Psychology AQA A PSYA3 19TH JAN 2012

The power threat hypothesis by blalock & Dehumanization and how the two are adaptive should explain lynch mob behaviour:

For example:

Outline lynch mobs and then go into saying "two adaptive explanations are offered for this behaviour"

The power threat hypothesis and Dehumanization.

Blalock proposed the Power-threat theory suggesting that when a minority group begins to grow in power, size and status and threaten the status of the dominant group, the dominant group will intensify their efforts in the face of this threat to maintain supremacy.
The adaptive benefit of this would be...XYZ

I am writing how this would allow unified defense of the group as proposed by ridley and cooperation and antagonism of outsider groups that threaten them.

If their status or dominance lessens; they get less access to resources and thus this affects their survival and reproductive fitness. Hence such behaviour is adaptive as it fends off threats by unifying groups and attacking and eliminating threats.

Dehumanisation works by making the process of killing easier as it lowers peoples perception of victims as sub human.
Relate this to how black people were treated and called ni**ers and years of properganda about their animalistic nature made people think of them as such (dehumanising them) and then this made killing them easier.

The adaptive benefit would be allowing for rivals to be eliminated much easier as dehumanisation released people from the moral constraints of killing another individual this way.

Hows that?

war
sport events
deindividuation

expand speculative
plz

an hour and a half is WAY too short for this exam, i think that is what i will struggle most with!also feel like i cant remember stuff ahhh

also, my teacher has been saying 21 out of 24 is the minimum for an A!?!?

As an evolutionary approach, this explanation for preference of food is all based on fossil evidence and things like soil samples etc. to know the conditions our ancestors lived in. Psychologists therefore seem to jump to conclusions about things like food preferences based on evidence from the past - when other factors should be considered.

The idea of genome lag explains just this, the dietary situation our ancestors were in is a lot different to modern day humans - we can get vegetables and meat whenever we want; we have no need for such preferences




30-minute per topic is short yes, but the test is how much you can remember in a short space of time and how you apply what you can remember to formulate a good essay - separates A candidates from people who simply learn the book at a leisurely pace.

Also, 56 out of 75 has been the minimum score for an A* in the past 4 papers - that's an average of 18 out of 25 across the three topics. Now that it's out of 24, I reckon it'll still be 18 out of 24 if you're hoping for an A*, 15/16 if you're aiming for an A. I'm aiming for nothing less than 20 on the three topics though, just to be certain.

What other topics did you say you were doing? I also do aggression and gender.

aggression

Has anyone got any thoughts on what the questions are going to be?
I'm doing Bio-rhythms, Aggression and Relationships? xx

Let's start at the beginning then - what've you got surrounding the social learning theory as an explanation for human aggression?



Aggression is looking likely to be group displays as an adaptive response or genetics (based on what hasn't yet come up). Of course they could only ask one, or ask both - or ask neither in an attempt to knock us off guard.

I find the evolutionary approach to human aggression (jealously/infidelity) a lot harder than 'status' (group displays) to get my head around - obviously the two are practically the same, but the idea of sexual jealously as an adapative response just seems incredibly farfetched.

As for genetics, I have 3 studies;
Lagerspatz (biting behaviour in mice)
Miles + Carey (MZ/DZ twins reared together/apart)
Hutchings (14,000 adoptions in Denmark)
and then the role of MAOA

don't really see the need to learn any more than these 4 key AO1/2 points - you can get plenty of evaluation from the studies and rack up AO3 points by talking about determinism/reductionism/correlation/lab ex'ments/the role of nurture.

gorup display of aggression
aggression in males
aggression in females
infidely and sexual jealousey

Getting a bit late - but would be more than happy to recall essays/plans for aggression tomorrow evening, or resume on Monday?

probably See you on Monday than


This way of revision is so weird....iv never revised 'essays' before...this actually does feel like a little bit of a memory test....

probably See you on Monday than


This way of revision is so weird....iv never revised 'essays' before...this actually does feel like a little bit of a memory test....

do u wnt to recall nw

yep
i think ill recall deidividuation and aggression
wbu