PSYC 100 - Winter Exam

Practice for PSYC 100 Winter Exam

What are Psychology’s Goals? (4)

1. To describe the behaviour of people, and to a lesser extent, other animals.

2. To explain and understand the causes of behaviours.

3. To predict the behaviour of people and animals

4. To influence or control behaviour

What is mind-body dualism?

The idea that the mind and the body are separate entities. The mind is non-physical and thus can't be studied.

What is Monism?

The idea that the mind and the body are parts of the same entity. The mind can be studied, and mental events/thoughts are the result of physical processes.

What is structuralism? And what is the most common research method used by the perspective in psychology?

Structuralists were influenced by chemistry's hunt for basic elements. They wanted to identify the basic building blocks of conscious experience.

Introspection - the most commonly used research method for structuralists. Individuals were trained to concentrate on and report their conscious experiences in response to external stimuli

What is functionalism? And what is the most common research method used by the perspective in psychology?

Functionalists were influenced more by the concept of evolution. They wanted to identify the reasons for behaviours and mental processes.

Functionalists ask “why” questions to investigate how mental processes operate and relate to behaviour, and how particular mental processes and behaviours allow organisms to adapt to their environment.

Which early school of psychology would ask questions like "why do we have specific taste receptors for sweet foods?" and "what is the purpose of forming close social bonds?"

A) Structuralists

B) Introspectionists

C) Functionalists

D) Physiologists

C) Functionalists

What is Gestalt psychology?

Gestalt psychology can be summarized by saying "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts" - when you look at a painting, you see more than just different coloured blobs! They sought to discover principles of perceptual organization and thought that explained how we interpret the world.

What types of questions are cognitive psychologists likely to ask?

Cognitive psychologists would be most likely to ask a question about memory, or other aspects of thinking and processing.

What are evolutionary psychologists?

They attempt to explain how modern human behaviour has been shaped by evolution. Mental abilities and behaviours evolved alongside physical structure and abilities.

Give an example of evolutionary psychology.

As we evolved larger brains capable of more complex thought, our ability to survive and reproduce improved.

What are Sociobiologists?

Sociobiologists, one type of evolutionary psychologists, argue that complex social behaviours are also products of evolution. According to sociobiologists, social behaviours like competition, aggression, and dominance in males, and nurturing and cooperative tendencies in females, are products of evolution that increase our likelihood of survival.

What is behavioural neuroscience?

Focuses on understanding brain processes and other physiological processes that are involved in our behaviour, sensory experience, thoughts, and emotions. They study both humans and animals.

What is culture?

values, traditions, and beliefs that are shared by a particular group of people.

What is cultural psychology?

the study of how our culture influences our mental life.

What are social psychologists? Give an example.

Studies how the presence (real, virtual, or imagined) of others influences our behaviours, feelings, and thoughts.

Social psychologists study a broad range of phenomena, including how we form attitudes and impressions of other people, how expectations influence our behaviour, how we feel social pain when we are rejected or left out, and how our thinking is influenced by being in a group.

What are the 3 levels in which you can examine behaviour? And provide an example for each.

At a biological, psychological and environmental level.

What is a hypothesis? Provide one example.

A prediction about what will happen, based on existing evidence and the research question.

If people are given a moderate dose of caffeine, headaches will decrease.

What is a theory? Provide one example.

An explanation for a phenomenon, is based on supporting evidence from a range of studies.

Headaches are caused by constriction of the blood vessels in the brain

What quantifies a hypothesis or theory?

A hypothesis or theory must be:

• Testable - it must be possible to test the theory through scientific methods

• Falsifiable - it must be possible for there to be disconfirming evidence. We don't actually have to find that evidence, but there must be a possibility of it being found

***If you see the word "proven" in a multiple choice question about a theory or hypothesis it is usually an incorrect distractor item.

What is the difference between Applied vs. Basic Research?

