PSYC 30 Lecture Notes - Lecture 22: Stanley Schachter, Thermostat
23 Dec 2020
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Document Summary
As social beings, humans are drawn to each other. We work together, play together, live together, and often make lifetime commitments to grow old together. This social motivation begins with the need for affiliation, defined as a desire to establish social contact with others. Individuals differ in the strength of their need for affiliation, but it seems that people are motivated to establish and maintain an optimum balance sometimes craving company, sometimes want to be alone. Bibb latane and carol werner found that laboratory rats were more likely to approach others of their species after a period of isolation and were less likely to approach others after prolonged contact. These researchers suggested that rats, like many other animals, have a built-in sociostat (social thermostat) to regulate their affiliative tendencies. Shawn o"connor and lorne rosenblood recruited students to carry portable beepers for four days.
