Key terms and concepts (unit 1 part 1)

critical thinking

critical thinking

questioning biases and thinking for yourself

scientific attitude framework

curiosity -> skepticism -> humility

empiricism

experience dictates what we know -> John Locke -> the mind comes as a blank space; in favor of nurture over nature

Structuralism

Introduced by Titchner -> using introspection as a means to learn more about the human mind -> efforts were short lived because human perspective is subjective

Introspection

the action of looking into yourself; key tenant of structuralism

Functionalism

James - A school of psychology that focused on how our mental and behavioral processes function - how they enable us to adapt, survive, and flourish.

Behaviorism

Watson - the view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Most research psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2).

humanistic psychology

focus on the GROWTH of people using psychology → this could mean either hindering or improving

Cognitive Psychology

the scientific study of all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating (cognitive functions) → how we react and interpret a situation**

cognitive neuroscience

the interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory, and language)

Psychology

the scientific study of behavior and mental processes (originally defined as the study of the soul)

nature vs nurture

whether genetics or environment is more responsible for human behaviour. In favor of nature notably: plato, descartes. While John Locke, aristotle etc. Today it is often a consensus nature and nurture both play huge roles in determining who we are.

natural selection

Darwin - survival of the firrest - A process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits tend to survive and reproduce at higher rates than other individuals because of those traits.

evolutionary psychology

the psychological study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection

behavior genetics

the study of how genetics influences our behavior, to what extent/limit/how it makes us different whether positive or negative.

Culture

Beliefs, customs, and traditions of a specific group of people.

WEIRD acronym (often the cultural and psychological studies standard)

Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, Democratic

positive psychology

the scientific study of optimal human functioning; aims to discover and promote strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive (similar to humanistic psychology but positive is more quantitative than qualitative)

biopsychosocial approach (to psychology)

this approach considers the biological, psychological, and social-cultural influences to explain behavior

biological psychology

a branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology and behavior (gender, predisposed traits etc)

psychodynamic psychology

area of psychology that deals with unconscious wants and thoughts which influences people

social-cultural psychology

the study of how situations and cultures affect our behavior and thinking

testing effect

people are able to better remember things after trying to retrieve it -> in favor of a now popular method called "active recall"

SQ3R

Myers' recommendation on how to read for any class, psychology, in particular, -> broken down to skim/survey, question, read, recite/retrieve, review

Psychometrics

study of the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits (technique of testing e.g. IQ test)

what three parts (big branches) does psychology break down to in an occupational sense?

basic research, applied research, and helping professions

basic research psychology

study of the origin, cause or results of behavior (conduct studies)

Devlopmental Psychology

the branch of psychology concerned with physical, cognitive, and social change throughout a person's development/get older

educational psychology

the study of how psychological processes affect and can enhance teaching and learning

personality psychology

the study of an individual's characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting (personality)

social psychology

the scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another

applied research psychology

scientific study that aims to solve practical problems

industrial-orginizational (I/O) psychology

the application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplaces (think big firms)

human factors psychology

a branch of psychology that explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use → think human-factor(Y) FACTORY = MACHINE

Counseling psychology

a branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being

clinical psychology

a branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders

psychiatry

a branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who sometimes provide medical (for example, drug) treatments as well as psychological therapy

community psychology

a branch of psychology that studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups

what is the difference between counseling, clinical, and psychiatrist

counseling is not able to diagnose only talk through problems; clinical are able to assess and treat people with disorders; psychiatrists have the medical license to prescribe drugs in order to treat disorders. Think about them as on a spectrum of medical power in that order.

what are the 7 theoretical perspectives in psychology?

Behavioral (how we learn observable responses), biological (body and brain), cognitive (perception of info), evolutionary(natural selection), humanistic (personal growth), psychodynamic (unconscious drives), social-cultural

distributed practice

a person who studies an hour per day will do better than the person who crams 7 hours of studying into one day → spacial repetition

Forensic psychologist

Helping out with criminal investigation and understand psychological problems

self actualization

Maslow - the realization or fulfillment of one's talents and potentialities, especially considered as a drive or need present in everyone.

What does it mean for a psychologist to be eclectic

Drawing from many psychological approaches

Overt Behaviour

Overt behaviors are actions which are visible and can be seen directly, such as physical movements and verbal statements.

Gestalt Psychology

Gestalt theory emphasizes that the whole of anything is greater than its parts. Gestalt psychology is a school of thought that looks at the human mind and behavior as a whole. When trying to make sense of the world around us, Gestalt psychology suggests that we do not simply focus on every small component.

Empirical statement

Statements that can be measured by observation or experience. DIRECT COMPARISON not a comparison of things that did not happen in the same year etc (choose detailed mathematical answers (?))