Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 1 1) To answer this question, we can jump back to the passage and do a quick recap of Phase 1 and what the participants were asked to do. Something I want you to note: I’m not going through the answer choices just yet. I’m going to try and break down the question using the passage and my general knowledge of the behavioral content. Why is that? I don’t want the answers making me biased as I go through them. This way, I’m not being influenced by the possible answers or trying to justify an answer even though it may be incorrect. Here we have the part of the passage that talks about phase 1. I want you to focus on what the participants were asked to do. It says “Participants were instructed to repeat immediately any digits they heard in the attended ear.” We can look at this within the context of the entire phase. The digits come in to the relevant ear, and the participants have to recall and repeat the digits they heard in the attended ear, and within the stream of bisyllabic words. The key here is what the participants have to do next. They’re asked to recall, and then immediately repeat the appropriate digits from the attended ear, to the researchers. Now in theory, we should be done. Hopefully there’s an answer choice that mentions that sentence or something along the lines of “recalling digits from attended ear and repeating those digits”. We’re going to go through the answer choices one by one, and methodically eliminate incorrect answer choices.
2) The passage talked about there being more intrusion errors in certain circumstances, so we can quickly reference what the author says.  Here we have an excerpt from the passage, and we’re concerned with the topic on our content outline titled: Brain Areas That Control Language and Speech. I also added a nice visual right below. The passage says Most intrusions of digits from the unattended ear occurred when participants were instructed to attend to the left ear. Intrusions are the opposite of omissions. An intrusion related to the right ear would mean one of the incorrect digits heard in the right ear was recalled and repeated. That’s despite the fact the participants were instructed to attend to the left ear. The digit from the unattended, right ear was not meant to be repeated, but it was mistakenly. We have to think about the input that comes into each ear, and travels to our brains. Sound is similar to vision, in that input coming into the left side (or left ear in this case), is going to go to the right hemisphere, and vice versa. Is that going to cause any problems for us, or would that explain the discrepancy in intrusion errors? Well, think about it this way: think big picture and more generically. Which side of the brain is responsible for language and speech? It’s the left side, or left hemisphere. Look at the image right below the excerpt. If we have input traveling into the left ear, that input goes to the right hemisphere of the brain. That’s all well and good, but we said the left hemisphere is the side we associate with being responsible for language and speech. Looking at this from the other perspective: the input that goes into the right ear, then travels to the left hemisphere, will be processed in that same hemisphere. That should theoretically produce fewer errors.
3) As we read through the passage, we focused on some correlations, and we want to be careful to pick an answer choice that is NOT suggested by those correlations. Be careful with the verbiage here. Ultimately, this comes down to eliminating 3 answer choices that’re consistent with the passage. Our correct answer is going to be the odd-one-out. We have an excerpt from the passage, and the last bit here says There was a strong negative correlation between the number of errors in Phase 2 and the successful completion of pilot training. Then last sentence here says The number of errors in Phase 2 had low correlations with all other tests used for pilot selection. There it is! We have our correlations. For the first sentence a high number of errors correlates to a low success rate in pilot training. A low number of errors correlates to a higher success rate in pilot training. Negative correlation. For the last sentence, we have a low correlation. A low correlation isn’t the same as a negative correlation. A low correlation just means there isn’t as clear of a relationship between the variables. To summarize our correlations: the number of errors in Phase 2 correlated to whether the pilot completes the training or not. The number of errors does not correlate with other tests used for pilot selection.
4) To answer this question, we have to ask: what can measuring the ability to redirect attention tell us about accident rates in bus drivers? We can focus on Phase 2 because we’re focused on redirecting attention, which is something we just focused on in our last question. That was what the researchers looked at in Phase 2. Errors in phase 2 were obviously bad. We said a high number of errors correlated to not completing pilot training. The opposite is also true. A lower number of errors correlated to successful completion of pilot training.
5) To answer this question, we can go back to what we read in the passage. The purpose of the experiment is to develop or find a standardized test that can identify cadets that will be most proficient in flying. They want to weed out the bad candidates, and just be left with the best prospects. Let’s think back: Phase 1 asked participants to shadow their attended ear, and Phase 2 involved maintaining attention or reorienting attention. Ultimately, the task found a strong, negative correlation between the number of errors in Phase 2 and completion of the training. Said differently, the task weeded out the worst candidates.
6) Said differently, what cognitive process was used in Phase 1? This is almost like a pseudo discrete, so make sure you know your vocab for this section! We know the flight cadets were required to repeat certain digits in Phase 1. Question 1 in this set was actually about this process also. We said the cadets were required to shadow the attended ear and only recall and repeat specific digits. They were expected to ignore any digits in the non-attended ear, and any extra words between the digits.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 2 7) This answer is going to come from going back to table 1 in the passage. There was a lot of data, so we can theoretically make an infinite number of observations, so we’ll look at the data while going through the 4 options presented to us.
8) In other words, why did researchers pick from such a specific group of people for their sample? We’ll have to think about why the researchers only picked women from the same city and socioeconomic status. In research, you have variables. You can either control or measure these variables, and you can see the relationships between variables. When you’re researching something though, you have to think about any other variables that could affect your results. In this study, the researchers decided to minimize any outside factors like growing up in different cities or states. We also said in our readthrough, that by choosing only women that have low socioeconomic status, the researchers can try and ensure a similar background for the mothers. This allows the researchers to focus on their variables of interest.
9) The passage mentioned measuring IQ scores of the children at age 6, but this is a pseudo-discrete question. We’re going to recall what we know about IQ scores and their distribution in a population. IQ is used to quantitatively measure intelligence. Average IQ is 100 and standard deviation is 15 points. We also know the majority of the population falls within one standard deviation of the mean. Meaning 68% of the population falls within that 85 to 115 range. Even with newer IQ tests, that score scale and breakdown remains roughly the same.
10) To answer this question, we want to pick the brain area least involved in the abilities from Paragraph 1. The behavioral section tests biology concepts as they relate to mental processes and behavior. That’s exactly what we’re looking for here. Numbers 1-3 all involve different issues that aren’t necessarily abilities. Number 4 gets into actual abilities: discrimination learning, and attention skills. We want the brain area least involved in learning and attention abilities. That means we can also rule out brain areas that deal with memory like the hippocampus, neo-cortex, and amygdala. Those are related to these abilities.
