Psychology unit 1 test

What is psychology and how did it start?

the study of the mind, ex: perceptions, thoughts, memories and feelings. It rooted from philosophy but explanations can only go so far

Structuralism

Separate consciousness by breaking the mind down into it’s most basic thoughts/parts

Functionalism

What the function of certain behaviors are and how they allow you to adapt to the environment

Introspection

self-observing practice of observing your own conscious thoughts and experineces

Empiricism

Knowledge is gained from experience and observations n

Nativism

The belief that some knowledge is innate rather than acquired D

Dualism

The idea that the mind and body are fundamentally separate. The body is physical/material while the mind is immaterial and cannot be directly sensed like the body (Descartes)

Materialism

Mental experience caused by physical activity in the brain. The mind is what the brain does.

Realism

the idea that what we see/perceive is an accurate copy and representation of the physical world. Like a photograph

Idealism

The idea that what we perceive is our brains own interpretation of information from the physical world. Like a painting

Mind is what the brain does

Without the brain there is no mind. The mind is the result of the brain’s physical activity and signals.

Reactivity

When people change their behavior because they know they’re being observed

Demand characteristics

People change their behavior because they figure out what the researcher expects or wants

Correlation

Relationship between two variables when changes in one variable are synchronized/associated with changes in another variable

Difference between positive and negative correlation

positive = both variables increase together while negative = one variable increases while another decrease

Strength of Correlations

how closely the variables move together using R (-1 to 1) the closer to 1 the stronger

Operational definition

A specific description of how a variable will be recorded in a study

Reliability

consistency and repeatability of test results

Validity

How well the test measures what it intends to measure

Internal Validity

X caused changes in Y (in said study)

External validity

Changing X will ALWAYS cause changes in Y (in outside studies)

Frequency Distribution

A graphic representation of the number of times and event occurs

Mean

the average

Median

The middle set / cut in half of the data

Mode

More representative than mean when large outliers present. Value/category that occurs the most often (think: what’s da mood)

Third variable problem

An outside factor that’s causing the two variables to vary together even though there’s no direct relationship between them

Characteristics of an experiment

manipulation of independent variable, measurement of dependent variable, control over other variables, random assignment I

Independent variable

variable being changed in the experiment

Dependent variable

variable being measured in an experiment op

Population

the entire group of people the researcher is interested in studying

sample

a smaller group selected from the population to study

random sampling

selecting participants unintentionally to ensure everyone has a fair chance of being chosen

random assignment

the specific experimental group a participant is assigned to

Type 1 error

Incorrectly stating that there is an effective relationship between two variables, when there isn’t one.

Type 2 error

Incorrectly stating that there isn’t an effective relationship between two variables, when there is one.

dendrites

Receive information and send out to the rest of the body

soma

The cell body that surrounds the nucleus of the cell (keeps the cell alive) and maintains the neurons basic functions

axon

sends electrical signals to other cells

axon terminal

neuron releases neurotransmitters to communicate with other cells. Transforms electrical signal to a chemical one

myelin

material that insulates the axons that help electrical signals travel faster

Motor neurons

sends signals to muscles and glands, causing them to respond (uses acteylcehline)

sensory neurons

receive information from the senses and transmit it to the nervous system (uses glutamate)

Interneuron

Receives information from one neuron and sends to another

Synapse

The tiny gap/junction between dendrites and the axon terminal

Neurotransmitters

Chemicals that transmit information across the synapse to a receiving neuron’s dendrites

Presynaptic

the sending cell that releases neurotransmitters/where the signal is initiated

Postsnyaptic

The receiving cell that receives neurotransmitters through receptors

Reuptake

the sending neuron takes neurotransmitters back up into the presynaptic neuron

Enzyme deactivation

specific enzymes that break down specific neurotransmitters

Dopamine

Neurotransmitter that regulates motor behavior, motivation, emotional arousal, pleasure. because of its role in basic motivated behavior such as seeking pleasure or associating actions with rewards

Serotonin

Neurotransmitter involved in the regulation of sleep, wakefulness, eating and aggression

GABA

Major inhibitory neurotransmitter (tends to prevent the firing of neurons) and too little can cause seizures

Acetylcholine

Neurotransmitter involved in many functions, especially voluntary motor control/ muscle movement

Glutamate

Major excitatory neurotransmitter (main job to make neurons fire)

Central Nervous system

Contains the brain and the spine. Main job Is to process information and coordinate responses.

