AP Psychology Final Exam

Psychology

The Science of Behavior and Mental Processes

Socrates and Plato

thought the mind and body were separate and that the mind goes on after death. Also thought Knowledge was innate.

Aristotle

student of Plato; thought knowledge was obtained through experiences

Rene Descartes

thought the mind and body were separate

John Locke

thought a mind at birth was a blank slate. helped form empiricism

empiricism

knowledge is from experiences and therefor science should only rely on observations and experiments.

Wilhelm Wundt

father of Psychology

Edward Titchner

introduced structuralism which relied on introspection

introspection

looking inward. An unreliable idea as the answers given differed from person to person

William James

functionalist, taught Mary Whiton Calkin

Mary Whiton Calkin

was not allowed to get her Ph.D in Psychology but moved on to become the first woman president of the American Psychology Association (APA)

Margaret Floy Washburn

first woman to get a Ph.D in Psychology and second woman president of the APA

experimental Psychologists

explore with experiments

behaviorists

rely on observation

humanistic psychology

Carl Rogers; having our needs satisfied

cognitive Neuroscience

Brain activity in link to Mental activity

Biggest debate in Psychology

Nature V.S. Nurture

Natural Selection

Charles Darwin's Idea that those traits promoting survival will be carried on to the next generation. Survival of the fittest

levels of analysis

the differing complementary views which show different reasons as for why something might occur

biopsychosocial approach

combines biological, psychological and social-cultural

biological psychology

studies the links between biological and psychological

evolutionary psychology

uses natural selection to see why we have certain traits

Psychodynamic psychology

unconscious drives and conflicts influence behavior

behavioral psychology

rely on observable behavior

cognitive psychology

focuses on mental activity (thinking, knowing, remembering, communicating) to explain behavior

social-cultural psychology

the study of how culture effects behavior and thinking

psychometrics

the study of the measurement of human ability

basic research

study that aims to increase the knowledge base

developmental psychology

the study of how we change throughout our life span

educational psychology

how psychological processes effect learning and teaching

personality psychology

the study of an individuals way of acting, feelings and thinking

social psychology

how people influence each other

applied research

study that aims to solve problems

Industrial-organizational psychology

the application of psychological concepts to improve human behavior in workplaces

hindsight bias

the 'I knew it all along' phenomenon. the tendency to believe, after knowing the answer, that you would have gotten it before

operational definition

the definition of an object according to how it is used in a certain situation

case study

observation of one single patient; CANNOT BE GENERALIZED

survey

to obtain self reported behaviors of a group

population

everyone in the group being studied

random sample

a way to get a representative sample because everyone gets an even chance of being picked

naturalistic observation

observing behavior in natural environment

correlation

measure of how to factors relate to eachother

correlation coefficient

the number that represents the relationship of the factors (-1 to 1)

illusory correlation

the thought that a relationship is there when it is not

random assignment

randomly assigning participants IN AN EXPERIMENT to control and experimental groups

double-blind procedure

in an experiment neither the subject nor the researcher know which has the placebo

placebo effect

experimental results from expectation; the expected results still occur with a substitute stimulus

confounding variable

a factor other than the independent that could effect the dependent

mode

most frequently occurring number in a set of data

mean

average

median

middle score

standard deviation

a computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean

culture

behaviors, ideas, attitudes and traditions shared by a group of people and carried on through generations

informed consent

people must be informed of the experiment in order to give permission

debriefing

post experimental explanation
of the study and its purposes

neuron

a nerve cell, the basic building block of the nervous system

sensory neurons

neurons that carry incoming information from the sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord

motor neurons

neurons that carry outgoing information from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands

interneurons

neurons within the brain and spinal cord that communicate internally and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs

dendrite

the branching extensions of a neuron that RECEIVE messages

axon

the extension of a neuron ending in fibers, through which messages are sent to other neurons

myelin sheath

a layer of fatty tissue that insulates the neurons and helps speed impulses

action potential

a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon

threshold

the level of stimulation needed to trigger a neural impulse

synapse

the junction between the end of the axon and the dendrite, the space is called the synaptic gap

neurotransmitters

a chemical messenger that traveles through the synaptic gap between neurons and attaches to the dendrite

reputake

a neurotransmitters reabsorption by the sending neuron

endorphins

neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure

nervous system

the body's communication network consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous system

central nervous system

the brain and spinal cord

peripheral nervous system

the sensory and motor nervous system that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body

nerves

bundled axons that form neural 'cables' that connect the central nervous system to the muscles, glands, and sense organs

somatic nervous system

the division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body skeletal muscles

autonomic nervous system

the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and muscles

sympathetic nervous system

the division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body mobilizing its energy in stressful situations

parasympathetic nervous system

the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body

reflex

a simple autonomic response to a sensory stimulus

endocrine system

the body's slow chemical communication system, a set of glands that secrete hormones into the blood stream

hormones

chemical messengers that are created by glands and travel through the blood stream

adrenal glands

a pair of endocrine glands that is above the kidneys and arouse the boy during stress

pituitary gland

the gland that regulates growth and controls other glands under control of the hypothalamus

Lesion

tissue destruction. It can occur naturally or experimentally by the caused distruction/remove of brain tissues

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

An amplified recording of the waves of electrical activity that sweep across the brain's surface. These waves are measured by electrodes placed on the scalp.

CT (computed tomography) scan

a series of x-ray photographs taken from different angles and combined by computer into a composite representation of a slice through the body. Also called a CAT scan

(PET) Positron emission tomography scan

A visual display of brain activity that detects where a radioactive form of glucose goes while the brain performs a given task.

MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)

a technique that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer generated images that distinguish among different types of soft tissues; allows us to see structures within the brain.

Brainstem

the oldest part and central core of brain. AKA reticular formation, or reticular activating system. In charge of automatic survival functions

Medualla

The base of the brainstem. responsible for breathing and circulation. (heart beat)

Reticular Formation

Responisble for arousal, filters sensory information

Pons

sleep and arousal

Thalamus

the brains 'sensory switch board' located at top of brainstem; directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex

Cerebellum

"little brain" In charge of muscle movement, balance, and coordination.

Limbic system

A system of neural structures at the border of brainstem. Associated with emotions like fear, aggression, and drives such as those for food and sex. Includes the Hippocampus, Amygdala and hypothalamus.

Amygdala

neural clusters that are components of the limbic system and are linked to emotion. (fear & aggression)

Hypothalamus

a neural structure lying below the thalamus. directs (eating, drinking, body temperature), governs the endocrine system via pituitary, linked to emotion and "reward center"

Hippocampus

Limbic system (emotion), processes memory

Cerebral cortex

Fabric of interconnected neuron cells. Higher order thinking. Takes meaning and puts it to focus.

Glial Cells

Cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons.

Frontal Lobes

the portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead; involved in speaking and muscle movements (motor cortex) and in making plans and judgments.

Parietal lobes

The portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; includes the sensory cortex (touch / feeling).