11) This question implies we’ll be given 4 experimental observations and we want one that supports the hypothesis that when a pregnant primate is administered cocaine, cocaine is pharmacologically active in the fetal brain. We’ll have to know some general information about cocaine, and how it’s typically metabolized and seen in the body. Cocaine is a stimulant that rapidly enters the bloodstream and penetrates the brain. It ultimately causes a buildup of dopamine. That’s the high people get; people experience increased pleasure and motivation. We know this elevated level of dopamine buildup is problematic. But for this question, we’re only focused on the mechanism. Let’s break down the 4 experimental observations.
12) In other words, which answer choice describes a neurotransmitter? From the passage, we have to recall cocaine exposure during pregnancy alters the function of dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine (3 neurotransmitters). The author mentions this in the first sentence, but the answer is ultimately going to come from our general knowledge. This is like a pseudo-discrete question, or standalone question. We’re picking the characteristic that describe neurotransmitters.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Questions 13-17 13) This is a standalone question which typically involves relying on external knowledge. There’s no associated passage, so the test-maker is testing how well you can read the question and utilize information from AAMC’s content outline. We can break down what we know about operant conditioning: it’s a type of associative learning process through which the strength of a behavior is modified by reinforcement or punishment. When we deal with operant conditioning, we think of shaping which involves a calculated reinforcement of a “target behavior”: it uses operant conditioning principles to train a subject by rewarding proper behavior and discouraging improper behavior. The method requires that the subject perform behaviors that at first merely resemble the target behavior; through reinforcement, these behaviors are gradually changed or “shaped” to encourage the target behavior itself. Note, in the context of operant conditioning, whether you are reinforcing or punishing a behavior, “positive” always means you are adding a stimulus (not necessarily a good one), and “negative” always means you are removing a stimulus (not necessarily a bad one). Let’s use this information and jump into our four options.
14) It’s important to keep the key points straight here. We have two children with different parents. These children are adopted very young, so extremely early in their development. We want to look at heredity as a determiner of intelligence, so we’d think about the transmission of genetic information more than the subsequent environment.
15) To answer this question, we can visualize what’s happening. We have an animal trainer dealing with a rabbit, but this is no ordinary rabbit! This rabbit is going to be a television star in a commercial. While it might be easy to train this rabbit in a calm environment away from distractions, we have to know what the trainer will have to avoid when training this rabbit for a television commercial. What does that entail? Actors, cameras, and a lot of commotion. We have to make sure the rabbit remembers its training and doesn’t follow its animal instincts and accidentally go “off-script.”
16) We’ve all been in this situation. We forget something in our car or our house, we walk away, and then realize the mistake we made. That’s when a big decision must be made. Do we go back and get it, or do we keep walking? The person in our question stem made the easy choice. He felt he’d come too far, so he kept going into the store. Why did he only remember items from the two ends of the list? This is a classic vocabulary question. By thinking about a string of events or even words, it is possible to use a previous memory to cue the next item in the series. This can sometimes lead to serial-position effect which is the tendency of a person to recall the first and last items in a series best, and the middle items worst.
17) This question is asking us which of the 4 answer choices will not be diminished as a person ages. Three of the answers will decline with age, while one will either remain unchanged or improve. Things like implicit memories and recognition will not diminish. Semantic memory, emotional reasoning, and crystallized intelligence can improve over time. Alternatively, things like episodic memory, recall, and prospective memory tend to decrease over time. We want something from the former list.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 3 18) To answer this question, we’re focused on how memories typically work, versus how this reminiscence bump occurs with music. The author says older adults have better memory for events that occurred when they were between 10- and 30-years old, than during any other time period. Why is that atypical? It’s typically easier to remember recent events than those further in the past. Those further memories tend to decay and fade away over time. We expect the adults to have better memory for the most recent events that occurred.
19) To answer this question, we’ll rely on vocabulary. Vocab is a huge part of this section. Often, you’ll see pseudo-discrete questions or pseudo-standalones. Even though the test-maker might ask you about something related to the passage, you don’t technically need a lot of information from the passage to answer. We’re dealing with personal, long-term memories. First of all, we should distinguish between implicit and explicit memories. Explicit memories we can consciously remember or recall. These include episodic memories of events/experiences, and semantic memories of common knowledge or concepts. Implicit memories are less conscious. They include procedural memories like how to ride a bike and emotional conditioning. We’re looking for an answer choice that mentions explicit, or declarative memories.
20) To answer this question, we want to summarize the correlations from the study, but within the context of the participants. We have an excerpt from the passage here, it says “Number of personal memories was positively correlated with the percentage of songs recognized and with whether participants liked the songs.” This is the main correlation studied in the passage, and it’s consistent with pretty much everything else the author says up to this point.
21) This is a very open-ended question, meaning we’ll likely go through our answer choices and consider each one within the context of the passage.
22) To answer this question, we can go back to our results and see why we observe two reminiscence bumps. We know from the passage, adults recognize the music that they encountered during their late adolescence and early adulthood more easily than music they encountered later. That’s the usual reminiscence effect. But we also have a second reminiscence effect base on when their parents were between 20 and 25 years of age. We’re told that over time, participants’ memories shifted from listening to music chosen by their parents to music chosen by themselves and peers. We want an answer choice that explains this shift.
23) This answer is going to come from knowing the definition of reminiscence bump in the passage and relating it to behavioral vocab words. Reminiscence bump in the passage is related to the fact that older adults have better memory for events that occurred when the subject was between 10 and 30-years old. There’s also a second reminiscence bump for music when parents were between ages 20 and 25. Despite the fact adults are older, they still remember music from when they were in that 10 to 30-year old range. Even more easily than the music they encounter later.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 4 24) We can go back to the passage and see where the author talks about this specific stimulus. Just like so many other psych/soc questions, this ultimately comes down to knowing your vocab. It says in many cases, people’s perceptions of objects, scenes, and events in the world differ from the stimulus that is registered by the sensory receptors. We’re focused on the stimulus mentioned in the last bit of the sentence. Let’s break down the whole process. There’s an object, scene, or event in the external world. But that’s not what’s being registered by the sensory receptors. Instead, that object or event will reflect light or energy. It’s that light or energy that excites our sensory receptors. We’re focused specifically on that light that actually excites our receptors, and leads to perception.
25) We’ll pull up column D and we’ll use our vocab to explain why we see the items grouped in columns. We have Figure 1 from the passage here. We’re focused on Panel D. And the author says here, people tend to see the items arranged in columns of squares and circles, rather than rows of alternating shapes. Said differently, all we’re doing here is finding a vocab word that matches this grouping. We can look at Gestalt laws of grouping. We’re naturally perceiving organized columns of circle and square columns. This specific example is the Law of similarity. Similar elements are perceptually grouped. We also see the classic example of the figure-ground law in C. But for our sake, we’re going to stick with the Law of similarity.
