Unit 1 AP Psychology

This is an intro to psychology! Remember the basic systems that introduce the biological components of psychology, as well as studies that are introduced!

Nature and Nurture

the ongoing comparison of the factors that determine one’s behavior/development/personal traits. Nature = biological factors, nurture = environmental factors; both of them work together to shape behavior.

Evolutionary Psychology

The traits that determine survival, range from physical characteristics to other factors that are commonly inherited in animals.

Eugenics

Using genetics to wrongfully justify “controlling”/improving the population

Social Darwinism

Wrongfully applying the natural selection process “survival of the fittest” to justify inequality

Twin Studies - Family studies

Tracking traits across family; the more genetically related twins are, the more likely they are to share a common trait.

Twin studies - adoption studies

Comparing twins to biological parents vs to adoptive parents compares the influence of nature (biological) vs nurture (adoptive) in shaping a child’s intelligence, temperment, or personality.

Nervous system

A control/communication system of your body; every sensation/biological factor in this system is interconnected and runs through this system.

Central Nervous System (CNS)

Made up of the brain and the spinal cord, processes all incoming info and decides how the brain should respond. Controls higher-order functions that run through the spinal chord and to the brain.

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS) + 2 subsects

Connects the central nervous system through the rest of the body. It is usually the one that has nerves that connects these signals outside the brain and body. It has two key parts.

Somatic Nervous System (SNS)

Handles stuff that you can consciously control, like moving muscles, letting you automatically react, etc.

Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) + 2 subsects

ANS controls involuntary functions like heart rate, digestion, body temperature, breathing that occur whenever your body needs to respond to changes.

Sympathetic Nervous System

Known as a fight-or-flight mechanism, activates in stressful situations, prepares body for action (prepares for immediate threat)

Parasympathetic Nervous System

Known as a rest-and-digest mechanism, it helps your body recover from action and slows heart race, restores balance and conserves energy

Nuerons

Send electrical and chemical signals, form complex pathways that allow many body functions

Glial Cells

Support for neurons, help insulate, structure, and communicate + filter out waste

Sensory Neuron

Takes in input

Interneuron

These nuerons processes input

Motor Neuron

Tells your body to move in response to input

Reflex Arc

Quick motion of your body after the sensory neuron, interneuron, and motor nueron work together to help you respond to movement. Happens very quickly before you even process it

Resting Potential + Threshold

Neuron is ready with a slightly negative charge inside before it actually fires; fires when a certain amount of simulation (threshold) is reached.

Action Potential

The electrical charge fires FULLY or not at all (it goes with the All or Nothing Principle)

Depolarization

Positive ions flood in, flipping the charge during firing (was originally negative charge)

Refractory Period

Reset period of the neuron, cannot fire until it returns back to resting potential and uses up all its energy

Reuptake

Extra nuerotransmitters are reabsorbed into the sending nueron

Dopamine

NT that drives reward, motivation, and motor control. Too much = schizophrenia, too little = Parkinson’s

Serotonin

NT that regulates mood, sleep, apetite. Low levels are linked to depression.

Norepinephrine

NT that increases alertness and arousal quickly, stress response.

GABA

Main inhibitory nuerotransmitter meant to slow things down. Low levels = anxiety, seizures

Glutamate

Main exhitatory NT, involved in memory functions. Too much = migraines + seizures

Acetylcholine (ACh)

NT that controls muscle movement and is important for learning and memory. Linked to Alzheimer’s.

Endorphins

NT that is responsible for stress relief and pleasure (ENDs all pain)

Substance P

NT that sends pain signals (P = pain)

Adrenaline/epinephrine

Hormone that drives fight-or-flight

Leptin

Hormone that tells you when you’re full

Ghrelin

Hormone that triggers hunger

Melatonin

Hormone that regulates sleep cycles

Oxytocin

Hormone that builds bonding, trust, love, connection

Agonists

Drugs that mimic NTs so neural firing occurs.

Antagonists

Drugs that block NTs from firing.

Reuptake Inhibitors

Drugs that block neurotransmitters from being reabsorbed, increases the impact of the nuerotransmitters

Stimulants

Increase activity, like cocaine, nicotine, and caffeine do. They lead to increased heart rate, alertness, energy, euphoria

Depressants

Decrease activity like alcohol does. Leads to relaxation, slow processing, and reduced coordination/memory

Hallucinogens

Changes perception like marijuana and LSD do. Leads to sensory distortions, hallucinations, and altered thinking/memory

Opioids

lead to pain relief/euphoria. Examples include heroin, morphine.

