PSYCH EXAM CHAPTERS 1-4

CHAPTER 1: What is Psychology?

Psychology is the scientific discipline concerned with behaviour and mental process and how they are affected by an organisms physical state, mental state, and external environment

What is Psychology based on?

Empirical evidence - information required from observations and/or evidence

What isn’t Psychology?

“Pop psych” and pseudoscience are often mistaken for empirical based psychology

Ex. Fortune telling, astrology, numerology are all forms of pseudoscience

What is Scientific Literacy?

Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking is the ability and willingness to assess claims and make objective judgements on the basis of well supported reasons and evidence rather than emotions or anecdote

5 steps to being a good critical thinker

1) Ask questions, be willing to wonder

2) Define your terms

3) Analyze assumptions and biases

4) Examine the evidence

5) Weigh conclusions

1) Ask questions, be willing to wonder

Critical and creative thinking begins with wondering WHY?

2) Define your terms

Frame your questions in clear and concrete terms

Vague or poorly defined terms in a questions produce misleading or incomplete answers

3) Analyze assumptions and Biases

ASSUMPTIONS are beliefs that are taken for granted

If we do not recognize our own assumptions and those of other people, our ability to judge an arguments merits may be impaired

When an assumption or belief keeps us from considering the evidence fair, it becomes a BIAS

4) Examine the evidence

A critical thinker bases conclusions on evidence, avoiding oversimplification, revisiting easy generalizations, and rejecting either/or thinking

5) Weigh conclusions

It is important for critical thinkers to tolerate uncertainty and consider other interpretations

Scientific principles

Scientific thought had two fundamental beliefs

1) empiricism: philosophical tenet that knowledge comes through experience

2) determinism: the belief that all events are governed by lawful cause and effect relationships

Zeitgeist

Refers to a general set of beliefs of a particular culture at a specific time in history

• delayed the science of psychology

• Materialism: the belief that humans and other living beings are composed to exclusively of physical matter

Phrenology

The brain is made up of 27 DIFFERENT organs » each without specific things

Wilhelmina Windt (1832-1920)

• set up the first lab dedicated to studying human behaviour

• Used INTROSPECTION: a process of ‘looking within’ to describe psychological sensations

Introspection and Structuralism

Structuralism: analyzing conscious experiences by breaking it down into basic elements and to understand hoe these elements work together

William James (1842-1910)

• wrote the first borders textbook is psychology - The Principles of Psychology

• Influenced by Darwin’s evolutionary principles

• Proposed FUNCTIONALISM: the study of the purpose and function of behaviour and conscious experiences

The work of Freud

• Sigmund Freud’s theory of PSYCHOANALYSIS emphasized unconscious causes of psychological problems

• Freud argues that conscious awareness is merely the tip of a mental iceberg - leading to his idea of Ego, Superego, and ID

Classical & Operant Conditioning

Classical - associate an INVOLUNTARY RESPONSE and a stimulus

Operant - associate a VOLUNTARY BEHAVIOUR and a consequence

5 Pillars of Moderns Psychology

1) Biological

2) Cognitive

3) Developmental

4) Social and Personality

5) Mental and Physical Health

The Biological Pilar

• emphasizes bodily events associated with actions, thoughts, and feelings, as well as genetic contributions to behaviour

  • Electrical impulses

  • Hormones

  • Brains ability to sense sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touches

• Biological psychologists study how these events interact with events in the external environment to produce perceptions, memories, and behaviour

The Cognitive Pillar

Emphasizes how people:

• Reason and remember

• Comprehend language

• Solve problems

• Explain experiences

• Squire moral standards

Cognitive research explores phenomena such as:

• insight

• False memory

• “Thinking” outside of conscious awareness

Developmental Pillar

The DEVELOPMENTAL PERSPECTIVE explores watts in which preferences, attitudes, identities, and social pass terms change (develop) over ones lifetime

Social & Personality Pillar

The social and personality pillar examines the POWER OF DIFFERENT SITUATIONS to shape peoples thoughts, feelings, and behaviours

• reminds us of the IMPORTANT INFLUENCE CULTURAL experiences, roles, and rules have on nearly everything we do:

  • Perceive the world

  • Express joy or grief

  • Think through problems

  • Treat our friends and enemies

Mental and Physical Health Pillar

• Focuses on healthy functioning and addressing threats to it

• A wide range of factors encourage mental and physical well being

  • Social support, emotion regulation, good nutrition, effective coping styles

What do Psychologists do?