26) We want to actually group the principles of perceptual organization in Paragraph 1 into a single psychological theory. I’m sure a lot of you picked up on the fact that we did this in our last question; this is a straight vocabulary question. Gestalt laws of grouping explain how humans naturally perceive stimuli as organized patterns and objects. That’s exactly what we’re doing in the passage, and for our last question.
27) From the 4 experiences given in the answers, we want to find the one that’s not related to the principles of perceptual organization described in the passage. Again, another vocab-heavy question. We don’t know what any of the experiences are just yet, and predicting every possible experience isn’t feasible. We’re going to jump into our question, but with the mindset of relating the experience to the principles of perceptual organization that were described in the passage.
28) To answer this question, we want a methodology that can assess our perception of stimuli like the ones in Panel A. That means revisit Panel A, then we’ll jump into different methodologies using our general knowledge. We want to show how perceptual illusions, like the one in panel A, impact our judgments of the nature of stimuli. We have Panel A up top. We also have the part of the passage that talks about panel A. It says the introduction of other stimuli around the perimeter of two central dots, as shown in Panel A, can lead to the misperception of the central dot in the left half of the figure as being smaller than the central dot in the right half of the figure. We’re interested in how we can assess the impact on our judgment here. There’s obviously an illusion going on. Despite the central dots being the same size, we perceive the right central dot as bigger. We’re looking for the methodology that can assess the impact on our judgment in this situation. This is all going to be vocab-based.
29) To answer this question, we have to determine which part of panel A can impact our judgment and decision-making, but are not an actually a part of those processes. We’re picking from 4 possible perceptual experiences that are illustrated in panel A; we’re ultimately relying on our vocab to decide which answer choice is most relevant to Panel A. We have Panel A up top. We also have the part of the passage that talks about Panel A. It says the introduction of other stimuli around the perimeter of two central dots, as shown in Panel A, can lead to the misperception of the central dot in the left half of the figure as being smaller than the central dot in the right half of the figure. Adding these circles around the central dot impacts our perception.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Questions 30-34 30) This is something a lot of people can relate to unfortunately. In this case, however, we’re just identifying the vocabulary word describing the phenomenon. Let’s define our 4 terms and consider each one.
31) This is a standalone question that relies on using external knowledge. We get a little physiology here to mix with our psychology! We have to be careful with the verbiage here. The test-maker mentions a theory that hunger drive is based on a person’s interpretation of stomach contractions and satiety is based on stomach distension. Do we want an answer choice consistent with this theory? No! We want an observation that disconfirms this theory.
32) Like many other behavioral questions, specifically standalone questions, this is going to come down to knowing your vocabulary. There’s no related passage, so we’ll go through the definition of the four answer choices and decide which one is the one described in the question stem.
33) Kohlberg defined three levels of moral development: preconventional, conventional, and postconventional. Each level has two distinct stages. Level 1: Preconventional: Throughout the preconventional level, a child’s sense of morality is externally controlled. Children accept and believe the rules of authority figures, such as parents and teachers. Level 2: Conventional: Throughout the conventional level, a child’s sense of morality is tied to personal and societal relationships. Children continue to accept the rules of authority figures, but this is now due to their belief that this is necessary to ensure positive relationships and societal order. Level 3: Postconventional: Throughout the post-conventional level, a person’s sense of morality is defined in terms of more abstract principles and values. People now believe that some laws are unjust and should be changed or eliminated. This level is marked by a growing realization that individuals are separate entities from society and that individuals may disobey rules inconsistent with their principles.
34) To answer this question, we can define operant conditioning and then jump into our four options. We’re focused on motivation. We can break down what we know about operant conditioning: it’s a type of associative learning process through which the strength of a behavior is modified by reinforcement or punishment. When we deal with operant conditioning, we think of shaping which involves a calculated reinforcement of a “target behavior”: it uses operant conditioning principles to train a subject by rewarding proper behavior and discouraging improper behavior. The method requires that the subject perform behaviors that at first merely resemble the target behavior; through reinforcement, these behaviors are gradually changed or “shaped” to encourage the target behavior itself. Note, in the context of operant conditioning, whether you are reinforcing or punishing a behavior, “positive” always means you are adding a stimulus (not necessarily a good one), and “negative” always means you are removing a stimulus (not necessarily a bad one).
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 5 35) The researchers in the studies will support a sociological perspective on health or illness, but we want to be careful that we use what’s told to us in the passage based on the verbiage in the question stem. However, we’ll likely need to use our vocab as well. We want to define the 4 answer choices, and see which one matches our criteria. We want to see if the researchers in the studies will support these sociological perspectives. Researches in Study 1 assessed whether Stroke Belt residence was linked to excess risk of stroke later on. Researchers in Study 2 did something similar, but they focused on specific age ranges and length of time. That allowed them to pinpoint specific ages that correspond to increased risk of stroke. We want a sociological perspective on health or illness that the researchers in each study would support.
36) We can go back to the passage to get some context about the responses to survey questions, but this answer is ultimately going to come from knowing content. We have excerpts from both studies in the passage here. We’re focused on validity of responses to the surveys. For Study 1 it says Data were from a longitudinal survey of adults over 50 years old. For Study 2, it says Data were from a longitudinal survey that tracked stroke incidence among adults over 45 years old. Both longitudinal surveys. A longitudinal study means researchers follow this specific population at multiple time points. That’s in contrast to a cross-sectional study that looks at one point in time. We have 50 and 45-year olds surveyed in the study. They’re asked to recall information about their residential history, meaning specific events and experiences. We want an answer choice that deals with explicit memories, and specifically episodic memories.
37) To answer this question, we have to decide which of the findings from the follow-up studies would support the hypothesis at the end of Study 1. We have an excerpt from Study 1-it’s the last paragraph that talks about the hypothesis and follow-up studies. Hypothesis is: “genetic predispositions to stroke may be more likely among people living in the SB.” The follow-up study considers twins born in SB states, but adopted by two different families. If there’s a genetic predisposition to stroke, both twins can grow up in different environments but ultimately still have elevated risk of stroke as adults.
38) Researchers adjusted for demographic characteristics like age, race, gender, ethnicity, and religion among other characteristics. There was adjustment for socioeconomic status which is a person’s place in a class structure: income, occupation, wealth, and education level. And also, cardiovascular risk factors.
