PSYC 1101 Exam 1 Key Terms

Vocabulary flashcards created from PSYC 1101 Chapters 1 and 7 terms and definitions.

Psychology

The scientific study of mental activity and behavior, both of which depend on processing in the brain.

Mind

All mental activity that allows us to experience and interpret the world.

Behavior

Actions that result from sensing and interpreting information.

Empiricism

An objective, evidence-based approach using observation and research.

Critical thinking

Evaluating the source, strength of evidence, and agreement among credible sources.

Culture

Shared beliefs, values, rules, and customs within a group that can affect psychological processes.

WEIRD samples

Participants from Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic societies.

Interdisciplinary research

Research in which psychologists collaborate with specialists in other domains.

Biological domain

Study of how the brain, nervous system, genes, and bodily processes relate to behavior.

Cognitive domain

Study of mental processes such as attention, memory, language, thinking, and decision making.

Developmental domain

Study of how people change across the lifespan.

Social and personality domain

Study of how people influence one another and how individuals differ.

Mental and physical health domain

Study of psychological disorders, well-being, health, and treatment.

Theory

A broad explanation for how a process or behavior occurs.

Hypothesis

A specific, testable prediction derived from an explanation.

Case study

An intensive examination of a few unique people or organizations.

Observational study

Systematically observing and coding behavior, with or without intervention.

Self-report

A method in which participants report thoughts or behavior through questions or surveys.

Correlational method

A method that measures two naturally occurring variables and estimates their association.

Experimental method

A method that manipulates an independent variable and measures its effect on a dependent variable.

Positive correlation

A relationship in which variables tend to move in the same direction.

Negative correlation

A relationship in which variables tend to move in opposite directions.

Independent variable (IV)

The variable manipulated by the experimenter.

Dependent variable (DV)

The measured outcome affected by the manipulation.

Control group

Baseline condition with no intervention or an unrelated intervention.

Experimental group

Condition that receives the IV intervention or treatment.

Random selection

Determines who enters the sample; supports generalization to the population.

Random assignment

Places participants into conditions; helps make groups equivalent.

Observer bias

Observer expectations affect recording or interpretation.

Self-report bias

Participants give inaccurate or socially desirable answers.

Confound

An unintended difference between conditions that could affect the dependent variable.

Control

Steps that minimize influences other than the independent variable.

Random sample

A sample in which each population member has an equal chance of inclusion.

Encoding

Processing information so it can be stored.

Storage

Retaining encoded representations over time.

Retrieval

Recalling or remembering stored information when needed.

Selective attention

Directing mental resources toward relevant information while ignoring irrelevant information.

Filter theory

An explanation of how people selectively attend to the most important information.

Sensory storage

Very brief memory store that holds a vast amount of sensory information close to its original form.

Short-term storage

Brief, limited storage in conscious awareness.

Working memory

Active system that operates on information currently in use.

Long-term storage

Relatively permanent memory store with probably unlimited capacity.

Memory span

Short-term capacity of about seven items, plus or minus two.

Chunking

Organizing separate pieces of information into meaningful units.

Maintenance rehearsal

Shallow repetition based mainly on how information sounds.

Elaborative rehearsal

Deep semantic encoding that relates new information to prior knowledge or the self.

Concept map

A representation that links concepts in an association network.

Levels of processing

The principle that deeper, meaning-based processing usually creates better long-term memory than shallow processing.

Primacy effect

Better memory for items at the beginning of a list.

Recency effect

Better memory for the most recent items at the end of a list.

Schema

A long-term memory structure that helps organize, perceive, process, and use information.

Association network

Organization of long-term information through linked meanings.

Spreading activation

Activation of one memory node makes related nodes more accessible.

Explicit memory

Conscious, verbally describable memory.

Episodic memory

Explicit memory for personal experiences.

Semantic memory

Explicit memory for knowledge about the world.

Implicit memory

Memory that operates without conscious verbal description.

Procedural memory

Implicit memory for motor skills and habits.

Retrieval cue

Anything that helps access information in long-term storage.

Context-dependent memory

Recall improves when the external environment at retrieval matches the environment during encoding.

State-dependent memory

Recall improves when the internal state at retrieval matches the internal state during encoding.