerance :: when repeated use of a drug results symptoms from more than one type of schizo-
connections 402 in a need for a higher dose to get the intended phrenia. 660
synaptogenesis :: the forming of new synaptic effect 211 unit bias :: the tendency to assume that the unit
connections 402 top-down processing :: when our perceptions of sale or portioning is an appropriate amount to
syntax :: the rules for combining words and mor- are influenced by our expectations or by our consume 448
phemes into meaningful phrases and sentences 340 prior knowledge 139 UR :: see unconditioned response 227
systematic desensitization :: gradual exposure transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) :: a US :: see unconditioned stimulus 227
to a feared stimulus or situation is coupled with procedure in which an electromagnetic pulse is validity :: the degree to which an instrument or
relaxation training 686 delivered to a targeted region of the brain in order procedure actually measures what it claims to
systems approach :: an orientation that encour- to increase or decrease its activity; it is sometimes measure 34
ages therapists to see an individual’s symptoms as used as a therapeutic technique to help treat the variability :: the degree to which scores are dis-
being influenced by many different interacting symptoms of psychological disorders like depres- persed in a distribution 67
systems 691 sion 122, 703 variable :: the object, concept, or event being
tardive dyskinesia :: a movement disorder involv- transduction :: takes place when specialized measured 33
ing involuntary movements and facial tics 698 receptors transform the physical energy of the variable-interval schedule :: the first response is
TAT :: see Thematic Apperception Test 529 outside world into neural impulses 132 reinforced following a variable amount of time 253
temporal lobes :: located at the sides of the brain transference :: a psychoanalytic process whereby variable-ratio schedule :: the number of
near the ears and are involved in hearing, lan- clients direct the emotional experiences that they responses required to receive reinforcement var-
guage, and some higher-level aspects of vision are reliving toward the therapist, rather than the ies according to an average 252
such as object and face recognition 112 original person involved in the experiences (e.g., video deficit :: young children do not learn very
teratogens :: substances, such as drugs or envi- their parents) 683 much from information presented on screens 386
ronmental toxins, that impair the process of fetal triarchic theory of intelligence :: a theory that virtual reality exposure (VRE) :: a treatment
development 396 divides intelligence into three distinct types: ana- that uses graphical displays to create an experi-
testing effect :: the finding that taking practice lytical, practical, and creative 371 ence in which the client seems to be immersed in
tests can improve exam performance, even with- trichromatic theory :: maintains that colour an actual environment 687
out additional studying 299 vision is determined by three different cone types visuospatial sketchpad :: a storage component
testosterone :: a hormone that is involved in the that are sensitive to short, medium, and long of working memory that maintains visual images
development of sex characteristics and the moti- wavelengths of light 147 and spatial layouts in a visuospatial code 278
vation of sexual behaviour 461 tricyclic antidepressants :: appear to work by Wernicke’s area :: the area of the brain
thalamus :: a set of nuclei involved in relaying blocking the reuptake of serotonin and norepi- most associated with finding the meaning of
sensory information to different regions of the nephrine 696 words 337
brain 111 two-factor theory :: patterns of physical arousal Whorfian hypothesis :: see linguistic relativity 321
Thematic Apperception Test :: (TAT) a test in and the cognitive labels we attach to them form within-subjects design :: an experimental design
which respondents are asked to tell stories about the basis of our emotional experiences 483 in which the same participants respond to all
ambiguous pictures involving various interper- Type A personality :: people who tend to be types of stimuli or experience all experimental
sonal situations 529 impatient and worry about time, and are easily conditions 52
theory :: an explanation for a broad range of obser- angered, competitive, and highly motivated 608 working memory :: a model of short-term
vations that also generates new hypotheses and inte- Type B personality :: people who are more laid remembering that includes a combination of
grates numerous findings into a coherent whole 4 back and characterized by a patient, easygoing, memory components that can temporarily store
theory of mind :: the ability to recognize the and relaxed disposition 608 small amounts of information for a short period
thoughts, beliefs, and expectations of others, and unconditioned response (UR) :: a reflexive, of time 278
to understand that these can be different from unlearned reaction to an unconditioned stimu- Young-Helmholtz theory :: see trichromatic
one’s own 415 lus 227 theory 147
thin slices of behaviour :: very small samples of unconditioned stimulus (US) :: a stimulus that zeitgeist :: refers to a general set of beliefs of a par-
a person’s behaviour 560 elicits a reflexive response without learning 227 ticular culture at a specific time in history 14
third variable problem :: the possibility that a unconscious mind :: a vast and powerful but zone of proximal development :: the set of
third, unmeasured variable is actually responsible inaccessible part of your consciousness, operating new skills that an individual is ready to attain
for a well-established correlation between two without your conscious endorsement or will to based on his or her current skill set 410
variables 50 influence and guide your behaviours 523 zygote :: the initial cell formed when the nuclei of
TMS :: see transcranial magnetic stimulation 123, undifferentiated schizophrenia :: This category egg and sperm fuse 394
703 includes individuals who show a combination of

Glossary :: G-11
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