Psych Midterm

The influences of philosophy and physiology

Early psychology developed from philosophy's questions about the mind and knowledge and physiology's study of the brain, nervous system, and behavior.

Empiricism

The view that knowledge comes from observation, experience, and sensory evidence.

Structuralism VS. Functionalism

Structuralism focused on identifying the basic elements of consciousness, while functionalism focused on how mental processes help people adapt and function in their environment.

Wilhelm Wundt

Founder of the first psychology laboratory in 1879 and often considered the father of modern psychology.

Titchener

Edward Titchener was a student of Wundt who developed and promoted structuralism in the United States.

William James

American psychologist who founded functionalism and studied how mental processes help people adapt to their surroundings.

G. Stanley Hall (1844-1924)

First president of the American Psychological Association (APA) and a pioneer in developmental psychology.

Mary Whiton Calkins (1863-1930)

Early psychologist known for her work on memory and the first female president of the APA.

Psychoanalysis

Freud's approach emphasizing unconscious motives, conflicts, and early childhood experiences as influences on behavior.

Behaviorism

A psychological perspective that focuses on observable behavior and how it is learned through interactions with the environment.

Humanistic Psychology

A perspective that emphasizes personal growth, free will, and the drive to reach one's full potential.

Positive Psychology

The scientific study of human strengths, well-being, happiness, and factors that help people thrive.

Cognitive Perspective

A psychological approach that examines mental processes such as thinking, memory, perception, and problem-solving.

Evolutionary Perspective

A perspective that explains behavior and mental processes in terms of adaptation and natural selection.

Specialty areas or "subdisciplines" in Psychology

Branches of psychology that focus on specific topics, such as clinical, developmental, cognitive, social, biological, and industrial-organizational psychology.

Sigmund Freud

Austrian neurologist who founded psychoanalysis and emphasized the role of the unconscious mind.

John B. Watson

Founder of behaviorism who argued that psychology should focus on observable behavior rather than mental processes.

Carl Rogers

Humanistic psychologist who developed client-centered therapy and emphasized unconditional positive regard.

Scientific Inquiry

The systematic process of asking questions and gathering evidence to understand phenomena.

Theory

A well-supported explanation that organizes observations and predicts future events.

Hypothesis

A specific, testable prediction derived from a theory.

The Scientific Method

A process of observing, forming hypotheses, conducting research, analyzing results, and drawing conclusions.

Operational Definition

A precise description of how a variable is measured or manipulated in a study.

Research Methods

Techniques used to collect and analyze data, including descriptive, correlational, and experimental methods.

Setting-field vs. laboratory

Field settings involve research in natural environments, while laboratory settings provide greater control over variables.

Self-report vs. observational

Self-report methods rely on participants describing their own thoughts or behaviors, while observational methods involve researchers directly watching behavior.

Descriptive Research

Research that observes and records behavior without manipulating variables.

Correlational Research

Research that examines relationships between variables but cannot establish cause and effect.

Experimental Research

Research that manipulates an independent variable to determine its effect on a dependent variable and establish causation.

Random Assignment

The process of placing participants into groups by chance to reduce bias and ensure comparable groups.

Placebo

An inactive treatment used as a control condition in experiments.

Double-blind Study

A study in which neither the participants nor the researchers know who receives the treatment or placebo.

Demand Characteristics

Cues that may influence participants to behave in ways they think the researcher expects.

Informed Consent

The process of informing participants about a study's procedures, risks, and rights before they agree to participate.

Confidentiality

Protecting participants' personal information and keeping their data private.

Debriefing

Explaining the true purpose and details of a study to participants after their participation, especially if deception was used.

Neuroscience/Biological Psychology

The branch of psychology that studies how the brain, nervous system, and biological processes influence behavior and mental processes.

Neurons

Specialized nerve cells that transmit information throughout the nervous system.

Sensory versus Motor Neurons

Sensory neurons carry information from sensory receptors to the central nervous system, while motor neurons carry commands from the central nervous system to muscles and glands.

Interneurons

Neurons within the central nervous system that process information and connect sensory and motor neurons.

Glial Cells

Support cells that nourish, protect, and insulate neurons and help maintain the nervous system.

Structures of a Neuron (Cell Body, Dendrites, Axon)

The cell body contains the nucleus, dendrites receive incoming signals, and the axon sends signals to other cells.

Myelin Sheath

A fatty covering around axons that speeds up the transmission of neural impulses.

Dendritic Growth

The formation of new dendrites and connections between neurons, often resulting from learning and experience.

Resting Potential

The neuron's stable negative electrical charge when it is not transmitting an impulse, typically around -70 millivolts.

Synapse and Synaptic Vesicles

The synapse is the gap between neurons where communication occurs; synaptic vesicles store neurotransmitters that are released into the synapse.

Neurotransmitter

A chemical messenger that carries signals across a synapse from one neuron to another.

Reuptake

The process by which neurotransmitters are reabsorbed by the sending neuron after transmission.

Action Potential and Stimulus Threshold

An action potential is a neural impulse that travels down an axon; the stimulus threshold is the minimum level of stimulation needed to trigger an action potential.

The Nervous System

The body's communication network consisting of the brain, spinal cord, and nerves.

