AP Psych: Unites 1-6

Tri 1 & 2 of AP Psychology

applied research

scientific study that aims to solve practical problems

basic research

pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base. pure research that aims to confirm an existing theory or to learn more about a concept or phenomenon.

biopsychosocial approach

an integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels on analysis

cognitive neuroscience

the interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory, and language)

Psychology Perspectives

neuroscience, evolutionary, behavior genetics, psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive, social-cultural

Psychology’s Subfields

The different professions of psychology dedicated aiding to practical issues

case study

an observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles

causation

a cause and effect relationship in which one variable controls the changes in another variable

Confounding variables

a factor other than the independent variable that might produce an effect in an a experiment

control group

in an experiment, the group that is not exposed to the treatment; contrasts with the experimental group and serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment

B.F. Skinner

american psychologist who studied radical behaviorism and invented the operant conditioning chamber, used to analyze animal behavior. he belived that all behavior was the result of the consequences behind an action through reinforcement (rewards) and punishment.

Standard Deviation

A computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean score

Statistical Significance

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

Structuralism

an early school of psychology promoted by Wundt and Titchener; which used introspection to explore the elemental structure and mental processes of the human mind

Theory

an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviors or events

Dependent Variable

the variable that is being measured or tested in an experiment

Double-blind procedure

a dilemma in communication in which an individual (or group) receives two more conflicting messages, with one negating the other

Empricism

the view that knowledge comes from experience via the senses

Experiment

an investigation to test out a hypothesis and to see the results

Experimental group

the group is exposed to the treatment

Titchener

used introspection to search for the mind’s structural elements, which later proved unreliable

Washburn

first woman to receive a PhD in psychology

Watson and Rayner

two psychologists who demonstrated conditioned responses on a baby, who became known as “Little Albert”. Had psychology recognized as the science of behavior

Wundt

established the first psychological laboratory in Leipzig, Germany

Functionalism

focused on how behavior helps individuals adapt to demans placed upon them in the environment

hindsight bias

the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it

hypothesis

a supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation

independent variable

a variable whose variation does not depend on that of another

informed consent

an ethical principle requiring that research participants be told enough to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate

naturalistic observation

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

Normal Curve

the symmetrical bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many physical and psychological data

operational definition

a statement of the procedures used to define research variables

Placebo Effect

experimental results caused by expectations alone, any effect on behavior cased by the administration of an inert substance or condition, which the recipient assumes is an active agent

population

all the cases in a group being studied, form which samples may be drawn

correlation

a research method that detects how well two variables, work together, and how they predict one another. No variables are manipulated, and it is commonly used when experiments would otherwise be unethical. it does not tell us why relationships work, it just tells us that the relationships exist. does NOT equal causation

correlation coefficient

a statistical, numerical representation of the strength and direction of the relationship between things (from -1 to +1)

Culture

Learned and shared ideas & behaviors that one generation passes on to the next. culture influences behavioral traits, standards of frankness, opinions of things such as premarital sex, our eye contact and much more. also note that all cultures has its strengths and weakness

Darwin

an english professor (1808-1882) who theorized evolution by natural selection. His theory has inspired much of psychology’s foundations-- including evolutionary psychology

Debriefing

The post experimental explanation for a study, including its purpose and any deceptions, to its participants. this is done for ethical purposes

introspection

the examination of one’s own conscious thoughts and feeling

James and Calkins

1st female president of the American Psychological Association, she earned her PhD. at Harvard under William James, but was refused the degree by the Harvard Corp. because the school didn’t accept women. Whe was known for introcuding the idea of “self psychology”, where she believed that the self should be the basic unit of study in psychology.

