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Write 100 words that are well written, and each response is worth 2% of your final grade and will be graded on the quality (not length) of the response

Psychology

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Write 100 words that are well written, and each response is worth 2% of your final grade and will be graded on the quality (not length) of the response. (Psychology

Field)

1. Consider the sensory systems we discussed this week: Taste and Smell (the chemical senses), Touch (and Kinesthesis), Auditory, and Vision. Was there a sensory modality you enjoyed learning about the most? Was there a sensory modality you enjoyed learning about the least? Did any of these sensory systems impress you in any way?

Bonus Question: How do you feel about the idea that our internal representation (perception) of the outside world (reality) may sometimes be inaccurate?

2. As part of our lectures on consciousness, we touched on the topic of dreaming, and discussed some possible reasons for why we have dreams at all. It seems that for as long as humans have had dreams, we have tried to find a deeper meaning in their themes and context, and the specific interpretations can differ across various societies and cultural practices. Despite limited scientific proof that our dreams can be interpreted in any meaningful way, it is interesting to learn how different cultures approach the interpretation of certain reoccurring themes.

I wonder if anybody knows any interesting ‘dream interpretations’ that they are comfortable with sharing in this discussion. Feel free to share any interpretation you’ve heard of, whether it’s one you’ve read about, or one you’ve had suggested to you by family or friends. It may be interesting to see if any common themes pop up.

Bonus Question:

We introduced a number of different types of neurotransmitters (e.g., dopamine, serotonin, glutamate, GABA, etc.) and discussed the specific effect each neurotransmitter has on the brain (Chapter 3.2). Think of a recent experience in which you behaved in a particular way (e.g., sleepy, energized, etc.), or experienced a particular emotion (e.g., happy, sad, etc.) and suggest a particular neurotransmitter that may have been involved.

3. During our discussion about memory, we described how memory is in fact not like a photograph but is an imperfect system. Memory storage is an active process, and we continue to update our long-term memories through a process called reconsolidation. The fact that information encoded after a particular event can influence our memory of that event may sometimes result in the formation of inaccurate or false memories: a phenomenon where someone incorrectly recalls the details of an event, or in extreme cases even remembers an event that did not occur.

However, we generally tend to assume our memories of particular events are

accurate. As mentioned in your textbook, this can have critical implications for decisions

based on someone's ability to recall an event, or 'eye-witness' testimonies. Can you think

of any other interesting scenarios in which an 'inaccurate' or 'false' memory may be likely

to occur, and/or have serious consequences? For example, if you and your partner each

have conflicting memories of the same event, leading to an argument about 'how it really

happened!”4. During our discussion of Emotion, we covered two theories that try to explain the

relationship between the subjective 'feeling' of an emotion, and the body's physiological

response. The James-Lange Theory of Emotion suggests our physiological reactions

(e.g., heartrate increase, changes in blood pressure, etc.) occur first, followed by the

subjective emotional experience (e.g., Feeling sad, angry, scared, etc.). On the other side,

the Cannon-Bard Theory of Emotion suggests the opposite: a subjective emotional

feeling is created by the brain, which then triggers physiological responses in the body.

Which theory do you think makes the most sense? If you think back to the last time, you

felt a strong emotion (toward a person, situation/event, etc.) does remembering how you

felt in that moment suggest to you one of these theories is more reasonable?

5. Our discussion of Personality included an introduction to the Big-Five model of

Personality (McCrae & Costa, 1987), which includes the personality factors Openness,

Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism. Can you think of a person (either a real person, fictitious character, or even yourself) who exemplifies one of these characteristics in particular? Explain why and provide some examples in your answer.

Bonus Question: In your opinion, do you think the Big-Five Model is an accurate tool for describing someone’s personality? Do you think a person’s personality can be accurately described using 5 factors, or do you believe more/less/different factors are required?

6. Our discussion of Social Cognition included the concepts of Naïve Realism, The False

Consensus Effect, Self-Serving and Ingroup biases, and the Fundamental Attribution

Error (FAE). Each of these concepts describe ways in which we interpret (potentially inaccurately or inappropriately) the world and our interactions with others. Can you think of a personal example in which one of these ways of thinking may have influenced your behaviour, or influenced the behaviour of someone you interacted with?

For example, I am often guilty of the Fundamental Attribution Error (Over-emphasizing internal attributions and under-emphasizing external attributions) when interpreting the driving abilities of others when driving my car or bike.