Unit 1 AP Psyche

heredity

nature; refers to genetic or predisposed characteristics that influence physical, behavioural, and mental traits/processes

environmental factors

nuture; refers to the external factors that one experiences, such as family interactions or education

evolutionary perspective

explores how natural selection affects the expression of behaviour and mental processes to increase survival and reproductive success

gene research

research on heredity on individual behaviour and mental processes is often studied using twin studies, family studies, and adoption studies

central nervous system

includes the brain and spinal cord and interacts with all processes in the body

peripheral nervous system

relays information from the central nervous system to the rest of the body (includes autonomic and somatic nervous systems)

autonomic nervous system

governs processes that are involtunary and includes the parasypathetic and sympathetic nervous systems

somatic nervous system

governs processes that are voluntary

sympathetic nervous system

prepares the body for fight or flight responses (increased HR, lowered hunger, dilation of pupils, sweat) and maintains homeostasis during daily activities such as exercise, eating, or body temperature regulation

parasympathetic nervous system

controls the body’s ability to relax; “rest and digest”; contraction of pupils, lowered HR, increased hunger)

neurons

neural cells that transit information

glial cells

braincells that provide structure, insulation, communication, and waste transport

reflex arc

three types of neurons work together in the spinal cord: sensory neurons, motor neurons, and interneurons

sensory neurons

carry information from the sense organs e.g. eyes/ears to the brain

motor neurons

control voluntary muscle activity e.g. walking/talking; carry messages from nerve cells in the brain to the muscles

interneurons

specialized nerve cells in the central nervous system that act as connectors between sensory and motor neurons

all-or-nothing principle

nerve cells send signals with the same force regardless of the strength impulse causing them to fire; action is either fully initiated or not at all

depolarization

when a cell’s charge becomes positive, or less negative; if the charge reaches a certain level (threshold of excitation) the neuron becomes active the action potential begins

refractory period

brief period immediately following the response of a muscle/nerve before it recovers the capacity to make a second response

resting potential

the electircal potential difference between the inside and outside of a neuron; electrical charge of a neuron’s membrane when it is at rest

reuptake

when the neurotransmitter’s work is completed and is reabsorbed into the cell that previously released it; allows neurotransmitters to be reused and helps regulate neurotransmitter levels in the synpase

threshold

the minimum amount of stimulation needed to start a neural impulse; when depolarization reaches about -55 mV

multiple sclerosis

a chronic, unpredictable neurological disease that affects the central nervous system, disrupts the flow of signals between the brain and body

myasthenia gravis

a chronic neuromuscular disease that causes weakness in voluntary muscles (include facial muscles, muscles connection to bones, throat muscles, diagphragm muscles)

excitatory neurotransmission

making an actional potential more likely

inhibitory neurotransmission

making an actional potential less likely

dopamine

neurotransmitter and hormone; related to movement, memory, and pleasureable reward/motivation

serotonin

neurotransmitter and hormone; related to mood regulation, sleep, appetite, emotional wellbeing, relaxation, and digestion

norepinephrine

also known as noradrenaline; related to body’s fight-or-flight response; increases heartrate, blood pressure, blood sugar levels; affects attention, memory, and sleep-wake cycles

glutamate

primary excitatory neurotransmitter in brain; related to learning and memory

GABA

primary inhibitory neurotransmitter in brain; related to regulation of stimulation, neural activity, and excitability

substance P

neuropeptide released from sensory nerve endings and is widely present in nerve fibers; related to transmission of pain signals (sharp, burning, visceral, inflammatory)

acetylcholine

neurotransmitter involved in memory, learning, attention, arousal, and involuntary muscle movement

adrenaline

also known as epineprhine; triggers the body’s fight-or-flight response; helps to prepare for stressful/dangerous situations

leptin

hormone that helps body to maintain its weight; regulates long-term balance between body’s food intake and energy use; prevents hunger; manages energy

ghrelin

hormone that stimulates appetite and hunger; facillitates energy homeostasis and carbohydrate metabolism

melatonin

hormone that regulates body’s natural sleep-wake cycle

oxytocin

hormone that plays a significant role in social bonding, childbirth, and breastfeeding; promotes prosocial and approachable behaviours

agonists

psychoactive drug which encourages neural firing

antagonists

psychoactive drugs that discourage neural firing

reuptake inhibitors

psychoactive drugs which block the reabsorption of neurotransmitters back into the cell

stimulants

cause increased neural activity e.g. caffeine, cocaine

depressants

typically decrease neural activity e.g. alcohol

hallucinogens

typically cause distortions in perception and/or cognition e.g. marijuana, lsd

opioids

typically act as relievers/mimic endorphins e.g. heroin

tolerance

when the body becomes less response to a substance, such as a drug, with repeated use

addiction

a chronic, relapsing disorder characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use despite adverse consequences

withdrawal symptoms

physical or mental symptoms an individual has when they cut back or stop the use of an addictive substance

brain stem

includes medulla oblogonta, controls basic functioning such as breathing and heart rate

reticular activating system

alongside brain’s reward center controls some voluntary movement, eye movement, some types of learning, cognition, and emotion

cerebellum

controls coordination of muscle movement, balance, and some forms of procedural learning

