Elementary Psychology

Functionalism

The psychological study of how mental abilities allow people to adapt to their environment.

Structuralism

An early approach to psychology that analyzes the mind by breaking it down into its basic components.

Clinical Approach

A scientific, practical method used to assess, diagnose, and treat mental disorders.

Biopsychosocial Approach

An integrated perspective that considers biological, psychological, and social-cultural factors when analyzing behavior and mental processes.

Dual Processing

The principle that information is processed simultaneously on two levels: fast/intuitive (unconscious) and slow/analytical (conscious).

WEIRD Samples

Research participants coming from Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic societies, representing roughly 5% of the world population.

Positive Psychology

The scientific study of human flourishing and what helps individuals and communities thrive.

Truth Bias

The natural tendency for people to believe and trust what others say.

Prebunking

Technique of preparing people to recognize and resist misinformation before encountering it by explaining common manipulation methods.

Neuroplasticity

The brain's ability to reorganize and alter its functionality in response to experience or injury.

Action Potential

A brief electrical charge that travels down the axon of a neuron.

Myelin Sheath

A layer of fatty tissue encasing neuron axons that insulates them and speeds up electrical transmission.

Sympathetic Nervous System

The division of the autonomic nervous system that mobilizes body energy during stressful situations (fight-or-flight).

Parasympathetic Nervous System

The division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body and conserves energy (rest and digest).

Limbic System

A group of forebrain structures including the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus involved in motivation, emotion, learning, and memory.

Circadian Rhythm

A regular 24-hour biological cycle of bodily arousal and wakefulness.

REM Sleep

A recurring sleep stage marked by rapid eye movements, dream activity, brain waves similar to wakefulness, and temporary muscle paralysis.

Classical Conditioning

A type of learning where an organism learns to connect two stimuli, leading to an automatic response to a previously neutral stimulus.

Operant Conditioning

A method of learning that occurs through rewards and punishments for behavior.

Law of Effect

Thorndike's rule that behaviors followed by satisfying outcomes become more likely, while those followed by unpleasant outcomes become less likely.

Yerkes-Dodson Law

The principle that performance increases with physiological or mental arousal up to an optimal moderate point, after which it drops.

Facial Feedback Effect

The tendency for facial muscle activations to directly trigger corresponding emotional states like fear, anger, or happiness.

Functionalism

Early psychological perspective focusing on how mental abilities allow people to adapt to their environment.

Structuralism

Early school of thought that analyzed the mind by breaking it down into its basic structural components.

Clinical Approach

A scientific, practical method used to assess, diagnose, and treat mental disorders.

Biopsychosocial Approach

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

Dual Processing

The principle that information is simultaneously processed on separate conscious (slow, analytical) and unconscious (fast, intuitive) tracks.

WEIRD Samples

Research participants from Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic societies, who represent only about 5% of the global population.

Positive Psychology

The scientific study of human flourishing and the factors that help individuals and communities thrive.

Positive Emotions

Feelings such as satisfaction with the past, happiness in the present, and optimism about the future.

Positive Character Traits

Qualities such as creativity, courage, compassion, integrity, self-control, and wisdom that promote personal growth.

Positive Institutions

Supportive environments, such as healthy families, schools, and neighborhoods, that enable human thriving.

Truth Bias

The natural psychological inclination for people to trust and believe what others say.

Repetition Breeds Belief

The phenomenon in which repeated statements become more credible and seem true over time regardless of facts.

Confirmation Bias

The tendency to seek out and favor information that supports pre-existing beliefs while resisting correction.

Echo Chambers

Groups in which people primarily interact with like-minded individuals, strengthening and polarizing their shared opinions.

Prebunking

Preparing people to recognize and resist misinformation before encountering it by teaching common manipulation techniques.

Debunking

Correcting misinformation by stating the facts, acknowledging the myth, explaining why it is false, and repeating the facts.

Case Study Method

An in-depth research method studying an individual or group; results may not generalize if the subject is atypical.

Naturalistic Observation

A descriptive research method that records behavior in natural settings without manipulating or controlling variables.

Survey Method

A research method using questionnaires or interviews to gather self-reported attitudes or behaviors from a group.

Random Sampling

A sample selection method where every individual in a population has an equal chance of being chosen.

Representative Sample

A small group that accurately reflects the characteristics of the larger population under study.

Double-Blind Procedure

An experimental setup where neither participants nor researchers collecting data know who receives the treatment or placebo.

Evolutionary Psychology Approach

The study of how mental processes and behaviors have adapted over time through natural selection.

Cognitive Psychology Approach

The psychological perspective focused on how people think, remember, learn, perceive, and solve problems.

Developmental Psychology Approach

The study of how human psychological processes and behaviors change across the lifespan.

Cognitive Neuroscience

An interdisciplinary field studying how brain activity and biological processes underlie cognitive functions.

Biological Psychology Approach

An approach examining how genetics, hormones, brain structures, and the nervous system influence behavior.

