Psychology 1010 Exam #1

______________________ is an experiment in which participants do not know if they are in the experimental or the control group, and the experimenters also do not know which participants are part of which group.

The double-blind study

Experimenters can justify the use of deception only if ___________.

it is necessary for the experiment to work, and participants are debriefed afterwards

The goals of psychology are to _____.

describe, understand, predict, and control behavior

Who was an early proponent of functionalism?

William James

Freud said phobias were ____________ whereas Watson said phobias were __________.

repressed conflicts; learned

Which perspective focuses on free will and self-actualization?

humanism

What is one similarity shared by clinical psychologists and psychiatrists?

They diagnose and treat people experiencing behavioral and emotional problems.

When you watch how dogs play in the park or how your professors act in the classroom, that could actually be considered a form of ______.

naturalistic observation

A detailed description of a particular individual being studied or treated is called ______________________.

a case study

A negative correlation means that ______________________.

high values of one variable are associated with low values of the other

The two main divisions of the nervous system are the ________ and ________.

peripheral nervous system; central nervous system

Which part of the neuron is responsible for maintaining the life of the cell?

soma

Which of the following neurotransmitters functions as a common inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain?

GABA

Which part of the nervous system takes the information received from the senses, makes sense out of it, makes decisions, and sends commands out to the muscles and the rest of the body?

brain

The part of the autonomic nervous system that is responsible for reacting to stressful events and bodily arousal is called the ______________ nervous system.

sympathetic

Hormones are___________.

chemicals released into the bloodstream by the endocrine glands

A brain-imaging method using magnetic fields of the body to produce detailed images of the brain is called ______________.

magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

What part of the brain acts as a relay station for incoming sensory information?

thalamus

Which of the following regions contains the primary visual cortex?

occipital lobe

Which of the following are some of the primary functions of the right hemisphere?

perception, expression of emotion, and recognition of patterns

The term just noticeable difference is synonymous with ______.

difference threshold

In the process known as_____________, sensory receptors become less sensitive to repeated presentations of the same stimulus.

sensory adaptation

Receptor cells in the retina responsible for color vision and fine acuity are ______.

cones

Which of the following properties of sound is the most similar to the saturation of light?

timbre

Conduction hearing impairment refers to hearing problems caused by ____________.

vibrations from the eardrum not reaching the cochlea

What are the five primary tastes?

bitter, salty, sour, sweet, umami

In addition to their function for hearing, we have three semicircular canals in the ear to ______________

detect movement in each of the three planes of motion

The tendency to interpret an object as always being the same physical dimensions, regardless of its distance from the viewer, is known as _____________.

size constancy

Texture gradient refers to the fact that texture appears to become ______.

less detailed in the distance

An illusion ________________.

is a perception that does not correspond to reality

Changes controlled by a genetic blueprint, such as an increase in height or the size of the brain, are examples of ___________________, not learning.

maturation

Pavlov placed meat powder in the mouths of dogs, and they began to salivate. The food acted as a (an) ____________.

unconditioned stimulus

What was the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) in the case of Little Albert?

a loud noise

Thorndike was known for his work ______.

a puzzle box

Under what circumstances will a reinforcer make the target response more likely to occur again?

Regardless of whether it is a positive or negative reinforcer, a reinforcer makes a response more likely to occur.

What has been used to modify behavior when there is a decrease in the likelihood of a target response?

punishment

What is one way to make punishment more effective?

Whenever possible, the right behavior should be inforced, while the wrong behavior is punished.

Learning that occurs but is not immediately reflected in a behavior change is called ______.

latent learning

The "aha!" experience is known as ________________.

insight learning

Lydia is trying to teach her son to do the laundry by watching her. According to the four elements of observational learning, what must occur for this to work?

Her son must be motivated to learn how to do the laundry.

Goals of Psychology

The study of behavior and mental processes. Description, explanation, prediction and control.

Sigmund Freud and his contributions

Psychoanalysis. Unconscious or unaware mind where we repress threatening urges or desires. Importance in early childhood experiences.

John B. Watson and his contributions

Behaviorism. The science focusing on observable behavior only. Must be directly seen and measured. Based on Palov's work. A reflex can be conditioned. Phobias are learned. "Little Albert" taught to fear a white rat.

Cognitive Perspective

Focuses on memory, intelligence, problem solving and learning.

Evolutionary Perspective

Focuses on the biological basis of universal mental characteristics that all humans share. Considers the way the mind works and why. Behavior is seen as having an adaptive or survival value.

The four descriptive methods of research:

Naturalistic observation, laboratory observation, case studies, surveys

Naturalistic observation

Watching animals or humans behave in their normal environment.

Laboratory observation

Watching animals or humans behave in a laboratory setting.

Case studies

Study of one individual in great detail. Phineas Gage.

Surveys

Researchers ask a series of questions about the topic under study. Given to a representative sample.

Positive correlation

Variables are related in the same direction. As one increases the other decreases; as one decreases the other decreases.

Does correlation equal causation? Why or why not?

No. Because just because there is a correlation it does not mean one variable caused the other to happen. Another variable may have been the cause.

The two groups in experimental research

Experimental vs. control groups

Experimental groups

Subjects in an experiment who are not subjected to the independent variable.

Control groups

Subjects in an experiment who are not subjected to the independent variable and who may receive a placebo treatment.

Correlation

Positive and negative. A measure of the relationship between two variables.

Corpus Callosum

A wide, flat bundle of neural fibers beneath the cortex in the eutherian brain at the longitudinal fissure. It connects the left and right cerebral hemispheres and facilitates interhemispheric communication. It is the largest white matter structure in the brain, consisting of 200-250 million contralateral axonal projections.