cerebral cortex

divided into two hemispheres, includes the limbic system (thalamus, hypothalamus, pituitary gland, hippocampus, amydala) corpus callosum, and the lobes of the cortex

thalamus

information relay station of the pray; processes all information from body’s senses before being sent to cerebral cortex

hypothalamus

helps manage body temperature, hunger, thirst, mood, sex drive, blood pressure, and sleep

pituitary gland

produce and releases several hormones that carry out important body functions (growth, metabolism, reproduction)

hippocampus

responsible for memory and learning, forming new declarative memories

amygdala

emotional sentinel; primary role in the process of memory, decision making, and emotional responses (fear, anxiety, and aggression)

corpus callosum

bundle of nerve fibers that allow the brain’s left and right hemispheres to communicate with one another; plays a role in thinking, remembering, and coordination

occipital lobes

control visual information processing; located in rear of brain

temporal lobes

generally control auditory and linguistic processing; located on the sides of the brain

parietal lobes

generally control association areas which process and organize information as well as the somatosensory cortex; located near the back crown of brain

somatosensory cortex

processes touch sensitivity

frontal lobes

generally control linguistic processing, higher-order thinking, executive functioning, especially in prefrontal cortex; located just behind the forehead

motor cortex

controls most types of skeletal movement; located at the rear of the frontal lobes

split brain research

achieved by severing corpus callosum, reveals that the right and left hemispheres of brain may specialize in different activites and functions

language centers

typically located in left hemisphere, include broca’s area (speech production) and wernicke’s area (speech comprehension); damage to areas may result in aphasia

aphasia

a language disorder imparing a person’s ability to communicate (including speaking, understanding, writing, and writing)

contralateral hemispheric organization

each side of the brain controls the opposite side of movement on the body; studied in split-brain patients through the visual field

brain plasticity

the abilility of the brain to rewire itself or modify or create new connections through development and generally allows for the function of a damaged part of the brain to be assumed by a different part of the brain

brain research

done through scans (eeg and fmri) case studies, surgical procedures (like leisoning) to promote understanding

circadian rhythm

24-hour sleep/wake cycle; disrupted by jet lag and shift work

NREM sleep

occurs in stages 1-3 of sleep; decreases in duration through cycle

hypnogogic sensations

a brief and sudden involuntary contraction of the muscles of the body which occurs when a person is beginning to fall asleep

REM sleep

considered paradoxical sleep (produces waves similar to wakefulness); body at its most relaxed; where most dearming occurs; frequency increases as cycle progresses

rem rebound

a compensatory response in which an individual experiences increased rem sleep temporarily after deprivation of rem sleep

activation-synthesis theory

proposes that when humans dreams, the mind is trying to comprehend the brain activity taking place in the brain stem

consolidation theory

proposes that daily experience is reactivated and consolidated during dream sleep; transferring newly formed memories from hippocampus (temporary storage) to long term storage

insomnia

sleep disorder characterized by trouble falling asleep, staying asleep (through the night), or waking up too early in the morning

narcolepsy

sleep disorder characterized by falling asleep suddenly during the day; persistent, overwhelming sleepiness even after adequate rest

rem sleep behaviour disorder

sleep disorder charactized by acting out vivid dreams with vocal sounds and sudden, often violent arm and leg movements during REM sleep

sleep apnea

sleep disorder where breathing stops or becomes very shallow, causing individual to be unable to breath

somnambulism

sleep disorder characterized by undesirable actions, such as wakling, that occur during abrupt but limited arousals of NREM sleep

sensation

the process of detecting information from the environment that meets a certain threshold and transducing stimuli into neurochemical messages for processing in the brain

absolute threshold

occurs when a stimulus can be detected at least 50% of the time

just-noticeable difference

amount something must be changed in order for a difference to be noticeable, or detectable

sensory adaptation

a reduction in sensitivity to a stimulus after constant exposure to it

weber’s law

mathematical model of the difference threshold stating that the magnitude to detect a change in stimulus is proportional (percent-based) and not a finite value

synesthesia

an experence of sensation in which one system of sensation is experienced through another

retina

photosensitive surface at the back of the eye; cells capture visual information that is transduced to the brain for processing

blind spot

incomplete images where the visual nerve exists the eye; brain fills in the gaps of incomplete retinal images

accomodation

process in which visual stimuli are focused onto the retina (can result in nearsightedness or farsightedness when process is altered)

rods

cells that lie in the periphery of the eye and detect shapes and movements (but not color); activated in low-light environments; play a role in light/dark adaptation

trichromatic theory

suggests a combination of three color channels (green, blue, and red) that create combinations

opponent process theory

proposes that one member of a color pair supresses the other color (red-green, blue-yellow, black-whte)

cones

photoreceptor cells located in the fovea of the eye that process color and detail; (blue: short wavelengths, green: medium wavelengths, and red: long wavelengths are in the retina)

afterimages

result when certain ganglion cells in the retina are activated while others are not (ganglion cells involved are red/green, blue/yellow, and black/white)

color vision deficiency

involves damage or irregularities to one or more cones or ganglion cells (red/green, blue/yellow); includes dichromatism or monochromatism

dichromatism

partial color blindness in which the eye contains only two types of cone photopigment instead of typical three

monochromatism

complete color blindness in which all colors appear as shades of gray

propagnosia

face blindness; the inability to recognize known and new faces