AP Psych Unit 1

What is Psychology

the scientific study of behavior and mental processes

scientific

a set of questions, observations, hypotheses, studies, findings, and analysis

behavior

external actions that are observable

mental processes

internal processes (dreams, emotions, thoughts, and beliefs)

Who found structuralism

Wilhelm Wundt - Father of psych

what is structuralism?

early school of psychology that used introspection to explore the elemental structure of the human mind

what is introspection

looking inward - based on self-reflection and self-reporting

why did structuralism fall out of favor

-required highly knowledgeable and verbally articulate people
-can't be directly observed
-unreliable
-not credible

who is the founder of functionalism:

William James - father of American Psych - wrote principles of Psychology - Known for theory of Emotion

what is functionalism

a school of psychology that focused on how mental and behavioral processes function and enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish

key points of functionalism

-formed as a response to structuralism
-seeks to explain the mental processes in a more systematic and accurate manner
-focuses on the purpose of consciousness and behavior
-claimed that all behaviors and mental processes have evolved due to adaptation

who is Dorthea dix

advocate for mentally-ill
pushed for treatment instead of imprisonment
laid the foundation to remove the stigma of mental illness in the U.S.

who is Maru Whiton Calkins

-first woman to pursue PhD in Psychology
-completed her dissertation in 1896, but Harvard refused to give a degree
-APA's first female president

Margaret Floy Washburn

-first woman to earn PhD in psych
-known for her work on animal behavior as well as theory on consciousness

who is Charles Darwin

-developed theories of evolution and natural selection

who is G. Stanley Hall

-established first psychology research lab in US
- first president of APA
-first PhD in psych

Biopsychosocial Approach

integrated view of the mind and behaviors that incorporates various levels of analysis and perspectives, and offers a more complete picture, includes biological, psychological, and socio-cultural influences

psychological influence

learned fears and other learned expectations
emotional responses
cognitive and perceptual interpretations
attention to pain
learning on past expectations
expectations of pain

biological influences

genetic predispositions
genetic mutations
natural selection of adaptive psychology & behaviors
genetic differences in endorphin production
activity in spinal cord

sociocultural influences

presence of others
cultural, societal, and family expectations
peer and other group influences
presence of others
the empathy of other's pain
cultural influences

biological contemporary psychology perspective

how the principles of biology can be applied to studying mental processes and behavior

evolutionary contemporary psychology perspective

how the natural selection of traits influences behavior and mental processes

behavioral genetics contemporary psychology perspective

how the interaction of genes and the environment influence behavior and mental processes

psychodynamic contemporary psychology perspective

how unconscious drives and conflicts behavior and mental processes

humanistic contemporary psychology perspective

how the journey for self-fulfillment and well-being influencesbehavior and mental processes

behavioral contemporary psychology perspective

how interactions with the environment produce learned responses

cognitive contemporary psychology perspective

how memories, concepts, and interpretations influence behavior, and cognitive processes

sociocultural contemporary psychology perspective

how do other people, cultures, and societies influence behavior and mental processes

basic research

pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base

applied research

scientific study that aims to solve problems

psychiatrist

MD in medicine
7+ years in medical school, residency, + more training
may council patients
CAN prescribe medicine

psychologist

PSyD or PhD in psych
5-7 years in school
2 year internship
may council patients
CAN'T prescribe medicine

DSM

Diagnostic and Statistical Manuel of Mental Disorders

who was the DSM published by

American Psychiatrist Association

what does DSM provide

common language and standard criteria

what does legal mean

a legal term not psychological or clinical term

overconfidence

the tendency to over estimate our abilities including knowledge

hindsight bias

the tendency to believe you were close after knowing outcome

Scientific Method

Theories
Hypothesis
Research and Observations

Theories

An explanation that organises data and predicts observations

Hypothesis

a testable prediction often implied by a theory

replication

repeating study to see if the basic findings extends to other participants and circumstances

falsifiable

a hypothesis can be falsifiable if it's possible to conceive of an observation or an argument which could negate the hypothesis

case study

an observation technique in which one person is studied to reveal universal principles

pros to case study

insight to specific cases that could possibly not be studied due to ethical reasons

cons of a case study

hard to generalize to large populations and some events can't be replicated due to ethics

prospective case study

individual or group of people is observed in order to determine outcomes

retrospective case study

looking at historical information

survey

a technique for asserting the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of people, usually by questioning a representative - a random sample
Must have a representative and random sampling from he population for generalization to be possible

population

all of the cases in a group from which samples may be drawn

representative

reflective of the population

random sample

a sample in which all individuals have an equal chance of inclusion in the study

generalization

the ability to reflect results from the random sample on the entire population

pros of case study

can study large populations from a representative sample
information on a broad range of things
less expensive and can be conducted quickly

cons of case study

not reliable cause it's self-reporting

social desirability affect

respondents to answer questions in a manner that will be viewed as favored

naturalistic observations

observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate

pros of naturalistic observations

observe in real life/time
no artificial envviorments

cons

no control in events that occur

tally counts

noting every time an event occurs

observer narratives

taking notes during an observation

audio/video recordings

taking an audio recording or video when an event is happening

time samplings

taking samples at different intervals of time

situation sampling

observing behavior in a variety of different situations and settings

cross-sectional studies

looking at data from a population at one specific point in time

longitudinal studies

repetitive examination of the same individuals to detect any changes over a period of time

correlation studies

a measure of the extent to which 2 factors vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other

scatterplots

a graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variables

positive correlation

2 variables rise and fall together

negative correlation

2 variables relate inversely (one rises, the other falls)

zero/no correlation

2 variables aren't related

correlation coefficient

the mathematical expression of the relationship from 0-1 indication correlation type
closer to one - better correlation
father than 1 - close to no correlation

correlation isn't causation

correlations can't fully predict future behavior regardless of how string correlation is

pro of correlation

can measure extent of relationship

con of correlation

isn't causation

experimental method

a research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process

independent variable

the variable that is manipulates

dependent variable

the outcome being studied

operational definition

specific and measurable definitions of independent and dependent variables
independent: the amount of something
dependent: the result

experimental group

participants that receive independent variable

control group

group of participants not exposed to independent variable

placebo

a substance or treatment that has no effect apart from the persons' belief on it

placebo affect

a person receiving the placebo may report positive effects due to belief

single blind study

participants won't know if they are experimental pr control group

double blind study

participants and researchers know who is in the experiment or control group

researcher bias

a process where the scientists performing the research unconsciously influence the results in order to portray a certain outcome

pros of experimental method

variables can be controlled and manipulated
you can determine cause and effect
experiments can be replicated

cons of experiments

labs can't always duplicate real-life environments
can be expensive
ethics can prohibit certain experiments

measures of central tendency

a single score that represents a whole set of data

mean

average score

median

middle value

mode

frequent most number

what does it mean when the data is skewed

outliers exist - isn't great indication of data

frequency distribution

a list or display of data on a scale of measurement

bimodal distribution

2 modes in data - EX - height in males and height in females

measures in variation

allow us to see the variation or difference in a set of values

range

the measure of dispersion of data - highest # - lowest #

standard deviation

the degree to which scores differ from each other and vary around the mean value for the set
as standard deviation approaches 0 - closer scores
standard deviation approaches 1/2 of range - more dispersed scores

statistical significance

a statistical statement of how likely it is that an observation result occurred by chance

why do we experiment with animals

similar to humans
can perform actions that can't be performed on humans