What is defined as the sum of coordinated responses of organisms to internal and external stimuli?

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Prepare for the MCAT Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior Test. Study with flashcards and multiple choice questions with hints and explanations. Get ready for your exam!

The term that captures the sum of coordinated responses of organisms to both internal and external stimuli is behavior. Behavior encompasses a wide range of actions, including reflexes, voluntary movements, and social interactions. It reflects how organisms adapt and respond to their environment, making it a key concept in understanding psychology and biology.

Emotion, while related to behavior, specifically refers to complex psychological states that involve subjective experience, physiological response, and expressive behaviors. It does not encompass all forms of coordinated responses in the way that behavior does. Cognition pertains to mental processes involved in gaining knowledge and understanding, such as thought, perception, and memory, rather than the actual responses themselves. Motivation refers to the driving forces that initiate and direct behavior but does not define the coordinated responses resulting from those internal or external stimuli.

Hence, behavior is the most encompassing and accurate term for the sum of responses to stimuli from both within the organism and the surrounding environment.