Psy 110 Exam 1

Front 1

What are the goals of psychology?

Back 1

Describe, explain, predict, and influence behavior and mental processes.

Front 2

Description

Back 2

Usually the first step in understanding any behavior or mental process. A description tells what occured.

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Explanation

Back 3

An explanation tells why a given event or behavior occured.

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Prediction

Back 4

Once researchers can identify all the prior conditions required for a behavior or event to occur, they can predict that behavior or event.

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Influence

Back 5

This goal is accomplished when researchers know how to apply a principle or change a condition in order to prevent unwanted occurrences or bring about desired outcomes.

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What is the purpose of basic research?

Back 6

to seek new knowledge and to explore and advance general scientific understanding.

Basic research explores such topics as the nature of memory, brain function, motivation, and emotional expression.

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What is applied research?

Back 7

Research conducted specifically to solve practical problems and improve the quality of life.

Applied research focuses on finding methods to improve memory or increase motivation...

this type of research is primarily concerned with the fourth goal of psychology--influence--because it specifies ways and means of changing behavior.

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Naturalistic observation

Back 8

a descriptive research method in which researchers observe and record behavior in its natural setting, without attempting to influence or control it.

Limitations: researchers must wait for events to occur (they have no control). Also observer bias

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Laboratory observation

Back 9

observation that takes place in a laboratory...it allows for more control.

limitations: may not accurately reflect real world behavior. Also can be expensive.

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Case Study

Back 10

a descriptive research method in which a single person or a small number of individuals are studied in great depth, usually over an extended period of time.

limitations: observer bias and due to so few individuals studied, researchers do not know how applicable their findings may be to larger groups.

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Survey

Back 11

a descriptive research method in which researchers use interviews or questionnaires to gather information about the attitudes, beliefs, experiences, or behaviors of a group of people.

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The correlation method

Back 12

a research method used to establish the degree of relationship (correlation) between two characteristics, events, or behaviors.

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The experimental method

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the only research method that can be used to identify cause-effect relationships between tow or more conditions or variables

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confounding variables

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factors or conditions other than the independent variable that are not equivalent across groups and that could cause differences among the groups with respect to the dependent variable. (selection bias, the placebo effect, and experimenter bias).

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selection bias

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occurs when participants are assigned to experimental or control groups in such a way that sysematic differences among the groups are present at the beginning of the experiment.

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The placebo effect

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occurs when a participant's response to a treatment is due to his or her expectations about the treatment rather than to the treatment itself.

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Experimenter bias

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occurs when researchers' preconcieved notions or expectations become a self fulfilling prophecy and cause the researchers to find what they expect to find.

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double blind technique

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when neither the participants nor the researchers know which participants are getting the treatment and which are in the control group.

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Neurons

Back 19

a specialized cell that conducts impulses through the nervous system.

3 parts: the cell body, the dendrites, and the axon.

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The cell body

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(soma) contains the nucleus and carries out the metabolic, or life-sustaining functions of a neuron.

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dendrites

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branchlike extensions of the cell body that recieve signals from other neurons.

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axon

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the slender, tail-like extension of the neuron that transmits signals to the dendrites or cell body of other neurons and ot muscles, glands, and other parts of the body.

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synapse

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the junction where the axon terminal of a sending neuron communicates with a recieving neuron across the synaptic cleft.

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neurotransmitters

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a chemical substance that is released into the synaptic cleft from the axon terminal of a sending neuron, crosses a synapse, and binds to appropriate receptor sites on the dendrites or cell body of a recieving neuron, influencing the cell either to fire or not to fire.

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central nervous system

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consists of the brain and spinal cord

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peripheral nervous system

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connects the central nervous system to all other parts of the body.

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the hypothalamus

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a small but influential brain structure that regulates hunger, thirst, sexual behavior, internal body temperature, other body functions, and a wide variety of emotional behaviors.

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thalamus

Back 28

the structure located above the brainstem that acts as a relay station for information flowing into or out of the forebrain

Front 29

limbic system

Back 29

a group of structures in the midbrain, including the amygdala and hippocampus, that are collectively involved in emotional expression, memory, and motivation.

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hippocampus

Back 30

a structure in the limbic system that plays a central role in the storing of new memories, the response to new or unexpected stimuli, and navigational ability.

