PSYC 2120 Chapter Notes - Chapter 2: Cultural Evolution, Melting Pot, 2-Step Garage

• School: York University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 2120
• Professor: Ward Struthers

Document Summary

Evolution: how living things change over time pg. 40-51: domain-specific adaptations: attributes that evolved to meet a particular challenge but are not useful when dealing with other types of challenges. Humans are very intelligent beings: all beings are intelligent in the sense that they are able to read environment and respond in adaptive ways. Imagination: the possibility of possibilities: humans have greatest intelligence in terms of capacity for learning, symbolic thought, and imagination all of which allow us to alter environments to suit needs. 2: fundamentals of social behaviour: main result of symbolic thinking is that it makes language possible, language allows us to, think and communicate about people, objects, and events, learn and share systems of symbols. Increases sources of info that people use to make decisions and plan actions. Humans are motivated, goal-striving beings: motivation: process of generating and expending energy toward achieving or avoiding an outcome, can vary in strength and direction.