Psychology Study Definitions

Vocabulary flashcards generated from psychology study definitions covering foundational concepts, perspectives, experimental variables, and sampling methods.

Psychiatrist

A medical doctor who diagnoses and treats mental disorders, often using medication.

Psychologist

A professional who studies behavior and mental processes and may provide therapy.

Applied Research

Research designed to solve a specific, real-world problem.

Basic Research

Research done to gain knowledge without an immediate practical goal.

Behaviorism

The study of observable behavior and how it is learned.

Psychoanalysis

A theory that focuses on unconscious thoughts, feelings, and childhood experiences.

Biopsychosocial Perspective

Explains behavior using biological, psychological, and social factors.

Humanistic Perspective

Focuses on free will, personal growth, and reaching one's full potential.

Cognitive Perspective

Focuses on how people think, remember, learn, and process information.

Biological Perspective

Explains behavior through the brain, nervous system, genes, and hormones.

Sociocultural Perspective

Explains behavior based on culture, society, and social influences.

Confounding Variable

An outside factor that could affect the results of an experiment.

Case Study

An in-depth study of one person, group, or situation.

Correlation

A relationship between two variables; it does not prove causation.

Dependent Variable

The variable that is measured or tested in an experiment.

Independent Variable

The variable that the researcher changes or controls.

Single-Blind Study

A study where participants do not know which group they are in.

Double-Blind Study

A study where neither the participants nor the researchers interacting with them know who is in each group.

Placebo Effect

Improvement caused by a person's belief that they are receiving a treatment.

Standard Deviation

A measure of how spread out data is from the average (mean).

Control Group

The group that does not receive the experimental treatment and is used for comparison.

Experimental Group

The group that receives the treatment or independent variable.

Representative Sample

A sample that closely reflects the characteristics of the larger population.

Convenience Sample

A sample chosen because participants are easy to reach.

Random Sample

A sample in which every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected.