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psych 105 test 1
chapters 1,2,3,4
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| what is psychology? | the scientific study of thought and behavior |
| cognitive psychology | the study of how people perceive, remember, think, speak, and solve |
| developmental psychology | the study of how thought and behavior change and remain stable across the life span |
| behavioral neuroscience | the study of the links among brain, mind, and behavior |
| biological psychology | the study of the relationship between bodily systems and chemicals and how they influence behavior and thought |
| clinical psychology | the study of the treatment of mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders and the promotion of psychological health |
| personality psychology | the study of what makes people unique and the consistencies in peoples behavior across time and situations |
| social psychology | the study of how living among others influences thought, feeling and behavior |
| health psychology | the study of the role that psychological factors play in regard to physical health and illness |
| educational psychology | the study of how students learn, the effectiveness of particular techniques, the social psychology of schools and the psychology of teaching |
| sports psychology | the study of the psychological factors in sports and exercise |
| industrial/organizational (I/O) psychology | application of psychological concepts and questions to work settings |
| forensic psychology | field that blends psychology, law, and criminal justice |
| shamans | medicine men or women who treat people with mental problems by driving out their demons with elaborate rituals, such as exorcisms, incantations, and prayers |
| asylums | facilities for treating ill in europe during the middle ages and into the 19th century |
| moral treatment | 19th century approach to treating the mentally ill with dignity in a caring environment |
| psychoanalysis | a clinically based approach to understanding and treating psychological disorders; assumes that the unconscious mind is the most powerful force behind thought and behavior |
| empiricism | the view that all knowledge and thoughts come from experience |
| psychophysics | the first scientific form of psychology; laboratory studies of the subjective experience of physical sensations |
| structuralism | 19th century school of psychology that argued that breaking down experience into its elemental parts offs the best way to understand thought and behavior |
| introspection | the main method of investigation for structuralists; it involves looking into ones own mind for information about the nature of conscious experience |
| functionalism | 19th century school of psychology that argued it was better to look at why the mind works the way it does than to describe its parts |
| behaviorism | a school of psychology that proposed that psychology can be a true science only if it examines observable behavior, not ideas, thought, feeling, or motives |
| humanistic psychology | a theory of psychology that focuses on personal growth and meaning as a way of reaching ones highest potential |
| positive psychology | scientific approach to studying, understanding, and promoting healthy and positive psychological functioning |
| gestalt psychology | a theory of psychology that maintains that we perceive things as wholes rather than as a compilation of parts |
| nature through nurture | the position that the environment constantly interacts with biology to shape who we are and what we do |
| evolution | the change over time in the frequency with which specific genes occur within a breeding species |
| natural selection | a feedback process whereby nature favors one design over another because it has an impact on reproduction |
| adaptations | inherited solutions to ancestral problems that have been selected for because they contribute in some way to reproductive success |
| evolutionary psychology | the branch of psychology that studies human behavior by asking what adaptive problems it may have solves for our early ancestors |
| theory | a set of related assumptions from which scientist can make testable predictions |
| scientific method | the procedures by which scientists conduct research consisting of five basic processes; observation, prediction, testing, interpretation, and communication |
| hypothesis | a specific informed and testable prediction of the outcome of a particular set of conditions in a research design |
| replication | the repetition of a study to confirm the results; essential to the scientific process |
| pseudoscience | claims presented as scientific that are not supported by evidence obtained with the scientific method |
| research design | plans of action for how to conduct a scientific study |
| variable | a characteristic that changes of "varies," such as age, gender, weight, intelligence, anxiety and extraversion |
| population | the entire group the researcher is interested int; for example all humans, all adolescents, all boys, all girls, all college students |
| samples | subsets of the population in a research project |
| social desirability bias | the tendency toward favorable self-presentation that could lead to inaccurate self reports |
