Psychology Unit 3 Key Terms

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Interpersonal Attraction

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This relates to being interested in another person and wanting to get to know them better.

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Match Hypothesis

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The tendency to form a relationship with someone who is of a similar level of attractiveness to oneself.

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Law of Attraction

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The idea that how much we like someone is directly related to how similar our attitudes are.

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Close Relationship

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A connection between two people which involves interdependence in many areas of their lives.

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Field of Availables

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The name given to the large group of people we could potentially have a relationship with.

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Field of Desirables

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Those we would see as potential partners.

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Exchange Relationships

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These involve the exchange of rewards largely on a 'tit for tat' basis.

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Communal Relationships

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These take place when partners offer rewards without expecting rewards in return.

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Self-Disclosure

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The sharing of increasingly personal and intimate information which shows trust and enables two people to get beyond superficial contact.

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Need For Affiliation

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This relates to how strongly an individual is motivated to form connections with other people.

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Economic Theories

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An influential group of theories which argue that people run relationships in a similar way to running bank accounts, keeping an eye on what is being put in and taken out by partners.

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Outcome

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The overall balance between rewards and costs in a relationship.

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Investments

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Things which have been put into the relationships such as time, which will be lost if it breaks down.

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Equity

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The idea that relationships should be run in a fair way. Equity can be measured using the Hatfield Global Measure, which uses a scale from +3 (I am getting a much better deal than my partner) to -3 (I am getting a much worse deal than my partner).

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Natural Selection

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Variation within any species leads to some individuals being better equipped to survive and breed than others. Those who are reproductively successful and who leave more offspring will have their characteristics passed on in the gene pool.

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Sexual Selection

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The process by which characteristics are selected because they are attractive to the other sex. The genes which code for these are passed on to offspring.

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Parental Investment

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The amount of time, energy and effort put in to aid the reproduction and survival of a child (offspring).

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Reductionism

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The term given to explanations of human behaviours at a low level of analysis.

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Continuity Hypothesis

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The claim that early relationship experiences continue in later adult relationships.

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Attachment Style

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A characteristic way of behaving in relationships, for example a tendency to be trusting or jealous.

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Horizontal Relationshops

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Those between individuals of similar status or power.

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Social Learning Theory

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The idea that behaviours are learned through observation of role models and imitation of their actions.

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Culture

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The beliefs and customs of a social group which distinguish it from other groups.

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Collectivist Cultures

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Cultures where the welfare of the group is seen as more important than the welfare of the individual.

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Well Wishers

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Interested parties such as parents, relatives or friends who help to identify potential partners.

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Etics

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Culturally specific constructs.

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Emics

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Constructs which are universal across cultures.

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Acculturation

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Internalising the views of another culture.

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Dowry

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A sum of money and/or gifts given by the bride's family to the groom at the start of the marriage.

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Longitudinal Study

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A form of research that is often used in 'developmental areas' where a group of participants are studied for extended periods of time.

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Vicarious Reinforcement

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Witnessing another person showing a behaviour and being rewarded for it.

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Imposed Etic

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When a researcher imposes their idea and assumes that their view is appropriate irrespective of cultural differences.

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Deterministic

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A debate in psychology suggesting that our behaviour is controlled either by one factor solely (hard determinism) or by general laws, but allowing free will to operate in some situations.

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Sex

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The biological fact of being a male or female. in about 98% of babies, biological sex is clearly established by the genitals and hormones.

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Gender

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The concepts of masculinity and femininity. These are socially constructed ideas about the behaviours and qualities which are appropriate for men and women, such as being independent or emotional. The statement 'boys don't cry' demonstrates a commonly held idea about masculinity.

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Androgyny

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The co-existence of masculine and feminine qualities within the same person. For example, a man who is both adventurous and gentle or a woman who is brave and nurturing could be called 'androgynous'.

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'Sex-Typed' Individuals

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Men who conform to masculine stereotype and women who conform to feminine stereotype.

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Gender Identity

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The classification that the child/adult gives himself/herself as male or female. In most cases, the child is either male and feels like a boy, or female and feels like a girl.

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Gender Dysphoria

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Being uncomfortable with your assigned gender and having a strong desire to become a member of the other sex. A man may feel he is a woman trapped in a man's body.

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Hormones

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Chemicals released from glands which act on target tissues and organs. Androgens are male hormones and oestrogen are female hormones.

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Hypothalamus

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A structure in the forebrain which controls the pituitary gland and the autonomic nervous system. It also contains centres for control of feeding behaviour.

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Corpus Callosum

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The interconnecting set of fibres that enable the two hemispheres of the brain to 'talk' to each other.

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Androgens

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Male sex hormones, the most important one being testosterone.

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Oestrogens

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Female hormones.

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Critical Period

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A specific period of time in which something has to happen, e.g. hormones on gender-development.

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Sexual Dimorphism

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Differences in bodily structure between males and females of a species. A common example of dimorphism is that males are often bigger than females.

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Reproductive Success

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This refers to the process of successfully passing on your genes to the next generation. This is measured by the number of surviving offspring left behind by an individual.

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Operant Conditioning

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This refers to Skinner's idea that the likelihood of any behaviour being repeated depends on its consequences. (Positive and negative reinforcement.)

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Positive Reinforcement

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This occurs when a behaviour is followed by something pleasant (which increases the likelihood that the behaviour will be repeated).

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Meta-Analysis

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The combination and review of the data from many studies which have used similar methodology to investigate the same subject.

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Social Cognitive Learning Theory (SCLT)

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This takes the view that behaviours are learned through observation of role models and imitation of their behaviours. The child plays an active part in deciding which models to copy.

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Vicarious Experience

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Learning through observation of another persons' actions rather than through direct experience.

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Egalitarian Family

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Parents share parenting and economic work.

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Traditional Family

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One parent takes responsibility for childcare and housework and the other for economic work.

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Culture

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The beliefs and customs of a social group which distinguish it from other groups.

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Traditional

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A culture where there are clear differences in mens and womens' roles and power.

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Egalitarian

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A culture where gender roles are more flexible and equal.

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Masculine Culture

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Values stereotypical 'male' qualities such as independence or achievement.

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Feminine Culture

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Values stereotypical 'female' qualities such as cooperation.

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Biosocial Theory

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This argues that it is the interaction between biological factors and social factors which leads to the development of the child's gender identity and gendered behaviour.

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Social Constructionist Theory

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This argues that concepts of gender are not natural but made or constructed within a particular time and place through language.

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Schemas

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Sets of ideas about an object or activity which come from past experience and may be taken in from the wider culture. A gender schema refers to the set of ideas about what activities, toys and behaviours are appropriate for a particular sex - boy or girl.

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Gender Roles

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The sets of behaviours that are seen as appropriate for males and females.

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Androgyny Hypothesis

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This claims that individuals who score highly on both masculinity and femininity are psychologically healthier than sex-typed individuals.

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Individual Differences

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The study of how people vary in intelligence and personality.

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Theory of Mind

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The ability to attribute mental states to oneself and others.

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Cognition

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The term used to describe a range of mental activities associated with thinking. Common cognitive processes include reasoning, problem solving, paying attention and remembering.

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Cognitive Development

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The development of thinking skills such as reasoning and problem solving.

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Stages

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Periods of time loosely linked to age. Stages must be gone through in order and cannot be skipped.

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Operations

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Combinations of schemas.

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Assimilation

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Using an existing schema to deal with a new object or situation.

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Accommodation

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Modifying or changing an existing schema to deal with a new object or situation.

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Equilibrium

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A state when existing skills or schemas can be used to deal with new situations.

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Disequilibrium

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A state when existing schemas do not fit a new situation and so must be altered or adapted.

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Object Permanence

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The ability to recognise that something or someone exists when it is out of sight.

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Animism

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The idea that objects have feelings. Roughly up to the age of four, children believe that inanimate objects have feelings.

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Egocentric

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Not understanding that another person's viewpoint is different to your own.

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Conserve

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Know that quantity remains the same despite changes in appearance.

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Compensation

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Referring to one aspect of cancelling another out.

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Reversibility

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Mentally reversing an action to see what a situation was like before.

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Seriation

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The ability to put objects into a series or order.

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Class Inclusion Tasks

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The ability to see one category existing within another, for example the categories of man and woman exist within the broader category of 'people'.

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Human Sense

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Tasks where children understand the motives and intentions of the characters.

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Readiness

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The idea that children are ready to learn certain things in specific ways at different times.

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Discovery Learning

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The idea that children learn best through doing and actively exploring.

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Higher Mental Functions

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The ability to reason, problem solve and calculate.

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Social Speech

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Used to communicate with others.

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Intellectual Speech

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Used by older children and adults to think and problem solve.

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Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)

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The gap between the tasks that the child can do on their own and those they can do with help.

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Scaffolding

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Help or support given to the child. The nature of the scaffolding can vary and depends on the child's current level of understanding and ability.

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Peer Mentoring

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Cognitive benefits gained from children working together, especially when paired with a child of a different level.

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Information Processing Approach

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This views the human mind as analogous to a computer and identifies the cognitive skills involved in mental activities.

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Modes of Representation

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Different ways that tasks and knowledge can be represented internally.

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Spiral Curriculum

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The idea that the same area may be revisited in different ways as the child's thinking becomes more complex.

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Contingency

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The idea that effective instruction depends on the child's preceding behaviour.

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Cognitive Acceleration

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Speeding up cognition by teaching thinking skills.

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Moral Understanding

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The process by which people tell the difference between right and wrong.

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Cognitive Developmental Perspective

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Sees development as primarily caused by the child's thinking.

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Pro-Social Reasoning

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How children think about helpful behaviours.

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Vignettes

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Short descriptions of events, behaviour or people, which can be used in an experimental setting.

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Amoral Stage

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The child is unaware of moral rules.

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Heteronomous Stage

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Moral rules are set by those external to the child such as parents or teachers.

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Autonomous Stage

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The child internalises moral rules and males decisions themselves.

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Moral Dilemmas

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Hypothetical situations which present the individual with a series of choices.

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Qualitative Data

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Non-numerical data often in the form of words taken from interviews.

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Domains

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Different areas of moral reasoning, relating to individuals and social rules.

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Moral Domain

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Accepted rules relating to individual rights.

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Social Conventional Domain

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Rules relating to society.

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Alpha Bias

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This occurs when researchers assume that there are differences between men and women and one sex is seen to be inferior or lacking.

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Beta Bias

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This occurs when differences between males and females are overlooked.

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Pro-Social Actions

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Those actions which help other people.

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False Belief Tasks

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Tasks that allow the investigator to analyse the cognitive processing of the child by seeing whether they can recognise that others can have beliefs about the world that are wrong.

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Unexpected Transfer Task

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This takes place when one object is unexpectedly swapped for another without a person being aware of it.

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Neuron

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The brain is made up of around 100 billion neurones. Neurones are specialised to transmit electrical activity and are connected to each other by synapses. The electrical activity codes information in the brain.

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Electroencephalograph (EEG)

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A recording of the electrical activity of the brain. Electrodes of the scalp pick up electrical activity from the millions of neurones in the brain. Different patterns of EEG activity can reflect different brain states, such as arousal and the stages of sleep.