UNC PSYC 101 - Exam #1

clinical psychology

branch of psychology concerned with diagnosis and treatment of psychological problems and disorders

Psychology

-merging of philosophy and physiology

-founded by Wilheim Wundt in 1879 with the creation of the first lab at the University of Leipzig (Germany)

Wilheim Wundt

founder of psychology; believed psychology to be the scientific study of the conscious experience

Structuralism

founded by Edward Titchener at Cornell; school of thought which believed psychology should analyze consciousness to its basic elements and search for the relationships between the elements

introspection

facet of structuralism; careful, systematic self-observation of one's conscious experience; reliant on sensation and perception of touch, hearing, and vision

Functionalism

founded by William James (American); school of thought which believed psychology should investigate the purpose or function of consciousness instead of structure

stream of consciousness

facet of functionalism; continuous flow of thought

Mary Whiton Calkins

First female president of the American Psychological Association; refused Ph.D. from Radcliffe because Harvard wouldn't give her one

Margaret Washburn

First woman to receive a Ph.D. in psychology (Cornell); wrote "Animal Mind"

Leta Hollingworth

coined the term "gifted"; debunked psychological theories about women's inferiority to men

Sigmund Freud

Austrian physician who treated patients through psychoanalysts; brought forth the idea of psychology based in the unconscious

the unconscious

contains thoughts, memories, and desires below the surface of the conscious awareness that exert a large amount of influence on behavior

psychoanalytic theory

attempts to explain motivation, personality, and mental disorders by focusing on unconscious determinants of behavior

behaviorism

a theoretical orientation based on the premise that scientific psychology should only study observable behavior

John B. Watson

proposed behaviorism and the abandonment of the study of consciousness; believed psychology should have veritability; believed strongly in NURTURE

Behavior

any observable activity by an organism

humanism

theoretical orientation that emphasizes the unique elements of humans, especially their freedom and potential for future growth; founded by Rogers and Maslow

cognition

mental processes involved in acquiring knowledge

evolutionary psychology

examines behavioral processes in terms of their adaptive value for members of a species over the course of many generations; developed in late '80s

Martin Seligman

president of APA in 1997; advocated for positive psychology

positive psychology

uses theory and research to better understand the positive, adaptive, creative, and fulfilling aspects of human nature; three categories: positive subject experiences, individual traits, and institutions & communities

Goals of Scientific Enterprise

1. Measurement and description

2. Understanding and prediction

3. Application and control

hypothesis

tentative statement about the relationship b/t two or more variables

variables

measurable conditions, events, characteristics, or behaviors that are controlled and observed in a study

theory

system of interrelated ideas used to explain a set of observations

Steps of scientific investigation

1. form hypothesis

2. design study

3. collect data

4. analyze/form conclusions

5. Report findings

operational definition

describes actions or operations that will be used to measure or control a variable

confounding of variables

when two variables are linked in a way that makes it difficult to sort out their separate effects

Reactivity

when a subject's behavior is altered by the presence of an observer

replication

repetition of a study to see if earlier results are duplicated

meta-analysis

combines statistical results of several similar studies to yield an estimate of the size and consistency of a variable's effects

sampling bias

when a sample is not a representative of the population it was drawn from

halo effect

when someone's overall evaluation of a person, object, or institution spills over to influence more specific ratings

double-blind procedure

research strategy where researchers and subjects both don't know which subjects are in the control and experimental groups

neurons

individual cells in the nervous system that receive, integrate, and transmit system

soma

cell body, contains cell nucleus and much of the chemical machinery common to most cells

dendrites

parts of a neuron specialized to receive information

axon

long, thin fiber that transmits signals away from the soma to other neurons or to muscles and glands

myelin sheath

insulating material that encases some neurons

terminal buttons

small knobs that secrete neurotransmitters

synapse

junction where info from one neuron is transmitted to another

glia

cells found throughout the nervous system that provide various support for neurons

resting potential

a neuron's stable, negative charge in its inactive state

action potential

very brief shift in a neuron's electrical charge that travels along a neuron

absolute refractory period

minimum length of time after an action potential, during which another action potential cannot begin

synaptic cleft

microscopic gap b/t terminal button of one neuron and the cell membrane of another neuron

neurotransmitters

chemicals that transmit information from one neuron to another

postsynaptic potential (PSP)

voltage charge at a receptor site on a postsynaptic cell membrane; graded - vary in size and inc/dec probability of a neural impulse in the receiving cell in proportion to the amount of voltage charge

reuptake

a process in which neurotransmitters are sponged up from the synaptic cleft by the presynaptic membrane

Acetylcholine (Ach)

released by motor neurons controlling skeletal muscles; contributes to the regulation of attention, arousal, and memory; some Ach receptors are stimulated by nicotine; associated with Alzheimer's

Dopamine (DA)

control of voluntary movement; cocaine and amphetamines elevate activity at DA synapses; dopamine circuits in medial forebrain bundle characterized as "reward system"; ass. w/ Parkinson's, addictive tendencies, and Schizophrenia; monoamine

Norepinephrine (NE)

mood & arousal; cocaine and amphetamines elevate NE synapse activity; ass. w/ depressive disorders; monoamine