Central versus Peripheral Nervous Systems

The central nervous system (CNS) includes the brain and spinal cord, while the peripheral nervous system (PNS) includes all nerves outside the CNS.

Somatic Nervous System

The division of the peripheral nervous system that controls voluntary muscle movements and transmits sensory information.

Autonomic Nervous System

The division of the peripheral nervous system that controls involuntary functions such as heart rate, digestion, and breathing.

Sympathetic versus Parasympathetic Nervous Systems

The sympathetic division activates the body's "fight-or-flight" response, while the parasympathetic division promotes "rest-and-digest" functions.

Central Nervous System

The brain and spinal cord, which process information and coordinate behavior.

The Human Brain

The body's control center responsible for thought, emotion, memory, sensation, and movement.

The Brainstem, Hindbrain, Midbrain, and Forebrain

The brainstem controls basic life functions, the hindbrain regulates balance and coordination, the midbrain processes sensory information and movement, and the forebrain is involved in higher mental functions.

Lateralization and the Work of Roger Sperry

Lateralization refers to specialized functions of the brain's hemispheres. Roger Sperry's split-brain research demonstrated that the left and right hemispheres perform different functions.

Corpus Callosum and the Effects of the Split-Brain Operation

The corpus callosum is a bundle of nerve fibers connecting the two hemispheres. Severing it can reduce seizures but prevents direct communication between hemispheres.

Occipital Lobe

Processes visual information.

Temporal Lobe

Processes hearing, language, memory, and emotion.

Parietal Lobe

Processes touch, body position, temperature, and spatial awareness.

Frontal Lobe

Involved in decision-making, planning, personality, voluntary movement, and problem-solving.

Broca's Area

A region in the left frontal lobe involved in speech production.

Aphasia

A language disorder caused by brain damage that affects speaking, understanding, reading, or writing.

Wernicke's Area

A region in the left temporal lobe involved in language comprehension.

The Limbic System

A group of brain structures involved in emotion, motivation, memory, and survival behaviors.

Hippocampus

A limbic system structure involved in forming and storing new memories.

Thalamus

The brain's sensory relay center that directs incoming sensory information to appropriate areas of the cortex.

Hypothalamus

A small brain structure that regulates body temperature, hunger, thirst, hormones, and other homeostatic functions.

Sensation

The process by which sensory receptors detect and transmit information from the environment to the brain.

Structure of the Eye

The eye contains structures such as the cornea, pupil, iris, lens, retina, and optic nerve that work together to detect and process light.

The Retina

A light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye that contains photoreceptors and converts light into neural signals.

Fovea

A small area in the center of the retina with the highest concentration of cones and the sharpest visual acuity.

Optic Nerve and the Blind Spot

The optic nerve carries visual information from the retina to the brain. The blind spot is the point where the optic nerve leaves the eye and contains no rods or cones.

Color Vision

The ability to perceive and distinguish different wavelengths of light as different colors.

Trichromatic Theory of Color Vision

The theory that color vision is based on three types of cones sensitive to red, green, and blue wavelengths.

Opponent-Process Theory of Color Vision

The theory that color is processed through opposing pairs of colors.

Hearing

The process of detecting and interpreting sound waves.

Sound Waves

Vibrations that travel through a medium such as air and stimulate the auditory system.

Frequency

The number of sound wave cycles per second, measured in hertz (Hz), which determines pitch.

Amplitude

The height of a sound wave, which determines loudness.

Purpose of the Structures in the Ear

The ear collects sound waves, converts them into neural signals, and sends them to the brain for processing.

Outer Ear

Includes the pinna and ear canal, which collect and funnel sound waves toward the eardrum.

Middle Ear

Contains the eardrum and three small bones (ossicles) that amplify sound vibrations.

Inner Ear

Contains the cochlea and sensory receptors that convert sound vibrations into neural impulses.

Basilar Membrane

A membrane inside the cochlea that vibrates in response to sound and stimulates hair cells responsible for hearing.

Perception

The process of organizing and interpreting sensory information to create meaningful experiences.

Top-Down vs. Bottom-Up Processing

Bottom-up processing begins with sensory input and builds perception from details, while top-down processing uses prior knowledge and expectations to interpret information.

Perceptual Organization

The process by which the brain groups sensory information into meaningful patterns and objects.

Gestalt Psychologists

Psychologists who emphasized that people perceive whole patterns rather than separate parts.

Figure and Ground

The tendency to separate visual scenes into a main object (figure) and its background (ground).

Depth Perception

The ability to perceive the world in three dimensions and judge distances.

Depth Perception Cues

Visual signals that help the brain estimate depth and distance.

Monocular Cues

Depth cues that can be perceived with one eye, such as linear perspective, interposition, and relative size.

Binocular Cues

Depth cues that require both eyes, such as binocular disparity and convergence.

Muller-Lyer Illusion

An optical illusion in which two equal-length lines appear different in length because of the direction of arrow-like ends.

Binocular Disparity

The slight difference between the images seen by each eye that helps the brain perceive depth.

Binocular Stereopsis

The perception of depth created by combining the slightly different images from both eyes into a single three-dimensional image.

Perceptual Constancy and Set

Perceptual constancy is the tendency to perceive objects as stable despite changes in sensory input. Perceptual set is the tendency to perceive something in a particular way based on expectations, experiences, or context.