Psychology First Exam

Front 1

Hindsight bias

Back 1

the tendency to believe after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it. ( also known as i-knew-it-all-along phenomenon)

Front 2

critical thinking

Back 2

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

Front 3

theory

Back 3

an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes and predicts observation

Front 4

hypothesis

Back 4

a testable prediction often implied by a theory

Front 5

operational definition

Back 5

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

Front 6

replication

Back 6

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 7

culture

Back 7

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

Front 8

case study

Back 8

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

Front 9

survey

Back 9

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

Front 10

false consensus effect

Back 10

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

Front 11

population

Back 11

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

Front 12

random sample

Back 12

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

Front 13

naturalistic observation

Back 13

observing and recording behavior in naturally occuring situations without trying to manipulate and control them

Front 14

correlation

Back 14

a measure of the extent to which two factor vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other. ranges form -1 to +1

Front 15

scatterplot

Back 15

a graphed cluter of dots, each which represents the values fo two variables.

Front 16

illusory correlation

Back 16

the perception of a relationw here none exists

Front 17

experiment

Back 17

a research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors (independant variables) to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process (dependant variable)

Front 18

double-blind procedure

Back 18

an experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant (blind) about whether the research participants have received teh treatment or a placebo

Front 19

placebo effect

Back 19

experimental results cauesd 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

Front 20

experimental condition

Back 20

the condition of an experiment that exposes participants to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independant variable

Front 21

control condition

Back 21

the condition of an experiment that contrasts witht he experimental condition and serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment

Front 22

random assignment

Back 22

assigning participants to experimental and control condition by chance, thus minimizing preexisting difference between those assigned to different groups.

Front 23

independant variable

Back 23

the experiemtnal factor that is manipulated: the variable whose effect is being studied

Front 24

dependant variable

Back 24

the outcome factor: teh variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independant variable

Front 25

mode

Back 25

the most frequently occuring scores ina distribution

Front 26

mean

Back 26

the arithmatic average of a distribution, obtained by adding the scores and then dividing by an number of scores are above ti and half are below it

Front 27

range

Back 27

the difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution

Front 28

standard deviation

Back 28

a computed measure of hwo much scores vary around the mean score

Front 29

statistical significance

Back 29

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

Front 30

culture

Back 30

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

Front 31

norm

Back 31

an understood rule for accepted and expected behavior. Norms perscribe "proper" behavior

Front 32

personal space

Back 32

the buffer zone we like to maintain around our bodies

Front 33

individualism

Back 33

giving priority to one's own goals over group goals and defining one's identity in terms of personal attributes rather than group identifications

Front 34

collectivisim

Back 34

giving priority to the goals of one's group (often one's extended family or work group) and defining one's identity accordingly

Front 35

aggression

Back 35

physical or verbal behavior intended to hurt someone

Front 36

X chromosome

Back 36

the sex chromosome found in both men and women. Females ahve two X chromosomes males have one

Front 37

Y chromosome

Back 37

the sex chromosome foundonly in males when paired with an X chromosome from the mother, it produces a male child

Front 38

testosterone

Back 38

the most important of the male sex hormones. both males and females have it, but the additional testosterone in males stimulates the growth of the male sex organs in the fetus and the development of males sex characteristics during puberty

Front 39

role

Back 39

a set of expectations (norms)about a social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave

Front 40

gender role

Back 40

a set of expected behaviors for males and for females