Chapter 3 - Social Psychology PDF

Social Affect Group 1 - PY33  Panic of 2008 an epic financial and economic collapse that cost many ordinary people their jobs, their life savings, & their homes Stock traders are expected to make rational decisions about their investments, but their emotions can influe...

Social Affect Group 1 - PY33  Panic of 2008 an epic financial and economic collapse that cost many ordinary people their jobs, their life savings, & their homes Stock traders are expected to make rational decisions about their investments, but their emotions can influence their decisions. JaulaDeArdilla – Broker #2737 – CC BY-NC-ND 2.0. Source: http://socialistworker.org/sites/default/files/images/2008/10/upiphotos884142-markets-plunge.jpg: What is affect? a psychological term used in a clinical sense to describe the experience of emotions. helps us engage in behaviors that are appropriate to our perceptions of a social situation. Our everyday experiences arouse in us a wide range of moods and emotions, both positive and negative, and these feelings have profound consequences for our lives. Emotions are particularly social, and that is why they are of such interest to social psychologists. We share our emotions with others through our social behavior & it influence our social judgment. How does affect influence our social lives? Affect can be harmful if it is unregulated or unchecked, our moods and emotions normally help us function efficiently and in a way that increases our chances of survival.  The Physiology of Affect Our emotions are determined in part by responses of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). The sympathetic nervous system also acts to release stress hormones including epinephrine and norepinephrine. We experience the activation of the SNS as arousal. Arousal is the feeling that accompanies strong emotions.  The Physiology of Affect The oldest part of our brain that controls the experience of emotion is the limbic system. The amygdala is the region in the limbic system that has connections to other bodily systems related to emotions. Basic Emotions Anger Contempt emotions that are based primarily on the arousal produced by the SNS and that do not require much cognitive processing. Disgust Fear Paul Ekman studied the expression and interpretation of the basic emotions in a variety of cultures, including those that had had almost no outside Happiness Sadness contact. Basic emotions were cross- Surprise cultural. Secondary Emotions emotions that provide us with more complex feelings about our social worlds and that are more cognitively based. ex. guilt, shame, and embarrassment  Cultural and Gender Differences in Emotional Responses Eastern Cultures emotions are more focused on other-concern experience more positive emotions when they are with others Western Cultures more focused on self-concern more likely to experience positive emotions when they are alone Women report that they are more open to feelings overall. Mood helps us to determine how we should evaluate our current situation Positive Mood will likely lead us to maintain our current activities Negative Mood suggest that we may wish to attempt to change things to improve our situation Mood states are also powerful determinants of our current well-being. Misattribution of Arousal occurs when people incorrectly label the source of the arousal that they are experiencing. Arousal becomes emotion only when it is accompanied by a label or by an explanation for the arousal (Schachter & Singer, 1962). Emotion = arousal + cognition Clover Pike High School Ms. Keely's Class Emotions, Stress, and Well-Being What is stress? Social psychologists define stress as the physical and psychological reactions that occur whenever we believe that the demands of a situation threaten our ability to respond to the threat (Lazarus, 2000; Lazarus & Folkman, 1984). Stress and the Immune Extreme social situations, such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters, or violent crimes, can lead to post- System traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which includes symptoms like anxiety, nightmares, and social withdrawal. Stress triggers increases in arousal, such as elevated heart rate, blood pressure, and the release of Emotions matter because hormones like adrenaline, preparing they influence our the body to react to threats. behavior. And there is no emotional experience that has a more powerful While short-term stress responses were beneficial for survival in influence on us than evolutionary terms, prolonged or stress. extreme stress can cause significant mental and physical harm, leading to exhaustion and potentially death.  General Adaptation Syndrome The physiologist Hans Seyle (1907–1982) created the term general adaptation syndrome to refer to the three distinct phases of physiological change that occur in response to long-term stress: alarm, resistance, and exhaustiompn Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Resistance. After a period of chronic stress Exhaustion. In this stage, the body has run out General alarm reaction. The first the body adapts to the ongoing threat and of its reserves of energy and immunity. Blood reaction to stress. The body tries to return to its normal functions. sugar levels decrease, leading to decreased releases stress hormones, Glucose levels increase to sustain energy, stress tolerance, progressive mental and and blood pressure increases. physical exhaustion, illness, and collapse. The including cortisol. body's organs begin to fail, and eventually  Figure 3.5 General Adaptation Syndrome Hans Seyle’s research on the general adaptation syndrome documented the stages of prolonged exposure to stress. The experience of stress creates both an increase in general arousal in the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and another, even more complex, system of physiological changes through the HPA axis (Figure 3.6). The HPA axis is a physiological response to stress