Serotonin

regulation of sleep, wakefulness, eating, aggression; prozac and other antidepressants effect serotonin levels; ass. w/ depressive and eating disorders and OCD; monoamine

GABA

widely transmitted inhibitory transmitter; contributes to regulation of anxiety and sleep/arousal; valium and antianxiety drugs work at GABA synapses; ass. w/ anxiety disorders

Endorphins

Resemble opiate drugs in structure and effects; play role in pain relief and response to stress; contribute to regulation of eating behavior

peripheral nervous system

made up of all nerves that lie outside the brain and spinal cord

nerves

bundles of axons (neural fibers) that are routed together in the peripheral nervous system

somatic nervous system

made of nerves that connect to voluntary skeletal muscles and to sensory receptors

afferent nerve fibers

axons that carry information inward to the central nervous system from the periphery of the body

efferent nerve fibers

axons that carry info outward from the central to peripheral nervous system

autonomic nervous system (ANS)

made of nerves that connect to the heart, blood vessels, smooth muscles, and glands; separate system, but it is controlled by the central nervous system; controls automatic, involuntary, visceral functions people don't usually think about (ex. heart rate, digestion, or perspiration); fight/flight

sympathetic division

branch of the ANS that mobilizes the body's resources for emergencies

parasympathetic division

branch of ANS that conserves bodily resources

central nervous system

consists of the brain and spinal cord

cerebrospinal fluid

fluid which nourishes and cushions central nervous system

blood-brain barrier

semipermeable membrane that stops chemicals (ex. drugs) from leaving the bloodstream and entering the brain

hindbrain

includes cerebellum and two structures in lower part of brainstem: medulla and the pons

cerebellum

"little brain" - relatively large and folded structure adjacent to the back surface of the brainstem; ass. w/ coordination of movement, critical to equilibrium and sensing position of limbs; execution of commands to muscles; one of the first systems effected by alcohol

medulla

attached to spinal cord; controls unconscious, necessary functions like breathing, circulations, and maintaining muscle tone

pons

"bridge"; bridge of fibers that connects cerebellum and brainstem; clusters of cell bodies involved in sleep and arousal

Midbrain

segment of the brain between the hindbrain and forebrain; concerned w/ integrating sensory processes - vision, hearing

reticular formation

runs through hindbrain and midbrain and situated at core of brainstem; modulation of muscle reflexes, breathing, and pain perception; regulates sleep and wakefulness

forebrain

largest, most complex region of brain; encompasses many structures - including [hypothalamus, thalamus, limbic system, = core of the forebrain] and cerebrum (above core);

cerebrum

seat of complex thought

cerebral cortex

outer layer of brain; very folded - surface area of 1.5 feet

thalamus

structure of which all sensory info (except smell) must pass through to get to the cerebral cortex; made of somas - clusters of cell bodies

hypothalamus

regulates basic biological needs; under thalamus; controls 4 F's; controls ANS

limbic system

loosely connected network of structures located on border b/t cerebral cortex and deeper subcortical areas; includes part of thalamus, hypothalamus, amygdala, and hippocampus; mysterious - could be linked to emotion?, pleasure centers - Olds & Milner

hippocampus

plays a role in memory processes; could be responsible for consolidation of factual memories

amygdala

may play central role in learning fear processes and processing of other emotional responses

medial forebrain bundle

lots of dopamine-releasing neurons; passes through hypothalamus; lots of pleasure centers

cerebral hemispheres

right & left halves of the cerebrum

corpus callosum

major structure that connects the hemispheres

occipital lobe

back of the head; where visual signals are sent and visual processing begins

parietal lobe

forward of occipital; registers sense of touch - primary somatosensory cortex; integrates visual input and monitoring body's position in space

temporal lobe

below parietal; contains area devoted to auditory processing - primary auditory cortex; damage hurts speech and language

frontal lobe

largest lobe; contains primary areas that control movement of muscles - primary motor cortex; electrical stimulation can cause immediate muscle contractions

mirror neurons

neurons that are activated by performing an action or by seeing another person or monkey do the same action

neurogenesis

formation of new neurons; new studies indicate this still occurs for adults

polygenic traits

traits influenced by more than one pair of genes

family studies

researchers assess hereditary influence by examining blood relations to see how much they resemble one another in a specific trait

twin studies

researchers assess hereditary influence by comparing the resemblence of identical twins with that of fraternal twins with respect to a specific trait

adoption studies

assesses hereditary influence by examining the resemblance b/t adopted children and both their biological and adoptive parents; tests nature vs. nurture; intelligence and personality

Genetic mapping

process of determining location and chemical sequence of specific genes on specific chromosomes

missing heritability problem

failure to identify specific genes that account for variation in behavioral traits (Behavioral traits are often polygenic)

epigenetics

study of heritable changes in gene expression that do not involve modifications to the DNA sequence

encoding

involves forming a memory code and requires a lot of attention

storage

involves maintaining encoded info in memory over time

retrieval

involves recovering info from memory stores

attention

involves focusing awareness on a narrowed range of stimuli or events; "selective"