Basic research attempts to determine and explain the basic principles of how the world works

Example: determining how reuptake inhibitors affect the presence of serotonin in the synapse

Applied research seeks to apply the findings of basic research to solve real-world problems

Example: using what we know about reuptake inhibitors and serotonin to develop and test new treatments for depression

What are variables? What types of variable are there?

Variables are anything within a research study that can vary (have multiple values)

• Independent variables are variables within an experiment that are manipulated by the researchers

• Dependent variables are variables within an experiment that are measured by the researchers

What is an operational defnition?

a statement of how a particular idea or construct will be measured in a particular study.

Dr. Graf is studying whether training older adults using a game he has developed can improve their working memory. Which kind of research is this?

Applied Research

What is deductive reasoning? Why is it useful?

Deductive reasoning - reasoning from general principles to a conclusion about a specific case

• Basis of math and formal logic

• Conclusion cannot be false if the factual statements (premises) are true

• Example - the sun is a star, the sun has planets, therefore some stars have planets

What is inductive reasoning? Why is it useful?

Inductive reasoning - start with specific facts and try to develop a general principle

• Used to discover general principles from combined observations

• Leads to probabilities rather than absolute truths

• Example - studying the traffic patterns to be able to predict when to leave for class

Deductive reasoning is reasoning from ______________ while inductive reasoning is reasoning from _______________.

A) Scientists; The general public

B) Bottom-up; Top-down

C) Specific to general; General to specific

D) General to specific; Specific to general

D) General to specific; Specific to general

What are the 3 types of descriptive statistics?

• Central tendency - what is the average or typical data point?

• Dispersion - how far apart are the data points?

• Correlation - how related are values on two variables?

What is central tendency?

Central tendency tells us what the typical or average data point is. There are three ways to measure central tendency:

• Mean - the average of all of the data points in a set.

• Median - when data points are arranged in numerical order, the center data point. If there are an even number of data points, take the average of the two on either side of the center.

• Mode - the most frequently occurring value(s) in a set.

What is dispersion?

Dispersion tells us how spread out the data points are. There are two main ways to measure dispersion:

• Range - the distance from the lowest data point to the highest data point

• Standard Deviation - the average distance between data points and the mean

What distinguishes the null hypothesis from the alternative hypothesis?

Null Hypothesis (H₀ ) - There is no difference between the groups, the new medication does not work better than placebo

Alternative hypothesis (H₁ ) - There is a difference between the groups - the new medication does work better than placebo.

What is the null hypothesis significance testing (NHST)? How do we measure it?

In null hypothesis significance testing (NHST), we are asking whether the value we found in our sample is far enough away from the expected value to count as something "going on".

The established value is p < .05 - there is a .05 chance that we will make an incorrect decision and say something is happening when really nothing is happening. If the p-value that results from our inferential test is lower than .05, we reject the null hypothesis and have support for the alternative hypothesis

A NHST can be 1-tailed or 2-tailed. If the test is 2-tailed, the .05 is divided up equally on both sides of the null hypothesis distribution. If the test is 1-tailed, the whole .05 is assigned to one side.

What is a type I error?

study concludes there is a difference between groups or conditions where a difference does not actually exist

What is a type II error?

study concludes there is no difference between groups or conditions where a difference does actually exist

What does sensitivity mean in the case of Type I & II Errors?

The ability to detect a difference that actually exists

What does specificity mean in the case of Type I & II Errors?

The ability to conclude a difference doesn’t exist when it doesn't actually exist

Bags of chips have a label stating that the weight of the contents is 6 oz. A consumer watchdog group thinks the bags are under‐filled and decides to test them. A Type I error in this situation would mean:

A) they do not conclude the bags have less than 6 oz. when the mean actually is less than 6 oz.

B) they conclude the bags have less than 6 oz. when the mean actually is 6 oz.

C) they have evidence the labels are actually incorrect

D) they have evidence that there is a lot of variability in the bags' contents

B) they conclude the bags have less than 6 oz. when the mean actually is 6 oz.

