Psych 202 UW Madison Dr Gallimore Final Exam

Stress

how we perceive and respond to circumstances that threaten well being thereby taxing our coping abilities

Appraisal (how its done)

Primary: is it a challenge or a threat

Secondary: if is a threat, figure out if have options to deal with the threat or not

Types of Stressors

Ambient: environmental (ex: loud noises)

Acute: short term (ex: school deadline)

Chronic: long term (ex: dementia of family member)

Sources of Stress

Daily hassles, job strain (excessive demands with little control ex: cashier), job burnout (emotional exhaustion and cynicism about job)

Fight or Flight

activation of the sympathetic nervous system

Reactions to Stress

kinda common knowledge. inc heart rate, headaches, GI problems. prolonged stress causes: heart problems and a weakened immune system

General Adaptation Syndrome

body's non specific reaction to stressors. 1. alarm (fight or flight), 2. resistance (try to cope), 3. exhaustion (run out of resources to cope)

Physical Effects of Stress

Immune system decreases ability to react

Cardiovascular disorders b/c stress increases blood pressure = hypertension, may cause heart attack

Heart Attack Symptoms

men: chest pain, light headed, perspiration, stomach pain, shortness of breath

women: nausea, shortness of breath, anxiety, dizziness

more prone if: type A, negative affectivity, depression

Coping

def: mental and behavioral efforts to relieve stress

problem focused: manage or alter cause of stress

social support

exercise

relaxed response technique: passively focus on pleasant thoughts reducing sympathetic arousal

biofeedback: train own reactivity w electrical shocks

perceived control

belief that we can influence outcome. if believe have more control will react less to stressors

learned helplessness

passive resignation after experiences where learn have no control over stressors. difficult to control stressors when they are: external, stable, and global

Elements of Happiness

pleasant life (enjoying daily pleasures), good life (using skills for enrichment), meaningful life (contributing to the greater good)

Factors that increase happiness

age, socialness, money, religion (if are in nation w difficult conditions), alignment w culture, positive affect, optimism

Affective Forecasting

efforts to predict one's emotional reactions to future events

Structuralism (Wundt)

an early school of psychology that used introspection to explore the elemental structure of the human mind (as individual processes)

Functionalism (James)

A school of psychology that focused on how our overall mental and behavioral processes function - how they enable us to adapt, survive, and flourish.

Gestalt Psychology

early perspective in psychology focusing on perception and sensation, particularly the perception of patterns and whole figures

Behaviorism

the science of behavior that focuses on observable behavior only

Humanism

An intellectual movement that focused on human potential and achievements

Cognative Revolution

The recapturing of the initial interest in mental processes and the movement away from behaviorism

Margaret Floy Washburn

first woman to earn a Ph.D. in psychology

Mary Whiton Calkins

American psychologist who conducted research on memory, personality, and dreams; first woman president of the American Psychological Association

Psychology Types

biopsychology, evolutionary psychology, sensation and perception, cognitive psychology, developmental psychology, personality psychology, social psychology, industrial-organizational psychology, health psychology, sports and exercise psychology, clinical psychology (psych disorders), counseling psychology (daily functions), forensic psychology

Psychology Perspectives

cultural, evolutionary, cognitive, emotional, biological, developmental, social, personality, clinical

Requirements for PhD

defend dissertation

Descriptive Research

describe general or specific behaviors and attributes that are observed and measured (not testing relationship between variables)

correlational research

study relationship between variables

experimental research

research designed to discover causal relationships between variables

observational research

gathering primary data by observing relevant people, actions, and situations. includes natural observation and case studies

case study

an observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles. strength: in depth info, weakness: can't generalize data to larger population

naturalistic observation

observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation. strength: accuracy. weakness: difficult to set up and control and expensive

observer bias

systematic errors in observation that occur because of an observer's expectations

inter-rater reliability

indicates how consistent scores are likely to be if the responses are scored by two or more raters using the same item, scale, or instrument

survey

the collection of data by having people answer a series of questions. strength: can collect large sample to do statistical inference. weakness: less in depth info, inaccurate responses

archival research

method of research using past records or data sets to answer various research questions, or to search for interesting patterns or relationships. strengths: cheap, weakness: existing records may not be appropriate to answer research question

longitudinal research

A research design in which the same individuals are followed over time and their development is repeatedly assessed. strength: accuracy, weakness: expensive, long, high attrition rates

cross sectional research

compares multiple segments of a population at a single time. strength: cheaper and shorter than longitudinal, weakness: inaccurate from using dif grounds as if were same

operational definition

a statement of the procedures used to define research variables

single blind study

study in which the subjects do not know if they are in the experimental or the control group

double blind study

An experiment in which neither the participant nor the researcher knows whether the participant has received the treatment or the placebo