| descriptive designs | study designs in which the researcher defines a problem and variable of interest but makes no prediction and does not control or manipulate anything |
| case study | a study design in which a psychologist, often a therapist, observes one person over a long period of time |
| Representative sample | a research sample that accurately reflects the population of people one is studying |
| naturalistic observation | a study in which the researcher unobtrusively observes behavior in the real world |
| correlational designs | studies that measure two or more variables and their relationship to one another; not designed to show causation |
| correlation coefficient | a statistic that ranges from -1.0 to +1.0 and assesses the strength and direction of association between two variables |
| experiment | a research design that includes independent and dependent variables and random assignment of participant to control and experimental conditions |
| independent variable | a property that is manipulated by the experimenter under controlled conditions to determine whether it causes the predicted outcome of an experiment |
| dependent variable | in an experiment the outcome or response to the experimental manipulation |
| random assignment | the method used to assign participants to different research conditions so that all participants have the same chance of being in any specific group |
| control group | a group of research participants who are treated in exactly the same manner as the experimental group, except that they do not receive the independent variable or treatment |
| placebo | a substance or treatment that appears identical to the actual treatment but lacks the active substance |
| experimental group | a group consisting of those participants who will receive the treatment or whatever is predicted to change behavior |
| confounding variable | variable whose influence on the dependent variable cannot be separated from the independent variable being examined |
| single blind studies | studies in which participants do not know the experimental mental condition (group) to which they have been assigned |
| experimenter expectancy effects | results that occurs when the behavior of the participants is influenced by the experimenters knowledge of who is in the control group and who is in the experimental group |
| double blind studies | studies in which neither the participants nor the researchers administering the treatment know who has been assigned to the experimental or control group |
| self-fulfilling prophecy | a statement that affects the events to cause the prediction to become true |
| meta-analysis | a research and statistical technique for combining all research results on one question and drawing a conclusion |
| effect size | a measure of the strength of the relationship between two variable or the magnitude of an experimental effect |
| self-reports | written or oral accounts of a persons thoughts, feeling, or actions |
| behavioral measures | measures based on systematic observation of peoples actions either in their normal environment or in a lab setting |
| physiological measures | measure of bodily responses, such as blood pressure or heart rate, used to determine changes is psychological state |
| multiple measurement | the use of several measure to acquire data on one aspect of behavior |
| mode | a statistic that represents the most commonly occurring score or value |
| statistics | collection, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of numerical data |
| descriptive statistics | measures used to describe and summarize research data |
| mean | the arithmetic average of a series of numbers |
| median | the score that separates the lower half of the scores from the upper half |
| standard deviation | a statistical measure of how much scores in a sample vary around the mean |
| ethics | the rules governing the conduct of a person or group in general or in a specific situation |
| debriefing | the explanation of the purposes of a study following data collection |
| institutional review boards | organizations that evaluate research proposals to make sure research involving humans does not cause undue harm or distress |
| DNA | a large molecule that contains genes |
| genes | small segments of DNA that contain information for producing proteins |
| genome | all the genetic information in DNA |
| alleles | different forms of a gene |
| dominant genes | genes that show their effect even if there is only one allele for that trait in the pair |
| recessive genes | genes that show their effects only when both alleles are the same |
| behavioral genetics | the scientific study of the role of heredity in behavior |
| monogenic transmission | the hereditary passing on of traits determined by a single gene |
| polygenic transmission | the process by which many genes interact to create a single characteristic |
| twin studies | research into hereditary influence comparing pairs of fraternal and identical twins |
| adoption studies | research into hereditary influence in which adopted people are compared to their biological and adoptive parents |
| heritablity | the extent to which a characteristic in influenced by genetics |
| fraternal twins | twins that develop from two different eggs fertilized by two different sperm |
