PSYCH Midterm Study Guide

Psychology

scientific study of behavior (what we do) and mental processes (inner thoughts and feelings).

Nature versus Nurture

Contribution of genes and experience in the development of behaviors or traits.

Biopsychosocial approach

integrate different levels of analysis.

Hindsight Bias

the 'I-knew-it-all-along' phenomenon. After learning the outcome of an event, many people believe they could have predicted that very outcome.

Overconfidence

Sometimes we think we know more than we actually know.

Anagram Unscrambling

People said it would take about 10 seconds, yet on average they took about 3 minutes (Goranson, 1978).

Order in Random Events

Given random data, we look for order and meaningful patterns, leading us to overestimate our intuition.

Scientific Attitude

composed of curiosity (passion for exploration), skepticism (doubting and questioning) and humility (ability to accept responsibility when wrong).

Critical Thinking

does not accept arguments and conclusions blindly. It examines assumptions, discerns hidden values, evaluates evidence and assesses conclusions.

Theory

an explanation that integrates principles and organizes and predicts behavior or events.

Hypothesis

a testable prediction, often prompted by a theory, to enable us to accept, reject or revise the theory.

Research Observations

would require us to administer tests of self-esteem and depression.

Correlation

When one trait or behavior accompanies another, we say the two correlate. r = +0.37.

Correlation Coefficient

a statistical measure of the relationship between two variables.

Scatterplot

a graph comprised of points that are generated by values of two variables. The slope of the points depicts the direction, while the amount of scatter depicts the strength of the relationship.

Perfect positive correlation

(+1.00).

Perfect negative correlation

(-1.00).

No relationship

(0.00).

Correlation and Causation

Correlation does not mean causation!

Nervous System

acts as a continuous communication system, but is broken down into two parts for study: The central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system.

Central Nervous System

consists of the spinal cord and brain.

Central Nervous System (CNS)

The CNS consists of the spinal cord and brain, receiving and sending sensory input and coordinating motor output.

Cerebral Cortex

A thin, highly convoluted outer layer of gray matter covering both hemispheres that are divided into lobes.

Cerebrum (Forebrain)

The two hemispheres are connected by the corpus callosum allowing info to be shared between the hemispheres.

Frontal Lobe

Responsible for walking, speech, intellect, judgment, and personality.

Temporal Lobe

Involved in hearing, smell, memory, and interpretation.

Parietal Lobe

Interprets sensory info from receptors and spatial understanding.

Occipital Lobe

Responsible for vision.

Motor Cortex

The area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements.

Sensory Cortex

Receives information from the skin surface and sense organs.

Broca's Area

Part of the left frontal lobe where the speech center is located.

Wernicke's Area

Located in the left temporal lobe, responsible for understanding speech.

Cerebral Peduncle

Part of the midbrain involved in motor control.

Medulla

The base of the brainstem that controls heartbeat and breathing.

Pons

Involved in motricity and helps coordinate movement; directly linked with the cerebellum.

Reticular Formation

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

Thalamus

The brain's sensory switchboard that directs messages to sensory areas in the cortex.

Cerebellum

Controls balance, agility, and voluntary movement, working with the pons.

Limbic System

A doughnut-shaped system of neural structures associated with emotions such as fear and aggression.

Amygdala

Involved in aggression, fear, and emotional memories.

Hypothalamus

Influences the pituitary gland.

Hippocampus

Supports long-term explicit memory (new information).

Neuron

A nerve cell that consists of many different parts.

Cell Body

The life support center of the neuron.

Dendrites

Branching extensions at the cell body that receive messages from other neurons.

Axon

A long single extension of a neuron, covered with myelin sheath to insulate and speed up messages.

Terminal Branches of Axon

Branched endings of an axon that transmit messages to other neurons.

Action Potential

A brief electrical charge that travels down an axon, generated by the movement of positively charged atoms.

Synapse

A junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron.

Neurotransmitters

Chemicals released from the sending neuron that travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron.

Reuptake

Neurotransmitters in the synapse are reabsorbed into the sending neurons through the process of reuptake.

Neurotransmitters

Chemicals that transmit signals across a synapse from one neuron to another.