Explanation - they think the bags are underfilled when they actually aren't. A Type I error is a false positive - in this case their hypothesis is that the bags are underfilled, so a false positive would mean they think they are underfilled when they actually aren't.

How do psychologists study every day thoughts and behaviour? (Give two examples).

There are many ways of studying daily behaviour/thoughts:

• Sending survey questions about location, thoughts, feelings, or behaviours to participants' phones several times a day over a period of time

• Naturalistic observation by taking snippets of audio from participants' days and analyzing what is happening during the clips

• Time-lapse photography in public spaces

• Analysis of garbage/recycling

• Ambulatory physiological monitoring - measuring physiological reactions like blood pressure as people go about their day

• Analyzing online behaviour in blogs, forums, emails, social media, etc.

What is Correlation? And what are its two components?

Correlation is a measure of how related scores on two variables are. A correlation is denoted by the symbol r.

A correlation has two components:

• Positivity or negativity - which direction does the relationship go?

• Value - how strong is the relationship, from 0 (no relationship) to 1.00 (perfect relationship). A correlation of -.70 and +.70 are equal in strength

Research shows there is a positive correlation between the number of night clubs and churches in cities. We can conclude that:

A) People who go to church are more likely to go to bars

B) Drinking makes people want to go to church

C) The larger a city is, the more likely it is to have churches and bars

D) None of the above

D) None of the above

We can best predict the value of one variable from another variable if they have a correlation coefficient of:

A) -0.50

B) -0.75

C) +0.60

D) +1.30

B) -0.75

Explanation: -0.75 represents the strongest correlation that is an option. Remember to ignore the sign (+/-) when determining strength. The larger the number, the stronger the correlation. A correlation cannot be bigger than +1.0 or smaller than -1.0, so +1.30 is a trick!

What is the difference between reliability and validity? Give an example for each.

Reliability - the extent to which a measurement is consistent

Example - an IQ test should give the same result each time it is given to an individual

Validity - the extent to which a measurement reflects the true state of something

Example - an IQ test predicts real-world performance on tasks that require intellectual ability

Can something be valid if it is not reliable?

Something cannot be valid if it is not reliable - if every time you step on a scale it gives you a different result, it is not reliable. It cannot be valid.

However, Something can be reliable but not valid - the tape measures above are individually reliable. Each time I measure an object with one of the tape measures, it gives me the same result. Despite this, the bottom tape measure is invalid - it is stretched out and the inches are longer than a true inch.

What is internal validity? Are there threats associated with internal validity, if yes, what are they?

Internal validity is the extent to which we can establish cause and effect relationships between variables. Internal validity is improved by random assignment

Yes there are.

Threats to Internal Validity

• Spontaneous recovery/remission - change without an apparent external reason

• Maturation - growth of the person

• Measurement - act of being measured changes how we behave

• Secular drift - gradual changes in culture

• History effects - effects of events that happen in larger society

• Regression to the mean - people who represent extremes of the distribution tend to drift back towards the mean in later tests

• Instrument effects - poor measurement tools

• Selection effects - if groups were not well-chosen

• Attrition/Experimental mortality - if there is a systematic reason people drop out of the study over time

What is external validity? Are there threats associated with external validity, if yes, what are they?

External validity is the extent to which we can generalize our results to the population we're interested in. External validity is improved by random selection

Threats to External Validity

• Experimental conditions do not reflect real world

• Selection criteria are too restrictive

• Situational effects - presence of lab conditions changes the outcome

You and a coworker take a personality test. It tells you that you're an introvert who relies on their feelings to make decisions. It tells your coworker that they're an extrovert who relies on their thoughts to make decisions. This is really strange to you, because the two of you have very similar work styles. What is missing in this personality test?

A) test-retest reliability

B) internal consistency reliability

C) internal validity

D) external validity

D) external validity

What is confounding variables?

a variable other than the one you are interested in that affects the results of your experiment.

What are the two types of experimental Method?

Basic method and single-/double-blind experiments.

What is basic method experimental method?

• Use random assignment to assign participants to conditions. The only difference between your groups should be the independent variable(s).