| identical twins | twins that develop from a single fertilized egg that splits into two independent cells |
| twin adoption studies | research into hereditary influences on twins both identical and fraternal, who were raised apart and who were raised together |
| gene by environment interaction research | a method of studying heritbality by comapring genetic markers that allows researchers to asses how genetic differences interact with environment to produce certain behaviors in some people but not in others |
| epigenetics | concerns changes in the way genes are turned on or of without change in the sequence of DNA |
| central nervous system | the part of the nervous system that comprises the brain and spinal cord |
| peripheral nervous system | the part of the nervous system that comprises all the nerve cells in the body outside the nervous system |
| somatic nervous system | nerve cells of the peripheral nervous system that transmit sensory information to the central nervous system ad those that transmit information from the CNS to the skeletal muscles |
| autonomic nervous system | all then nerves of the peripheral nervous system that serve involuntary systems of the body, such as the internal organs and glands |
| parasympathetic nervous system | the branch of the autonomic nervous system that usually relaxes or returns the body to a less active, restful state |
| sympathetic nervous system | the branch of the autonomic nervous system that activates bodily systems in times of emergency |
| glial cells | central nervous system cells that provide structural support, promote efficient communication between neurons, and serve as scavengers removing cellular debris |
| neurons | the cells that process and transmit information in the nervous system |
| neuro-transmitters | chemicals that transmit information between neurons |
| soma | the cell body of the neuron |
| axon | a long projection that extends from a neurons soma; it transmits electrical impulses toward adjacent neuron and stimulates the release of neurotransmitters |
| dendrites | finger-like projections from a neurons soma that receive incoming messages from other neurons |
| terminal buttons | little knobs at the end of the axon that contain tiny sacs of neurotransmitters |
| sensory neurons | nerve cells that receive incoming sensory information from the sense organs (eyes, ears, skin, tongue, and nose) |
| myelin sheath | the fatty substance wrapped around some axons, which insulates the axon, making the nerve impulse travel more efficiently |
| synapse | the junction between an axon and the adjacent neuron, where information is transmitted from one neuron to another |
| motor neurons | nerve cells that carry commands for movement from the brain to the muscles of the body |
| action potential | the impulse of positive charge that runs down an axon |
| resting potential | the difference in electrical charge between the inside and outside of the axon when the neuron is at rest |
| mirror neurons | nerve cells that are active when we observe others performing an action as well as when we are performing the same action |
| interneurons | neurons that communicate only with other neurons |
| ions | chemically charged particles that predominate in bodily fluids; found both inside and outside cells |
| refractory period | the span of time, after an action potential has been generated when the neuron is returning to its resting state and the neuron cannot generate action potential |
| all or none principle | the idea that once the threshold has been crossed, an action potential either fires or it does not; there is no half way |
| synaptic vesicles | tiny sacs in the terminal buttons that contain neurotransmitters |
| reuptake | a way of removing excess neurotransmitter from the synapse, in which excess neurotransmitter is returned to the sending or presynaptic, neuron storage in vesicles and future use |
| dopamine | a neurotransmitter released in response to behavior that feel good or are rewarding to the person or animal; also involved in voluntary motor control |
| enzymatic degradation | a way of removing excess neurotransmitter from the synapse, in which enzymes specific for that neurotransmitter bind with the neurotransmitter and destroy it |
| graded potentials | small changes in membrane potential that by themselves are insufficient to trigger an action potential |
| acetylcholine | a neurotransmitter that controls muscle movement and plays a role in mental processes such as learning, memory, attention, sleeping , and dreaming |
| epinephrine | also known as adrenaline, a neurotransmitter that arouses the bodily systems (such as increasing heart rate) |
| serotonin | a neurotransmitter with wide ranging effects: involved in dreaming and in controlling emotional states, especially anger, anxiety and depression |
| norepinephrine | a neurotransmitter that plays an important role in sympathetic nervous system, energizing bodily systems and increasing mental arousal and alertness |
| GABA | a major inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain that tells postynaptic neurons not the fire; it slows CNS activity and is necessary to regulate and control neural activity |
| glutamate | a major excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain that increases the likelihood that a postsynaptic neuron will fire; important in learning, memory, neural processing, and brain development |
