Studied by 25 people
psychotherapy
treatment involving psychological techniques; consists of interactions between a trained therapist and someone seeking to overcome psychological difficulties or achieve personal growth
biomedical therapy
prescribed medications or procedures that act directly on the person's physiology
eclectic approach
an approach to psychotherapy that uses techniques from various forms of therapy
psychoanalysis
(1) Freud's theory of personality that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives and conflicts. (2) Sigmund Freud's therapeutic technique used in treating psychological disorders. Freud believed the patient's free associations, resistances, dreams, and transferences—and the therapist's interpretations of them—released previously repressed feelings, allowing the patient to gain self-insight
resistance
in psychoanalysis, the blocking from consciousness of anxietyladen material
interpretation
in psychoanalysis, the analyst's noting supposed dream meanings, resistances, and other significant behaviors and events in order to promote insight
transference
in psychoanalysis, the patient's transfer to the analyst of emotions linked with other relationships (such as love or hatred for a parent)
psychodynamic therapy
therapy deriving from the psychoanalytic tradition; views individuals as responding to unconscious forces and childhood experiences, and seeks to enhance self-insight
insight therapies
therapies that aim to improve psychological functioning by increasing a person's awareness of underlying motives and defenses
client-centered therapy
a humanistic therapy, developed by Carl Rogers, in which the therapist uses techniques such as active listening within an accepting, genuine, empathic environment to facilitate clients' growth
active listening
empathic listening in which the listener echoes, restates, and clarifies. A feature of Rogers' client-centered therapy
unconditional positive regard
a caring, accepting, nonjudgmental attitude, which Carl Rogers believed would help clients develop self-awareness and self-acceptance
behavior therapy
therapy that applies learning principles to the elimination of unwanted behaviors
counterconditioning
behavior therapy procedures that use classical conditioning to evoke new responses to stimuli that are triggering unwanted behaviors; include exposure therapies and aversive conditioning
exposure therapies
behavioral techniques, such as systematic desensitization and virtual reality exposure therapy, that treat anxieties by exposing people (in imaginary or actual situations) to the things they fear and avoid
systematic desensitization
a type of exposure therapy that associates a pleasant relaxed state with gradually increasing anxiety-triggering stimuli. Commonly used to treat phobias
virtual reality exposure therapy
a counterconditioning technique that treats anxiety through creative electronic simulations in which people can safely face their greatest fears, such as airplane flying, spiders, or public speaking
aversive conditioning
a type of counterconditioning that associates an unpleasant state (such as nausea) with an unwanted behavior (such as drinking alcohol)
token economy
an operant conditioning procedure in which people earn a token for exhibiting a desired behavior and can later exchange tokens for privileges or treats
cognitive therapy
therapy that teaches people new, more adaptive ways of thinking; based on the assumption that thoughts intervene between events and our emotional reactions
rational-emotive behavior therapy (REBT)
a confrontational cognitive therapy, developed by Albert Ellis, that vigorously challenges people's illogical, self-defeating attitudes and assumptions
cognitive-behavioral therapy
a popular integrative therapy that combines cognitive therapy (changing self-defeating thinking) with behavior therapy (changing behavior)
group therapy
therapy conducted with groups rather than individuals, providing benefits from group interaction
family therapy
therapy that treats people in the context of their family system. Views an individual's unwanted behaviors as influenced by, or directed at, other family members
meta-analysis
a procedure for statistically combining the results of many different research studies
evidence-based practice
clinical decision making that integrates the best available research with clinical expertise and patient characteristics and preferences
therapeutic alliance
a bond of trust and mutual understanding between a therapist and client, who work together constructively to overcome the client's problem
psychopharmacology
the study of the effects of drugs on mind and behavior
antipsychotic drugs
drugs used to treat schizophrenia and other forms of severe thought disorder
antianxiety drugs
drugs used to control anxiety and agitation
antidepressant drugs
drugs used to treat depression, anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder
electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)
a biomedical therapy for severely depressed patients in which a brief electric current is sent through the brain of an anesthetized patient
repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)
the application of repeated pulses of magnetic energy to the brain; used to stimulate or suppress brain activity
psychosurgery
surgery that removes or destroys brain tissue in an effort to change behavior
lobotomy
a psychosurgical procedure once used to calm uncontrollably emotional or violent patients. The procedure cut the nerves connecting the frontal lobes to the emotion-controlling centers of the inner brain
resilience
the personal strength that helps most people cope with stress and recover from adversity and even trauma
posttraumatic growth
positive psychological changes as a result of struggling with extremely challenging circumstances and life crises
critical thinking
thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions. Rather, it examines assumptions, appraises the source, discerns hidden biases, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions.