The Endocrine System

The body's "slow" chemical communication system carried out by hormones synthesized by a set of glands.

Hormones

Chemicals synthesized by the endocrine glands that are secreted in the bloodstream and affect the brain and many other tissues of the body.

Epinephrine

A hormone that increases heart rate, blood pressure, blood sugar, and feelings of excitement during emergency situations.

Pituitary Gland

Called the "master gland," it releases hormones that regulate other glands and regulates water and salt balance.

Forms of Consciousness

An awareness of ourselves and our environment.

Dual processing

The principle that information is often simultaneously processed on separate conscious and unconscious tracks.

Selective Attention

Our conscious awareness processes only a small part of all that we experience, and our attention is limited.

Inattentional Blindness

The inability to see an object or a person in our midst, as demonstrated by Simons & Chabris (1999) with a gorilla-suited assistant.

Change Blindness

A form of inattentional blindness where individuals fail to notice a change in the individual asking for directions.

Circadian Rhythms

Biological rhythms that occur on a 24-hour cycle, including sleep and wakefulness, and can be altered by artificial light.

Biological Clock

The internal mechanism that regulates circadian rhythms, triggered by light to decrease or increase melatonin.

Stages of sleep

The different phases of sleep, with a link between REM sleep and dreaming.

90-Minute Cycles During Sleep

With each 90-minute cycle, stage 4 sleep decreases and the duration of REM sleep increases.

Psychoactive Drug

A chemical substance that alters perceptions and mood, affecting consciousness.

Depressants

Drugs that reduce neural activity and slow body functions, including alcohol, barbiturates, and opiates.

Alcohol

A depressant that affects motor skills, judgment, and memory, increasing aggressiveness while reducing self-awareness.

Barbiturates

Drugs that depress the activity of the central nervous system, inducing sleep and reducing anxiety but impairing memory and judgment.

Opiates

Opium and its derivatives (morphine and heroin) that depress neural activity, temporarily lessening pain and anxiety.

Stimulants

Drugs that excite neural activity and speed up body functions.

Caffeine

A stimulant that increases heart and breathing rates and other autonomic functions to provide energy.

Nicotine

A stimulant that increases heart and breathing rates and other autonomic functions to provide energy.

Cocaine

Induces immediate euphoria followed by a crash; can be smoked (crack), sniffed, or injected; inhibits reuptake of dopamine.

Ecstasy

A stimulant and mild hallucinogen that inhibits reuptake of serotonin, producing a euphoric high and potentially damaging serotonin-producing neurons.

Hallucinogens

Psychedelic drugs that distort perceptions and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input.

LSD

A powerful hallucinogenic drug also known as acid.

THC

The major active ingredient in marijuana that triggers a variety of effects, including mild hallucinations.

Sensation

The process of detecting physical energy from the environment and converting it into neural signals.

Perception

The process of selecting, organizing, and interpreting sensations.

Transduction

The conversion of one form of energy into another that the brain can use.

Bottom-up Processing

Analysis of the stimulus that begins with the sense receptors and works up to the level of the brain and mind.

Top-Down Processing

Information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, drawing on experience and expectations.

Absolute Threshold

The minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time.

Subliminal Threshold

When stimuli are below one's absolute threshold for conscious awareness.

Sensory Adaptation

Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation.

Vision

The most studied sense that transduces light energy into neural messages to the brain.

Wavelength

The distance from the peak of one wave to the peak of the next, determining the hue (color) of light.

Hue

The dimension of color determined by the wavelength of light.

Intensity

The amount of energy in a wave determined by the amplitude, related to perceived brightness.

Cornea

Transparent tissue where light enters the eye.

Iris

Muscle that expands and contracts to change the size of the opening (pupil) for light.

Lens

Focuses the light rays on the retina.

Retina

Contains sensory receptors that process visual information and sends it to the brain.

Retina

The light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing receptor rods and cones.

Rods

Peripheral receptors in the retina that detect black, grey, and white.

Cones

Foveal receptors in the retina that detect color.

Optic nerve

Carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain.

Blind Spot

Point where the optic nerve leaves the eye because there are no receptor cells located there.

Fovea

Central point in the retina around which the eye's cones cluster.