Download Introduction to Psychology

Myers’ EXPLORING
PSYCHOLOGY
(6th Ed)
Chapter 4
The Nature and Nurture
Of Behavior
Genes: Our Biological
Blueprint
 _________________
 threadlike structures made of DNA that
contain the genes
 __________________
 complex molecule containing the genetic
information that makes up the chromosomes
 has two strands-forming a “double helix”- held
together by bonds between pairs of
nucleotides
Genes: Our Biological
Blueprint
 _________________
 biochemical units of heredity that
make up the chromosomes
 a segment of DNA capable of
synthesizing a protein
Genes: Their Location
and Composition
Nucleus
Cell
Chromosome
Gene
DNA
Evolutionary Psychology
 _________________
 Charles Darwin
 Galapagos Islands
 Finch’s (Beak Size)
 Impact on biology
 Recent trends in Evolutionary
Psychology
Evolutionary Psychology
 __________________
 the principle that, among the range of
inherited trait variations, those that lead to
increase reproduction and survival will most
likely be passed on to succeeding generations
 Mutation
 a random error in gene replication that leads
to genetic damage
Evolutionary Psychology
 Handout of Traits That Will Lead To More
Reproduction (Class Participation)
 _________________
 the study of the evolution of behavior and the
mind, using the principles of natural selection
Evolutionary Psychology
 Ask the Class
 In one study ___ percent of adult video
customers were female.
 Most romance novel readers are female.
 Men ___% Women ___% “If 2 people really
like each other its ok for them to have sex
even if they have known each other a very
short time.”
Evolutionary Psychology
 Poll the Class
 More women mention affection as a reason
for having first sexual intercourse,
 Think about sex multiple times per day.
Men ___% and Women ____%
 More likely to attribute friendliness to sexual
interest.
 More likely to initiate sexual activity.
Evolutionary Psychology
 Men preferred __________________
suggesting youth and health
 Women preferred __________________
Behavior Genetics
 _______________
 study of the relative power and limits of
genetic and environmental influences on
behavior
 Environment
 every nongenetic influence, from
prenatal nutrition to the people and
things around us
Behavior Genetics
Identical
twins
Fraternal
twins
 _______________
 develop from a single
fertilized egg that splits in
two, creating two
genetically identical
organisms
 _______________
Same
sex only
Same or
opposite sex
 develop from separate eggs
 genetically no closer than
brothers and sisters, but
they share the fetal
environment
Twin and Adoption Studies
 Twin Studies
 Identical twins tend to share similar
personalities
 _____________________
 Think Critically: What are the Implications?
 Story of the two Jim’s
 Page 75
Twin and Adoption Studies
 Adoption Studies
 People who grow up together whether
related or not do not resemble each other
much.
 What does this suggest about parenting?
 Parenting plays a smaller role than initially
suspected.
 ______________________________
 Parents make a difference in their ability to
provide enriching environments.
Environmental
Influence
 Experience affects brain development
Impoverished
environment
Rat brain
cell
Enriched
environment
Rat brain
cell
Behavior Genetics
 ________________
 a person’s characteristic emotional
reactivity and intensity
 Interaction
 the effect of one factor (such as the
environment) depends on another factor
(such as heredity)
Environmental
Influence
 _____________
 the enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, and
traditions shared by a large group of people
and transmitted from one generation to the
next
 ____________
 an understood rule for accepted and expected
behavior
 Personal Space
 the buffer zone we like to maintain around our
bodies
The Nature and
Nurture of Gender
 X Chromosome
 the sex chromosome found in both men and
women
 females have _____; males have one
 an X chromosome from each parent produces
a female child
 Y Chromosome
 the sex chromosome found only in men
 when paired with an X chromosome from the
mother, it produces a male child
The Nature and
Nurture of Gender
 __________________
 the most important of the male sex hormones
 both males and females have it
 additional testosterone in males stimulates
 growth of male sex organs in the fetus
 development of male sex characteristics during
puberty
 Role
 a set of expectations (norms) about a social position
 defining how those in the position ought to behave
The Nature and
Nurture of Gender
 Gender
 in psychology, the characteristics, whether
biologically or socially influenced, by which people
define male and female
 Gender Role
 a set of expected behaviors for males and females
 ______________
 one’s sense of being male or female
 Gender-Typing
 the acquisition of a traditional masculine or feminine
role
The Nature and
Nurture of Gender
The Nature and
Nurture of Gender
 ___________________
 theory that we learn social behavior by
observing and imitating and by being
rewarded or punished
 Gender Schema Theory
 theory that children learn from their cultures
a concept of what it means to be male and
female and that they adjust their behavior
accordingly
The Nature and
Nurture of Gender
 Two theories of gender typing