Psychology Review

Socrates & Plato

Mind is separable from the body

Aristotle

Knowledge is gained from our experiences

Descartes

Believed nerve pathways were tunnels that allowed spirits to control movement.

John Locke

Tabula Rasa- Blank slate theory

Wilhelm Wundt

Father of Psychology, built first psychology laboratory

G. Stanley Hall

Established the first U.S Psychology laboratory

Bradford Titchener

Student of Wilhelm, prominent thinker of of structuralism

Structuralism

Early school that sought to discover the structural elements of the mind

William James

Prominent thinker of of functionalism, wrote the first psychology book: “The Principles of Psychology”

Functionalism

Early school that believed the brain served a function necessary for our own survival.

Behaviorism

Early school that believes psychology should be based off of observable behavior; based on objective science without reference to subjective mental processes

Mary Whiton Calkins

First women president of the APA.

Margaret Floy Washburn

First women to receive a Ph.D in Psychology

Psychology

The science of behavior and mental processes

Darwin’s Theory

Natural selection: nature will select the best traits among variations that will allow an organism to survive in a particular environment.

Levels of analysis

Differing observations that are complementary to one another from biological, psychological, and sociocultural standpoints.

Biopsychosocial Approach

Levels of analysis used to analyze any given phenomenon

Behavioral Perspective

Study of observable behavior and its explanation by principles of learning

Biological Perspective

Study of the links between biological and psychological processes.

Cognitive Perspective

Study on how we encode, process, store, and recieve information

Evolutionary Perspective

Study of evolution of behavior and mind through principles of natural selection

Humanistic Perspective

Study on how we meet our needs for love and acceptance and achieve self-fulfillment. Influence on growth

Psychodynamic

Study on how the unconscious effects behavior

Socio-cultural Perspective

Study on how behavior & thinking vary across situations and cultures.

Psychometrics

Scientific study of the measurements of human abilities, attitudes, and traits. Studies through testing, measurement, and assessments.

Basic Research

Pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base.

Developmental Psychology

Studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the lifespan

Educational Psychology

Study of how psychological process affect and can enhance teaching and learning

Personality Psychology

Study of an individual’s characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting

Social Psychology

Scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another

Applied Research

Aims to solve practical problems

Industrial-organization Psychology

Applies psychological concepts and methods to optimize human behavior in the workplace

Human factors Psychology

Explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use.

Counseling & clinical Psychology

Assists people with problems in living and in achieving greater well-being.

Clinical Psychology

A branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders, practices by physicians who prove medical treatments as well as psychological therapy.

Positive Psychology

The scientific study of human functioning, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities thrive.

Community Psychology

Studies how people interact with their social environment and how social institutions affect individuals and groups.

Hindsight Bias

The tendency to believe that one would have foreseen the outcome after learning it.

Overconfidence

The tendency to think that you know more than you do.

Theory

An explanation of behaviors or events using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts those events offering a useful summary.

Hypothesis

A testable prediction used to confirm a theory or lead it to revision or rejection

Operational Definition

Carefully worded statements of the exact procedures used in the study. Allows people to replicate the research and reaffirm the findings.

Descriptive Study

Describes a behavior, attempting to research and answer equations related to the behavior.

Case Study

Descriptive study that studies a specific individual or group in depth in order to reveal universal principles to all of us.

Naturalistic Observation

Descriptive study that studies a group in its natural environment.

Survey

Descriptive study used to estimate the attitude from a representative group of people or reported behaviors of a whole population.

Illusory correlations

The perception of a correlation that doesn’t exist.

Correlational Study

Method of research that attempts to find a relationship between to variables.

Experimental Study

Method of research that isolates and manipulates variables to determine its effects.

Random Assignment

Assigning people to random groups in a study.

Double blind procedure

An experimental procedure when both research staff and participants are ignorant of which groups received treatment or a placebo.

Placebo

A result caused by expectation alone; any effect on behavior caused by the administration of an inert substance or condition, which the recipient assumes is an active agent.

Descriptive statistics

Numerical data organized to measure and describe characteristics of a group. Includes measures of central tendency (single score that represents a whole set o scores: mean, median, mode) and measures of variation (distribution curve).

