Psy Exam #1

Front 1

Define Psychology

Back 1

The scientific study of behavior and mental process.

Front 2

Define Empiricism

Back 2

The view that knowledge originates in experience and that science should, therefore, rely on observation and experimentation.

Front 3

Define Structuralism

Back 3

An early school of psychology that used introspection to explore the elemental structure of the human mind.

Front 4

Define Functionalist

Back 4

Encourages explorations of down-to-earth emotions, memories, will power, habits, and moment-to-moment streams of consciousness.

Front 5

Define Humanistic Psychology

Back 5

Historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people.

Front 6

Define nature- nurture

Back 6

The long-standing controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors.

Front 7

Define Natural Selection

Back 7

The principle that, among the range of inherited trait variations, those contributing to reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations.

Front 8

Define Levels of Analysis

Back 8

The differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social-cultural, for analyzing any given phenomenon.

Front 9

Define Biopsychological Approach

Back 9

An integrated perspective that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis.

Front 10

Define Basic Research

Back 10

Pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base.

Front 11

Define Applied Research

Back 11

Scientific study that aims to solve practical problems.

Front 12

Define Counseling Psychology

Back 12

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

Front 13

Define Clinical Thinking

Back 13

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

Front 14

Define Psychiatry

Back 14

A branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who sometimes provide medical treatments as well as psychological therapy.

Front 15

Define Hindsight Bias

Back 15

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

Front 16

Define Critical Thinking

Back 16

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

Front 17

Define Theory

Back 17

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

Front 18

Define Hypothesis

Back 18

A testable prediction, often implied by a theory.

Front 19

Define Operational definition

Back 19

A statement of the procedures used to define research variables.

Front 20

Define Replication

Back 20

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

Front 21

Define Case Study

Back 21

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

Front 22

Define Survey

Back 22

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

Front 23

Define False Consensus Effect

Back 23

The tendency to overestimate the extent to which others share our beliefs and behaviors.

Front 24

Define Population

Back 24

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

Front 25

Define Random Sample

Back 25

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

Front 26

Define Naturalistic Observation

Back 26

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

Front 27

Define Correlation

Back 27

A measure of the extent to which two factors vary together and thus of how well either factor predicts the other.

Front 28

Define Scatterplot

Back 28

A graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variables. The amount of scatter suggests the strength of the correlation.

Front 29

Define Illusory Correlation

Back 29

The perception of a relationship where none exists.

Front 30

Define Experiment

Back 30

A research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process.

Front 31

Define Double- Blind Procedure

Back 31

An experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are blind about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo.

Front 32

Define Placebo Effect

Back 32

Experimental results caused by expectations alone; any effect on behavior caused by the administration of an inert substance or condition.

Front 33

Define Experimental Condition

Back 33

The condition of an experiment that exposes participants to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independent variable.

Front 34

Define Control Condition

Back 34

The condition of an experiment that contrasts with the experimental condition and serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment.

Front 35

Define Random Assignment

Back 35

Assigning participants to experimental and control conditions by chance, thus minimizing preexisting differences between those assigned to the different groups.

Front 36

Define Independent Variable

Back 36

The experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied.

Front 37

Define Dependent Variable

Back 37

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

Front 38

Define Mode

Back 38

The most frequently Occurring scores in a distribution.

Front 39

Define Mean

Back 39

The arithmetic average of a distribution, obtained by adding the scores and then dividing by the number of scores.

Front 40

Define Median

Back 40

The middle score in a distribution; half the scores are above it and half are below it.

Front 41

Define Range

Back 41

The difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution.

Front 42

Define Standard Deviation

Back 42

A computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean score.

Front 43

Define Statistical Significance

Back 43

A statistical statement of how likely it is that an obtained result occurred by chance.

Front 44

Define Culture

Back 44

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