Intro To Psychology: Exam 1 Review

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Behaviorism

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the view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Most research psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2)

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Humanistic psychology

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historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people; used personalized methods to study personality in hopes of fostering personal growth.

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Psychology

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the scientific study of behavior and mental processes

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Nature-nurture issue

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the longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors. Today’s science sees traits and behaviors arising from the interaction of nature and nurture

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Levels of analysis

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differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to socio-cultural, for analyzing any given phenomenon

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Biopsychosocial approach

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an integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological ,and social-cultural levels of analysis

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Basic research

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science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base

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Applied research

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scientific study that aims to solve practical problems

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Counseling psychology

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a branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living and in achieving greater well-being

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Clinical psychology

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a branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders

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Psychiatry

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a branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who sometimes provide medical (for example, drug) treatments as well as psychological therapy

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Hindsight bias

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the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it

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Critical thinking

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thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions. Rather, it examines assumptions, discern hidden values, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions

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Theory

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an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviors or events

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Hypothesis

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testable prediction, often implied by a theory

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Operational definition

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a statement of the procedures (operations) used to define research variables. For example, human intelligence may be operationally defined as what an intelligence test measures

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Replication

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repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether the basic, findings extends to other participants and circumstances

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Case study

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an observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles

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Survey

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technique for ascertaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of people, usually by questioning a representative, random sample of them

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Population

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all the cases in a group, from which samples may be drawn for a study

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Random sample

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a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion

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Naturalistic observation

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observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation

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Correlation

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a measure of the extent to which two factors vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other. The correlation coefficient is the mathematical expression of the relationship, ranging from -1 to +1

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Experiment

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a research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors (independent variables) to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process (the dependent variable). By random assignment of participants, the experiment aims to control other relevant factors

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Random assignment

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assigning research participants to experimental and control conditions by chance, thus minimizing pre-existing differences between those assigned to the different groups

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Double-blind procedure

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an experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant (blind) about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo. Commonly used in drug-evaluation studies

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Placebo

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experimental results caused by expectations alone; any effect on behavior caused by the administration of an inert substance or condition, which is assumed to be an active agent

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Experimental group

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the group in an experiment that is exposed to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independent variable

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Control group

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the group in an experiment that contrasts with the experiment group and serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment

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Independent variable

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the experimental factor that is manipulated, the variable whose effect is being studied

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Dependent variable

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the outcome factor; the variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable

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Culture

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the enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, and traditions shared by a large group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next

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Developmental psychology

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a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout a life span

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Zygote

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the fertilized egg; it enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo

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Embryo

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the developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second month

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Fetus

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the developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth

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Teratogens

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agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm

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Fetal alcohol syndrome

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physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant woman’s heavy drinking. In severe cases, symptoms include noticeable facial misproportions

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Maturation

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biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience

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Cognition

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– all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating

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Schema

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a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information

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Assimilation

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– interpreting one’s new experience in terms of one’s existing schemas

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Accommodation

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adapting one’s current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information

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Sensorimotor stage

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in piaget’s theory, the stage from birth to about 2 years during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities

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Object permanence

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the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived

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Preoperational stage

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in piaget’s theory, the stage from about 2-6 or 7 years of age during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic

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Conservation

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the principle which piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational reasoning that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in the forms of objects

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Egocentrism

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in piaget’s theory, the pre-operational child’s difficulty taking another’s point of view

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Theory of mind

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people’s ideas about their own and others’ mental states – about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts, and the behavior these might predict

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Autism

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disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by deficient communication, social interaction, and understanding of others’ states of mind

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concrete operational stage

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– in piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development from about 6 or 7 to 11 years of age during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events

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Formal operational stage

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in piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development normally beginning about age 12 during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts

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Stranger anxiety

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the fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning about 8 months of age

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Attachment

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an emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver and showing distress on separation

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Critical period

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optimal period shortly after birth when an organism’s exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces proper development

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Imprinting

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the process by which certain animals form attachments during a critical period very early in life

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Basic trust

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according to erik erikson, a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy; said to be formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers

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Adolescence

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the transition period from childhood to adulthood, extending from puberty to independence

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Puberty

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the period of sexual maturation during which a person becomes capable of reproducing

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Primary sex characteristics

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the body structures that make sexual reproduction possible

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Secondary sex characteristics

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nonreproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breasts and hips, male voice quality, and body hair

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Menarche

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the first menstrual period

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Identity

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one’s sense of self; according to Erikson, the adolescent’s task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles

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Intimacy

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in Erikson’s theory, the ability to form close, loving relationships; a primary developmental task in late adolescence and early adulthood

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Language

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our spoken, written, or signed words and the ways we combine them to communicate meaning

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Babbling stage

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beginning at about 4 months, the stage of speech development in which the infant spontaneously utters various sounds at first unrelated to the house-hold language

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One-word stage

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the stage in speech development, from about age 1-2 during which a child speaks mostly in single words

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Two-word stage

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beginning about age 2, the stage in speech development during which a child speaks mostly two-word statements

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Telegraphic speech

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speech stage in which a child speaks like a telegram – “go car” – using mostly nouns and verbs and omitting auxiliary words

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Linguistic determinism

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Whorf’s hypothesis that language determines the way we think

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Biological psychology

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a branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology and behavior.

