General Psychology Study Guide Chapters 1-4

The textbook describes behavior as ____ and mental processes as _____

behavior is everything we do that can be directly observed; mental processes are the thoughts, feelings, and motives that each of us experiences privately but that cannot be observed directly.

What theorist used structuralism to study human behavior?

Wilhelm Wundt

Which psychological approach stresses the role of conscious processes and unresolved childhood conflicts?

Psychoanalysis Approach or psychodynamic

Which psychological approach suggests people have the ability to control their own lives and are not simply controlled by the environment?

Humanistic Approach

Does the descriptive research method include “experiments”?

No

Be sure you understand when you would use the “experimental” method of collective research samples regarding a specific population

When establishing casual relationships between variables

With regard to data collection for research purposes, be sure you understand the term “population” and “sample”

Population is the entire group about which the investigator wants to draw conclusions; Sample is the subset of the population chosen by the investigator for study

In research work, what do the terms “random assignment” and “random sample” refer to?

Random sample is a sample that gives every member of the population an equal chance of being selected; Random assignment is a Researchers’ assignment of participants to groups by chance, to reduce the likelihood that an experiment’s results will be due to preexisting differences between groups.

“Informed consent” refers to what with regard to research?

Inform participants about the purpose of the research expected duration and procedures, the foreseeable consequences withdrawing, risks, discomfort, and adverse effects, prospective research benefits, limits of confidentiality and participants lights to ask questions and receive answers.

What does the textbook say about us becoming better consumers of psychology in everyday life?

• avoid generalizing based on little information

• distinguish between group results and individual needs

• look for answers beyond and single study

• avoid attributing causes where none have been found

• consider source and psychological information

Which of our systems is related to the “electrochemical communication system”?

The nervous system

The tiny spaces between neurons are called what?

Synapses

Describe neurotransmitters.

• stored in synaptic sacs withing terminal buttons

• Chemical signals take place which allow electrical impulses to cross synaptic gaps

Describe the process of “brain lesioning”

Abnormal disruption in the tissue of the brain resulting from injury or disease

Know the parts of the hind brain

medulla, cerebellum, and pons

What is the function of the medulla?

Controls vital functions such as breathing and heart rate and helps regulate reflexes. (Begins where the spinal cord enters the skull)

With regard to the brain’s ability to make repairs to itself, what does the term, “substitution of function” mean?

Damaged region’s function is taken over by another brain area

Researchers have documented neurogenesis in only two brain regions. What are those two brain regions?

hippocampus and the olfactory bulb

Describe chromosomes

In the human cell, threadlike structures that come in 23 pairs, one member of each pair originating from each parent, and that contain DNA.

Describe DNA

A complex molecule in the cell’s chromosomes that carries genetic information.

Describe perception

The process of organizing and interpreting sensory information so that it makes sense.

Describe sensory receptors

Specialized cells that detect stimulus information and transmit it to sensory (afferent) nerves and the brain.

• vision, hearing, tough, smell, and taste

• openings through which the brain and nervous system experience the world

How would you define a “perceptual set”?

A predisposition or readiness to perceive something in a particular way.

Where are the rods and cones located? Be specific

The fovea (tiny area in center of retina) contains only cones and is vital to many visual task, Rods are found almost everywhere on the retina excepts in the fovea.

Which theory of vision can best explain the occurrence of “afterimages”

opponent-process theory

The concept of “the whole is more than the sum of its parts” is best related to which group of psychologists?

Gestalt psychology

What are the functions of frequency and amplitude with regard to sound waves.

frequency: The number of cycles (full wavelength) that pass through a point in a given time interval.

Amplitude: measured in decibels (dB), is the amount of pressure the sound wave produces relative to standard.

Do cochlear implants work by amplifying sound?

No

What type of sensory receptors can detect a child’s fever

thermoreceptors

The sensory receptors for the kinesthetic sense are located in _______ and _________

muscle and joints

William James described the mind as?

a stream of consciousness, a continuous flow of changing sensations, images, thoughts, and feelings

Awareness and arousal are associated with different parts of the brain. What are those two parts called"?

Awareness: prefrontal cortex

Arousal: reticular activating system

The term circadian rhythm refers to what?

• daily (24-hour) behavioral or physiological cycle

• sleep/wake, body temperature, blood pressure, blood sugar levels

  • these rhythms respond primarily to light and dark in our environment. They’re found in most living things including animals and plants

According to research, does staying up all night to study for an exam increase or decrease memory performance?

Decrease

True or False: The United States has the lowest rate of adolescent drug use of any industrialized nation.

False

Psychoactive drugs that slow down mental and physical activity are called what?

Depressants

True or False: People highly responsive to hypnotic suggestion tend to have the capacity to immerse themselves in deeply imaginative activities.

True

According to research, can hypnosis reduce the experience of pain?

Yes

Define the term meditation

The attainment of a peaceful state of mind in which thoughts are not occupied by worry; the meditator is mindfully present to their thoughts and feelings but is not consumed by them.

What type of meditation is known to have beneficial effects on a variety of conditions

Mindfulness meditation