PSYCH 104 Lecture Notes - Lecture 31: Syphilis, Psych, Solanine
Document Summary
People who learn the norms or rules of their society and follow them are more likely to survive than people who don"t. French farmers in the 1600s thought potatoes caused not only leprosy, but also syphilis, narcosis early death, sterility, and rampant sexuality . Sir walter raleigh introduced potatoes to ireland and subsequently poisoned the queen elizabeth i"s royal court (solanine) Why we help: insight from social exchange theory: helping motivated by self-interest may stem from our desire to maximize our rewards and minimize our costs. When helping is too costly, we don"t do it. Pros and cons of helping: bene ts of helping. Decrease distress felt when seeing someone in need. Reciprocation of help: costs of helping. Empathy is the ability to experience events and emotions the way another person experiences them. Pure altruism is thought to occur when we feel empathy for the person in need.