| pons | a hindbrain structure that serves as a bridge between lower brain regions and higher midbrain and forebrain activity |
| cerebellum | a hindbrain structure involved in body movement, balance, coordination, fine-tuning motor skills, and cognitive activities such as learning and language |
| reticular formation | a network of nerve fibers that runs up through both the hindbrain and the midbrain; it is crucial to waking up and falling asleep |
| thalamus | a forebrain structure that receives information from the senses and relays it to the cerebral cortex for processing |
| medulla | a hindbrain structure that extends directly from the spinal cord; regulates breathing, heart rate, and blood pressure |
| reflexes | inborn and involuntary behaviors-such as coughing, swallowing, sneezing, or vomiting- they are elicited by very specific stimuli |
| hypothalamus | a limbic structure; the master regulator of almost all major drives and motives we have, such as hunger, thirst, temperature, and sexual behavior; also controls the pituitary gland |
| amygdala | a small, almond shaped structure located directly in front of the hippocampus; has connections with many important brain regions and is important for processing emotional information, especially that related to fear |
| hippocampus | a limbic structure that wraps itself around the thalamus; plays a vital role in learning and memory |
| cerebrum | each of the large halves of the brain that are covered with convolutions or folds |
| cingulate gyrus | a beltlike structure in the middle of the brain that plays an important role in attention and cognitive control |
| basal ganglia | a collection of structures surrounding the thalamus involved in voluntary motor control |
| cerebral cortex | the thin outer layer of the cerebrum in which much of human thought, planning, perception and consciousness takes place |
| contralaterality | the fact that one side of the brain controls movement on the opposite side |
| insula | a small structure inside the cerebrum that plays an important role in the perception of bodily sensations, emotional states, empathy, and addictive behavior |
| corpus callosum | the nerve fibers that connect the two hemispheres of the brain |
| aphasia | deficit in the ability to speak or comprehend language |
| broca's area | an area in the left frontal lobe responsible for the ability to produce speech |
| wernicke's area | an area deep in the left temporal lobe responsible for the ability to speak in meaningful sentences and to comprehend the meaning of speech |
| neuroplasticity | the brains ability to adopt new functions, reorganize itself, or make new neural connections thoughout life as a function of experience |
| neurogenesis | the development of new neurons |
| arborization | the growth and formation of new dendrites |
| synaptogenesis | the formation of entirely new synapses or connections with other neurons |
| electroencephalography EEG | a method for measuring brain activity in which the electrical activity of the brain is recorded from electrodes placed on a persons scalp |
| event-related potential ERP | a special technique that extracts electrical activity from raw EEG data to measure cognitive processes |
| magnetic resonance imaging MRI | brain imaging technique that uses magnetic fields to produce detailed images of the structure of the brain and other soft tissue |
| functional magnetic resonance imaging fMRI | brain imaging technique that uses magnetic fields to produce detailed images of activity in areas of the brain and other soft tissue |
| positron emission tomography PET | brain imaging technique that measures blood flow to active areas of the brain |
| endocrine system | system of glands that secrete and regulate hormones in the body |
| hormones | chemicals, secreted by glands, that travel in the bloodstream and carry messages to tissues and organs all over the body |
| pituitary gland | the master endocrine gland that controls the release of hormones from glands throughout the body |
| adrenal glands | endocrine structures that release hormones important in regulating the stress response and emotions |
| catecholamines | chemicals released from the adrenal glands that function as hormones and as neurotransmitters to control ANS activation |
| cortisol | a hormone released by the adrenal glands; responsible for maintaining the activation of bodily systems during prolonged stress |
| perception | a psychological process; the act of organizing and interpreting sensory experience |
| sensory adaptation | the process by which our sensitivity diminishes when an object constantly stimulates our senses |
| absolute threshold | the lowest intensity level of a stimulus a person can detect half of the time |
| transduction | the conversion of physical into neural information |
| psychophysics | the study of how people psychologically perceive physical stimuli such as light, sound, and touch |
| difference threshold | the smallest amount of change between two stimuli that a person can detect half the time |
| signal detection theory | the viewpoint that both stimulus intensity and decision-making processes are involved in the detection of a stimulus |