• Manipulate the independent variable(s).

• Measure the dependent variable(s).

• If there is a difference between your groups on the dependent variable(s), it must be due to the manipulation of the independent variable(s)

The sample (group of people included in the experiment) is ideally drawn at random from the population, to make sure it represents the population.

What are the single-blind and double-blind experiments?

If an experiment involves a treatment of some kind, it is common to include a placebo so that participants do not know if they are receiving the real treatment or not.

If the treatment group and control group both show improvement, then it is likely due to a placebo effect - a change that is due to the belief that you are receiving treatment, rather than the treatment itself.

Single-blind experiment - participants do not know whether they are getting the real treatment or a placebo.

Double-blind experiment - participants and the people interacting with the participants do not know whether the participants are getting the real treatment or a placebo.

An administrator believes that the placement of posters with reminders to wash hands on the walls in the washrooms of hospitals will lead to increased hand washing in residents. To test his theory, he randomly assigns floors of the hospital to have posters or not have posters and measures how many residents wash their hands on each floor over a week. What is the independent variable in this study?

A) Floors of the hospital

B) Posters

C) Handwashing

D) Residents

B) posters

What is non-experimental methods?

Non-experimental (or correlational) methods are used when a true experiment is not possible for logistical or ethical reasons.

Because non-experimental methods lack the control of experiments, we cannot establish cause and effect when we use them, but we can discover patterns.

What are the 5 types of non-experimental design?

Case study, survey or questionnaire, focus group, observational, and quasi-experimental design.

What is a case study method?

an in-depth study of one (or a small number) of individuals. Usually used when someone has a rare condition or set of experiences.

What is a survey or questionnaire method?

collecting answers to a series of (usually closed-ended) questions from a group of people. Can be done by having the individual participants fill out a survey form, or by asking the questions and marking down responses

What is a focus group method?

a group interview where participants are able to and encouraged to interact with each other

What is observational design method?

watching a person or group of people to see how they behave in a situation, with no intervention by the researcher

What is a quasi-experimental designs method?

look like experiments, but have at least one variable that looks like an independent variable but was measured, not manipulated. This is usually the case when you are interested in a variable that cannot be manipulated for either ethical or practical reasons. We cannot make cause and effect conclusions because we don't have the kind of control needed to do so.

The major difference between correlational and experimental designs is that:

A)Experimental research uses random sampling and correlational research uses random assignment

B)Experimental research has higher external validity

C)Experimental research involves measurement of variables, and correlational research involves manipulation of variables

D)Experimental research involves manipulation of variables, and correlational research involves measurement of variables

D)Experimental research involves manipulation of variables, and correlational research involves measurement of variables

Anna conducts a series of one-on-one interviews with nurses and finds that the nurses who report the greatest job satisfaction work with attending physicians who are perceived by the nurses as trusting their knowledge and experience. What can be concluded from this study?

A) Nurses who have knowledge and experience are trusted by attending physicians

B) Nurses who feel that they are trusted by attending physicians are more likely to report job satisfaction

C) Trust by attending physicians results in greater job satisfaction for nurses

D) Nurses require trust from attending physicians in order to feel satisfied at work

B) Nurses who feel that they are trusted by attending physicians are more likely to report job satisfaction

What is a cross-sectional design? What are the pros and cons?

Cross-sectional (or cohort) design - comparing people from different age groups

Pro: can be done relatively quickly

Con: differences could be due to generational differences rather than the process of aging

What is a longitudinal design? What are the pros and cons?

Longitudinal design - following a group of people for a long period of time, measuring at regular intervals

Pro: can look for differences due to aging

Con: takes a really long time, high experimental mortality (dropout rate)

What are the pros and cons of experimental research?

Pros: Can establish cause and effect and High degree of control

Cons: High degree of control can result in findings that don't hold true in the real world (lack ecological validity). Not always possible because of ethical or practical concerns

What are the pros and cons of correlational research (surveys, focus groups, observation, case studies, etc.)?