• Academic/Research Psychologists

  • Ex. Human development, emotion, personality

• Clinical Psychologists

  • Ex. Private practice, mental health clinics, criminal justice system

• Psychologists in other settings

  • Sports, organizational problems, military training

Types of Psychology research

• Basic Psychology

  • The study of psychological issues for the primary purpose of expanding scientific knowledge rather than specific practical applications

• Applies Psychology

  • The study of psychological issues for the primary purpose of addressing a specific real world problem

Psychological Practice

• COUNSELLING psychologists help people deal with problems of everyday life such as:

  • Test anxiety, family conflict, low job motivation

• SCHOOL psychologists work with parents, teachers, students to enhance students performance and resolve emotional difficulties

• CLINICAL psychologists diagnose, treat, and study mental or emotional problems

  • Trained to do psychotherapy with several disturbed people, & those who are troubles or unhappy or who want to lean to handle their problems better

CHAPTER 2: The Scientific Method: What is a Theory?

• an organized system of assumptions and principles that purports to explain certain phenomena and how they are related

  • Build from hypothesis

  • Can be updated with new information

    • Changing theories leads to new hypotheses

What is a Hypothesis?

• Testable predictions about processes that can be observed and measured

  • Do NOT prove hypothesis

    • Wanting to make sure its true and to make sure the other is 100% false

  • Must be FALSIFIABLE

    • An idea, statement, or theory that can be proven wrong by an action or an experiment

Operational Definitions

• specify how the concepts in question are to be observed and measured

  • Examples

    • “Anxiety” might be defined operationally as a score on an anxiety question

    • “Threatening Situation” as the threat of an electric shock

Theories

• NOT the same as opinions

• All theories are NOT equally plausible

• Validity NOT determined by number of people who believe it to be true

  • Very easy to believe something is true to fit in, but need to do more of a background check to trust it

Willingness to make Risky Predictions

• scientists must state an idea

  • Can be refuted, or disproved by counter evidence

• The PRINCIPAL OF FALSIFIABILITY

  • Designs studies in such a way that evidence can either:

    • Confirm or disconfirm the existence of a phenomenon

• Confirmation Bias

  • Look for OR only pay attention to information that confirms one beliefs and to ignore or reject evidence that contradicts our beliefs

Transparency in Research

• researchers need to be able to tell other hows they tested ideas and what the results were

• Peer review

  • Ensures that the work lives up to accepted scientific standards

• Replication/repeating

  • Essential part of the scientific process because someone’s finding turns out to be a fluke

    • Allow room for error

Sampling

• Representative Sample

  • Group of individuals selected from a population for a study, that matches the population of important characteristics

• Researchers must often use “convenience” samples

Scientific measurements: Objectivity

• objective measurements

  • Measure of an entity or behaviour that within an allowed margin of error is consistent with across instruments and observer

• Variable

  • Refers to the object, concept, or event being measured

    • Ex. Behavioural measures, MRI, blood or saliva, self reporting

Operational Definitions

• statements that describe the procedures and/or specific measures that are used to record observations

Reliability

• a sea sure that provides consistent and stable answers across multiple observations and points in time

Types of reliability testing

• Test-retest reliability

  • Personality test - same score both times = reliable source

• Alternate-forms reliability

  • Giving a similar test but the stimuli on the tests are different

• Inter-rather reliability

  • Testing in personal behavioural patters

Validity

Accuracy in the measurement process

• does the test measure what it was designed to measure?

  • Test doesn’t have good validity if it is testing one thing and giving an answer about another

    • Can never have a test that is valid but not reliable

Content & Criterion Validity

• Content Validity

  • Do items broadly represent the trait in question?

• Criterion Validity

  • Do the test results predict outcomes relevant to the trait?

