Understanding Intentional Shifts & Coping Strategies: Reality Concepts & Worldviews - Prof, Study notes of Psychology

Download Understanding Intentional Shifts & Coping Strategies: Reality Concepts & Worldviews - Prof and more Study notes Psychology in PDF only on Docsity! Study Guide 2 1. What is the second arrow we added to our reality concepts model? In what ways does it differ from the first arrow? The second arrow also goes from concept to reality, but unlike the first arrow, this is an intentional, active and controlled shift. The person consciously alters reality. For example, if you want to lose weight for Spring Break, instead of eating right and losing weight, you buy larger clothing to give the look and feel of weight loss. 2. How do people high and low in authoritarianism view threat in the world? What purpose does belief in a just world serve in people high versus low in authoritarianism? Which group showed the lowest life satisfaction? High authoritarians view the world with a high level of threat. JWB defends this idea because high authoritarians dislike any non-traditional lifestyles and are hostile toward out-groups, making them believe there are many bad people in the world. Because they over estimate the threat in the world, high authoritarians with no JWB tend to show lower life satisfaction and are constantly skeptical. 3. What has happened to economic inequality since 1970? What has happened to the happiness of conservatives since 1970? What has happened to the happiness of liberals since 1970? Who believes more in a just world and how does this account for the happiness findings? What does this pattern tell us about motivated top-down processing? Distance between the rich and poor has increased. Conservative has become happier. Liberals are less happy. The rationalization of inequality is a core component of conservative ideology. This helps explain why conservative on average are happier. Liberals lack the ideological rationalizations that would help them frame inequality in a positive light. Because it is active and intentional, if has the process of rationalizing the world. Conservatives are ok with the current system and believe hierarchies are good. 4. How does focusing on the future influence people's belief in a just world? Why? How does this translate into blaming an innocent victim? What does this pattern tell us about motivated top-down processing? People believe since they are doing the right thing in school and getting good grade, their future will be bright. An “innocent” victim can be blamed because they did something in their life to deserve it. Your concept is JWB so you form reality so the world is fair. 5. How did threat influence authoritarians' choice of messages to read? How did this exposure influence their attitudes? What does this pattern tell us about motivated top- down processing? Threatened authoritarian chose to read more attitude congruent articles than any other group, showed less attitude change and showed less attitude ambivalence. They still believe what they believe. Intentional and shapes how they bring in new evidence opposing their point. 6. When people were told that it was better to be an introvert or an extravert, how did this affect what they remembered about themselves or the type of people with whom they wanted to interact? What does this pattern tell us about motivated top-down processing? Depending on whether they were told extroverts or introverts were better, the person could find ways in which they matched the better category. Once the better was switched to the other type, they changed their answer of which they were. This tells us motivated top-down processing is pliable and can be easily supported and changed depending on the situation. 7. Who sees the world in more threatening terms: high or low authoritarians? How does this difference influence what they believe to be the evidence for their specific political positions and their view of the world more generally? How did this relation change when the participants' attitudes were made salient? In general, whose views of the evidence were closer to the actual values? What do these results tell us about the relation between evidence and beliefs? Both views see evidence supporting their view and ignore or alter evidence rejecting their ideas. The more salient the attitude, the less likely to change. Low authoritarians were closer to actual percentage value and did not over estimate norms as much. Salience of your belief directly influences your attitude toward opposing evidence. 8. What is the rational model? What is the rationalizing model? Which one represents the way people think they operate? Which one represents they way people operate much of the time? The rational model is thoughtful and logical interpretation of evidence to form opinion. The rational model is way we think we operate, but in fact we operate mostly in the rationalization model, thinking the thought first then rationalizing it. 9. What are three central features of the brain according to Gazzaniga? What is the interpreter? What is confabulation? How do the three features of the brain help us make sense of the interpreter and confabulation? 1. Modular: unconscious, different areas perform different activities (vision, taste, smell) 2. Parallel: we experience output of these modules simultaneously 3. Mostly unconscious: unaware of process (attractive faces) These 3 work together to produce conscious feelings. Dumfounding is immediately after asking why; Interpreter produces the confabulation; Confabulation is the answer you make up. 10. When Gazzaniga sent the command "walk" into the right hemisphere of split-brain patients, what did they do? How did they explain their behavior? What sources of information did they use to arrive at this explanation? In this context, how does understanding the causes of our own behavior relate to understanding the causes of other people's behavior? They walk and then make up a confabulation saying they were going to get a Coke. Rationalization model; you apply your own rationalization to others’ actions. 11. People can describe what/how they are feeling and they can explain why they are feeling that way. Are people generally more accurate at description or explanation? Why? People are better at describing how they are feeling than why they feel that way. Unconscious plays a big part in your feelings in a way you can’t understand. 12. What is principled reasoning? How can we tell if people are using it? What is meritocracy? How does it relate to people's explanation for their opposition to affirmative action? What really explained their opposition? Equal treatment for all. If all are being treated the same. Being graded directly on merit. AA does not take account merit, just race, gender etc. Stereotype/prejudice (unconscious) 13. When white males were asked if they supported affirmative action for women, what did they say? When they were asked if they supported affirmative action for African Americans, what did they say? What does this tell us about principled reasoning? What role did meritocracy play in their explanation? What role did stereotypes play in their