Psychology as a Natural Science – PS1000 (Ch. 1-3)

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms and concepts from Chapters 1-3 of the PS1000 course, suitable for midterm review.

Psychology

Systematic study of behavior and experience.

Determinism

Belief that every event, including behavior, has a cause.

Free Will

View that behavior results from independent personal decisions.

Dualism

Position that mind is separate from—but controls—the brain and body.

Monism

View that conscious experience is inseparable from the brain.

Nature vs Nurture

Debate on how heredity and environment create behavioral differences.

Wilhelm Wundt

Introspection (to look within oneself) | Sensations and feelings were the elements of experience

Introspection

Self-observation of one’s own conscious experience.

Edward Titchener

Structuralism - describe the processes used in the mind,

particularly in the areas of sensations, feelings, and images

William James

Functionalism - focuses on what the mind does rather

than what it is, or how we produce useful behaviors.

Behaviorism

suggests psychology should concern itself only with what people and other animals do, and the circumstances in which they do it.

Does not consider thoughts, emotions, other internal states

Psychophysical Function

Mathematical relation between a physical stimulus and its perceived qualities.

Positive Psychology

the study of the predispositions and experiences

that make people happy, productive, and successful.

Science (in psychology)

Careful gaining, testing, and evaluating of knowledge.

Hypothesis

Clear predictive statement explaining observations.

Method (research)

Procedure used to test a hypothesis.

Results

Measurable outcomes of a study.

Interpretation

Meaning assigned to research results.

Replicability

Attaining the same results when procedures are repeated.

Meta-analysis

Combines many studies’ results as one large analysis.

Theory

Explanation that fits many observations and predicts accurately.

Falsifiable

Theories stated in such clear, precise terms that we can see

what evidence would count against it. / Can the claim be disproved?

Burden of Proof

Obligation to provide evidence supporting a claim.

Parsimony

Preference for explanations with fewer, simpler assumptions.

Open-mindedness (degrees of)

Willingness to consider legitimate evidence.

Basic Research

Seeks theoretical knowledge without immediate application.

Applied Research

Addresses practical problems.

Operational Definition

Exactly specifies procedures to produce or measure something numerically.

Sampling Bias

Sampling: A group of people being studied behaving unusually in

some way.

• Behavior of participants involves research participants behaving

differently because they are being observed.

Convenience Sample

• Anyone who is available can be chosen, creating the ease of study.

• Samples are easy to get to, and as a result, this method may be

overused.

• Results may not be generalized to the whole population

Representative Sample

• Same percentage of male/female, white/black, etc. as the whole

population or demographic category.

• Results similar to whole population or demographic categories.

• Sample may be representative in some ways but not others

Random Sample

Everyone in population has equal chance of being chosen.

• Difficult to obtain.

• Best suited for generalizing to the whole population.

Cross-cultural Sample

People from different cultures.

• Language barriers, cooperation problems, and other issues.

• Essential for studying many issues.

Naturalistic Observation

Careful recording of behavior in natural settings.

Case History

is a full description of someone’s abilities, medical

conditions, life history, unusual experiences, and other relevant

information. A type of naturalistic observation.

Survey

study of the prevalence of certain beliefs, attitudes, or

behaviors based on people’s responses to specific questions.

Variable

is anything measurable that differs among individuals, like

age, years of education, or reading speed

Correlation

Measure of relationship between two variables.

Correlation Coefficient

a mathematical estimate of the

relationship between two variables.

Scatter Plot

Graph in which each dot represents a given individual, with

one measurement for that individual on the x-axis (horizontal) and another

measurement on the y-axis (vertical).

Illusory Correlation

is an apparent relationship based on casual

observations of unrelated or weakly related events.

Experiment

is a study in which the investigator manipulates at least

one variable while measuring at least one other variable.

Independent Variable

Factor the experimenter changes or controls.

Dependent Variable

The item that an experimenter measures to

determine the outcome.

Experimental Group

The group that receives the treatment that an

experiment is designed to test.

Control Group

A set of individuals treated in the same way as the

experimental group except for the procedure that the experiment is

designed to test.

Random Assignment

A chance procedure, such as drawing names

out of a hat, to make sure that all participants have the same

probability of being assigned to a given group

Experimenter Bias

The tendency of an observer (unintentionally, as

a rule) to misperceive the results.

Blind Observer

Someone who records data without knowing the

researcher’s predictions.

Single-blind Study

Procedure in which either the observer or the

participants are unaware of which participants received which

treatment

Double-blind Study

Research in which both the observer and the

participants are unaware of which participants received which

treatment.

