Introduction to Psychology Ch. 1-3

American Psychological Association (APA)

Professional organization representing psychologists in the United States.

Behaviorism

Focus on observing and controlling behavior.

Biopsychology

Study of how biology influences behavior.

Biopsychosocial model

Perspective that asserts that biology, psychology, and social factors interact to determine an individual's health.

Clinical psychology

Area of psychology that focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders and other problematic patterns of behavior.

Cognitive psychology

Study of cognitions, or thoughts, and their relationship to experiences and actions.

Counseling psychology

Area of psychology that focuses on improving emotional, social, vocational, and other aspects of the lives of psychologically healthy individuals.

Developmental psychology

Scientific study of development across a lifespan.

Dissertation

Long research paper about research that was conducted as a part of the candidate's doctoral training.

Empirical method

Method for acquiring knowledge based on observation, including experimentation.

Forensic psychology

Area of psychology that applies the science and practice of psychology to issues within and related to the justice system.

Functionalism

Focused on how mental activities helped an organism adapt to its environment.

Humanism

Perspective within psychology that emphasizes the potential for good that is innate to all humans.

Introspection

Process by which someone examines their own conscious experience in an attempt to break it into its component parts.

Ology

Suffix that denotes "scientific study of".

Personality psychology

Study of patterns of thoughts and behaviors that make each individual unique.

Personality trait

Consistent pattern of thought and behavior.

PhD

Doctor of philosophy doctoral degree conferred in many disciplinary perspectives housed in a traditional college of liberal arts and sciences.

Postdoctoral training program

Allows young scientists to further develop their research programs and broaden their research skills under supervision.

Psychoanalytic theory

Focus on the role of the unconscious in affecting conscious behavior.

Psychology

Scientific study of the mind and behavior.

PsyD

Doctor of psychology doctoral degree that places less emphasis on research and focuses on clinical application.

Sport and exercise psychology

Focuses on interactions between mental/emotional factors and physical performance.

Structuralism

Understanding the conscious experience through introspection.

Dr. Garcia's broad explanation of animal learning through simple association

Theory

Specific explanation that animals avoid a substance that makes them sick

Hypothesis

Why is experimental psychology considered a science?

It involves generating and testing theories through empirical and experimental methods.

Why does introspection fail as a scientific method?

Mental events are not directly observable, so they cannot be objectively measured.

Studying hard for an exam and receiving an A

Positive reinforcement

Why did computer science drive the cognitive revolution?

They provided scientific methods for describing and measuring information processing.

Why is psychoanalysis not considered scientific psychology?

It was developed based on Freud's intuitions and never subjected to scientific testing.

Maslow's hierarchy priority

Physical needs are typically satisfied before emotional ones.

Main focus of experimental psychology

The scientific investigation of mind and behavior.

Main focus of clinical/counseling psychology

Providing patients with unconditional regard and empathy.

Industrial/organizational psychology

Applies psychological theories and research findings in a business setting.

Social psychology

Investigates how being among other people changes our own behavior and thinking.

Consumer behavior

Understanding how consumers make decisions about products and services.

Educational psychology

Using psychology to improve learning in classrooms and educational settings.

Human factors

Designing products or processes to make them easier, safer, or more comfortable.

Health psychology

Using psychology to improve physical health and healthcare.

Political psychology

Studying how psychology affects politics and vice versa.

School psychology

Using psychology to improve academic and social experiences of students.

Psychiatrist vs Psychologist prescription ability

A psychiatrist is an MD who can prescribe drugs; a psychologist holds a PhD and cannot.

Employment of experimental psychologists

Professors or research scientists in colleges, universities, and research institutions.

Do opposites attract in successful romantic relationships?

False

Does a larger crowd increase likelihood of help in an emergency?

False

Do people have distinct learning styles that improve retention?

False

Are polygraph (lie detector) tests effective?

False

Why focus research on behavioral/physiological factors?

They can be directly observed and measured in repeatable experiments.

Measuring early childhood program effectiveness requires:

Random assignment and directly observable long-term outcomes.

Advantage of large-scale studies over case studies

Greater likelihood that results apply to a broader population.

Jean Piaget developing child theories by watching his children

Naturalistic observation

Archival research

Method of research using past records or data sets to answer research questions.

Attrition

Reduction in number of research participants as some drop out over time.

Cause-and-effect relationship

Changes in one variable cause changes in another; determined through experimental research design.

Clinical or case study

Observational research study focusing on one or a few people.

Confirmation bias

Tendency to ignore evidence that disproves ideas or beliefs.

Confounding variable

Unanticipated outside factor that affects both variables of interest.

Control group

Serves as a basis for comparison by holding chance factors constant.

Correlation

Relationship between two or more variables where one changes as the other does.

Correlation coefficient

Number from -1 to +1 indicating the strength and direction of a relationship.

Cross-sectional research

Compares multiple segments of a population at a single time.

Debriefing

Informing participants of truthful information after an experiment involving deception.

Deception

Purposely misleading participants to maintain experiment integrity.

Deductive reasoning

Results are predicted based on a general premise.

Dependent variable

Variable that the researcher measures to see the effect of the independent variable.

Double-blind study

Experiment in which both researchers and participants are blind to group assignments.

Empirical

Grounded in objective, tangible evidence that can be observed repeatedly.

Experimental group

Group designed to answer the research question through experimental manipulation.

Experimenter bias

Researcher expectations skewing the results of the study.

Fact

Objective and verifiable observation established using empirical evidence.

Falsifiable

Able to be disproven by experimental results.

Generalize

Inferring that results for a sample apply to the larger population.

Hypothesis

Tentative and testable statement about the relationship between variables.

Illusory correlation

Seeing relationships between things when in reality none exists.

Independent variable

Variable influenced or controlled by the experimenter.

Inductive reasoning

Conclusions are drawn from observations.

Informed consent

Process of informing participants about expectations, risks, and obtaining agreement.

IACUC

Committee that reviews proposals for research involving nonhuman animals.

IRB

Committee that reviews proposals for research involving human participants.

Inter-rater reliability

Measure of agreement among observers on how they record and classify events.

Longitudinal research

Studies in which the same group is measured repeatedly over an extended period.

Naturalistic observation

Observation of behavior in its natural setting.

Negative correlation

Two variables change in different directions (one up, one down).

Observer bias

When observations are skewed to align with observer expectations.

Operational definition

Description of actions/operations used to measure variables.

Opinion

Personal judgments or conclusions that may or may not be accurate.

Peer-reviewed journal article

Article reviewed anonymously by experts for quality before publication.

Placebo effect

People's expectations influencing their experience.

Population

Overall group of individuals researchers are interested in.

Positive correlation

Two variables change in the same direction.

Random assignment

Group assignment method where all participants have an equal chance for any group.

Random sample

Subset where every population member has an equal chance of selection.

Reliability

Consistency and reproducibility of a result.

Replicate

Repeating an experiment using different samples to determine reliability.

Sample

Subset of individuals selected from the larger population.

Single-blind study

Experiment where researchers know group assignments but participants do not.

Statistical analysis

Determines how likely group differences are due to chance.

Survey

List of questions allowing researchers to collect data from many people.

Theory

Well-developed set of ideas proposing an explanation for observed phenomena.