Psychology Exam Review

Hindisght Bias

when you think you knew something all along after the outcome has occurred

Confirmation Bias

the tendency of individuals to support or search for information that aligns with their opinions and ignore information that doesn't.

Falsifiable

The logical possibility that an assertion, hypothesis, or theory can be shown to be false by an observation or experiment

Meta-analysis

a study of past studies on a subject that can give researchers a “big picture” view of the topic

Social desirability bias

the tendency to underreport socially undesirable attitudes and behaviors and to over report more desirable attributes

Self-report Bias

The tendency of individuals to provide inaccurate or distorted information about themselves, their behaviors, or their experiences when asked to self-report

Experimenter Bias

The unintentional influence of the experimenter's expectations, beliefs, or preconceived notions on the outcome of a study or research experiment

Sampling Bias

the collection of samples that do not accurately represent the entire group

Experimental Methodology

Research designs in which the researcher explicitly and intentionally induces exogenous variation in the intervention assignment to facilitate causal inference

Correlation coefficient

a statistical measure of the strength of a linear relationship between two variables

Regression towards the mean

The tendency of results that are extreme by chance on first measurement—i.e. extremely higher or lower than average—to move closer to the average when measured a second time

Indepedent Variable

The characteristic of an experiment that is manipulated or changed by researchers, not by other variables in the experiment

Depedent Variable

the variable that changes as a result of the independent variable manipulation

Single-blind procedure

A clinical trial design in which one party, either the investigator or the participant, does not know which medication or placebo is administered to the subject

Double-blind procedure

An experimental procedure in which neither the subjects of the experiment nor the persons administering the experiment know the critical aspects of the experiment

Confounding variable

Any influence affecting the relationship between the independent and dependent variables leading to an inappropriate conclusion of cause

Likert Scales

a rating scale used to measure opinions, attitudes, or behaviors

Institutional review

A committee named by an agency or institution to review research proposals originating within that agency for ethical acceptability and compliance with the organization's codes of conduct

Histogram

Used to portray the (grouped) frequency distribution of a variable at the interval or ratio level of measurement

Mode

The most often occurring number in a data set

Mean

the average value in a set of data

Median

the middle of a set of numbers

Percentile Rank

the percentage of people in a norm group who scored lower than a particular individual on a test or assessment

Range

a measure of dispersion obtained by subtracting the lowest score in a distribution from the highest score

Standard deviation

a measure of dispersion or scatter in a data set relative to the data's central mean value. For example, if the IQ's of some group have a standard deviation of 10, most of the group will have an IQ within approximately 10 points of the mean

Effect Size

tells you how meaningful the relationship between variables or the difference between groups is

Behavior Genetics

the study of how genetic variation affects psychological phenotypes (traits), including cognitive abilities, personality, mental illness, and social attitudes

Heredity

the genetic factors that are passed down from biological parents to their offspring

Genes

the basic units of heredity that maintain their structural identity from one generation to another

Genomes

All of the genetic material contained in an organism or cell

Eugenics

the practice or advocacy of improving the human species by selectively mating people with specific desirable hereditary traits

Epigenetics

the study of how the environment and other factors can change the way that genes are expressed

Nervous System

the major controlling, regulatory, and communicating system in the body

Central Nervous System

Made up of the brain and spinal cord: It is the body's processing centre.

Sympathetic Nervous system

a network of nerves that helps your body activate its “fight-or-flight” response

Peripheral nervous system

A network of nerves that runs throughout the head, neck, and body. It carries messages to and from the central nervous system

Somatic nervous system

Connects the central nervous system with the body's muscles and skin. Its primary function is to control voluntary movements and reflex arcs, while also helping us process the senses of touch, sound, taste, and smell

Parasympathetic Nervous System

a network of nerves that relaxes your body after periods of stress or danger. It also helps run life-sustaining processes, like digestion, during times when you feel safe and relaxed

Neurons

nerve cells that send messages all over your body to allow you to do everything from breathing to talking, eating, walking, and thinking

Cell body

the spherical part of the neuron that contains the nucleus and connects to the dendrites, which bring information into the neuron, and the axon, which sends information to other neurons

Dendrites

projections from the cell body, or soma, of neurons, the cells of the nervous system. The main function is to receive information from other neurons, called pre-synaptic neurons, or from the environment. The signals from pre-synaptic neurons come in the form of neurotransmitters

Axon

where electrical impulses from the neuron travel away to be received by other neurons

Myelin

an insulating layer, or sheath that forms around nerves, including those in the brain and spinal cord

Synapse

the junction that allows the signal to pass between neurons

Glial Cells

a type of cell that provides physical and chemical support to neurons and maintain their environment

Reflex Arc

The pathway of neural stimulation that occurs to translate a sensation into a physical reflexive response

Sensory neurons

The pathway of neural stimulation that occurs to translate a sensation into a physical reflexive response

Motor Neurons

cells in the brain and spinal cord that allow us to move, speak, swallow and breathe by sending commands from the brain to the muscles that carry out these functions