39) What was the conclusion for Study 1? That’s in the middle paragraph. It says “The researchers concluded these findings were consistent with other studies that suggest a link between early development and physiological or behavioral changes that increase the risk of stroke decades later.” Stroke Belt residence in childhood was, in fact, linked to excess risk of stroke in adults. We want to find an answer choice that’s consistent with this childhood period being related to the increased risk of stroke, even decades later.
40) This is similar to our last question. For this question, the conclusion in Study 2 is going to be consistent with one of the 4 public health strategies in Stroke Belt states. Let’s take a look at an excerpt from the passage. It says The researchers concluded that the significance of adolescence may be related to establishing social norms that will affect stroke risk in adulthood. We know specific age ranges and lengths of time are associated with increased stroke risk. In particular the strongest association with stroke incidence was found for Stroke Belt exposure during adolescence. This is when individuals establish social norms that affect stroke risk in adulthood.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 6 41) In the passage, we were introduced to the studies, now we want to relate it to our behavioral vocabulary. Just like the author mentions, studies suggest that tobacco cessation is more successful when motivated by culturally consistent values that support the effort to quit smoking. We want to look at different theories that explain how motivation affects human behavior. We want a theory that mentions being motivated by the norms of the culture, and acceptance.
42) This is similar to our last question in that we’re matching something from the passage to one of our content terms. This whole passage revolved around the idea that researchers are calling for studies to supplement the biomedical approach to cancer. That includes studies that incorporate the social determinants of disease, specifically. For this question, we want a perspective that, within the context of the passage, would satisfy these researchers. In other words, something that considers factors outside of the biomedical approach, and specifically social factors. We’ll do the same thing we did for question 41. We’ll define the 4 key terms, and we’ll find the best answer. You’ve probably noticed for these types of questions, two or possibly even three of the answer choices are out of scope. They’re vocab terms we’re expected to know, but they’re just not applicable to the specific question. Another reminder that it’s super important to know your vocab.
43) To answer this question, we can focus on the paragraph that talks about culturally competent care. Then we’ll relate the excerpt from the passage to our vocab and the four answers given. Above we have the last paragraph in our passage. The focus was on culture and patient-provider interactions. It says To deliver culturally competent care, providers need to be aware of their own cultural standards and biases while understanding that patients may have different cultural standards and biases. The passage is advocating for providers to be aware of their own standards and biases, but understanding the standards and biases of their patients.
44) Once again, we’re putting a name to a concept. This all boils down to vocab. The author mentions the knowledge, skills, and education required to practice medicine are associated with high social status. We want a term that describes this social status and cultural competence.
45) This is going to be similar to question 44. To answer this question, we’re looking at the hypothetical example at the end of the passage and we’re assigning a psychology term that represents that example. Here we have the last part of our passage. We can focus on the example. It says For example, family members may enact cultural preferences when asking a provider to withhold aspects of a cancer diagnosis from a patient. If the provider fulfills this request, he or she may struggle to reconcile that action with norms favoring disclosure. We want a psychological process that explains this struggle felt by the provider. There’s a struggle because the cultural preferences of the family members conflict with the provider’s existing beliefs. That’s a classic example of cognitive dissonance. We want something that either mentions cognitive dissonance, or something similar.
46) Unlike the previous questions related to this passage, this time we’re given a topic from AAMC’s content outline and we have to relate a topic from the passage that’s most consistent with the topic. We’re looking at social cognitive theory and modeling. Social cognitive theory says that portions of an individual’s knowledge acquisition can be directly related to observing others. Modeling occurs from watching, retaining, and replicating a behavior observed from a model. So, when people observe a model performing a behavior, they can use that information to guide their own behaviors. In the passage, the big example that sticks out is children observing health behaviors inconsistent with smoking. Eventually that leads to establishing norms against tobacco use in that community. We’ll look at our answer choices and find one consistent with the emphasis on modeling.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Questions 47-51 47) This is a standalone question that is focusing on a key term. To answer this question, we can consider what we know about intersectionality. Intersectionality is key when understanding social class. All individuals have multiple aspects of identity, and simultaneously experience some privileges due to their socially valued identity statuses and disadvantages due to their devalued identity statuses. The intersection of these aspects is what’s key to understanding intersectionality.
48) As with many behavioral standalone questions, we can answer this question by knowing our vocabulary. We’re given a description and we have to match that description to one of the four terms in the answer choices. Let’s find the one that best matches the question stem.
49) Similar to our last question and most of the standalone questions in this section, we’re relying on knowing our vocabulary. We can define the concept in the question stem, then see which is most likely for a person who acquires a stigmatized illness. The looking-glass self states people see themselves based on how they believe others perceive them during social interactions. There are three main components of the looking glass self: we imagine how we must appear to others, we imagine the judgment of that appearance, we develop our self through the judgments of others
50) Most behavioral standalone questions come down to knowing external knowledge. However, this question comes down to reading and interpreting the population period in the question stem. We can note that population (in millions) increases until higher ages (60+) before leveling off. There are more relatively older people in this population and the “base of the pyramid” is smaller. We can see if that plays a role in the correct answer.
51) This is a vocab question. Demographic transition theory: suggests that future population growth will develop along with a predictable four-stage model. In Stage 1, birth, death, and infant mortality rates are all high, while life expectancy is short. As countries begin to industrialize, they enter Stage 2, where birthrates are higher while infant mortality and the death rates drop. Life expectancy also increases. Stage 3 occurs once a society is thoroughly industrialized; birthrates decline, while life expectancy continues to increase. Death rates continue to decrease. In the final phase, Stage 4, we see the postindustrial era of society. Birth and death rates are low, people are healthier and live longer, and society enters a phase of population stability. Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 7 52) To answer this question, we’ll have to identify the technique synonymous with measuring brain activity. In the passage, the author alluded to fact that the researchers compared brain activation in response to images of food in two scenarios: after adequate sleep, and when sleep deprived. The breakdown of this question comes down to knowing your content and picking the technique that fits our criteria. Safely measuring increased neural activation of specific brain regions would happen by functional MRI. fMRI is a common type of brain scan. It’s specifically used to measure oxygen levels in specific areas of the brain, as a measurement of brain activity. It’s used to detect changes associated with blood flow. We’ll try and find an answer choice that either mentions fMRI, or something with a similar function.
53) This answer to this question is going to come from analyzing the findings in the passage, then defining the relationship between inadequate sleep and hunger. We’ll focus on defining relationships between variables. In the study, individuals are deprived of sleep, and then asked about their hunger levels. The people that did not sleep were hungrier (they had higher hunger ratings). The ones that slept normally were less hungry, meaning sleep deprivation caused the hunger.