Pros: Can be less expensive (though not always). Often don't have the ethical or practical concerns of an experimental design (Example: it would be highly unethical to randomly assign people to have a traumatic brain injury)

Cons: cannot establish cause and effect

What are the pros and cons of quasi-experimental research?

Pros: get as much of the control of a true experiment as is possible in a particular situation

Cons: cannot establish cause and effect

What are the ethics required for all experiments?

Informed consent - research participants must understand what they will be asked to do during a study, as well as the risks and benefits of participating.

For people who are not capable of informed consent, we still require their assent, or agreement to participate, in addition to the consent of an authorized third party.

Deception is rarely used in psychological studies. It is only approved by research ethics boards if it is necessary for the study to be conducted. In cases where deception is used, participants must be debriefed - told about the true purpose of the study after the fact.

Research in psychology must be reviewed by a research ethics board, usually at a university, to determine whether it complies with research ethics requirements.

What are epigenetics?

changes in gene expression as a result of environmental conditions.

What is the difference between DNA methylation and Histone modification?

DNA methylation - cytosine and adenine can have a methyl group added, which changes their activity without actually changing the underlying gene. This can happen at many stages in development. DNA methylation usually functions to suppress or silence a gene's expression.

Histone modification - can modify the expression of a gene (increasing or suppressing) without changing the underlying gene.

What is “gene-environment correlations”? What are the 3 types?

Gene-environment correlation = our genetics and environment interact with each other to produce gene expression.

3 types = passive, evocative and active.

Describe each type of gene-environment correlation.

• Passive gene-environment correlation: Relationship between genetic makeup and environment you are raised in.

• Evocative gene-environment correlation: Individual's behaviour (heritable) causes an environmental response.

• Active gene-environment correlation: Individual's genetic makeup leads them to choose particular environments.

What are the components of natural selection?

• In every population, more individuals are produced than can survive

• Individuals have different phenotypes and heritable traits

• Environment factors make certain traits more or less adaptive

• Some individuals are better able to survive and reproduce than others

• These individuals reproduce and pass on their adaptive traits to their offspring

• These traits become more common in successive generations

What are the components of adaptation?

• It must have an obvious biological purpose

• It must be consistent across cultures and over time

• It must have been predictive of fitness (survival and reproductive success) in ancestors

• It must not be more easily explained as being something other than an adaptation

What is intrasexual competition? Give an example.

Intrasexual competition - competition between members of the same sex, with the winner being able to mate with a member of the opposite sex.

Example: aggressiveness or antler size in animals.

What is intersexual selection? Give an example.

Intersexual selection - selection of particular characteristics in members of one sex by members of the opposite sex. These characteristics are then more likely to be passed down.

Example: colourful feathers in birds, intelligence in humans.

A person on a dating site says they're looking for someone with a good sense of humour. This is:

A) intrasexual competition

B) intrasexual selection

C) intersexual competition

D) intersexual selection

D) intersexual selection

What is the difference between evolutionary psychologists and sociobiologists.

Evolutionary psychologists: attempt to explain how modern human behaviour has been shaped by evolution. Mental abilities and behaviours evolved alongside physical structure and abilities.

Sociobiologists: one type of evolutionary psychologists, argue that complex social behaviours are also products of evolution.

A sociobiologist would be interested in:

A) how humans' larger frontal lobe is related to higher executive functions compared to other primates

B) how the pincer grip (thumb and forefinger) allows us to more easily eat high protein foods like nuts and seeds

C) why women are typically more nurturing than men

D) how walking upright has influenced our visual system

C) why women are typically more nurturing than men

What are the differences between genotype and phenotype?

