Psychology 101: Critical Thinking, Research Methods, Neuroscience, and Genetics

Vocabulary practice cards reviewing key terms, definitions, methods, biological concepts, and genetic principles covered in PSY 101.

Psychology

The scientific study of overt behavior and covert mental processes.

Psyche

An ancient Greek word meaning mind.

Logos

An ancient Greek word meaning knowledge or study.

Introspection

Personal observation of your own thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

Critical Thinking

A type of reflection that asks whether a belief can be supported by both scientific theory and observation.

Falsification

An attempt to show how a common sense belief or theory might be false.

Uncritical Acceptance

Failing to evaluate claims using sufficient logic, or the tendency to accept beliefs as true for illogical reasons or because one wants them to be true.

Confirmation Bias

The tendency to notice and remember information that confirms our expectations while ignoring, disregarding, or actively avoiding contradictory evidence.

Superstition

An unfounded belief held without objective evidence or in the face of falsifying evidence.

Barnum Effect

The tendency to believe in the accuracy of descriptions when they are presented in general terms.

Describing Behavior

The goal of psychology that addresses the nature of a behavior and what it looks like.

Understanding Behavior

The goal of psychology that addresses why a specific behavior occurs.

Predicting Behavior

The goal of psychology that aims to forecast when a behavior will occur.

Controlling Behavior

The goal of psychology that examines what conditions affect behavior and how to set conditions to change it.

Independent Variable (IV)

The condition altered or manipulated by the experimenter, which is the suspected cause for differences in behavior.

Dependent Variable (DV)

The variable used to measure the results of an experiment, representing the behavioral effect.

Experimental Group

The group of subjects in an experiment who are exposed to the independent variable or specific testing conditions.

Control Group

The group of subjects exposed to identical conditions as the experimental group, except for the independent variable, to isolate extraneous variables.

Random Assignment

A technique used to place subjects into experimental or control groups, controlling for individual subject differences.

Double-Blind Experiment

An experimental arrangement designed to eliminate researcher bias where neither the subjects nor the researchers observing them know who received the treatment.

Observer Effect

Changes in a subject's behavior caused by the awareness of being observed.

Observer Bias

A tendency for researchers to see what they expect to see or to record only selected details during an observation.

Anthropomorphic Error

The error of attributing human thoughts, feelings, or motives to animals during scientific observation.

Quasi-Experiments

Research designs that compare pre-existing groups when random assignment is not possible.

Representative Sample

A small group of research participants that accurately reflects the characteristics of the larger population.

Population

The entire group of animals or people belonging to a particular category under study.

Courtesy Bias

A tendency for survey respondents to give polite or socially desirable answers rather than completely truthful ones.

Correlation Coefficient

A statistic ranging from $-1.00$ to $+1.00$ that measures the degree and direction of a relationship between two variables.

Positive Correlation

A relationship where two variables move in the same direction, both increasing or decreasing together.

Negative Correlation

A relationship where two variables move in opposite directions, such that as one variable increases, the other decreases.

Soma

The cell body of a neuron containing the nucleus.

Dendrites

Neuron fibers that act as inputs to receive incoming chemical messages from other neurons.

Axon

A long fiber that carries output and sends signals away from the soma toward other neurons.

Synapse

The physical gap between axon terminals and neighboring dendrites across which neurotransmitters travel.

Neural Plasticity

The capacity of the brain to change its structure and organization in response to experience and environmental inputs.

Neurogenesis

The production of new brain cells.

Heredity

The genetic transmission of physical and psychological characteristics from parents to offspring (nature).

DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid)

Pairs of chemical molecules that act as a code containing genetic information.

Genes

Specific coded instructions of heredity located on DNA.

Polygenic Traits

Characteristics controlled by many genes working together, such as intelligence, height, and aggressiveness.

Congenital Problems

Birth defects originating during prenatal development caused by environmental factors.

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)

A condition caused by maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy resulting in emotional, behavioral, and mental handicaps.

Epigenetics

The study of changes in organisms caused by modifications to gene expression, such as methyl groups turning genes on or off, rather than alterations to the genetic code itself.

Neuroplasticity

The capacity of our brains to change in response to experience.

Neurotransmitters

Dopamine and Seratonin

Extraneous Variables

Conditions a researcher wants to prevent from affecting the experiment. Controlled to ensure dependent variable is not affected.