54) There’s no real way around answering this question. We’ll have to know the sleep cycles and stages, and know which one is characterized by sleep spindles. The question stem mentions brain wave activity was recorded, but we shouldn’t need brain wave information to answer this specific question. 4 stages of sleep. We have non-rapid eye movement (NREM) stage 1. This is the initial transition between wakefulness and sleep. NREM stage 2 is when temperature drops and heart rate slows. This is when the brain produces sleep spindles. We’re going to look for NREM stage 2 in our answer choices. Just to be thorough: NREM stage 3 is when muscles relax. Blood pressure and breathing rates drop. In REM sleep, the brain is more active, the body is relaxed, eyes move rapidly, and dreams occur. A person completes the entire sleep cycle about four or five times in a given night of full sleep. We know exactly the answer we’re looking for in this case. We can eliminate answer choices A, C, and D for being incorrect. We went through the different stages and said the stage characterized by sleep spindles is answer choice B: NREM stage 2. 55) The only detail we need to know from the passage is the children that are targeted by advertisements are 5-7 years old. All we’re going to do is classify this age range within Piaget’s stages of cognitive development.
56) We expect similar activation levels in three of the brain regions listed, and we want to find the brain region in which we’d be LEAST likely to find similar activation levels. The answer is going to come from knowing which brain regions would be activated when viewing the images of food.
57) The answer to this question is going to come from AAMC’s content outline. “motivation” is a topic under content category 7A. Motivation can come from instinct, drives, or needs. We’re focused on which aspect of the study will be most relevant to influencing motivation from an evolutionary perspective.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 8 58) To answer this question, think about how in Study 1 infants were shown faces with universally expressed emotions. 3 of the answer choices will be universally expressed emotions, one will not. We’re looking for the odd one out here. This is almost like a pseudo-discrete or standalone question. We have the common universal emotions associated with distinct facial expressions. That includes happiness, surprise, sadness, fear or fright, disgust, contempt, and anger. Keep in mind that you might have synonyms for some of these in the answer choices, but all we’re doing is finding an answer choice that’s not on this list.
59) In other words, we want to explain why 9-month old infants’ recognition was restricted to own-race faces, but 6-month old infants could recognize own-race and one of the other-race faces. This is very similar to question 58 as it is almost like a pseudo-discrete or standalone question. We’re going to explain the difference in age, and why there are different results when recognizing faces, and attachment. 9-month old infants’ recognition was restricted to own-race faces. That’s likely due to a stronger attachment to own-race faces. Newborn babies up until about 6 weeks old will only form the beginnings of attachment. Complete attachment hasn’t happened yet, and the baby is okay with being left with unfamiliar people. Around 6 weeks to 8 months, that’s when we go through the attachment-in the making phase. Like the name suggests, attachment is getting stronger. Infants will start responding different to familiar people than they do with strangers. There’s no separation anxiety yet. Attachment is being cultivated. This is where we have our 6-month olds in the study. From 8 months to 18 months, we have clear-cut attachment. Attachment is strengthening and toddlers will stick to their caregivers and the adults in their lives. This is what we’re seeing in the 9-month old infants. Ultimately, it comes down to the attachment these infants feel to familiar faces as they grow older.
60) Be careful with the verbiage here, we want a concept that does not explain the ability of participants to visually process faces. This is 3 straight questions in this set where we’re tying the question back to the passage, but the answer comes from knowing your content. We’re focusing on visually processing new faces in both studies.
61) To answer this question, we can go back to Study 2 to get details about the brain imaging technique. We’ll likely have to us our general knowledge to explain the technique, within the parameters of MCAT content. We’re focusing our attention to the middle of the passage. It says “Adult participants viewed other-race and own-race faces while their brain activity was measured using functional magnetic resonance imaging.” What imaging technique are we focused on? Functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI. fMRI is a common type of brain scan. It’s used to measure oxygen levels in specific areas of the brain, as a measurement of brain activity. It can be used to detect changes associated with blood flow. So we want something along the lines of measuring brain activity, detecting changes associated with blood flow, or measuring oxygen levels.
62) This is a very open-ended question, so we’re going to attack this by keeping in mind the key points from Study 2. Quick overview of Study 2: Participants viewed various combinations of faces for different amounts of time. fMRI was used to measure brain activity. With the quicker exposure, we get greater activation in the amygdala for the other-race faces. With the longer exposure, that difference is reduced, but other-race faces activate the frontal cortex more. These are the results we’re given, but now we’re asked to find an applicable scenario.
63) To answer this question, we’re describing the correlation between age and recognizing emotions on other-race faces in infants from ages 3, 6, and 9 months old. We can revisit the point in the passage where the author explained the recognition for own-race and other-race faces for all three ages. From the passage: the results showed 3-month-old infants demonstrated recognition for own-race and all three other-race faces, the 6-month-old infants were able to recognize own-race and one of the other-race faces, and the 9-month-old infants’ recognition was restricted to own-race faces. What does that sound like? In these particular age groups, as age increases, we have a decrease in the ability to recognize emotions on other-race faces. That’s a negative, or inverse correlation.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Questions 64-67 64) We’re mixing some sciences here! This is actually closer to what you’ll see on the exam where you’re expected to have a base level of general knowledge that you can apply across disciplines. Even though this is still a behavioral question, it does require a basic level of understanding of action potentials which we normally see in the biological and physical sciences. An action potential is a short-term change in the electrical potential that travels along the cell. We want to know which of the four situations listed in the answer choices would stimulate an action potential. This is a content question.
65) This is a standalone question that relies on knowing the content. We’re going to focus on Content Category 6A which contains the subject “Vision.” If you want to review vision, make sure to check our content outline: https://jackwestin.com/resources/mcat-content/vision. Specifically, we’re going to consider the fovea in this situation. The night sky example is one AAMC likes to use. From our content outline: The fovea is the region in the center back of the eye that is responsible for acute vision. The fovea has a high density of cones. When you bring your gaze to an object to examine it intently in bright light, the eyes orient so that the object’s image falls on the fovea. However, when looking at a star in the night sky or other object in dim light, the object can be better viewed by the peripheral vision because it is the rods at the edges of the retina, rather than the cones at the center, that operate better in low light. In humans, cones far outnumber rods in the fovea.
66) At first glance this might look similar to question 65 which tests vision, but the test-maker takes a turn in the second and third sentences here. We’re focused instead on the scores of the tests of visual perception, and why they differed on consecutive days. This question, like many questions in the behavioral section, will come down to knowing our vocab. We’ll break down the four options and pick the one that would explain the shortcoming of the test in question.