Two major divisions of the nervous system

Central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) and peripheral nervous system (somatic nervous system and autonomic nervous system, which splits into the parasympathetic division and sympathetic division)

Sympathetic division

Prepares the body to react and expend energy in times of stress.

Neurons

The basic cell that makes up the nervous system and which receives and sends messages within that system.

Dendrites

Branch-like structures that receive messages from other neurons.

Axons

Long tube-like structure that carries the neural message to other cells.

Myelin sheath

Fatty substances produced by certain glial cells that cat the axons of neurons to insulate, protect and speed up the neural impulse.

Excitatory neurotransmitters

Glutamate and Norepinephrine, Dopamine, Acetylcholine and Serotonin (both)

Function of hippocampus

The first large swelling at the top of the spinal cord, forming the lowest part of the brain, which is responsible for life-sustaining functions such as breathing, swallowing, and heart rate.

Function of hypothalmus

Part of the forebrain that regulates the amount of fear, thirst, sexual drive and aggression we feel.

Function of medulla

Part of the hindbrain where nerves cross from one side of the body to the opposite side of the brain.

Function of thalamus

Part of the forebrain that relays information from sensory organs to the cerebral cortex.

Absolute Threshold

The smallest amount of energy needed for a person to consciously detect a stimulus 50 percent of the time it is present.

Sensory adaptation

Tendency of sensory receptor cells to become less responsive to a stimulus that is unchanging.

Rods

Visual sensory receptors found at the back of the retina, responsible for noncolor sensitivity to low levels of light.

Theories of color vision

Trichromatic theory - theory of color vision that proposes three types of cones: red, blue, and green.

Afterimages - images that occur when a visual sensation persists for a brief time even after the original stimulus is removed.

Opponent-process theory - theory of color vision that proposes four primary colors with cones arranged in pairs: red and green, blue and yellow.

Lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) of thalamus

Hammer

(Also called the malleus) a tiny bone that passes vibrations from the eardrum to the anvil.

Anvil

(Also called the incus) a tiny bone that passes vibrations from the hammer to the stirrup.

Stirrup

(Also called the stapes) a tiny, U-shaped bone that passes vibrations from the stirrup to the cochlea. This is the smallest bone in the human body (it is 0.25 to 0.33 cm long).

Five Primary Tastes

Sweet, sour, salty, bitter, brothy

Olfaction

Sense of smell

Skin Senses

the sensations of touch, pressure, temperature, and pain.

Learning

Any relatively permanent change in behavior brought about by experience or practice.

Classical Conditioning

Learning to make a reflex response to a stimulus other than the original, natural stimulus that normally produces the reflex. End result is the creation of a new response to a stimulus that did not normally produce that response. Responses are involuntary and reflexive. Antecedent stimuli are important in forming an association. CS must occur immediately before the UCS. An expectancy develops for UCS to follow CS.

UCS

A naturally occurring stimulus that leads to an involuntary response.

Unconditioned means "unlearned" or "naturally occurring."

UCR

An involuntary response to a naturally occurring or unconditioned stimulus.

CS

Stimulus that becomes able to produce a learned reflex response by being paired with the original unconditioned stimulus.

Conditioned means "learned."

A neutral stimulus can become a conditioned stimulus when paired with an unconditioned stimulus.

CR

Learned reflex response to a conditioned stimulus.

Sometimes called a conditioned reflex.

Generalization

The tendency to respond to a stimulus that is only similar to the original conditioned stimulus with the conditioned response.

Extinction

The disappearance or weakening of a learned response following the removal or absence of the unconditioned stimulus (in classical conditioning) or the removal of a reinforcer (in operant conditioning).

Little Albert

Learned to be afraid of a white rat.

Involuntary vs. voluntary Behavior

Positive reinforcement - the reinforcement of a response by the addition or experiencing of a pleasurable stimulus.

Negative reinforcement - the reinforcement of a response by the removal, escape from, or avoidance of an unpleasant stimulus.

Operant Conditioning

End result is an increase on the rate of an already occurring response. Responses are voluntary. Consequences are important in forming an association. Reinforcement should be immediate. An expectancy develops for reinforcement to follow a correct response.

Positive vs. negative reinforcement

Positive reinforcement - the reinforcement of a response by the addition or experiencing of a pleasurable stimulus.

Negative reinforcement - the reinforcement of a response by the removal, escape from, or avoidance of an unpleasant stimulus.

Negative reinforcement versus punishment

Negative - (removing/avoiding) Something unpleasant. Negative reinforcement. Example: avoiding a ticket by stopping at a red light. Something valued or desirable. Punishment by removal. Example: losing a privilege such as going out with friends.

Whether punishment works

Severe punishment may cause the child (or animal) to avoid the punisher instead of the behavior being punished, so the wrong response is learned.

May encourage lying to avoid punishment

May create fear and anxiety, not learning

Hitting provides a successful model for aggression.

Shaping

The reinforcement of simple steps in behavior that lead to a desired, more complex behavior.

Description

What is happening, where it happens, to whom it happens, and under what circumstances it seems to happen. Provides observations

Explanation

Why it is happening. Builds a theory.

Prediction

When will it happen again.

Control

How can it be changed.

Negative correlation

Variables are related in the opposite direction. As one increases, the other decreases.

Parasympathetic division

Maintains body functions under ordinary conditions; saves energy.

Soma

The cell body of the neuron, responsible for maintaining the life of the cell.