Genotype:

• The genetic composition/makeup of an organism

• The total genetic information/material of an organism

• Unique set of genes that compromise that individual’s genetic code

Phenotype:

• The outward expression of an organism’s genotype

• The physical traits and characteristic expressed by an organism (i.e. eye colour, personality etc)

• Results from genotypes interaction with environment

What is homozygous?

two copies of the same allele (Example: BB or bb)

What is heterozygous?

two different copies of the allele (Example: bB or Bb)

True or false: Fraternal (dizygotic) twins develop from one egg fertilized by one sperm cell and share 100% of their DNA

False. That is the definition of identical (monozygotic) twins

What does a heritability coefficient of 1.00 mean?

all of the variability in a particular trait is due to genetics

What does a heritability coefficient of 0.00 mean?

none of the variability is due to genetics

We know from many studies that the heritability of intelligence is 57-73%. If we know the intelligence of a person's biological parents, we know:

A) that the person's IQ score will be the average of the two parents' IQ scores, with a margin of error somewhere between 57% and 73%

B) that the person's IQ score will be in the range of 57%-73% higher or lower than the average of their parents' IQ scores

C) that a person with high IQ parents will have a higher IQ than a person with low IQ parents

D) that, in general, people with high IQs have high IQ parents

D) that, in general, people with high IQs have high IQ parents

What is the functionalist theory?

emotions serve a purpose to help us survive in the world.

What is the appraisal theory?

emotions are caused by evaluations and judgments of what is going on around us and what it means for us.

What are the 4 knowledge emotions?

Surprise, Interest, Confusion and Awe.

Margaret's professor gives an assignment that has very few directions, and some of the directions that are there are conflicting. Which emotion is Margaret likely to experience?

A) confusion

B) surprise

C) interest

D) awe

A) confusion

What is extinction (in terms of a response to stimulus)?

gradual loss of conditioned response when conditioned stimulus is repeatedly present in the absence of the unconditioned stimulus

What is spontaneous recovery (in terms of a response to stimulus)?

reappearance of the conditioned response after extinction. Weaker than original conditioned response.

What is stimulus generalization (in terms of a response to stimulus)?

respond with the conditioned response to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus

What is stimulus discrimination (in terms of a response to stimulus)?

the ability/tendency to respond differently to stimuli which are similar to each other

Ava's dog Buddy loves to go for walks on a leash. Buddy used to wag his tail as soon as they got outside, but now he wags his tail when Ava picks up the leash.

One day, Ava is cleaning out her garage and pulls some old rope out of a box. Buddy gets excited and wags his tail just like he does when he goes out for a walk. Buddy has ________ the stimulus of the leash to the rope

A) Discriminated

B) Extinguished

C) Unconditioned

D) Generalized

D) Generalized

Define Reinforcement and Punishment.

Reinforcement - a consequence that increases the probability of a behaviour reoccurring

Punishment - a consequence that decreases the probability of a behaviour reoccurring

What are the types of reinforcement?

Positive reinforcement - adding something, resulting in an increase in the probability of a behaviour

Negative reinforcement - taking something away, resulting in an increase in the behaviour

What are the types of punishment?

Positive punishment - adding something, resulting in an decrease in the probability of a behaviour

Negative punishment - taking something away, resulting in a decrease in the behaviour

Which of the following is an example of negative reinforcement?

A) Spraying water in a dog's face to get them to stop barking

B) Using a towel to dry yourself off when it rains

C) Taking away a teenager's phone because they stayed out too late

D) Giving a child attention when they act out

B) Using a towel to dry yourself off when it rains

Raj is four years old. His mom treats his preschool teacher with disdain. What is likely to happen to Raj's behaviour?

A) He will be kind to his teacher because he feels bad for her

B) He will also be rude to the teacher

C) He will be kind to the teacher because he has not been rewarded for treating her poorly

D) He will tell his mom to quit it

B) He will also be rude to the teacher

What is implicit learning?

learning that we are not aware of.

Is habituation a form of implicit learning? And what is it?

Yes, it is a very simple implicit learning. Repeated exposure to a stimulus results in a reduced response.

Which of the following describes latent learning?

A) a decrease in responding with repeated exposures to a stimulus or event

B) learning to like a stimulus

C) learning in the absence of reinforcement

D) learning not to respond to something

C) learning in the absence of reinforcement