Deck 12: Happiness and the Positive Emotions

Question 1

Which of the following is considered the defining feature of subjective well-being, according to your textbook?

A) Belief that one's life has been satisfying and fulfilling
B) Frequent experience of positive affect
C) Infrequent experience of negative affect
D) All of the above in combination define subjective well-being.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

In survey studies, which of the following do people typically identify as their most important source of satisfaction in life?

A) Wealth and economic stability
B) Relationships with family and friends
C) Career success and accomplishment
D) Physical pleasures and comforts

Answer 2

B

Question 3

The heritability of happiness, or proportion of individual differences in subjective well-being that can be attributed people's genes, has been estimated at around .

A) 5%
B) 20%
C) 40%
D) 70$

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Researchers in one study (Smillie et al., 2015) instructed some participants to behave in an extraverted, outgoing manner while interacting with another person; other participants were instructed to be less outgoing during the interaction. In terms of natural personality, people ranged from introverted to extraverted. Which of the following best describes the study results?

A) Naturally extraverted participants enjoyed the interaction more than introverted participants, whether they were instructed to be outgoing or not.
B) Naturally extraverted participants enjoyed the interaction more than introverted participants, but only if they were instructed to be outgoing.
C) Participants who behaved in an outgoing manner enjoyed the interaction more than those instructed to be less outgoing, whether they were naturally extraverted or not.
D) Participants who behaved in an outgoing manner enjoyed the interaction more than those instructed to be less outgoing, but only if they were naturally introverted.

Question 5

According to research discussed in your textbook, which of the following Big Five personality traits is NOT predictive of higher happiness, or subjective well-being?

A) Extraversion
B) Agreeableness
C) Conscientiousness
D) Openness to experience

Question 6

According to research discussed in your textbook, which of the following is most likely to predict a lasting change in subjective well-being, extending over several years?

A) Winning a large amount of money in a lottery
B) Getting married
C) Divorce
D) All of the above have long-lasting effects on subjective well-being

Question 7

Which of the following best summarizes the relationship between wealth and happiness?

A) Wealth and happiness are strongly correlated, but there is no evidence of a causal relationship.
B) Beyond the amount of money needed for basic security and comfort, wealth is not a strong predictor of happiness, but below this threshold wealth is more strongly correlated with happiness.
C) Longitudinal and experimental studies suggest that an increase in wealth causes an increase in happiness.
D) Longitudinal and experimental studies suggest that an increase in wealth causes a decrease in happiness.

Question 8

Which of the following has NOT been found to predict higher happiness, or subjective well-being?

A) Physical health
B) Participating in a religious community
C) Higher physical attractiveness
D) All of the above have been found to predict higher happiness.

Question 9

Which of the following has NOT been found to predict higher happiness, or subjective well-being?

A) Being happily married
B) Having a sense of control over one's life
C) Refusal to let go of one's goals, even if they are clearly unattainable
D) All of the above have been found to predict higher happiness.

Question 10

Which of the following has NOT been found to predict higher overall happiness, or subjective well-being?

A) Being physically healthy
B) Living in a place with a warm, sunny climate
C) Being physically attractive
D) All of the above have been found to predict higher happiness.

Question 11

Which of the following best summarizes the adaptive function of positive emotions, according to Fredrickson's (1998) broaden and build theory?

A) Positive emotions help us gather information and resources that will be helpful in the future.
B) Positive emotions have direct cardiovascular benefits that lengthen people's lives.
C) Positive emotions make life more enjoyable, so people take better care of their health.
D) According to broaden and build theory, positive emotions do not have an adaptive function.

Question 12

The is a brain structure that is highly active during the pleasurable anticipation of reward.

A) amygdala
B) nucleus accumbens
C) insula
D) anterior cingulate

Question 13

Which of the following stimuli has been found to elicit increased activity in the human nucleus accumbens?

A) Gambling
B) Chocolate
C) Video games
D) All of the above have been found to increase activity in the nucleus accumbens.

Question 14

The physiological profile of enthusiasm, or pleasurable anticipation, in the body looks most like which negative emotion?

A) Fear
B) Anger
C) Disgust
D) Sadness

Question 15

The term "food coma" is often used to describe the pleasant, lethargic feeling people have after eating a big meal. Which of the following mediates that effect?

A) Increased activation of the sympathetic nervous system
B) Increased activation of the parasympathetic nervous system
C) Increased activation of the nucleus accumbens
D) Increased activation of the hippocampus

Question 16

In one study described in your textbook, researchers recorded the firing of individual neurons in hippocampal cells that record spatial memory, while mice ran a maze to get a food reward, ate the reward, and then settled down for a relaxed grooming session. What conclusion did the researchers draw from the hippocampal cell firing patterns?