Case Studies

• detailed descriptions of particular individuals being studied for treated

• There are drawbacks:

  • Information could be missed or hard to interpret

  • Observers have biases that affect which facts are reported or overlooked

  • One person is usually not representative of an entire group, limiting case strides usefulness for deriving general principles of behaviour

Observational Studies

• descriptive method, in which the researcher systematically measures and record behaviour

Two main kinds of observational studies

1) naturalistic Observations

• Used to find out how animals and people act in their normal environments

  • Don’t have to worry about demand characteristics

2) Laboratory Observations

• observation that allows more control and the use of special equipment

Psychology tests

• objective tests, inventories, or measures:

  • Beliefs

  • Feelings

  • Behaviour

• Projective tests

  • Can tap unconscious feelings or motives

Surveys

• questionnaires or interviews that ask people directly about their experiences, attitudes or opinions

Correlation research

• measuring the degree of association between two variables - X and Y variables

3 different correlations

• Positive Correlation

  • As one variable increases so does the other variable

    • Example: the more you story for an exam the better you do

• Negative Correlation

  • As one variable increases the other variable decreases

    • Example: the more coffee you drink, the worst you’re sleep will be

• No Correlation

  • There is no relationship between the two variables

    • Example: completely random

• *CORRELATION DOES NOT IMPLY CAUSATION*

Cautions of Correlations

• Illusory Correlations

  • Relationships that really exist only in the mind rather than in reality

Experimental Research in Correlation

Hypothesis: Nature causes a reduction in stress.

• experimental group

• Control group

• Random assignment

• Experimenter control

• Experimental group

  • Receives special treatment in regard to the IV

• Control Group

  • Similar subjects who do not receive the special treatment

• Random Assignment

  • A technique for dividing samples into two or more groups

• Experimenter Control

  • Variables are manipulated

Experimental Research in Correlation

Hypothesis: Nature causes a reduction in stress.

• independent variable

• Dependent variable

• Confounding variables

• Independent variable

  • Presumed CAUSE

• Dependent variable

  • Presumed EFFECT

• Confounding variables

  • Variables outside of the researchers control that might affect the results

Experimental Research

• Between subjects design

• Within subjects design

• Between subjects design

  • Participants who are in different groups are compared

    • Example: split class in half and compare heights

Experimental Research

• Within subjects design

• Within subjects design

  • Participants respond to all types of stimuli or experience all experimental conditions

    • Needs less people

  • Order effects

    • Separating measurements in time

    • Counterbalancing - put half in control group and half in experimental group

Advantages of Experiments

• You can determine CAUSATION!

• Used “experimental groups” that receive the same drug as the control, which is called a placebo

Advantages of Experiments

• single blind and double blind studies

• can be used to prevent the results from being affected by:

  • The expectations of the participants

  • The expectations of the experimenter

Limitations of Experimental Design

• Field Research

• Allows study of behaviour in more natural context

  • Example: school or workplace

Descriptive Statistics

• To summarize the data

• Main 3

  • Frequency

  • Central tendency

  • Variability

Frequency

• Number of observations that fall within a certain category or range of scores

  • 3 main frequency distributions

    • A. Negatively skewed

    • B. Symmetric

    • C. Positively skewed

Central Tendency

• A measure of the central point of a distribution

  • Mean, median, mode

Variability

• How spread out scores are in a distribution

Standard Deviation

• Amount of variation or spread distance from the mean

• Used as it can turn any unit into a standardize score to be used

Inferential Statistics

• Significance Tests

• Assess potential differences or relationships in data

• Tell the researchers how likely it is that the results of a study occurred merely by chance

Hypothesis Testing

• Null Hypothesis: assumes that any differences between groups are due to the control grou

• Experimental/Alternative Hypothesis: assumes that any differences are due to a variable controlled by the experimental group

  • REJECT THE NULL & ACCEPT THE ALTERNATIVE

• Independent & Dependent Variables

• Independent: experimental and control groups

• Dependent: loneliness scores

The Limits of Statistical Hypothesis Testing

• Effect Size

• Testing more people makes significant results more likely, even for meaningless differences

• Effect size

  • How much overlap there is

Cross Sectional & Longitudinal Study

• Cross Sectional: different groups compared at one time

• Longitudinal: same group compares at different times

  • Biggest issue is the amount of different age groups

Promoting the Welfare of Research Participants

• Ethical issues must be addressed before a study begins

  • Milgram’s Shock Study

Research Ethics Board

• Committee of researchers and officials at an institution charged with the protection of human research participants

Obtaining Informed Consent

• Informed Consent

• Done before any study

  • Potential volunteer mist be informed of the purpose, tasks, and risks involved in the study, and give consent to participate based on the information provided