Reliability

the extent to which a test yields consistent results

validity

accuracy of measurement

external validity: how well study applies to general population

internal validity: does test measure what its supposed to measure

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

committee of administrators, scientists, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving human participants

Principles human subject research proposals are analyzed on

autonomy, informed consent, beneficence, justice

deception

misleading participants about the true purpose of a study or the events that will actually transpire. if deceived, APA requires debriefing

debriefing

the post-experimental explanation of a study, including its purpose and any deceptions, to its participants. APA requires this if participants are deceived

Institutional animal care and use committee (IACUC)

like IRB but for animal research. guiding principles: replacement (don't animals if possible), refinement (minimize suffering), reduction (minimize number of subjects)

theory of evolution by natural selection

states that organisms that are better suited for their environments will survive and reproduce more than those that are poorly suited for their environments

Genotype

genetic makeup of an organism

Phenotype

the set of observable characteristics of an individual resulting from the interaction of its genotype with the environment.

Polygenic

trait controlled by two or more genes

range of reaction

asserts our genes set the boundaries within which we can operate, and our environment interacts with the genes to determine where in that range we will fall

nervous system

the network of nerve cells and fibers that transmits nerve impulses between parts of the body. (include brain and spinal cord)

glial cells

cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons

Neurons

a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system

structure of neurons

semipermeable membrane, soma, dendrites (recieve signals), axon, myelin sheath (insulates axon to speed up signal travel), nodes of ranveir (gaps in myelin sheath), terminal buttons, receptors (where neurotransmitters attatch)

synaptic cleft

a gap into which neurotransmitters are released from the axon terminal

how a neuron fires

1) The terminal buttons of one neuron release neurotransmitters

2) The neurotransmitters bypass a threshold on a second neuron's dendrites

3) Positive ions rush into the cell, causing an action potential to spread down the neuron

4) The terminal buttons release neurotransmitters when the charge reaches them

5) The neuron pumps out the positive ions to repeat the process

reuptake

a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the sending neuron

dopamine

A neurotransmitter associated with movement, attention and learning and the brain's pleasure and reward system. inc = inc pleasure and appetite

GABA

Primary central nervous system depressant. inc = dec anxiety and tension

glutamate

A major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory. inc = inc memory and learning

norepinephrine

A neurotransmitter involved in arousal, as well as in learning and mood regulation. inc = inc arousal and dec appetite

serotonin

A neurotransmitter that affects hunger, sleep, arousal, and mood. inc = inc ability to regulate mood and dec appetite

gyri

bumps on brain

sulci

grooves on brain

fissures

deep grooves in the brain. longitudinal fissures divide brain into right and left hemisphere

lateralization

specialization of the two cerebral hemispheres. left= individual parts, right = whole

corpus callosum

the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them

Hindbrain

The posterior portion of the brain including medulla, pons, cerebellum. older evolutionarily and in most species

Medulla

the base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing

Pons

the part of the brainstem that links the medulla oblongata and the thalamus. regulates brain activity during sleep

Cerebellum

A large structure of the hindbrain that controls fine motor skills.

Midbrain

A small part of the brain above the pons that integrates sensory information and relays it upward. reticular formation, substantia nigra, VTA

reticular formation

a nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal

ventral tegmental area (VTA)

midbrain structure where dopamine is produced: associated with mood, reward, and addiction

Forebrain

The largest and most complicated region of the brain, including the thalamus, hypothalamus, limbic system, and cerebrum.

thalamus

the brain's sensory control center, it directs information to the rest of the brain

hypothalamus

a neural structure lying below the thalamus; directs homeostasis (eating, drinking, body temperature); helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion

pituitary gland

master endocrine gland at the base of the brain

limbic system

neural system located below the cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions and drives

Amygdala

A limbic system structure involved in memory and emotion, particularly fear and aggression.

hippocampus

A neural center located in the limbic system that helps process explicit memories for storage.

Lobes of the brain

frontal, parietal, occipital, temporal

frontal cortex

executes motor behaviors. contains Broca's area which generates language

parietal lobe

monitors goals. contains somatosensory cortex which processes info on touch, temp, and pain

temporal lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex responsible for hearing and language. contains Wernicke's area which processes language (language salad)

Broca's area

speech generation. in frontal cortex

wernike's area

language comprehension. damage = word salad. in temporal lobe

types of brain imaging

CT scan (x rays), PET scan (radioactive glucose in bloodstream), MRI (magnetic fields show tissue), fMRI (metabolism of oxygen over time, more oxygen = more active), EEG (electrical charge from neurons)