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Neuron

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a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system

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Dendrite

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the bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body

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Axon

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the extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands

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Action potential

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a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon

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Threshold

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the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse

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Synapse

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the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap of this junction is called the synaptic gap or cleft

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Neurotransmitters

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chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gaps between neurons. When released by the sending neuron, neurotransmitters travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse

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Endorphins

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natural, opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure

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Nervous system

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the body’s speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous system

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Central nervous system

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the brain and spinal cord

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Peripheral nervous system

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the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body

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Nerves

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neural cables containing many axons. These bundled axons, which are part of the peripheral nervous system, connect the central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sense organs

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Sensory neurons

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neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the central nervous system

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Motor neurons

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neurons that carry outgoing information from the central nervous system to the muscles and glands

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Interneuron’s

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central nervous system neurons that internally communicate and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs

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Somatic nervous system

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the division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body’s skeletal muscles

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Autonomic nervous system

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the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart). Its sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms

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Sympathetic nervous system

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the division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations

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Parasympathetic nervous system

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the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conversing its energy

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Reflex

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a simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response

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Endocrine

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the body’s slow chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream

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Hormones

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chemical messengers, mostly those manufactured by the endocrine glands, that are produced in one tissue and affect another

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Adrenal gland

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a pair of endocrine glands just above the kidneys. The adrenals secrete the hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine which helps to arouse the body in times of stress

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Pituitary gland

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the endocrine system’s most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, it regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands

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Sensation

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the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment

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Perception

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the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events

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Bottom-up processing

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analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain’s integration of sensory information

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Top-down processing

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information processing guided by the higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations

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Psychophysics

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the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them

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Absolute threshold

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the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time

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Subliminal

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below one’s absolute threshold for conscious awareness

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Priming

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the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus pre-disposing one’s perception, memory, or response

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Difference threshold

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the minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50% of the time. We experience the difference threshold as a just noticeable difference

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Weber’s law

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the principle that, to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage (rather than a constant amount)

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Sensory adaptation

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diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation

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Wavelength

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the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next. Electromagnetic wavelengths vary from the short blips of cosmic rays to the long pulses of radio transmission

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Hue

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– the dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light; what we know as the color names blue, green, and so forth

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Intensity

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the amount of energy in a light or sound wave, which we perceive as brightness or loudness, as determined by the wave’s amplitude

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Retina

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the light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information

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Accommodation

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the process by which the eye’s lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina

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Rods

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retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray; necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don’t respond

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Cones

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retinal receptor cells that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions. The cones detect fine detail and give rise to color sensations

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Optic nerve

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the nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain

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Blind spot

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– the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a “blind” spot because no receptor cells are located there

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Fovea

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the central focal point in the retina, around which the eye’s comes cluster

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Feature detectors

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nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement

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Parallel processing

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the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain’s natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision. Contrasts with the step-by-step processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving

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Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory

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the theory that the retina contains three different color receptors – one most sensitive to red, one to green, and one to blue – which when stimulated in combination can produce the perception of any color.

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Opponent-process theory

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the theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, blue-yellow, white-black) enable color vision. For example, some cells are stimulated by green and inhibited by red; others are stimulated by red and inhibited by green

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Audition

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the sense or act of hearing

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Frequency

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the number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time (for example, per second)

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Pitch

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a tone’s experienced highness or lowness, depends on frequency

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Middle ear

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the chamber between the eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones (hammer, anvil, and stirrup) that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea’s oval window

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Cochlea

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– a coiled, bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear through which sound waves trigger nerve impulses

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Inner ear

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the innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs

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Gestalt

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an organized whole. Gestalt psychologists emphasized our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful objects

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Figure-ground

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the organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground)

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Grouping

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the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups

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Depth perception

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the ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; allows us to judge distance

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Visual cliff

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a laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals

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Binocular cues

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depth cues, such as retinal disparity, that depend on the use of two eyes

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Retinal disparity

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a binocular cue for perceiving depths: By comparing images from the two eyeballs, the brain computes distance – the great the disparity (difference) between the two images, the closer the object

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Monocular cues

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depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone

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Perceptual constancy

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perceiving object as unchanging (having consistent color, shape, size, or lightness) even as illumination and retinal images change

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Color constancy

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perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflect by the object

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Schizophrenia

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group of severe disorders characterized by disorganized and delusional thinking, disturbed perceptions, and inappropriate emotions and actions

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Delusions

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false beliefs, often of persecution or grandeur, that may accompany schizophrenia and other disorders

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Evolutionary psychology

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the study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection

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Natural selection

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the principle that, among the range of inherited trait variations, those that lead to increased reproduction and survival will most likely be passed onto succeeding generations

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Mutation

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a random error in gene replication that leads to a change