| weber's law | the finding that the size of a just noticeable difference is a constant fraction of the intensity of the stimulus |
| perceptual set | the effect of frame of mind on perception; a tendency to perceive stimuli in a certain manner |
| pupil | the opening in the iris through which light enters the eye |
| iris | the muscle that forms the colored part of the eye; it adjusts the pupil to regulate the amount of light that enters the eye |
| cornea | the clear hard covering that protects the lens of the eye |
| lens | the structure that sits behind the pupil; it bends the light rays that enter the eye to focus images in the retina |
| accommodation | the process by which the muscles control the shape of the lens to adjust viewing objects at different distances |
| photoreceptors | cells in the retina (called rods and cones) that convert light energy into nerve energy; they are transducers |
| retina | the thin layer of nerve tissue that lines the back of the eye |
| rods | photoreceptors that function in low illumination and play a key role in night vision; responsive to dark and light contrast |
| cones | photoreceptors that are responsible for color vision and are most functional in conditions of bright light |
| visual acuity | the ability to see clearly |
| dark adaptation | process of adjustment to seeing in the dark |
| fovea | spot on the back of the retina that contains the highest concentration of cones in the retina; place of clearest vision |
| optic nerve | structure composed of the axons of ganglion cells from the retina that carry visual information from the eye to the brain |
| optic chiasm | the point at which strands of the optic nerve from half of each eye cross over to the opposite side of the brain |
| feature detectors | neurons in the visual cortex that analyze the retinal image and respond to specific aspects of shapes, such as angles and movements |
| depth perception | the ability to see things in three dimensions and to discriminate what is near from what is far |
| binocular depth cues | aids to depth perception that rely on input from both eyes |
| convergence | a binocular depth cue; the way in which the eyes move inwards as an object moves closer to you |
| monocular depth cues | aids to depth perception that do not require two eyes |
| perceptual constancy | the ability of the brain to preserve perception of objects in spite of changes in retinal image when an object changes in position or distance from the viewer |
| similarity | the gestalt tendency to group like objects together in visual perception |
| continuity | the gestalt tendency to see points or lines in such a way that they follow a continuous path |
| proximity | the gestalt tendency to group objects together that are near one another |
| closure | the gestalt tendency to see a whole object even when complete information is not available |
| bottom up processing | assembling a perceptual experience |
| top down processing | perception of the whole based on our experience and with expectations, which guide our perception of smaller elemental features of a stimulus |
| trichromatic color theory | the theory that all color that we experience results from a mixing of three colors; red, green, and blue |
| after images | visual images that remain after removal of or looking away from the stimulus |
| opponent process theory | the theory that color vision results from cones linked together in three opposing pairs of colors so that activation of one member of the pair inhibits the activity in the other |
| tympanic membrane | the ear drum |
| cochlea | a bony tube of the inner ear, which is curled like a snails shell and filled with fluid |
| basilar membrane | a membrane that runs through the cochlea; contains the hair cells |
| hair cells | inner ear sensory receptors that transduce sound vibrations into neural impulses |
| auditory nerve | the nerve that receives action potentials from the hair cells and transmits auditory information to the brain |
| semicircular canals | structure of the inner ear involved in maintaining balance |
| bodily senses | the senses based in the skin, body, or any membrane surfaces |
| mechanoreceptors | receptor cells in the skin that are sensitive to different tactile qualities, such as shape, grooves or vibrations |
| pain | a complex emotion and sensory experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage |
| gate control theory of pain | idea that the spinal cord regulates the experience of pain by either opeining or closing neural channels, called gates, that transmit pain sensations to the brain |
| olfactory sensory neurons | the sensory receptors for smell that reside high up inside the nose |
| olfactory bulb | a forebrain structure that sends information either directly to the smell processing areas in the cortex or indirectly to the cortex by way of the thalalmus |
| papillae | textured structures on the surface of the tongue that contain thousands of taste buds |
| taste buds | structures inside the papillae of the tongue that contain the taste receptor cells |
| taste receptor cells | sensory receptors for taste that reside in the taste buds |
| synesthesia | an unusual sensory experience in which a person experiences sensations in one sense when a different sense is stimulated |
Created by:
scottmonk