Yale Psych 110 Exam 1 Final Study
Guide.
5 Pillars of Psychology - CORRECT ANSWER 1. Evolution: genes make brains
2. Modularity: The mind is a collection of parts
3. Idealism: minds make reality, what we see is what is infringing on our senses
4. Materialism: Brains make minds, everything u see is firing of neurons
5. Empiricism: believe only what you can count
Name three misconceptions of evolution - CORRECT ANSWER 1. Populations evolve, not individuals.
Some ppl think individuals do.
2. Populations have the potential to increase exponentially. It's just their environment that limits them.
3. Heritable features that increase the odds of reproduction will tend to accumulate in subsequent
generations, not just abt the desirable traits that elongate life. Think dark peppered moth story.
naturallistic fallacy - CORRECT ANSWER Says things are right because they are natural. This is false
because describing the world the way it "is" does not equal how it "ought" to be. ex- just because an
animal eats its young does not mean we should be cannibals
deterministic fallacy - CORRECT ANSWER Says things are inevitable because they are natural. This is false
because we can disobey our genes. Think science! ex- Just because we are given poor eyesight does not
mean it is inevitable--we wear glasses as a result, and fix it. We correct tendencies we aren't happy with
Nature vs nuture... correct? - CORRECT ANSWER this tries to separate nature, but really the two cannot
be separated (nature x nurture, nature via. nurture).
The environment an organism grows up in can determine how they'll turn out; development is a source
of non-genetic variability that makes it difficult to determine what one will turn out like.
ex- language. we have genes that make it possible to learn language, but we still need to learn from
others. but if we didn't have those genes, we wouldn't be able to learn it.
,ex 2- fish have gills as a direct affect from the environment
teology - CORRECT ANSWER says things are always directed toward improvement, which is not true
because evolution does not entail getting 'better' (smarter, faster, etc.), it's rooted in fitness (improving
ability to have more offspring).
This is in part rooted in "The Great Chain of Being" -- each step that follows adds properties the previous
did not have, but this is not the way evolution operates.
ex- it's hard to say we're better/more directed than cockroaches. 50% of individuals will have back
problems as they age, but it won't happen early enough to affect reproduction
Examples of the environment x evolutionary change - CORRECT ANSWER 1. Austin powers: goes to the
future and can't adapt to the rapid change in human culture
2. Ancestral past: we knew everyone, and now we don't, and it's part of our evolutionary history
3. Craving fatty / sweet foods: high in calorie content, now we have unlimited access to it whereas used
to be difficult to get them --> obesity, diabetes
Example of natural selection being complicated - CORRECT ANSWER we have on of the most complex
visual systems, and it's an example that the process of evolution can be insanely complicated.
Evolutionary psychology - CORRECT ANSWER tries to understand how natural selection has operated in
service of our evolutionary mind
What, deep down, do we really want? - CORRECT ANSWER we want to reproduce, even unconsciously
what are we ignoring when thinking about sex and attraction? - CORRECT ANSWER we are ignoring
cultural drivers which can completely change how you act because we are focusing on broad
populations
Males: costs of reproduction - CORRECT ANSWER 1. cheap and unlimited sperm
2. a few minutes of missed opportunities
, 3. low physical cost or risk
Females: costs of reproduction - CORRECT ANSWER 1. expensive & limited eggs
2. weeks or months of missed opportunities
3. high costs and risks of pregnancy
What are women considered in reproduction? - CORRECT ANSWER the "choosier" sex--more selective
than men
Women: the right stuff - CORRECT ANSWER 1. has good genes
2. can secure resources (think about time and energy as a hunter gatherer, women can't do this while
pregnant)
3. will stick around (to share those resources)
Men: the right stuff - CORRECT ANSWER 1. has good genes
2. is fertile (not already pregnant)
3. will have sex with them
note about men/women's right stuff - CORRECT ANSWER this is what you get at the broad population
level, ignoring variability
What is attractive? List 4 and explain why. - CORRECT ANSWER 1. bilateral symmetry
2. typicality (having average face size = trustworthiness, we've evolved to trust what we're most
comfortable with.
3. hourglasses for women (associated w/ fertility--"the three muses" over 2,000 years, similar hip to
waste ratio of .7 bc on average women are more likely to bear healthier children altho we don't realize
this consciously)
4. triangles in men (dominance)
why older men and younger women? - CORRECT ANSWER Women: they consider status more imp., rly
looking for right stuff->stability, resources, safety.