Demand Characteristics

Cues that tell participants what is expected of them and what the experimenter hopes to find.

Descriptive Statistics

Mathematical summary of data (e.g., mean, median, mode).

Mean

Average score (sum divided by number of scores).

Median

Middle score in ordered list.

Mode

Most frequently occurring score.

Inferential Statistics

Draw conclusions about populations from sample data.

p Value

Probability that results occurred by chance alone.

Statistically Significant

Result unlikely due to chance (typically p < 0.05).

95% Confidence Interval

Range where the true mean lies with 95% certainty.

HARKing

Pretending a hypothesis was predicted after results are known.

P-hacking

Re-analyzing data repeatedly to find significant results.

Neuron

Cells of the nervous system that receive information and

transmit it to other cells by conducting electrochemical impulses.

Glia

Cells that support the neurons in many ways such as by

insulating them, synchronizing activity among neighboring

neurons, and removing waste products.

Action Potential

is an excitation travelling along an axon at a

constant strength regardless of distance

All-or-none Law

is an excitation travelling along an axon at a

constant strength regardless of distance

Synapse

Junction where one neuron communicates with another.

Terminal Bouton (presynaptic ending)

Bulge at axon end releasing neurotransmitters.

Neurotransmitter

Chemical messenger activating receptors on other neurons.

Postsynaptic Neuron

Neuron receiving signals at the synapse.

Central Nervous System (CNS)

Brain and spinal cord communicates

with rest of the body.

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

Nerves connecting CNS to the rest of the body.

Somatic Nervous System

Conveys sensory info to CNS and controls voluntary muscles.

Autonomic Nervous System

Regulates organs such as heart and intestines, stomach.

Sympathetic

Activates fight-or-flight responses.

Parasympathetic

Promotes rest and relaxation.

Endocrine System

Glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream.

Hormone

Chemicals released by glands and conveyed by the

blood to later activity in organs.

Occipital Lobe

Cortical region primarily for vision.

Blindsight

is the ability to point to or indicate the direction of a visual

stimulus without conscious perception of seeing anything.

Corpus Callosum

is a set of axons that connect the left and right

hemispheres of the cerebral cortex. If damaged, the two hemispheres

cannot share information

1. T/F: The retina contains cells that convert light into neural signals

True

2. T/F: Rods are responsible for color vision and function best in bright light.

False

3. T/F: Cones are more concentrated in the fovea, the central part of the retina.

true

4. T/F: The blind spot is due to the lack of photoreceptors where the optic nerve exits the eye.

true

5. T/F: The pupil controls the focus of the lens

false

Visual information from the right visual field is processed in the left hemisphere of the brain.

true

7. T/F: The trichromatic theory explains how the eye detects brightness.

Answer: False

8. T/F: The opponent-process theory accounts for the afterimages we see when staring at certain colors.

true

9. T/F: The lens of the eye bends light to focus it on the retina.

Answer: True

10. T/F: People with normal color vision have three types of cones sensitive to different wavelengths of light.

Answer: True

11. Which part of the eye focuses light onto the retina?

A. Cornea

B. Iris

C. Lens

D. Optic nerve

Lens

12. Which of the following cells are responsible for night vision and detecting dim light?

A. Cones

B. Rods

C. Ganglion cells

D. Bipolar cells

Rods

13. The fovea is specialized for:

A. Peripheral vision

B. Detecting motion

C. Sharp central vision and detail

D. Night vision

C. Sharp central vision and detail

14. The optic nerve is made up of the axons of which type of cells?

A. Rods

B. Cones

C. Bipolar cells

D. Ganglion cells

D. Ganglion cells

15. The "blind spot" in your visual field occurs because:

A. The pupil sometimes closes unexpectedly

B. There are no rods in that region

C. The optic nerve exits the retina there

D. The cornea distorts light in that area

C. The optic nerve exits the retina there

16. Which theory suggests that color vision is based on the activity of three types of cones?

A. Retinex theory

B. Opponent-process theory

C. Dual-process theory

D. Trichromatic theory

D. Trichromatic theory

17. Which cells in the retina receive input from photoreceptors and transmit signals to ganglion cells?

A. Rods

B. Cones

C. Bipolar cells

D. Amacrine cells

C. Bipolar cells

18. Which theory explains color afterimages, such as seeing green after staring at red?

A. Trichromatic theory

B. Place theory

C. Opponent-process theory

D. Feature detection theory

C. Opponent-process theory

19. Which part of the eye regulates the amount of light entering?

A. Lens

B. Iris

C. Retina

D. Cornea

B. Iris