67) Intelligence involves the ability to adapt to one’s environment and the capacity to learn from experience. There are a lot of different theories and ideas around intelligence. For example, Howard Gardner published a book on multiple intelligence that breaks intelligence down into at least eight different modalities: logical, linguistic, spatial, musical, kinesthetic, naturalist, interpersonal, and intrapersonal intelligence. Looking at our specific example, we see a +0.38 correlation. A correlation of 0 would imply there’s no relationship between the score on the two tests. A correlation of 1 would imply that the performance on the verbal test would predict performance on the spatial test. In this case, we have some overlap between the tests. It’s not quite 1, but it’s also not a correlation of 0. What is the g factor? It’s a measure of general intelligence. We have both of our tests that measure types of intelligence, but general intelligence is made up of different cognitive abilities. A high g factor likely means decently high scores on any intelligence test, despite the correlation being less than 1.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 9 68) Be extra careful with the verbiage. Presentation of the WAIS was counterbalanced for specific reasons. 3 of the answer choices will be legitimate justifications for doing so, but the one that’s not a justified reason is going to be our correct answer. Fluid intelligence was measured with the WAIS, but the presentation was counterbalanced. Half the participants completed the WAIS before the cognitive tasks, and the other half completed it after the cognitive tasks. Counterbalancing is good experimental procedure because it minimizes the effect of the order influencing the results. It spreads order effects evenly across the two tasks in this situation.
69) This question is almost like a standalone question where we don’t need information from the passage. To answer this question, we’re picking a negative symptom of schizophrenia. What are negative symptoms? Negative symptoms are conspicuous by their absence. For example, not being able to show emotions, a lack of pleasure or withdrawal, a lack of communication skills. A lack of normal function.
70) This is another pseudo-discrete or standalone question. What is priming? It’s a change in response to a stimulus because of a subconscious memory effect. Think of it this way. If I give you a bowl of candy and ask you to pick the red candy only, you will focus on the red candy and try and block out the other colors. If you keep picking out red candies, you continue to block out the other colors. After a few rounds, if you’re asked to pick a blue candy, it takes a bit to readjust and change your reactions from blocking out the non-red candies, to now blocking out the blue candies. That’s the negative priming effect. You’re used to blocking out the blue candies when you were picking out only red candy. Now you have to shift your attention to blue candy that you previously ignored. The author says in the passage that negative priming is slow, error-prone responses to stimuli that were previously ignored. We’ll go through our answer choices and find a type of memory consistent with negative priming.
71) Negative symptoms are conspicuous by their absence. For example, not being able to show emotions, a lack of pleasure or withdrawal, a lack of communication skills. A lack of normal function. We want to identify the class of medication that would either make these symptoms worse, or cause these symptoms to show up. In general, antipsychotic medications at used often on schizophrenic patients. These do have a sedative effect and can cause a decline in mental abilities.
72) To answer this question we can go back to the passage where the author talks about fluid intelligence. We have part of our passage here it says a measure of fluid intelligence was included to investigate whether any relationships between symptoms and cognitive functioning were maintained despite differences in general cognitive ability. During our readthrough we said fluid intelligence involves thinking, reasoning, and solving problems in novel situations. It’s not based as much on past learning and experiences, but instead on reacting, adapting, and reasoning. We also know from the passage that Fluid intelligence was significantly positively correlated with verbal fluency in the SPD group. So, there is a connection and a relationship there.
73) We can approach this question by using our general knowledge to relate verbal fluency and negative priming tasks with Alzheimer’s disease. Verbal fluency is retrieving specific information within restricted search parameters. Negative priming is slow, error-prone responses to stimuli that were previously ignored. Alzheimer’s disease is a neurogenerative disease and common cause of dementia. We can see disruptive memory loss, confusion, difficult executing tasks, poor judgment, and personality changes. Biggest takeaway is there’s dramatic neurodegeneration and cognitive dysfunction. Participants should do worse with both tasks. Cognitive dysfunction is going to affect priming, and a verbal fluency test is actually a very common way to screen for dementia.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 10 74) We’ll revisit what the passage says about the stress generation hypothesis and break down what makes it unique in this context. Stress generation hypothesis proposes that individuals prone to depression will be exposed to stressful situations because of their behaviors, perceptions, and experiences. Our answer has to be consistent with the idea that negative and stressful life events are influenced by an individual’s characteristics and behaviors.
75) With any question that’s worded like this, be careful with the verbiage. 3 of the answer choices listed will be valid criticisms of the use of self-reports, while one will be implausible. Our correct answer is the implausible criticism. The passage mentioned that studies using self-reports found a relationship between childhood maltreatment and developing depression. We’re now focused on the reporting method itself. There are weaknesses to self-report studies and their validity can be questioned. Patients might misremember the topics covered in the survey. They might exaggerate or under-report symptoms to make their situation seem better or worse. There’s a lot of wiggle room and subjectivity in these studies.
76) To approach this question, we want an answer choice that considers the idea that long-term exposure to stressful events can complicate depression-related matters. And that’s specifically in individuals with vulnerabilities to depression and individuals that had previous episodes of depression.
77) I actually defined dependent stressors in question 76. I said dependent stressors are events that are due, at least partly, to an individual’s characteristics, feelings, and behaviors. It’s almost cyclical. The stressors are dependent on the individual. Independent stressors are something that happen regardless of your personal behavior, feelings, thoughts, attitudes, and so on. That means we want to explain some sort of behavior or characteristic that ultimately causes stress for the person. It’s partly or fully dependent on the person doing something. We want a dependent stressor associated with reassurance.
78) To answer this question we’ll go through some of the triggers or causes of depression, but within the context of the SG hypothesis and the passage. We have the paragraph from the passage that focuses on the stress generation hypothesis here. Right away, we’re told this model accounts for chronic depression which we said means it’s recurring. Exhibiting behavior that leads to stressful events, long-term exposure to stress, and a preexisting vulnerability to depression all sound like something the therapist would want to look into. Looking at the passage, it says the stress generation hypothesis proposes that individuals who are prone to depression are more likely to exhibit behaviors and cognitions that lead to stressful situations. That also ties into individuals with preexisting vulnerabilities. We also know from earlier in the passage, there’s a high rate of recurrence in people who have had prior episodes. And lastly, there could be a focus on dependent stressors. We’ve said dependent stressors are events that are due to an individual’s characteristics, feelings, and behaviors. A depressive episode would inevitably influence an individual’s feelings and behaviors and could lead to additional depression and episodes. We can use all of this information and we can try and pick an answer choice that’s consistent with these triggers or causes.