Brainstem

Made up of the Medulla (regulates heart rate + breathing) and Pons + Midbrain (bridge for motor/sensory signals, involved in sleep and arousal)

Reticular Activating System (RAS)

Controls wakefulness, alertness, attention. Filters outside sensory info to focus; damage can result in sleep disorders or coma

Cerebellum

Coordinates smooth and precise movements, helps with motor learning, and attention/language processing

Corpus Callosum

A bundle of nerves that connects the left hemisphere and right hemisphere

Frontal Lobe

Important for decision making, reasoning, and impulse control. Includes the prefrontal cortext that carries out these executive functions.

Parietal Lobe

Processes body sensations and maps sensory input to parts of the body. Important for spatial reasoning and body awareness.

Temporal Lobe

Mainly for auditory processing, has wernicke’s area for speech comprehension and parts of the limbic system

Occipital Lobe

Responsible for visual processing, interprets specific info

Limbic System

A system that is responsible for emotion, learning, and memory

Thalamus

Part of limbic; relays data to cortex

Hypothalamus

Controls hunger, thirst, body temperature, and emotion. Links the nervous and endocrine systems

Hippocampus

Forms new long term memory

Amygdala

Processes emotions, especially arousal, alertness, and aggression (3 A’s)

Split-brain surgery

A case study done on a specific individual where the corpus callosum is cut to treat epilepsy, helps rule out each hemipshere’s functions.

Left Hemisphere

Broca’s Area is for speech production (boca = mouth) and wernicke’s area is to comprehend speech

Right hemisphere

Important for facial processing, recognition, and reading emotions

Contralateral Organization

the left visual field is processed by right, right is processed by the left (switched around). Also observed in split-brain functions to isolate hemipheric functions

Brain Plasticity

How your brain forms new neural connections, strenghtens and prunes old ones. Most flexible during childhood, but continues in adults; shows how the brain can recover from damage and can adapt

EEG

Measures brain wave activity, usually tracks seizures and sleep stages

MRI

Tracks the blood flow into the brain, shows what parts of the brain are active during tasks

PET scans

shows brain metabolism and NT activity

Lesioning

studying effects of brain damage (natural or surgical)

Circadian Rhythm

The biological, 24 hour, sleep rhythm your brain has

SCN

part of the hypothalamus, controls your circadian rhythm

Stage 1 NREM

Lightest sleep, may feel hypnagogic (falling) sensations

Stage 2 NREM

Deeper sleep, brain can have bursts of activity as seen on EEG; either a lot (K-complexes) or a little (sleep spindles)

Stage 3 NREM

Deepest sleep, shows up as slow delta-waves (low frequency) on the graph

REM

Brain is active while brain is paralyzed (muscle atonia). REM stages get deeper/longer as sleep gets on. REM rebound describes extra REM stages as a result of deprivation.

Activation-Synthesis Theory

Dreams interpret neural activity, gives signals meaning

Memory Consolidation Theory

Dreams help process and express experiences/emotions. Reflects recent events or stress.

Restoration Theory

Sleep helps repair and restore brain/body. NT are replenished, brain clears out waste

Insomnia

Trouble falling/staying asleep

Narcolepsy

Sudden sleep attacks followed by muscle collapse (cataplexy)

Sleep Apnea

Breathing is cut off/stops and starts, disrupts sleep

REM Sleep Behavior Disorder

Acting out dreams due to lack of muscle paralysis

Sensation

How we gather information from the surroundingsT

Transduction

Turning senory input into electrochemical signals for the brain to use

Absolute Threshold

The minimum stimulation needed to detect a stimulus 50% of the time. EX: the quietest amount of sound that can be heard in a small room

Just Noticable Difference (JND)

The smallest, most noticable difference in stimulation that you can detect. EX: a drop of water added to a slightly full glass

Weber’s Law

Larger stimuli need a larger difference to be noticed. EX: a large glass needs a larger drop of water to be detected as being added.

Sensory Interaction

Taste is influenced and enhanced by smell, speech is easy to understand when reading lips, etc.

Synesthesia

When stimulation in one sense triggers another, these are consistent and automatic

Retina

Light-sensitive back of the eye, transduces light

Blind Spot

Where the optic nerve exits, has no photoreceptors, so your brain must fill the gap

Lens

Focuses light on the retina through accommodation, shapes to see close or farther away.

Rods

Detects shapes, movement, and helps see in low light

Cones

Located in the fovea (center of the retina), detects fine detail + color in bright light

Trichromatic Theory

Red Green and Blue cones combine to form color

Opponent Process Theory

Pairs of colors oppose each other in processing, explains afterimages and contrasts

Blindsight

Can respond to visual stimuli without conscious awareness

Prosopagnosia

Can’t recognize familiar faces (facial blindness)

Visual Agnosia

Trouble recognizing objects even though vision is fine

Place + Frequency Theory

High pitch sounds detected vs low pitch sounds detected

Volley Theory

Mid-range pitches

Cochlea

key structure for sound transduction

Vestibular system

Inner ear system that helps with balance and spatial orientation