A) Mice were accessing their spatial memory while searching the maze.
B) While eating the reward, the mice were planning the route to escape the maze.
C) During the post-snack grooming session, the hippocampal cells were mentally "backtracking" the route to the reward.
D) Arousal interfered with the mice's ability to locate the food reward.

Question 17

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic element of the nonverbal expression of pride?

A) A strong Duchenne smile
B) Expanded posture, with head lifted and chest puffed out
C) Hands either on hips or raised in the air
D) All of the above characterize the nonverbal expression of pride.

Question 18

Which of the following statements regarding the nonverbal display of pride is FALSE, according to research discussed in your textbook?

A) The nonverbal display of pride is not recognized by children until they are at least 10 years old.
B) People who are congenitally blind show the pride display, despite never having seen it.
C) People who show a nonverbal pride display are assumed to have high social status.
D) The human pride display resembles the primate dominance display.

Question 19

Which of the following is true regarding the difference between authentic and hubristic pride?

A) The nonverbal expressions of authentic and hubristic pride are easily differentiated.
B) Both authentic and hubristic pride earn the respect of other people.
C) People experiencing hubristic pride are more likely to boast or brag than people experiencing authentic pride.
D) All of the above are true regarding authentic and hubristic pride.

Question 20

Which of the following is NOT one of the behavioral program described by John Bowlby as a biological foundation of bonding within families?

A) anxiety
B) attachment
C) caregiving
D) sex

Question 21

Which of the following statements about love is FALSE, according to your textbook?

A) When people are asked to write a list of emotions, "love" is one of the most common answers.
B) Most emotion researchers consider love to be a basic or discrete emotion.
C) The prototypical forms of love involve commitment to the well-being of close others.
D) Researchers have documented a nonverbal expression of sexual desire that is distinct from that of romantic love.

Question 22

Which of the following is defined by your textbook as an emotional response to the opportunity to play?

A) Amusement
B) Contentment
C) Enthusiasm
D) Pride

Question 23

The prototypical human expression of humor, or amusement, closely resembles the primate expression of:

A) dominance
B) curiosity
C) playfulness
D) submissiveness

Question 24

Which of the following emotions has been found to increase careful, systematic cognitive processing, rather than heuristic processing?

A) Attachment Love
B) Awe
C) Contentment
D) Enthusiasm

Question 25

According to your textbook, which of the following is FALSE regarding the emotion awe?

A) Awe involves a strong increase in "fight-flight" sympathetic nervous system activation.
B) The prototypical facial expression of awe does not include a smile.
C) Awe has been found to reduce heuristic, cut-based cognitive processing.
D) All of the above are true; none are false.

Question 26

Which of the following statements about optimism is FALSE, according to research presented in your textbook?

A) Mostly people are unrealistically optimistic, at least to some degree.
B) Optimistic people experience less anxiety in stressful situations than more pessimistic people.
C) Optimistic people are more likely than pessimists to abuse drugs.
D) None of the statements above are false; all are true.

Question 27

Nearly all research on happiness, defined as high subjective well-being, has been conducted using self-report measures.

Question 28

Twin studies suggest that approximately 70% of individual differences in happiness, or subjective well-being, can be attributed to people's genes.

Question 29

Research suggests that happier people are more likely to show increases in introversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness over time.

Question 30

People who are better educated tend to be happier, even after controlling for income and stress.

Question 31

The human display of pride closely resembles the primate display of dominance.

Question 32

Most emotion theorists agree that love should be considered a basic or discrete emotion.

Question 33

Heightened oxytocin activity has been found to play a role in love for attachment figures, love for offspring, and sexual desire.

Question 34

All positive emotions have been found to increase people's reliance on heuristic, cut-based cognitive processing.

Question 35

Explain why many emotion theorists consider happiness to be a trait, rather than an emotion state, and list the three defining features of trait happiness as discussed in your textbook.

Question 36

List four factors that predict greater happiness/subjective well-being, according to research described in your textbook.

Question 37

Explain the difference between authentic and hubristic pride.

Question 38

As noted in your textbook, not all emotion researchers consider love to be a basic or discrete emotion. Describe the two alternative ways of thinking about love, described in your textbook.

Question 39

List three ways in which the emotion of awe differs from most other positive emotions.

Question 40

Evidence suggests that, as a general rule, people are not very good at predicting what will make them happy, in terms of enhancing their subjective well-being. Why do you think this is? Explain your answer, citing at least three empirical research findings discussed in class or in your textbook to support your argument.

Question 41

Describe the adaptive function proposed by your textbook for three positive emotions, and give a specific example (not previously discussed in class or the text) of each of these functions in real life.

Question 42

Some theorists have argued that, although there may be several basic or discrete negative emotions, there is only one positive emotion. Other researchers have argued that there probably are multiple, discrete positive emotions. With which perspective do you agree most strongly? Whatever your perspective, defend it with at least three pieces of empirical evidence presented in class or your textbook.