AP Psychology Unit 1 Flashcards

Flashcards related to AP Psychology Unit 1 lecture notes, focusing on key concepts and vocabulary.

Heredity (Nature)

Genetic or predisposed characteristics that influence physical, behavioral, and mental traits and processes.

Environmental Factors (Nurture)

External factors that one experiences, such as family interactions or education.

Evolutionary Perspective

Explores how natural selection affects the expression of behavior and mental processes to increase survival and reproductive success.

Central Nervous System (CNS)

Includes the brain and the spinal cord and interacts with all processes in the body.

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

Relays messages from the central nervous system to the rest of the body, including the autonomic and somatic nervous systems.

Autonomic Nervous System

Governs involuntary processes, including the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems.

Somatic Nervous System

Governs voluntary processes.

Neurons

Neural cells that transmit information.

Glial Cells

Cells that provide structure, insulation, communication, and waste transport in the brain.

Reflex Arc

Sensory neurons, motor neurons, and interneurons working together in the spinal cord to respond to stimuli.

Neural Transmission

The process of neural transmission occurring in an orderly, systematic way.

Neurotransmitter Function

Each neurotransmitter has specific functions related to behavior and mental processes.

Excitatory Neurotransmitters

Neurotransmitters that communicate messages that make an action potential more likely

Inhibitory Neurotransmitters

Neurotransmitters that communicate messages that make an action potential less likely

Agonists

Encourage neural firing

Antagonists

Discourage neural firing.

Reuptake inhibitors

Blocking the reabsorption of neurotransmitters back into the cell

Stimulants

Such as caffeine and cocaine, typically cause increased neural activity.

Depressants

Such as alcohol, typically cause decreased neural activity.

Hallucinogens

Such as marijuana, typically cause distortions in perception and/or cognition.

Opioids

Such as heroin, typically act as pain relievers.

Brain Stem (including the medulla)

Controls basic functioning such as breathing and heart rate.

Reticular Activating System and Brain's Reward Center

Controls some voluntary movement, eye movement, and 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 and includes the limbic system (thalamus, hypothalamus, pituitary gland, hippocampus, amygdala), corpus callosum, and the lobes of the cortex.

Occipital Lobes

Control visual information processing and are located in the rear of the brain.

Temporal Lobes

Control auditory and linguistic processing and are located on the sides of the brain.

Parietal Lobes

Control association areas, which process and organize information, and the somatosensory cortex, which processes touch sensitivity. These lobes are located near the back crown of the brain.

Frontal Lobes

Control linguistic processing, higher-order thinking, and executive functioning, especially in the prefrontal cortex. These lobes are located just behind the forehead.

Motor Cortex

Located at the rear of the frontal lobes and controls most types of skeletal movement.

Split Brain Research

Achieved by severing the corpus callosum, reveals that the right and left hemispheres of the brain may specialize in different activities and functions.

Broca's Area

Responsible for speech production.

Wernicke's Area

Responsible for speech comprehension.

Brain Plasticity

Ability of the brain to rewire itself or modify or create new connections throughout development.

Consciousness

Varying levels of awareness of thoughts, feelings, behavior, and events in individuals’ internal and external worlds.

Sleep/Wake Cycle

A circadian rhythm, which in humans is about a 24-hour cycle.

NREM Sleep

Occurs in Stages 1 through 3 and decreases in duration throughout the cycle.

Hypnogogic Sensations

Occur as one enters Initial Stage 1 sleep.

REM Sleep

Considered paradoxical because it produces waves similar to wakefulness, but the body is at its most relaxed.

REM Rebound

Can occur when deprived of REM sleep.

Sensation

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

Absolute Threshold

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

Weber’s Law

Describes the degree to which stimuli need to be different for the difference to be detected.

Sensory Interaction

The sensory systems constantly work together.

Synesthesia

An experience of sensation in which one system of sensation is experienced through another.

Retina

The photosensitive surface at the back of the eye.

Accommodation

Visual stimuli are focused onto the retina.

Rods

Cells that lie in the periphery of the eye and detect shapes and movement, but not color. These cells are mainly activated in low-light environments.

Cones

Photoreceptor cells located in the fovea of the eye that process color and detail.

Afterimages

When certain ganglion cells in the retina are activated while others are not.

Sound

Occurs through the movement of air molecules at different wavelengths (called pitch) and amplitudes (called loudness).

Sound Localization

Describes how we identify where sounds in our environment are coming from.

Thalamus

Smell is the only sense not processed first in the of the brain

Pheromones

Produce chemical messages for the olfactory system.

Gustation

The sense of taste

Vestibular Sense

Controls balance and is primarily detected by the semicircular canals and structures in the brain.

Kinesthesis

Sense of one’s body movement.