79) To answer this question, we want to link depression and stress, and specifically describe the direction of the relationship. First of all, the SG hypothesis proposes that individuals who are prone to depression are more likely to exhibit behaviors and cognitions that lead to stressful situations. What does that sound like to us? There’s a focus on dependent stressors. Those are events that are due to an individual’s characteristics, feelings, and behaviors. It’s almost cyclical. An individual has a certain behavior, that behavior leads to depression, and that depression causes the individual to continue to act a certain way. The cycle continues. On the other hand, independent stressors are something that happen regardless of your personal behavior, feelings, thoughts, and actions. Think of a driver driving recklessly because they got dumped by their significant other. They aren’t paying a ton of attention to the road and they rear-end a car parked in a driveway. The owners of both cars inevitably have a negative outcome here. But what’s the difference? The careless driver was sad, that influenced their behavior, and they acted in a way that lead to a negative outcome. The owner of the parked car is dealing with an independent stressor. That individual parked their car in their driveway and didn’t have anything to do with the event. The driver’s behavior is what caused the collision here. We want an answer choice that explains that difference.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Questions 80-84 80) Visual processing is the interpretation of otherwise raw sensory data to produce visual perception. If you are not comfortable with visual processing, you want to make sure to review AAMC’s content outline on our website: https://jackwestin.com/resources/mcat-content/vision/visual-processing. We’re going to think about visual processing, but we have to consider parallel processing specifically. Parallel processing is the use of multiple pathways to convey information about the same stimulus. It starts at the level of the bipolar and ganglion cells in the eye, allowing information from different areas of the visual field to be processed in parallel.
81) We have to different rates being reported in this situation. There’s a high rate of one variable (insomnia) and that correlates to a low rate of the other variable (detecting sounds of birds chirping). That’s a negative correlation because as one variable changes, the other variable moves in the opposite direction.
82) This is a common phenomenon that a lot of people will report, and something to keep in mind in the future! There’s a level of “mind over medicine” where patients will report treatment works better when they mentally associate positives with the experience and the treatment. In the question stem, we’re comparing a positive experience with the usual doctor, with an experience that might not have been as positive in the new location. We have to explain the reason for this difference.
83) The human brain is composed of a right and a left hemisphere, and each participates in different aspects of brain function. A longitudinal fissure separates the human brain into two distinct cerebral hemispheres connected by the corpus callosum. The corpus collosum is a wide, flat bundle of neural fibers beneath the cortex that connects the left and right cerebral hemispheres and facilitates interhemispheric communication. In this question, that corpus callosum is severed. This is a very broad question, but the only information we know besides the corpus callosum being severed, is the person says “ball” when asked what they see. One thing I do want to note. This question presents an all-or-nothing type of approach with which part/side of the brain is responsible for which actions. In reality, these processes and how everything is broken up is much more complex. For the sake of this question and the MCAT, we will keep it simple.
84) In psychology, “cognitive dissonance” describes the mental stress or discomfort experienced by an individual who holds two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values at the same time, or is confronted by new information that conflicts with existing beliefs, ideas, or values. When we experience cognitive dissonance, we are motivated to decrease it because it is psychologically, physically, and mentally uncomfortable. We can reduce cognitive dissonance by bringing our cognitions, attitudes, and behaviors in line—that is, making them harmonious. We can change the discrepant behavior, change our cognitions through rationalization or denial, or add a new cognition.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 11 85) In other words: Children aged 3-6 are in which stage of Piaget’s model of cognitive development? This answer relies exclusively on our general knowledge outside of finding the ages of the children in the passage. We need to classify this age range within Piaget’s stages of cognitive development.
86) Recall from the passage there was the rating system to measure aggression, but how else could we achieve a similar result? We’ve already been given the background on the aggression scale and its purpose. We’re told the aggression scale allowed the researchers to isolate socially-influenced aggressive behaviors. Now we want another method that shows whether aggression is being modeled, as opposed to already learned.
87) To answer this question, we can revisit Study 2, and specifically the findings. We have the 2nd paragraph from our passage above. A few things I want to note: We were testing whether film violence is in instigator of violence, or it relieves individuals of hostile impulses. The last sentence says Results indicated that subjects who were given the stigmatizing example applied a higher number of shocks than subjects who were given the sympathetic portrayal. Seeing violence portrayed in a film didn’t make the subjects inherently more apt to behave aggressively or to be calmer. That means the influence of the violence came down to context.
88) Considering this is a behavioral passage, we’re likely filling in that blank with a vocabulary word. This answer is twofold: We’ll have to relate the researchers in Study 2 to media function. then we’ll have to use our general knowledge to likely put a vocabulary term to the function. Here we have the second paragraph from the passage, and we’re focused on the hypotheses. First hypothesis says violent films were cathartic. Second hypothesis suggests film violence as an instigator of violence. These researchers are both suggesting media can influence how we act. One group believes media can relieve us of hostile impulses, while the other group believes media can incite violence from us. Both suggest media can shape an individual’s behavior to an extent.
89) There was no denying the fact that was a different proportion of shocks that came from the subjects in the two groups. We know there’s evidence that both the film clip and the judgment-based introduction affected the proportion of shocks. There are an infinite number of ways Study 2 could be modified, but we want something that adds to this evidence. We want an answer choice that shows the film clip and the introduction of the protagonist both influenced the number of shocks.