empiricism
the idea that knowledge comes from experience, and that observation and experimentation enable scientific knowledge
structuralism
an early school of thought promoted by Wundt and Titchener; used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind
introspection
the process of looking inward in an attempt to directly observe one's own psychological processes
functionalism
an early school of thought promoted by James and influenced by Darwin; explored how mental and behavioral processes function—how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish
behaviorism
the view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Most psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2)
humanistic psychology
a historically significant perspective that emphasized human growth potential
cognitive psychology
the study of mental processes, such as occur when we perceive, learn, remember, think, communicate, and solve problems
cognitive neuroscience
the interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory, and language)
psychology
the science of behavior and mental processes
nature-nurture issue
the longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors. Today's science sees traits and behaviors arising from the interaction of nature and nurture
natural selection
the principle that inherited traits that better enable an organism to survive and reproduce in a particular environment will (in competition with other trait variations) most likely be passed on to succeeding generations
evolutionary psychology
the study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection
behavior genetics
the study of the relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior
culture
the enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next
positive psychology
the scientific study of human flourishing, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive
biopsychosocial approach
an integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural viewpoints
behavioral psychology
the scientific study of observable behavior, and its explanation by principles of learning
biological psychology
the scientific study of the links between biological (genetic, neural, hormonal) and psychological processes
psychodynamic psychology
a branch of psychology that studies how unconscious drives and conflicts influence behavior and uses that information to treat people with psychological disorders
social-cultural psychology
the study of how situations and cultures affect our behavior and thinking
testing effect
enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information
SQ3R
a study method incorporating five steps: Survey, Question, Read, Retrieve, Review
psychometrics
the scientific study of the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits
basic research
pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base
developmental psychology
a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span
educational psychology
the study of how psychological processes affect and can enhance teaching and learning
personality psychology
the study of individuals' characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting
social psychology
the scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another
applied research
scientific study that aims to solve practical problems
industrial-organizational psychology
the application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplaces
human factors psychology
a field of psychology allied with I/O psychology that explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use
counseling psychology
a branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being
clinical psychology
a branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders
psychiatry
a branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who are licensed to provide medical (for example, drug) treatments as well as psychological therapy
community psychology
a branch of psychology that studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups
hindsight bias
the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it
theory
an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviors or events
hypothesis
a testable prediction, often implied by a theory
operational definition
a carefully worded statement of the exact procedures used in a research study
replication
repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether the basic finding can be reproduced
case study
a descriptive technique in which one individual or group is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles
naturalistic observation
a descriptive technique of observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate or control the situation
survey
a descriptive technique for obtaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of a particular group, usually by questioning a representative, random sample of the group
sampling bias
a flawed sampling process that produces an unrepresentative sample
population
all those in a group being studied, from which samples may be drawn
random sample
a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion
correlation
a measure of the extent to which two factors vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other
correlation coefficient
a statistical index of the relationship between two things (from −1.00 to +1.00)
variable
anything that can vary and is feasible and ethical to measure
scatterplot
a graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variables. The slope of the points suggests the direction of the relationship between the two variables. The amount of scatter suggests the strength of the correlation
illusory correlation
perceiving a relationship where none exists, or perceiving a stronger-than-actual relationship
regression toward the mean
the tendency for extreme or unusual scores or events to fall back toward the average
experiment
a research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process
experimental group
in an experiment, the group exposed to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independent variable
control group
in an experiment, the group not exposed to the treatment
random assignment
assigning participants to experimental and control groups by chance, thus minimizing preexisting differences between the different groups
double-blind procedure
an experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo
placebo effect
experimental results caused by expectations alone; any effect on behavior caused by the administration of an inert substance or condition, which the recipient assumes is an active agent
independent variable
in an experiment, the factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied
confounding variable
a factor other than the factor being studied that might influence a study's results
dependent variable
in an experiment, the outcome that is measured
validity
the extent to which a test or experiment measures or predicts what it is supposed to
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