Peripheral Nervous system

all the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord. connects the ___ to the bodies organs and muscles and carries information to it. Somatic = creates voluntary movement and sensory info to the CNS. Autonomic = controls involuntary functions of your body

Sympathetic

part of the autonomic nervous system: prepares the body for challengening or threatening situations “fight or flight”

Parasympathetic

part of the autonomic nervous system: helps body return to a normal resting state “rest and digest”

Spinal reflex

simple pathways in the nervous system that rapidly generate muscle contractions. ex: the sensory neurons that register pain when you touch a hot stove send input directly to the (___ ___) in which interneurons relay the sensory inputs to motor neurons that connect to your arm muscles and cause them to retract

Hindbrain

coordinates information coming in and out of the spinal cord. Controls most basic functions in life: respiration, alertness, and motor skills

Midbrain

central location of neurotransmitters involved in arousal, mood, and motivation, movement and awareness

Forebrain

Largest and most complicated part of the brain, important for analysis of sensory information, decision making, language and other complex behaviors

Thalamus

located in the center of the brain: relays and filters information from the senses (except smell) and transmits the information to the cerebral cortex

Hypothalamus

located in the center of the brain: regulates body temperature, thirst, hunger and seggsual behavior

Hippocampus

helps create/form new memories

Amygdala

emotional memories

left hemisphere

half of the brain that controls the right side of the body and communicates with other half through corpus callosum, more focused on language

Right hemisphere

half of the brain that controls the left side of the body and communicates with the other half through the corpus callosum. Visual and spatial awareness

Somatosensory cortex

processes sensory information from the body

Motor cortex

Controls voluntary movement of your body

Frontal lobe

lobe focused on decision making and impulse control emT

Temporal lobe

lobe that processes smell, taste, sound and language

Occipital lobe

lobe that processes visual information

Parietal lobe

processes body sensations/touch

Mirror neurons

neurons that fire when you perform an action and when you observe someone else performing that same action

Nature vs nurture

things you’re born with vs things you learn

Twin studies

A type of study that helps researches investigate nature vs nature, how much of a trait might be influenced by genetics vs enviornment

Monozygotic

Identical twins, come from one fertilized egg which is then split

Dizygotic

Fraternal twins, come from two separate eggs

Positron Emission Tomography (PET)

Scan that shows metabolic activity (how your brain uses energy). Process: brain uses glucose to for energy. A radioactive tracer is attached to glucose then injected into the body. Active brain areas use more glucose so they show more tracer activity, often represented by brighter colors

Electroencaphalogram

Scan that tracks WHEN electrical activity in the brain occurred. Shown through brain waves but cannot show where exactly the activity occurred (poor spatial resolution) Process: a scalp cap with electrodes, tracks electrical activity, shown as brain waves.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

A scan that shows soft tissue (brain, muscles, organs). Process: uses magnets and radio waves to create a 3d image of soft tissue showing the brains physical anatomy and structure

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)

A scan that shows which parts of the brain are working during a task by tracking oxygen and blood flow via a live video (shows physical anatomy AND its live activity)

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

A tool used to manipulate brain activity. Uses electromagnetic coil against a patients scalp that can temporarily deactivate parts of the brain surface. Helps researchers determine cause and effect of different parts in the brain

CT Scan

A rapid 3d x-ray that shows highly detailed internal anatomy

Sensation

The physical senses experienced when an event occurs

Transduction

Perception

When your brain organized and interprets information that it sensed

Transduction

The process where the brain translates physical energy into neural impulses so your brain can understand information

Absolute threshold

The minimum amount of physical energy to detect a stimulus at least 50% of the time

Just Noticeable difference

The minimum difference or change between two stimuli required for you to detect they are different at least 50% of the time

Signal Detection

proves that detecting a signal is not just about how good your eyes or ears are, but a combo of signal strength and your psychological state (tired, distracted, scared)

Decision criteria

Your brain’s strategy for making a guess when you aren’t 100% sure a signals there. Liberal = saying yes to almost every hint, conservative = saying yes only if 100% sure

Hit

1 of the 4 possible outcomes for decision criteria. When the signal is there and you correctly say yes

Miss

1 of the 4 possible outcomes for decision criteria. When the signal is there and you correctly say no

False alarm

1 of the 4 possible outcomes for decision criteria. When the signal isn’t there and you incorrectly say yes

Correction rejection

1 of the 4 possible outcomes for decision criteria. When the signal is NOT there and you correctly say no

Light

Travels in waves

Wavelength = distance between peaks of waves, determines hues. Short wavelength = high freq = blue colors. Long wavelength = low freq = red colors

Amplitude = Height of wave, determines brightness/intensity. High = bright, low = dull.

Electromagnetic spectrum

All energy waves In the universe. Humans can only see a small fraction (visible light)

Purity

Whether a light wave is made up of one single wavelength or a mix of many. Determines saturation. Ex: High purity = monochromatic = deeply saturated. Low purity = mixed = faded, washed out or pastel