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Stereotype threat is more, in general, an organism will be more likely to develop phobias of __________.

A. Dangers faced during natural circumstances
B. Unnatural modern inventions, like cars
C. Easily understood forces and pressures
D. Dangers encountered in dreams and visions

User Rurban
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Final answer:

An organism is more likely to develop phobias of dangers faced during natural circumstances. Examples include fears of spiders and heights, which are instinctive fears due to our evolutionary past. These fears and phobias are usually a result of stimulus generalization, as was demonstrated in Watson and Rayner's experiments with Little Albert. The correct answer is option A. Dangers faced during natural circumstances.

Step-by-step explanation:

When discussing which scenarios an organism is more likely to develop phobias of, the answer is A. Dangers faced during natural circumstances. This concept can be explained through evolutionary psychology, which suggests that we are more prone to fear things that posed threats to our ancestors.

This is why people may experience an instinctive fear of heights, snakes, or spiders despite not having encountered these dangers personally. Modern inventions, like cars, don't trigger the same instinctual fear because they haven't been around long enough to become part of our evolutionary history of threats.

In Watson and Rayner's experiments, they conditioned Little Albert to fear a white rat, and subsequently, he started to fear similar furry objects. This process is known as stimulus generalization, where a response to a specific stimulus is elicited by similar stimuli. This phenomenon shows our tendency to overgeneralize based on limited experiences, an adaptive trait for quick learning of dangers but also the root of phobias and irrational fears.

User Japuentem
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