90) We can approach this question by recalling the findings in Study 2, specifically as they relate to the stigmatizing example. We will then use our general knowledge to define symbolic interactionism. We’ll find the answer choice that’s most consistent with a symbolic interactionist’s interpretation. We have the 2nd paragraph from our passage. The last sentence is where we got our results. It says Results indicated that subjects who were given the stigmatizing example applied a higher number of shocks than subjects who were given the sympathetic portrayal. We’re interpreting this from the lens of a symbolic interactionist. The moment you see symbolic interactionism, think interpretation. Symbolic interactionism focuses on interactions and relationships among individuals in a society. Our experiences and interactions add subjective meaning to things. We interpret things based on these interactions. Furthermore, people will change based on their interactions with objects, events, ideas, and other people. In Study 2, the individuals interpreted the scoundrel as a negative figure. After viewing the boxing scene in which that stigmatizing protagonist is beaten, the subjects responded by applying more shocks. Let’s see which of the 4 answers choices is consistent with the symbolic interactionist’s interpretation.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Passage 12 91) This answer is going to come from recalling the main parts of the 2012 study then applying our general knowledge to classify the data from the study. It’s a fairly open-ended question so we won’t get too specific just yet, but we can quickly pull up an excerpt from the passage. We have the 2nd paragraph from the passage here that goes over the 2012 study. What are we looking for specifically here? The data! This question has to do with the data. About 2/3 of the way down in the excerpt, it says The students completed an assessment after completing a course of physician-patient communications. That means the researchers are getting data by the students completing an assessment following this course. Next sentence says Findings from the study showed that students with a mastery goal were more likely to rate themselves as being able to handle patient interactions well, and were less likely to report maladaptive coping with stressful situations. There’s quite a bit to unpack here if you didn’t do so during the passage: The study is applied to a student’s sense of confidence regarding patient interactions and tolerating frustration. In general, if you’re more confident, you’ll tend to perform better. Why would you be more confident? If you’ve taken the time and put in the work to enhance your knowledge. You’re not focused on extrinsic factors or factors you can’t control. By focusing on a mastery goal, these students are aiming to enhance their own knowledge, and will therefore be readier to handle patient interactions properly. Additionally, we’re told these students are less likely to report maladaptive coping with stressful situations. Maladaptive coping can also be considered negative coping. So that can mean self-harm, substance abuse, binge eating, etc: Multiple negative ways to try and cope with stress and anxiety. There’s no doubt the students focused on a mastery goal had to deal with stressful situations. Again, that’s the nature of the profession. But the way these students coped was more positive, and less destructive. The mastery goal ended up improving confidence, and the ways in which these students coped with stress. Let’s keep this in mind and see which answer choice most likely describes this part of the passage.
92) Let’s begin by defining incentive theory. Within the context of the passage, incentive theory says our behavior is dictated by a desire for external rewards. These external rewards, or incentives, provide motivation. That anticipated reward is what motivates and encourages us. Behavior is extrinsically motivated, and people are more motivated if they receive a reward after doing something. We want an answer choice that closely aligns with this.
93) The key to the question is we’re focusing on the findings on the 2012 study. The author mentions medical students reporting coping with stressful situations, so we can revisit the passage. The author says about the 2012 study, Findings from the study showed that students with a mastery goal were more likely to rate themselves as being able to handle patient interactions well, and were less likely to report maladaptive coping with stressful situations. This is the only time in the passage there’s any mention of coping. These students are less likely to report maladaptive coping, or negative coping, with stressful situations. Maladaptive coping can mean self-harm, substance abuse, binge eating, and other negative ways to try and cope with stress and anxiety. If the students aren’t engaging in maladaptive coping strategies, we expect them to engage in more adaptive coping strategies.
94) We want to note the question stem explicitly says “as described in the passage.” The author mentions medical students engage in learning activities to pursue goals. One goal mentioned is performance-approach. The author says this means to receive rewards or recognition. These rewards and recognition aren’t given out for no reason! Students will work toward that goal by putting in time and effort. Being rewarded and recognized for their hard work is a big motivating factor for students. They’ll look to perform better, and even outperform their colleagues and classmates. We can use this definition and breakdown to see which of our answer choices fits best.
95) To answer this question, we’ll rely on our behavioral vocabulary. Reinforcers can be primary, meaning linked unconditionally to a behavior. Primary reinforcers occur naturally and don’t need to be learned. Typically, they’ll satisfy basic survival needs. Secondary reinforcers require deliberate or conditioned linkage to a specific behavior. A stimulus reinforces a behavior after it’s been associated with a primary reinforcer. The classic example is money. You can satisfy basic survival needs using money. We’re focused on identifying the answer choice that’s a secondary reinforcer.
96) Let’s start by defining some terms. Self-efficacy is believing in your own competence and effectiveness. Confidence is a firm trust and reliance in something or someone. We’ve all felt these in certain situations. You guys will certainly feel these shortly in your careers. In this case, we can visualize both of these. In a medical student, when would self-efficacy and confidence in patient interactions be seen? The best way to approach this question, is to see the situations presented in our answer choices.
Section Bank: Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior: Questions 97-100 97) Gender is defined as a social construct. Gender is the division of groups of people by associate roles, expectations, and stereotypes in a culture that is shaped by religious, political, legal, philosophical, linguistic, and other traditions. “male” and “female” are considered sex assignments, while “man” and “woman” are considered genders and gender is a spectrum. A social constructionist view of gender looks beyond categories and examines the intersections of multiple identities and the blurring of the boundaries between essentialist categories. This is especially true with regards to categories of man and woman or masculine and feminine, which are viewed typically as binary and opposite. Gender is internalized and acquires significance for the individual. We are aware that others evaluate and characterize our behavior on the parameter of gender. Social constructionists would say that gender is interactional rather than individual; it is developed through social interactions.
98) George Herbert Mead studied the self, a person’s distinct identity that is developed through social interaction. In order to engage in this process of “self,” an individual has to be able to view him or herself through the eyes of others. That’s not an ability that we are born with. Through socialization we learn to put ourselves in someone else’s shoes and look at the world through their perspective. This assists us in becoming self-aware, as we look at ourselves from the perspective of the “other.” Mead believed that there is a specific path of development that all people go through. During the preparatory stage, children are only capable of imitation: they have no ability to imagine how others see things. They copy the actions of people with whom they regularly interact, such as their mothers and fathers. This is followed by the play stage, during which children begin to take on the role that one other person might have, or role taking. During the game stage, children learn to consider several roles at the same time and how those roles interact with each other. They learn to understand interactions involving different people with a variety of purposes. Finally, children develop, understand, and learn the idea of the generalized other, the common behavioral expectations of general society. By this stage of development, an individual is able to imagine how he or she is viewed by one or many others—and thus, from a sociological perspective, to have a “self.” The Me component of the self is the more socialized self, meaning they act according to social norms. We want an answer choice consistent with this.
99) Social mobility typically refers to vertical mobility, which is the movement of individuals or groups up or down from one socioeconomic level to another, often by changing jobs or through marriage. In some instances, social mobility is used to refer to horizontal mobility, which is the movement from one position to another within the same social level, as when someone changes between two equally prestigious occupations. In the question stem, the former is happening as the individual experiences vertical mobility.
100) McDonaldization is a phenomenon that occurs when society, its institutions, and its organizations are adapted to have the same characteristics that are found in fast-food chains. These include efficiency (optimal method for accomplishing a task and minimizing time), calculability (quantifiable objectives-high quantity equals quality), predictability and standardization (same service at any McDonald’s chain), and control (employees are standardized and use technology). Make sure to pay close attention to the question stem. We want a scenario that is NOT a representation of the McDonaldization of society.
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Which psychological theory best explains the role of community values in the preliminary studies of tobacco cessation?
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