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He was the founder of the functionalist perspective and helped contribute to the James-Lange Theory of Emotions.

mean

also known as an average, calculated by adding up all scored and dividing by the number of scores

median

the middle score in a distribution of data ordered from least to greatest. if there is an even amount of data, the median is calculated by the finding the mean of the 2 middle numbers

mode

the most frequently occurring score(s) in a distribution

absolute threshold

the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time

accommodation

in vision, the process by which the eye’s lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina. in human development, adapting one’s current understanding (schemas) to incorporate new information

Extrinsic Motivation

encouragement to perform a certain behavior in order to acquire external rewards or evade receiving punishments

Fixed-Interval Schedule

used in operant conditioning where the reinforces are applied to a response only after a fixed period of time has passed

Long-Term Potentiation

an increase in a synapse’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. Believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory

misinformation effect

incorporating misleading information into one’s memory of an event

mnemonics

memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices

mood-congruent memory

to recall stored experiences or evens along with the mood they were in at the time because of what is felt currently

long-term memory

the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. includes knowledge, skills, and experiences

conditioned response (CR)

a reaction that resembles an unconditioned response but is produced by a condition stimulus

conditioned stimulus (CS)

a stimulus that elicits a response only after learning has taken place

Continuous Reinforcement

a type of learning in which behavior is reinforced each time it occurs

discrimination learning

the ability to respond differently to different stiumuli

extinction

the gradual disappearance of a conditioned response when it is no longer reinforced

Retina

the light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information

retinal disparity

a binocular cue for perceiving depth: by comparing images from the retinas in the two eyes, the brain computes distance-the greater the disparity (difference) between the two images, the closer the object

Rods

retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray; necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don’t repsond

sensation

the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment

sensorineural hearing loss

hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea’s receptor cells or to the auditory nerves'; also called nerve deafness

explicit memory

facts and experiences that we consciously know or declare, processed through conscious effortful processing

implicit memory

information that we don’t deliberately remember or reflect on consciously

iconic memory

a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli’ lasts less than half a second

flashbulb memory

the memory of emotionally significant events that people often recall with more accuracy and vivid imagery than everyday events

hippocampus

a temporal-lobe neural center in the limbic system that helps process explicit memories for storage; acts as a loading dock for memories, doesn’t permanently store them

fixed-ratio schedule

used in operant conditioning where an action is reinforced after it has been performed a certain number of times

generalization

the habit of responding the same or similar that are comparable to each other

high-order conditioning

also known as second-order conditioning and it is where a second often weaker stimulus begins to become another conditioned stimulus replacing the old conditioned stimulus

pitch

a tone’s experienced highness or lowness; depends on frequency

place theory

in hearing, the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea’s membrane is stimulated

priming

the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one’s perception, memory, or response

signal detection theory

a theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus (signal) amid background stimulation (noise). assumes there is no single absolute threshold and that detection depends partly on a person’s experiences, expectations, motivation, and alertness

pupil

the adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters

top-down processing

information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations

subliminal

below one’s absolute threshold for conscious awareness

transduction

conversion of one form of energy into another. in sensation, the transforming of stimulus energies, such as sights, sounds, and smells, into neural impulses our brains can interpret

Vestibular Sense

the sense of body movement and position, including the sense of balance

visual cliff

a laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals

wavelength

the distance form the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next. Electromagnetic wavelengths vary form the short blips of cosmic rays to the long pulses of radio transmission

Weber’s Law

the principle that, to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage

psychophysics

the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them

sensory interaction

the principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste

sensory adaptation

diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation

Reinforcement Schedule

A pattern that defines how often a desired response will be reinforced

Respondent Behavior

behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus

shaping

an operant conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior

sponatneous recovery

The reappearance, after a pause of an extinguished conditioned response

stimulus

Any event or situation that evokes a response

cognitive learning

the acquisition of mental information, whether by observing events, by watching others, or through language

cognitive map

a mental representation of the layout of one’s environment

classical conditioning

a type of learning in which one learns to link two or more stimuli and anticipate events

behaviorism

the theory that human behavior can be explained in terms of condition

Law of Effect

An effect in which behavior that is rewarded is more likely to occur and behavior met with consequences is less likely to occur

mirror neurons

Neurons in the frontal lobe that go off when performing or observing actions

modeling

learned behaviors through observation and imitation

negative reinforcement

strengthens a behavior by stopping or reducing something negative. (not a punishment)

neutral stimulus

a stimulus that gets no response before conditioning