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psychological science
the scientific study of mind and behavior
characteristics of psychological science
critical, summative, aims to be non-biased
scientific approach: functionalism
william james; studies how mental abilities allow people to adapt to their environments
scientific approach: structuralism
Wilhelm Wundt; analyzes the mind by breaking it down into its basic components
clinical approach
sigmund freud; therapeutic interventions for psychological disorders in medical settings (psychotherapy, psychiatry, clinical practice)
empirical evidence
based on astute observation and accurate measurement
evidence
the available body of facts or information indicating whether a belief or proposition is true or valid
pop psychology
based mostly on unsupported claims, beliefs, assumptions, and popular opinion
WEIRD samples
research participants from Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic backgrounds
evolutionary, cultural
understanding broad patterns of behavior
cognitive, emotional
understanding thoughts and feelings
biological-neuroscience
understanding roles of body and brain
developmental, personality, social, clinical
understanding stable and changing patterns of behavior
common themes across perspectives (1)
nature and nurture interact to predict behavior
common themes across perspectives (2)
psychology seeks to identify universal aspects of behavior as well as variation
common themes across perspectives (3)
behavior is shaped by conscious understanding and by unconscious processes
common themes across perspectives (4)
we gain insights by understanding both normal functioning and dysfunctions (disruptions to normal functioning)
common themes across perspectives (5)
applying psychology can change our lives in positive ways
evolutionary psychology
adaptive function of behavior from evolutionary perspective
cultural psychology
how culture shapes psychological processes
cognitive psychology
mental processes-perception, thought, learning, memory, language creativity (computer metaphor)
emotional psychology
how emotions influence decision making, behavior, and social relationships
biological-neuroscience perspective
biological bases of thought, action, and behavior; hormones, neural activity, brain areas involved in certain behaviors/abilities
developmental psychology
how people change in behavior, cognition, emotion, etc over the lifespan
personality
traits that affect behavior
social
situations that affect behavior
clinical psychology
causes and treatment of psychological disorder; multiple approaches to understand etiology (origin) of disorders
positive psychology
based on studies of learned helplessness (Seligman); studies factors that makes people happy, keeps them happy, and helps them manage stress
metacognition
an awareness and understanding of your own thought processes
empirical method
set of rules and techniques used for observation
theory
hypothetical explanation of a natural phenomena
hypothesis
falsifiable prediction made by a theory
the scientific method
1. choose a question to answer 2. formulate a hypothesis that relates to a question 3. develop methods to test hypothesis 4. draw a conclusion based on results 5. rinse and repeat
variable
something of interest that caries from person to person or situation to situation
descriptive research
a type of study in which researchers measure on variable at a time
descriptive research examples
surveys/self report, naturalistic observations, case studies
correlational research
nothing is manipulated; compare variables to see if they are related (correlated) to one another
direction of causation problem
cannot tell which variable is the cause and which in the effect
third variable problem
correlation may arise from both being influenced by some third variable
experimental research
manipulate one variable and assess effect (independent and dependent variable)
construct validity (any)
how well a test/assessment measures what it claims to measure (reliability is key)
external validity (descriptive)
how well do results generalize beyond the study sample
internal validity (experiments)
how well does a study to rule out alternative explanations for a relationship between two variables
frequency distributions
a bar graph in which the possible scores on a variable are listed on the x-axis and the total number of people who had each score is plotted on the y-axis
frequency distributions (measures of variability)
range, standard deviation
null hypothesis
the assumption that there is no relationship between the variable in the population
reject the null
if the sample's result would have occurred less than 5% of the time if the null was true (p < 0.05)
meta-analysis
pools results across studies that have the same variables
meta-analysis advantages
larger sample (replication) to assess strength of a relationship
the nuremberg code: research ethics
principles for human experimentation
apa code of ethics
informed consent, freedom from coercion, protection from harm, risk benefit analysis, deception, debriefing, confidentiality
nervous system
autonomic nervous system (involuntary) --> SNS (fight or flight) and PNS (returns body to resting state)
somatic nervous system (voluntary): controls conscious movements - skeletal muscles
endocrine system
a network of glands that produces and releases hormones into the bloodstream to regulate the body's activities
pituitary gland
master gland
adrenal gland
fight or flight
thyroid gland
metabolism
parathyroid gland
calcium levels
sex glands
ovaries, testes
cerebral cortex
higher mental functions (what makes us human)
cerebral cortex: frontal lobe
complex thought, planning control of movement, map of the body's muscles
cerebral cortex: temporal lobe
hearing, object memory
cerebral cortex: parietal lobe
touch, spatial awareness, map of the body's skin surface
cerebral cortex: insular lobe
taste, awareness of internal organs
cerebral cortex: occipital lobe
vision
cerebral cortex: neocortex
outermost layer - folds and wrinkles (supports complex functioning)
cerebral cortex: primary motor cortex
frontal lobe; voluntary movements
cerebral cortex: primary somatosensory cortex
parietal lobe; sense of touch
homunculus
a maplike representation of regions of the body in the brain
cerebral cortex: association cortex
integrates information coming in from the senses with existing knowledge
helps produce a meaningful experience of he world
directly related to the function of the adjacent primary sensory cortex
limbic system
group of forebrain structures involved in motivation, emotion, learning, and memory
limbic system: hypothalamus
regulates body temp, hunger, thirst, and sexual behavior; also a subcortical structure
limbic system: hippocampus
critical for creating new memories and integrating them into a network of knowledge so that they can be stored indefinitely in other parts of the cerebral cortex
limbic system: amygdala
plays a central role in many emotional processes, particularly the formation of emotional memories
subcortical brain: basal ganglia
evolutionarily older subcortical motor system
subcortical brain: thalamus
relay center for senses (except olfaction)
hindbrain: brainstem
connects to spinal cord; responsible for basic life functions
brainstem: pons
controls breathing and relays sensations to subcortex and cortex
brainstem: medulla oblongata
controls autonomic functions
brainstem: reticular formation
regulates sleep and arousal
cerebellum
supports a variety of functions (coordination, precision, balance, accurate timing)
executive functions
cognitive processes that allow us to plan, focus attention, and organize multiple tasks to complete our goals (prefrontal cortex)
right and left hemisphere (contralateral control)
same structures; lateralization (ex. left hemisphere - language)
corpus callosum
bridge of fibers that connects the 2 halves
split brain procedure
severs the corpus callosum used to treat severe cases of epilepsy By disconnecting the two hemispheres, it reduces the frequency and severity of seizures.
brain networks
the collections of brain regions that are connected and work together to support brain functions
brain connectome project
an attempt to map all the neural connections in the brain
CAT/CT scan
combines a series of x ray images
MRI
uses magnetic fields and radio wave to create images of the brain
DTI
variation of MRI; allows researchers to assess the size and direction of the connections between brain regions
phrenology (1800s)
pseudoscience - bumps on the skull indicate specific mental abilities and personality traits
localization
certain parts of the brain are dedicated to performing certain functions
neuropsychology
examining brain function though brain damage
lesion
an abnormal tissue resulting from disease, trauma, or surgical intervention (helped reveal contralateral control)
dissociation
a specific brain area is involved in a particular function but not in others (double dissociation is the gold standard in lesion studies)
wernicke's area
comprehension of speech
broca's area
speech production
single cell recording
a measurement of the electrical activity of a single neuron
EEG
the recording of electrical waves from many thousands of neurons
MEG
the recording of the magnetic fields produced by the brain's electrical currents
event related potential (erp)
a synchronized electrical response to an event
avg EEG data
helps visualize cognitive processes