Correlational Research Design

A research design that measures the naturally occurring association between two variables without manipulating them.

Direction of Causation Problem

The limitation in correlational research where one cannot determine which variable causes changes in the other.

Third Variable Problem

The possibility that an unmeasured outside variable is responsible for the observed correlation between two variables.

Experimental Research Design

A research strategy where an investigator manipulates one variable to observe its effect on another, establishing cause-and-effect.

Independent Variable

The factor in an experiment that is manipulated or changed by the experimenter.

Dependent Variable

The outcome factor in an experiment that is measured to see if it changes in response to the independent variable.

Neuroplasticity

The brain's continuous ability to reorganize and alter its function and structure in response to experience or injury.

Phineas Gage

A famous historical case demonstrating that localized frontal lobe damage can dramatically alter personality and behavior.

Dendrite

Branching extensions of a neuron that receive chemical signals from other cells and conduct them toward the cell body.

Axon

The lengthy neuron extension that passes electrical signals away from the cell body toward other neurons, muscles, or glands.

Action Potential

A brief electrical charge or nerve impulse that travels down an axon.

Myelin Sheath

A layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing axon fibers to insulate them and speed impulse transmission.

Refractory Period

A brief resting phase after a neuron fires, during which it cannot fire another action potential.

Reuptake

The reabsorption of excess neurotransmitters by the presynaptic sending neuron after message transmission.

Acetylcholine (ACh)

A neurotransmitter crucial for muscle movement, learning, and memory.

Dopamine

A key neurotransmitter associated with movement, learning, attention, and reward processing.

Serotonin

A neurotransmitter that regulates mood, hunger, sleep, and emotional arousal.

Norepinephrine

A neurotransmitter involved in controlling alertness and physiological arousal.

GABA

The primary inhibitory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system, serving to calm neural activity.

Glutamate

The major excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain, heavily involved in learning and memory consolidation.

Endorphins

Natural neurotransmitters that act as pain relievers and elevate feelings of pleasure.

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

The sensory and motor neurons connecting the central nervous system to the rest of the body.

Autonomic Nervous System

The PNS division controlling automatic bodily processes such as heart rate, digestion, and respiration.

Somatic Nervous System

The PNS division responsible for voluntary skeletal muscle control and carrying sensory signals to the CNS.

Sympathetic Nervous System

The autonomic division that mobilizes the body during stressful situations, initiating 'fight-or-flight' responses.

Parasympathetic Nervous System

The autonomic division that calms the body and conserves energy, enabling 'rest-and-digest' functions.

Central Nervous System (CNS)

The processing system consisting of the brain and spinal cord.

Sensory Neurons

Neurons carrying incoming sensory information from body tissues and organs to the brain and spinal cord.

Motor Neurons

Neurons transporting outgoing instructions from the CNS to body muscles and glands.

Interneurons

Neurons within the CNS that internally communicate and process information between sensory inputs and motor outputs.

Glial Cells

Supportive brain cells that protect, nourish, insulate neurons, and assist with synaptic cleanup.

All-or-None Response

The biological rule stating that a neuron fires completely at full strength or does not fire at all.

Pituitary Gland

The master gland of the endocrine system, located at the base of the brain, regulating growth and other glands.

Adrenal Glands

Endocrine glands atop the kidneys that release stress hormones such as epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine.

Cerebellum

The 'little brain' at the rear of the brainstem, responsible for balance, fine motor coordination, and nonverbal memory.

Brainstem

The oldest part and core of the brain, controlling automatic survival functions like breathing and heart rate.

Reticular Formation

A nerve network extending through the brainstem that plays an essential role in controlling arousal and alertness.

Frontal Lobe

Cerebral cortex region involved in decision-making, planning, motor control, reasoning, and personality.

Parietal Lobe

Cerebral cortex section processing sensory inputs for touch, body position, and spatial awareness.

Temporal Lobe

Cerebral cortex region responsible for auditory perception, language interpretation, and object memory.

Occipital Lobe

Cerebral cortex region located at the back of the head primarily dedicated to visual processing.

Thalamus

The brain's sensory control center that relays sensory messages (except smell) to cortical receiving areas.

Hypothalamus

A subcortical structure directing maintenance activities like eating, drinking, body temperature, and governing the pituitary.

Amygdala

Limbic system structures linked directly to emotions like fear, anger, and emotional memory evaluation.

Hippocampus

A limbic system structure critical for processing explicitly learned memories and spatial navigation.

Corpus Callosum

A thick band of neural fibers connecting the left and right brain hemispheres and enabling interhemispheric communication.

Split Brain

A condition resulting from surgical isolation of the brain's hemispheres through cutting the corpus callosum.

Consciousness

Our subjective, internal awareness of ourselves, our thoughts, and our surrounding environment.

Selective Attention

The focusing of conscious awareness on a single particular stimulus while ignoring background distractions.

Inattentional Blindness

Failing to perceive visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere.

Change Blindness

Failing to notice visual changes in the surrounding environment.