Interneurons

The ones in between - connect the spinal motor and sensory neurons

Action potential

the change in electric potential that propagates along the axon of a neuron during the transmission of a nerve impulse or the contraction of a muscle

All-or-nothing principle

A nerve or muscle cell's response to a stimulus is independent of the strength of the stimulus. If that stimulus exceeds the threshold potential (threshold of an action potential ), the nerve or muscle cell responds completely; otherwise, there is no response

Depolarization

when there's a shift in a neuron's electrical charge that allows an action potential (nerve impulse) to occur

Reuptake

what happens after a signal is transmitted: The neurotransmitter, its "work" completed, is reabsorbed back into the cell that previously released it. It is essential for synaptic functioning. It allows neurotransmitters to be reused and helps regulate neurotransmitter levels present in the synapse

Multiple Sclerosis 

A disorder in which the body's immune system attacks the protective covering of the nerve cells in the brain, optic nerve and spinal cord, called the myelin sheath

Neurotransmitters

Endogenous chemicals that allow neurons to communicate with each other throughout the body

Excitatory

Those that prompt one neuron to share information with the next through an action potential

Dopamine

A type of neurotransmitter and hormone. It plays a role in many important body functions, including movement, memory, and pleasurable reward and motivation.

Norepineprhine

ncreases alertness, arousal and attention. Constricts blood vessels, which helps maintain blood pressure in times of stress. Affects your sleep-wake cycle, mood and memory

GABA

a neurotransmitter, a chemical messenger in your brain. It slows down your brain by blocking specific signals in your central nervous system (your brain and spinal cord). Is known for producing a calming effect.

Substance P

An 11-amino-acid peptide that acts as a neurotransmitter in the central nervous system and is associated with pain sensation

Hormones

Chemical messengers released from endocrine glands that travel through the blood system to influence the nervous system to regulate behaviors such as aggression, mating, and parenting of individuals

Leptin

a 167-amino-acid protein hormone produced primarily by adipose tissue that acts on specific receptors in the hypothalamus to decrease appetite and increase energy expenditure

Melatonin

a hormone that your brain produces in response to darkness. It helps with the timing of your circadian rhythms (24-hour internal clock) and with sleep

Refractory Period

the increased time it takes a subject to respond to a stimulus when it's presented immediately after another stimulus

Resting Potential

the electrical potential difference between the inside and outside of a neuron

Threshold

the lowest point at which a particular stimulus will cause a response in an organism

Myasthenia Gravis

Causes muscles under your voluntary control to feel weak and get tired quickly

Inhibitory

the process of restraining one's impulses or behavior, either consciously or unconsciously, due to factors such as lack of confidence, fear of consequences, or moral qualms

Neurotransmitters

chemical messengers that your body can't function without

Serotonin

a chemical that carries messages between nerve cells in the brain and throughout your body. It plays a key role in such body functions as mood, sleep, digestion, nausea, wound healing, bone health, blood clotting and sexual desire.

Glutamate

an excitatory neurotransmitter with several types of receptors found throughout the central nervous system

Endorphins

neurotransmitters released by the pituitary gland and hypothalamus in the brain

Acetylcholine

a neurotransmitter that plays a role in memory, learning, attention, arousal and involuntary muscle movement

Adrenaline

a hormone that helps you react quickly if you are faced with an exciting, stressful or dangerous situation. This is known as the 'fight-or-flight response'.

Oxytocin

a hormone and a neurotransmitter that is associated with empathy, trust, sexual activity, and relationship-building

Psychoactive Drugs

substances that, when taken in or administered into one's system, affect mental processes, e.g. perception, consciousness, cognition or mood and emotions

Antagonist

a chemical or drug that binds to receptors in the brain and prevents an agonist from having a reaction

Stimulants

a class of drugs that speed up messages traveling between the brain and body

Caffiene

a stimulant that speeds up the central nervous system. It stimulates the brain, elevates the mood and postpones fatigue

Cocaine

an illegal stimulant that speeds up the workings of the brain. The person using it feels euphoric because cocaine taps into the brain's chemical reward system. Long-term cocaine use can lead to depression, psychosis and heart problems

Opioids

produce feelings of euphoria which increase the odds that people will continue using them despite the negative consequences

Heroin

stop the production of endorphins

Agonist

a substance that initiates a physiological response when combined with a receptor

Reuptake Inhibitory

Drugs that prevent a neurotransmitter from being reabsorbed by presynaptic axons, causing greater activation of postsynaptic receptors

Depressants

substances that slow down the central nervous system, resulting in an overall feeling of relaxation

Brain plasticity

The brain's ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience

EEG

a non-invasive method used to measure electrical activity in the brain by placing electrodes on the scalp

MEG

a non-invasive technique for investigating human brain activity

fMRI

a non-invasive neuroimaging technique that measures changes in blood flow to infer neural activity

Lesions

any abnormal damage or change in the tissue of an organism, often caused by disease or trauma

Brain Stem