Inferential statistics

Data that allows one to generalize/ infer from sample data the probability of a study being true to a population, statistics are reliable with representative samples that accurately represents the characteristics of a larger group, contains less variability and contains more cases/data.

Statistical Significance

Statement of how likely it is that na obtained result occurred by chance.

Meta Analysis

Method of research where researchers combine findings from multiple studies to draw a conclusion.

Dendrites

A neuron’s branching fiber that receives information and conducts it toward the cell body.

Axon

A neuron extent-ion fiber that passes through its terminal branches to other neurons or to muscles or glands

Myeline Sheath

A layer of fatty tissue encasing the axons, insulating them and speeds their impulses/ greater transmission speed.

Cell Body (soma)

A cell’s “life-support”/ HQ.

Action Potential

Brief electrical charge fired from the neuron to transmit messages.

Refactory Period

State of inactivity that occurs after a neuron has fired. After the depolarization the neuron pumps the positively charged sodium ions back outside to prepare to fire another pulse.

Threshold

Level of stimulation require to trigger a neural impulse. Excitatory signals outweigh inhibitory signals

All or none response

Neuron’s reaction to either firing or not.

Reuptake

Reabsorption of neurotransmitters by the sending neuron.

Synapse

Space between the axion tip and the dendrite or cell body. AKA Synaptic gap/clef.

Neurotransmitters

Chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gap between neurons. Released by the sending neuron, they bind to receptor neurons on the receiving site to excite or inhibit.

Acetylcholine

Enables muscle action, learning, and memory

Dopamine

Influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion. Too much = Schizophrenia

Serotonin

Affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal

Norepinephrine

Helps control alertness and arousal

GABA (Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid)

A major inhibitory transmitter

Glutamate

A Major excitatory transmitter; involved in memory

Endorphines

Natural opiate, neurotransmitters linked to pain control and pleasure.

Agonists

Molecules that mimic neurotransmitters by binding to receptor sites and amplifying the response.

Antagonists

Molecules that block neurotransmitters from opening up receptor sites and reducing the response.

Selected Seretonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI)

Prevents reuptake of seretonin.

Nervous System

Body’s communications network consisting all the nerve cells.

Sensory Neurons

Afferent; input; Carry information from the body’s tissues and sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord.

Motor Neurons

Efferent; output; lies within the Peripheral nervous system (rear of the front lobe); carries information from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands.

Interneurons

Only found in the central nervous system (spinal cord & brain), it processes information internally and intervenes between the sensory inputs and motor outputs/.

Multiple Sclerosis

Disease that affects the myelin sheath & motor neurons

Neural network

Cluster of neurons that connect with each other to build short and fast connections, helps develop specific skills.

Endocrine System

Second communication network that secretes hormones into the bloodstream that affects other tissues including the brain. Slower than nervous system.

Hypothalamus

Brain region controlling endocrine system via the pituitary gland. Governs bodily maintenance. Helps maintain a steady internal state and regulates hormones.

Thyroid

Affects metabolism

Parathyroid

Helps regulate levels of calcium in the blood.

Adrenal glands

Releases cortisol, the flight or fight hormones

Pituitary gland

Secretes many different hormones, some of which affects other glands. Known as the master gland.

Pancreas

Regulates level of sugar in the blood.

Testes/Ovaries

Secretion of male/female sex hormones.

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

An amplified recording of the waves of electrical activity sweeping across the brain’s surface. Measured by electrodes placed on the brain.

Computed Tomography Scan (CT/CAT)

Examines the brain by taking a series of X-ray photographs taken from different angles and combined by a computer into a representation of a slice of the brain’s structure. Can reveal brain damage.

Positron Emission Tomography Scan (PET)

Examines through a visual display of brain activity by detecting where a radioactive form of glucose travels while the brain performs a task.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

Scans that show brain anatomy by using magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer-generated images of soft tissue.

Functional MRI (fMRI)

Method used by comparing MRI scans taken less than a second apart to reveal brain activity and its structure through blood flow. Shows how the brain functions.

Brainstem

Brain’s oldest and innermost region.

Medulla

Brain part that controls heartbeat and breathing

Pons

Oldest brain part that helps coordinate movements voluntarily (autonomous).

Thalamus

The brain’s sensory control center, receives information from all senses except smell and routes it to higher brain regions