Front 31

plasticity

Back 31

the ability to respond to environmental demands

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substantia nigra

Back 32

located in the midbrain and controls unconcious motor movements

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medulla

Back 33

part of the brainstem that controls heartbeat, blood pressure, breathing, coughing, and swallowing

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cerebellum

Back 34

the brain structure that helps the body execute smooth, skilled movements and regulated muscle tone and posture.

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reticular formation

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a stucture in the brainstem that plays a crucial role in arousal and attention and that screens sensory messages entering the brain

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sympathetic nervous system

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mobilizes your body's resources preparing you for action (fight or flight)

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parasympathetic

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brings your heightened bodily functions back to normal

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somatic nervous system

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the nerves of this system make it possible for you to sense your environment and to move, and they are primarily under concious control

(sensory nerves and motor nerves)

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autonomic nervous system

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operates without any concious control

divided into sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems

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The frontal lobes

Back 40

the largest of the brain's lobes, which contain the motor cortex, Broca's area, and the frontal association areas.

Front 41

Broca's area

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the area in the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere, that controls the production of speech sounds

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Broca's aphasia

Back 42

problem in producing language, not understanding it

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Phineas Gage

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The railroad worker that suffered damage to his frontal lobe. He recovered but his personality changed dramatically.

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The parietal lobes

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the lobes that contain the somatosensory cortex (where touch, pressure, temperature, and pain register) and other areas that are responsible for body awareness and spatial orientation.

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The occipital lobes

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the lobes that are involved in the reception and interpretation of visual information; they contain the primary visual cortex.

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The temporal Lobes

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the lobes that are involved in the reception and interpretation of auditory information; they contain the primary auditory cortex, Wernicke's area, and the temporal association areas

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Wernicke's Area

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the language are involved in comprehending the spoken word and in formulating coherent written and spoken language.

Front 48

Wernicke's aphasia

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speech is fluent and words are articulated clearly but the actual message does not make sense to listeners

Front 49

plasticity

Back 49

the capacity of the brain to adapt to changes such as brain damage.

Front 50

What is intrisic motivation?

Back 50

the desire to behave in a certain way because it is enjoyable or satisfying in and of itself.

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What is extrinsic motivation?

Back 51

the desire to behave in a certain way in order to gain some external reward or to avoid some undesirable consequence.

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what is drive reduction theory?

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a theory of motivation suggesting that biological needs create internal states of tension or arousal--called drives--which organisms are motivated to reduce.

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What is the Yerkes-Dodson law?

Back 53

the principle that performance tasks is best when the arousal level is appropriate to the difficulty of the task: higher arousal for simple tasks, moderate arousal for moderate tasks, and lower arousal for complex tasks.

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What is the VMH?

Back 54

the part of the hypothalamus that acts as a satiety (fullness) center to inhibit eating.

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What is anorexia nervosa?

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an eating disorder characterized by an overwhelming, irrational fear of gaining weight or becoming fat, compulsive dieting to the point of self-starvation, and excessive weight loss.

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What is bulimia nervosa?

Back 56

an eating disorder characterized by repeated and uncontrolled (and often secretive) episodes of binge eating.

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What is set point theory?

Back 57

suggests that humans are genetically programmed to carry a certain amount of body weight.

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The James Lange Theory

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the that emotional feelings result when an individual becomes aware of a physiological response to an emotion-provoking stimulus (for example, feeling fear because of trembling)

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The Cannon-Bard Theory

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your feeling emotion occurs at about the same time that you experience physiological arousal. one does not cause the other.

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The Schachter-Singer Theory

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1) the person must experience physiological arousal. 2) there must then be a cognitive interpretation or explanation of the arousal so that the person can label it as a specific emotion.

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The Lazarus Theory

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The theory that a cognitive appraisal is the first step in an emotional response and all other aspects of an emotion, including physiological arousal, depend on it.

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Basic emotions

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unlearned and universal (fear, anger, disgust, surprise, happiness, and sadness)

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What is display rule?

Back 63

a cultural rule that dictates how an emotion should generally be expressed and when and where its expression is appropriate.

Front 64

The facial feedback hypothesis

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The idea that the muscular movements involved in certain facial expressions produce the corresponding emotions (smiling makes one feel happy)