PS101 MIDTERM

Types of frequency distributions

Ungrouped frequency distributions & grouped frequency distributions

Ungrouped frequency distribution

The number of times each specific data point appears in a data set

Grouped frequency distribution

The number of times a specific data point falls into a range of values in a data set

Histograms

A bar chart that shows ungrouped frequency distribution

Frequency polygon

A line graph that shows grouped frequency distributions

Measure of central tendency

A set of data where the mean, median & mode can be found

Median

The middle value of a set of data after it is put in order

Mode

The number that is represented the most in a set of data

Measures of variability

Indicators that show how different the values are within a set of data

Range

The difference between the highest number & the lowest number

Variance

o^2 that calculates the mean of the squares

Normal distribution

A symmetrical, bell-shaped histogram used in stat analysis

Positively skewed distribution

The mean is to the left side of the median aka a left-skewed graph

Negatively skewed distribution

The mean is to the right side of the median aka a right-skewed graph

Measures of association

Stats that describe the relationship between 2 or more variables

Scatter plot

A method to graph 2 variable data where the independent variables are on the horizontal axis & the dependent variables are on the vertical axis

Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient

A number between +1 to -1 that gives the strength & direction of the relationship between 2 variables

Coefficient of determination

A number between 0 to +1 that shows the variation of dependent variables

Population

Everyone in the group

Random sample

A group made by randomly picking people from a larger population

Hypothesis testing

To test a statement about a population using a sample & dividing them into an experimental & control group

Null hypothesis

There was no difference between the average performance in one group compared to the other

Alternative hypothesis

There was a difference between the average performance in one group compared to the other

Sampling distribution

Distributing a sample

Significance level/rejection level

The level of risk researchers would be willing to take to make a wrong conclusion

Effect size

A measure that shows the degree of relationship between 2 or more variables

Psychology

The study of mental processes & behaviours

Mental processes

Activities of our brain when engaged in thinking, observing the environment, & using language

Behaviours

Observable activities of an organism which is often a response to environmental cues

4 goals of psychologists

1. Description: They have to describe what they observe, 2. Explanation: They have to ask themselves why this is happening, 3. Prediction: They predict what behaviours or mental processes caused this, 4. Control: They can give advice on how to control their behavior

Culture

A set of shared beliefs & practices that are transmitted across generations

Myths

Stories of the forgotten origin that explain the mysteries of life

Rituals

Ceremonies that are related to myths that involve sacred or customary ways of celebrating occasions

Greek philosophers

They moved on from myths & rituals instead they explored about reality & human awareness by talking openly & having critical discussions of each other's ideas

Philosophy

The study of knowledge, reality, & the meaning of life

Plato, Aristotle, & Hippocrates

They were Greek philosophers that had questions of ancient philosophy

Questions of ancient philosophy

1. How does the human mind work?, 2. How is the human body & mind connected?, 3. Are people born with knowledge or does it have to be learned with experience?

Greek perspective on theories

Say that theories can always be improved

Hippocrates

A greek physician known as the 'Father of Medicine'

Hippocrates' belief

Diseases have a physical & rational explanation & are not caused by evil spirits or a punishment from god. Instead it depends from a person's physical & psychological health that was influenced by an excess or lack of 1 or more of the 4 bodily fluids

4 bodily humours/fluids

1. Blood, 2. Phlegm, 3. Yellow bile, 4. Black bile

Hippocrates's main idea for good health

Have good food, fresh air, & rest well

Diseases Hippocrates diagnosed

Pneumonia & epilepsy

Hippocrates on the brain

Hippocrates said that the brain is an organ of mental life, & the brain is responsible for thoughts, ideas, & feelings

Hippocrates' method of testing theories

Tested his theories by direct observation & experiments

Plato

A Greek philosopher that believed that humans are born with knowledge & that the mind should have a balance with intellect, emotion, desires, & appetite

Unhealthy imbalance

Greed & Avarice

Aristotle

Was a student of Plato & made theories on sensations, dreams, sleep, & learning

Francis Bacon

An english philosopher, scientist, & statesman that believes that knowledge comes from experience (empiricism)

Rene Descartes

Was one of the first modern philosophers & he believed that all truths were connected & the natural world can be understood by math & science.

John Locke

Was a British philosopher who believed that we learn from our experiences & believed that people are born as a blank slate 'tabula rasa'.

Johannes Muller

Was a physiologist that founded psychophysics.

Psychophysics

Is the study of the relationship between physical stimuli & its psychological effects.

Physical stimuli

Sound & light.