involving interactions among the hypothalamus, the pituitary gland, and the adrenal glands. The HPA reactions to persistent stress lead to a weakening of the immune system, making us more susceptible to a variety of health problems, including colds and other diseases (Cohen & Herbert, 1996; Faulkner & Smith, 2009; Miller, Chen, & Cole, 2009; Uchino, Smith, Holt-Lunstad, Campo, & Reblin, 2007). Stress also damages our DNA, making us less likely to be able to repair wounds and respond to the genetic mutations that cause disease (Epel et al., 2006). As a result, wounds heal more slowly when we are under stress, and we are more likely to get cancer (Kiecolt-Glaser, McGuire, Robles, & Glaser, 2002; Wells, 2006). Figure 3.6 HPA Axis  Sources of Stress Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe (1967) developed a measure of some everyday life events that might lead to stress, and you can assess your own likely stress level by completing the measure in Table 3.1 and calculating your stress level by looking at Table 3.2. You might want to pay particular attention to this score because it can predict the likelihood that you will get sick. Sources of Stress  Sources of Stress Although some of the items on the Holmes and Rahe scale are major, you can see that even minor stressors add to the total score. Our everyday interactions with the environment that are essentially negative, known as daily hassles, can also create stress, as well as poorer health outcomes (Hutchinson & Williams, 2007).  Men are more likely to respond to stress with the fight-or-flight response, Responses to Stress.. which either leads them to attack or retreat from the stressor. Women are more likely to adopt a tend-and-befriend response, creating social The strongest predictor of networks for protection a physiological stress and sharing resources. response from daily hassles is the amount of negative emotion they evoke, with The tend-and-befriend hostility leading to more response, triggered by the negative health outcomes. hormone oxytocin, is healthier than fight-or- flight, avoiding the negative effects of elevated cortisol levels.  Depression and anxiety Blue Green Yellow Red Zone Zone Zone Zone Depression is an Anxiety is a Both depression People who perceive affective disorder psychological and anxiety are discrepancies involving sadness, disorder that may partially genetically between their self- low self-esteem, manifest physically inherited but are concept and their pessimism, and through symptoms also largely socially goals (ideal self) or apathy, and it such as upset determined, often duties (ought self) affects over 7 stomach, shortness caused by are more likely to million people of breath, and inadequate social experience annually in the U.S., general agitation, interactions and depression or with a higher similar to feelings of anxiety, depending incidence in women. depression. loneliness. on which standard is unmet. Clover Pike High School Ms. Keely's Class Thinking Like a Social Psychologist About Social Affect Avoid as many negative emotions as you can. Think positively do something positive for yourself every day. Believe that you can make a difference, but don’t exaggerate your ability to do so. Be aware of your stress level and work to reduce it through relaxation or other techniques if you can. Set realistic goals that you believe you can attain, and carefully regulate your emotions and behaviors as you try to reach them. Practice healthy behaviors, including aerobic exercise. People who exercise regularly may live 1 to 2 years longer than those who don’t (Paffenbarger, Hyde, Wing, & Hsieh, 1986). Avoid unhealthy activities such as smoking, drinking excessively, and unsafe sex. Develop close relationships with others, and if you can, share your problems with them. Realize—really!—that money cannot buy happiness. How to Feel Better- Coping With Negative Emotions  Daniel Wegner and his colleagues (Wegner, What Doesn't Work: Schneider, Carter, & White, 1987) directly tested whether people would be able to effectively Distorting and Supressing suppress a simple thought. They asked participants in a study to not think about a white Negative Outcomes bear for 5 minutes but to ring a bell in case they did. (Try it yourself—can you do it?) The Ignoring negative emotions doesn't make them participants were unable to suppress the go away. Problems such as stress, anxiety, or thought as instructed—the white bear kept depression persist and can negatively affect popping into mind, even when they were work, relationships, and health. instructed to avoid thinking about it. You Attempts to suppress emotions often fail, might have hadUncomfortable a similar experience when leading to a rebound effect where the emotions and needs you were dieting to focus or staying home to study return even stronger. —the chocolate bar in the kitchen cabinet or the fun time you were missing by Distracting behaviors like watching TV or reading may provide short-term relief but, in staying home kept popping into mind, extreme cases, maladaptive behaviors (e.g., Full of your disrupting negative work. emotions substance abuse or binge eating) may emerge and may react harshly as ways to escape from emotions entirely.  