PSYCH 3F03 Lecture Notes - Ontogeny, Amygdala, Adaptationism

• School: McMaster University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYCH 3F03
• Professor: Paul W Andrews

Document Summary

Investigating the components of organisms in the light of hypothesis about their adaptive functions: highlight different ways of explaining different reasons for biological traits. Tinbergen"s four modes of explanations: proximate causations ( neurochemical, mechanisms ) Feel fear when amygdala gets activated: ontogeny ( individual development) How the mechanism developed over the course of the organism. Fertilized egg did not have a fear mechanism but developed later on ( example: phylogeny ( Where did the mechanism first evolve: function (ultimate causation) Why from a selective stand point the fear mechanism exists. The adaptive consequences that are responsible for the attribute"s having evolved and being maintained . Adaptationism really about the functional analysis: by using the logic of ns, adaptationism generates interesting predictions about behaviour and cognition that are not otherwise possible, gives insight into proximate mechanisms. Gave men white t shirts to wear. Women to rate the pleasantness of men"s odour.