Guide.
5 Pillars of Psychology - CORRECT ANSWER 1. Evolution: genes make brains
2. Modularity: The mind is a collection of parts
3. Idealism: minds make reality, what we see is what is infringing on our senses
4. Materialism: Brains make minds, everything u see is firing of neurons
5. Empiricism: believe only what you can count
Name three misconceptions of evolution - CORRECT ANSWER 1. Populations evolve, not individuals.
Some ppl think individuals do.
2. Populations have the potential to increase exponentially. It's just their environment that limits them.
3. Heritable features that increase the odds of reproduction will tend to accumulate in subsequent
generations, not just abt the desirable traits that elongate life. Think dark peppered moth story.
naturallistic fallacy - CORRECT ANSWER Says things are right because they are natural. This is false
because describing the world the way it "is" does not equal how it "ought" to be. ex- just because an
animal eats its young does not mean we should be cannibals
deterministic fallacy - CORRECT ANSWER Says things are inevitable because they are natural. This is false
because we can disobey our genes. Think science! ex- Just because we are given poor eyesight does not
mean it is inevitable--we wear glasses as a result, and fix it. We correct tendencies we aren't happy with
Nature vs nuture... correct? - CORRECT ANSWER this tries to separate nature, but really the two cannot
be separated (nature x nurture, nature via. nurture).
The environment an organism grows up in can determine how they'll turn out; development is a source
of non-genetic variability that makes it difficult to determine what one will turn out like.
ex- language. we have genes that make it possible to learn language, but we still need to learn from
others. but if we didn't have those genes, we wouldn't be able to learn it.
,ex 2- fish have gills as a direct affect from the environment
teology - CORRECT ANSWER says things are always directed toward improvement, which is not true
because evolution does not entail getting 'better' (smarter, faster, etc.), it's rooted in fitness (improving
ability to have more offspring).
This is in part rooted in "The Great Chain of Being" -- each step that follows adds properties the previous
did not have, but this is not the way evolution operates.
ex- it's hard to say we're better/more directed than cockroaches. 50% of individuals will have back
problems as they age, but it won't happen early enough to affect reproduction
Examples of the environment x evolutionary change - CORRECT ANSWER 1. Austin powers: goes to the
future and can't adapt to the rapid change in human culture
2. Ancestral past: we knew everyone, and now we don't, and it's part of our evolutionary history
3. Craving fatty / sweet foods: high in calorie content, now we have unlimited access to it whereas used
to be difficult to get them --> obesity, diabetes
Example of natural selection being complicated - CORRECT ANSWER we have on of the most complex
visual systems, and it's an example that the process of evolution can be insanely complicated.
Evolutionary psychology - CORRECT ANSWER tries to understand how natural selection has operated in
service of our evolutionary mind
What, deep down, do we really want? - CORRECT ANSWER we want to reproduce, even unconsciously
what are we ignoring when thinking about sex and attraction? - CORRECT ANSWER we are ignoring
cultural drivers which can completely change how you act because we are focusing on broad
populations
Males: costs of reproduction - CORRECT ANSWER 1. cheap and unlimited sperm
2. a few minutes of missed opportunities
, 3. low physical cost or risk
Females: costs of reproduction - CORRECT ANSWER 1. expensive & limited eggs
2. weeks or months of missed opportunities
3. high costs and risks of pregnancy
What are women considered in reproduction? - CORRECT ANSWER the "choosier" sex--more selective
than men
Women: the right stuff - CORRECT ANSWER 1. has good genes
2. can secure resources (think about time and energy as a hunter gatherer, women can't do this while
pregnant)
3. will stick around (to share those resources)
Men: the right stuff - CORRECT ANSWER 1. has good genes
2. is fertile (not already pregnant)
3. will have sex with them
note about men/women's right stuff - CORRECT ANSWER this is what you get at the broad population
level, ignoring variability
What is attractive? List 4 and explain why. - CORRECT ANSWER 1. bilateral symmetry
2. typicality (having average face size = trustworthiness, we've evolved to trust what we're most
comfortable with.
3. hourglasses for women (associated w/ fertility--"the three muses" over 2,000 years, similar hip to
waste ratio of .7 bc on average women are more likely to bear healthier children altho we don't realize
this consciously)
4. triangles in men (dominance)
why older men and younger women? - CORRECT ANSWER Women: they consider status more imp., rly
looking for right stuff->stability, resources, safety.