Pennebaker and Beall (1986) randomly assigned What Works: students to write about either the most traumatic and stressful event of their lives or to write about a trivial topic. Although the students who wrote about the traumas had higher blood pressure and more negative moods immediately after they wrote their essays, they Expressing Emotions: were also less likely to visit the student health center for illnesses during the following 6 months in Research by Pennebaker and colleagues comparison to those who wrote about more minor shows that expressing emotions, either issues. Something positive evidently occurred as through talking or writing, leads to better mental and physical health. This a result of confronting their negative experiences. expression helps people process and Other research studied individuals whose make sense of their emotions. spouses had died in the previous year, finding that the more Uncomfortable they talked about the death Studies demonstrate that people who with others,and needs the less tothey likely focus were to confront their negative emotions have fewer health issues in the long run, become ill during the subsequent year. enhanced immune system functioning, Daily writing about one’s emotional and reduced physical pain. states has also been found to increase Full system immune of negative emotions functioning (Petrie, Opening up allows individuals to seek support from others and gain a sense of and may Fontanilla, react Thomas, harshly Booth, & control over the situation. Pennebaker, 2004), and Uysal and Lu (2011) found that self-expression was associated with experiencing less physical pain.  A Better Approach: Self-Regulation learn how to control our emotions, to prevent our emotions from letting our behavior get out of control What is Self-Regulation? The process of setting goals and using our cognitive and affective capacities to reach those goals. A key component of self-regulation is managing emotions to avoid impulsive behaviors and maintain focus on long-term goals. Self-regulation requires consistent effort and is often harder under stress, anxiety, or fatigue. It can become depleted, similar to a muscle, when used excessively (Muraven & Baumeister, 2000). Blue Green Yellow Red Zone Zone Zone Zone Positive Outcomes of Self-Regulation: Improved Success: Individuals who self-regulate effectively tend to perform better academically, professionally, and socially. Delayed Gratification: The ability to delay immediate gratification for future rewards ( in Mischel’s "marshmallow test") is linked to higher SAT scores, better social skills, and superior stress coping abilities in later life. Healthier Coping Mechanisms: Self-regulation helps in resisting impulsive behaviors like overeating or reacting aggressively in stressful situations. Muraven, Tice, and Baumeister (1998) conducted a study to demonstrate that emotion regulation—that is, either increasing or decreasing our emotional responses—takes work. According to random assignment to conditions, one group (the increase-emotional- response condition) was told to really get into the movie and to express emotions in response to it, a second group was to hold back and decrease emotional responses (the decrease-emotional-response condition), and a third (control) group received no instructions on emotion regulation. Both before and after the movie, the experimenter asked the participants to engage in a measure of physical strength by squeezing as hard as they could on a hand-grip exerciser, a device used for building up hand muscles. It seems that emotion regulation does indeed take effort because the participants who had been asked to control their emotions showed significantly less ability to squeeze the hand grip after the movie than before. POSITIVE EMOTION Positive emotions counteract stress and provide emotional resilience. Thinking positively and maintaining an optimistic attitude helps in offsetting daily challenges and stressors. Optimism, self-efficacy (belief in one’s ability to achieve goals), and hardiness (resilience) are linked to better health outcomes. Optimistic individuals recover faster from illness, maintain healthier habits, and live longer. Positive emotions enhance happiness by fostering social connections, encouraging proactive coping strategies, and helping individuals maintain a sense of control over their lives. SOCIAL SUPPORT Social support has a significant impact on health and well-being. It can be defined as the perception or experience of being cared for and supported by others. Social support acts as a buffer against stress, contributing to better mental and physical health outcomes. Research shows that individuals with robust social support systems experience lower levels of depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues. The Influence of Social Support on Health and Well-being Use these icons and illustrations in your Canva Presentation. Happy designing! Do We Know What Makes Us Happy? The graph shows personal income has steadily risen, the percentage of people who describe themselves as "very happy" has remained relatively flat, which supports the idea that more wealth doesn't necessarily lead to more happiness. People tend to overestimate the impact of material wealth on their happiness. This overestimation occurs because many believe that earning more money will drastically improve their well-being. However, after reaching a certain level of financial stability— enough to cover basic needs—additional wealth contributes little to long-term happiness. Regulating Emotions to Short-term Pleasures vs. Long-term Health Risks Improve Our Health Cognitive & Emotional Regulation Maintaining our health and happiness requires Diet and Exercise effort, including resisting the temptation of risky behaviors that offer short-term emotional rewards. Being aware of the dangers, Importance of Awareness and controlling our emotions, and adopting Emotional Control healthier habits are key strategies for long- term well-being. Resilience and Adaptation  Summary The result of affect plays a major part of our everyday experiences. Basic emotions are expressed & experienced across many different cultures. Secondary emotions provide us more complex feelings. Mood determines our current situation & well-being Stress, depression, and anxiety are affective disorders influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors. Well-being is linked to positive social connections and effective self- regulation. Expressing emotions improves health; suppressing them worsens it. Managing emotions boosts success and well-being Social connections increase happiness; wealth offers limited long- term benefits.. Thank you ! Have a great day ahead.