Obtaining Informed Consent

• Deception

• Deception: misleading or only partially informing participants of the true topic or hypothesis under investigation

  • Full consent

    • Can refuse participation with penalty

    • Given equal opportunities

    • The right to withdraw

    • Withhold response

Obtaining Informed Consent

• Debreifing

• Debriefing: researchers should explain the true nature of the study, and especially the nature of the reason for deceptions

The Welfare of Animals in Research

• Animals are used when:

• Treatments cannot be applies to humans

• Heritability studies require species with short lifespans

• Examining evolutionary origins of behaviour and congnition

Chapter 3: Genes, Evolution, and Environment

Behavioural Genetics

• an interdisciplinary field of study concerned with genetic contributions to individual difference in behaviour and personality

  • Adopt a nature and nurture

The Genetic Code

• chromosomes

• structures in the cell nucleus that contains the genes an individual inherits

The Genetic Code

• DNA

• a double helix molecule that contains four types of nucleotides (A, C, T, G)

The Genetic Code

• genes

• the basic unit of heredity; guides protein synthesis

Genes and Proteins

• Nucleotides (A & T, G & C) sequences

• represent the instructions used to create all the proteins in the human body

• Every cell contains the same chromosomes and genes

Genotype

• the genetic makeup of an organism

Phenotype

• the observable characteristics, including physical structures and behaviours

Fundamentals of Genetic Transmission

• Homozygous

• genes at a particular location are the same on each chromosome

Fundamentals of Genetic Transmission

• heterozygous

• Genes at a particular location are different on each chromosome

The Human Genome

• all of our genes, together with noncoding DNA makeup up the Human Genome

  • Most traits depend on more than one gene pair

The Human Genome

• Genome - Wide Association Studies

• scientists look for genes that vary across people and determine whether those genetic variants are consistently observed in those who have a specific disease or trait, compares to those without it

The Human Genome

• Linkage Studies

• take advantage of the tendency of genes lying close together on a chromosome to be inherited together across generations

  • Researches start by looking for Genetic Markers

Genetic Markers

• DNA segments that vary considerably among individuals and who’s locations on the chromosome are already known

Epigenetic’s

• studies stable changes in the expression of a particular gene that occur without changes in DNA base sequences

Evolution

• Evolutionary Psychologists

• interested in the origins of many human behaviours

  • Smiling & laughing, which are universal among primates and are part of our shared evolutionary heritage

Evolution

• Evolutionary Psychology

• evolution can now be thought of as the change in frequency of genes occurring in a population over generations

Natural Selection

• evolutionary process in which individuals with genetically influenced traits that are adaptive in an environment tend to survive and reproduce in greater numbers, results in those traits becoming more common

Mental Modules

• to handle specific survival problems

• Agree that our brain has a lot of modules that all do different things

Innate Human Characteristics

1. Infant reflexes

2. An interest in novelty

3. A desire to explore and manipulate objects

4. An impulse to play and fool around

5. Basic cognitive abilities

Evolution and Sexual Strategies

• sociobiology

• an interdisciplinary field that emphasizes evolutionary explanations of social behaviour in animals including human beings

Thinking Critically About the Evolutionary View

• Stereotypes vs. Actual Behaviour

• Based on simplistic stereotypes of gender differences

Thinking Critically About the Evolutionary View

• What people say vs. What they do

• rely too heavily on answers to questionnaire studies are not necessarily representative of people in general

Thinking Critically About the Evolutionary View

• Convenience vs. Representative samples

• Convenience samples used in questionnaires studies are not necessarily representative of people in general

Thinking Critically About the Evolutionary View

• The Pleistocene period is over

• the evolutionary emphasis on the Pleistocene period may not be warranted

Thinking Critically About the Evolutionary View (flexibility)

• sociobiologists

• the leash is short and tight

Thinking Critically About the Evolutionary View (Flexibility)

• Evolutionary Psychologists

• elastic to permits culture to modify evolved biological tendencies; those tendencies can be pretty powerful

Thinking Critically About the Evolutionary View (Flexibility)

• Critics

• cultural variations mean that so single, genetically determined sexual strategy exists for human beings

Heritability

• an estimate of the proportion of the total variance in some trait that is attributable to genetic differences among individuals within a group