Psychological effects

Sensations & perceptions.

Herman von Helmholtz

Was a student of Johannes Muller & he was the first to measure the speed of neural impulses & found out that nerve impulses happen over time.

Gustav Fechner

Was a philosopher & a physicist that was one of the founders of experimental psychology & published a book 'Elements of Psychophysics' which talks about the methods & study techniques that are used in psychology.

Charles Darwin

Psychologist that proposed the all life on earth comes from 1 common ancestor (evolution).

Natural selection

The process of where certain genes are passed down from parents to children.

Sexual selection

Type of natural selection that is about physical features & their behaviours that help attract a mate.

Adaptive variations

Type of selection that help an organism survive & reproduce.

Wilhelm Wundt

Is known as the 'father of modern psychology' & was a natural scientist that established the first psychology lab in Germany & he believed that the study of the mind & behaviour should be conducted using experimental methods of other sciences such as chemistry & physics.

Consciousness

When the person is aware of their ongoing mental processes, behaviours, & things that are happening around their environment.

Voluntarism

A belief that behaviour is motivated & that attention is made for a purpose.

James Mark Baldwin

Psychologist that moved to Canada & established the first laboratory of experimental psychology at the University of Toronto.

Edward Titchener

Developed structuralism to try to identify all the elements & structure of the conscious mind.

Introspection

A method of psychological study that involves carefully evaluating mental processes & how simple thoughts expand into complex ideas.

Functionalism

A philosophical approach that considers how mental processes function to adapt when environments change.

William James

Was a philosopher, physician, & psychologist that wrote the first psychology textbook 'Principles of Psychology' & he developed the philosophical approach known as functionalism.

Max Wertheimer

Was a psychologist from Germany that founded Gestalt psychology.

Gestalt psychology

Type of psychology where you look at things as a whole & is used to show how people see visual elements, solve problems & understand memory, judgment & illusions.

Psychoanalysis

Making the unconscious mind conscious.

Unconscious

A part of the mind that has thoughts, feelings, & sensation that a person is not aware of, but can still influence their behaviour.

Sigmund Freud

A neurologist who developed the psychoanalytic theory & focused on the unconscious mind.

Psychoanalytic theory

A theory that states that human mental processes are influenced by the competition between unconscious forces trying to come into awareness.

Hysteria

A condition that causes blindness, paralysis, & amnesia.

Behaviourism

A branch of psychology that focuses only on observable behaviours.

Stimuli

Elements of the environment that trigger changes in people's internal or external states.

Responses

The way a person would react to stimuli.

Ivan Pavlov

Was a Russian physiologist that discovered classical conditioning which connects an animals behaviours to their environment.

Classical conditioning experiment

Observed dogs that salivated when lab assistants came & brought them food. Later when the lab assistants came the dogs still salivated thinking that they brought food.

Edward Thorndike

Functionalist who believed that the findings found from animal behaviour would help explain human's behaviour.

John Watson

Extended Ivan Pavlov's work of classical conditioning from dogs to children & explained how they could be conditioned to be afraid of objects & situations.

B.F. Skinner

Psychologist that focused on observable behaviour than internal mental processes.

Reinforcement

A type of learning process that increases the likelihood of a behaviour of being repeated.

Types of reinforcement

Positive & negative.

Positive vs Negative reinforcement

Positive reinforcement is where a behaviour has a rewarding outcome while negative reinforcement is where you remove a undesirable stimulus to increase behaviour.

Punishment

An experience that gives a decrease in bad behaviour.

Albert Bandura

Was a psychologist that showed that children learn through social observation & he also developed the social learning theory.

Humanistic psychology

A theory of psychology focuses on the unique qualities of humans.

Abraham Maslow

Psychologist that created the hierarchy of human needs.

Client-centered therapy

A type of therapy method where the therapist respects the client as an equal & mirrors client's thoughts & giving unconditional support.

Carl Rogers

Was an American psychologist that developed client-centered therapy.

Cognitive psychology

A branch of psychology that studies mental processes which includes how people process information.

Information processing

Where the information is stored & is operated internally.

Cultural psychology

Is the study of how culture shapes psychological & behavioural tendencies & influence behaviour.

Cross-cultural psychology

Study of what is universally true about humans regardless of culture.

Psychobiology

Type of psychology that looks at the biological foundations of psychological functions.

Neuroscience

The study of how biological processes connect with psychological functions & behaviours.

Karl Lashley

Was a psychobiologist that studied memory & learning by using surgical techniques to damage specific parts of the brain in animals.