PSY 544 Study Guide - Winter 2018, Comprehensive Midterm Notes - Evolution, Pseudorandom Binary Sequence, Natural Selection
PSY 544
MIDTERM EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
Fall 2018
• Why do people ever forget a fae ut ofte forget aes?
• It’s ery oo for people, he strugglig to reall your ae, to lai that they
nevertheless recognize your face.
• Why?
• Why do people ever forget a fae ut ofte forget aes?
• We might be tempted by an evolutionary explanation.
Although it’s ot lear he laguage eoled, reogizig ospeifis’ faes has
certainly been an adaptive
problem for
a lot longer
than
remembering
names.
• Why do people ever forget a fae ut ofte forget names?
• We might be tempted by an evolutionary explanation.
• So, evolution may have helped create an area of the brain specialized for recognizing
faces.
• The Fusiform Face Area (FFA)
in the temporal lobes.
• There is no corresponding
area specialized for
remembering names.
• However, undoubtedly, our greater ability with faces over names also reflects basic
differences in encoding and retrieval demands of the tasks.
• Encoding: We see faces more than we hear names.
• Faces = recognition task, whereas names = recall task.
• What is the capital of Peru? vs. Is Lia the capital of Peru?
• So, while this course involves an examination of evolutionary explanations for aspects of
the human mind, we should always keep in mind that there are typically many causes of an
effect!
• Outline
B. How this course will run.
find more resources at oneclass.com
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C. Some tips for getting the most out of this course.
D. What is Evolutionary Psychology?
E. Seven misunderstandings about Evolutionary Psychology.
F. My background and approach to Evolutionary Psychology.
• What is Evolutionary Psychology?
Evolutionary psych is The application of the Theory of Evolution (ToE) to the human mind.
ToE most commonly associated with Charles Darwin
• We will elaborate on the ToE and its application throughout the course, but an outline here
will help us to address some misunderstandings at the outset.
• Particularly Because Evolutionary Psychology deals with some controversial topics (notably
sex/gender differences, and the influence of innate and evolved predispositions), we will
want to try to avoid misunderstandings throughout the course.
• How can we apply ToE to humans and address the misunderstandings
• What is the essence of the Theory of Evolution?
• At its most basic, the ToE consists of three principles:
• The ToE consists of three principles:
1. That there is variation among organisms. (In the case of Evolutionary Psychology,
among people.)
Nott everyone is exactly the same, in the case of evolutionary psychology, if we apply
the ToE to people we're saying that people vary, we're not all the same. There is
variation amongst people
• That this variation is at least partly due to inheritance. Inherited characteristics -
These characteristics that vary are partly inherited. (The implication of Evolutionary
Psychology is that we are born with predispositions to think, feel, or behave in certain
ways, as influenced by the sorts of challenges faced by our ancestors, mediated
through our genes and biology).
It is partly a predisposition for you to have a certain personality
3. That the ariatio affets orgaiss’ aility to surie ad reprodue (ko as
selection).
Variation, inheritance, and selection - we have differences, they are partly inherited,
and these differences also effect the rate at which we survive adulthood and the rate
at which we reproduce
• The Theory of Evolution in Biology
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Evolutionary psych is the application of the theory of evolution (toe) to the human mind. Nott everyone is exactly the same, in the case of evolutionary psychology, if we apply the toe to people we"re saying that people vary, we"re not all the same. There is variation amongst people: that this variation is at least partly due to inheritance. These characteristics that vary are partly inherited. (the implication of evolutionary. Psychology is that we are born with predispositions to think, feel, or behave in certain ways, as influenced by the sorts of challenges faced by our ancestors, mediated through our genes and biology). It is partly a predisposition for you to have a certain personality: that the (cid:448)ariatio(cid:374) affe(cid:272)ts orga(cid:374)is(cid:373)s" a(cid:271)ility to sur(cid:448)i(cid:448)e a(cid:374)d reprodu(cid:272)e (k(cid:374)o(cid:449)(cid:374) as selection). Whether we are talking about humans or animals the assumption is that the organs are there to help do jobs that enable you to survive or reproduce more effectively for ex.
