AP Psych Unit 1A

Nature-Nurture Issue

The longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors.

Charles Darwin

Argued that natural selection shapes behaviors as well as bodies.

Natural Selection

The principle that the inherited traits enabling an organism to survive and reproduce in a particular environment will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations.

Evolutionary Psychology

The study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection.

Behavior Genetics

The study of the relative power and limits of genetic and environment influences on behavior.

Mutation

A random error in gene replication that leads to a change.

Environment

Every non genetic influence, from prenatal nutrition to our experiences of the people and things around us.

Heredity

The genetic transfer of characteristics from parents to offspring.

Genes

The biochemical unit of heredity.

Genome

The complete instructions for making an organism.

Identical Twins

Individuals who developed from a single fertilized egg that split in two, creating two genetically identical organisms.

Fraternal Twins

Individuals who developed from separate fertilized eggs.

Interaction

The interplay that occurs when the effect of one factor depends on another factor.

Epigenetics

The study of molecular mechanism by which environments can influence genetic expression.

Nervous System

The body speech, electrochemical 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 neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body.

Nerves

Bundled axons that form neural cables connecting the central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sensory organs.

Sensory Neurons

Neurons that carry incoming information from the body's tissue and sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord.

Motor Neurons

Neurons that carry outgoing information from the body's tissue and sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord.

Inter neurons 

Neurons within the brain and spinal cord.

Somatic Nervous System

The division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body's skeletal muscles.

Autonomic Nervous System

The part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs.

Sympathetic Nervous System

The division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy.

Parasympathetic Nervous System

The division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body conserving it energy.

Reflex

A simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee jerk reflex.

Neuron

A nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system.

Cell Body

The part of a neuron that contains the nucleus.

Dendrites

A neurons often bushy, branching extensions that receive and integrate messages, conduction impulses towards the cell body.

Axon

The segmented neuron extension that passes messages through its branches to other neurons or to the muscles or glands.

Myelin Sheath

A fatty tissue layer segmentally encasing the axons of some neurons.

Glial Cells

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

Action Potential

A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon.

Threshold

The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.

Refractory Period

In neural processing, a brief resting pause that occurs after a neuron is fire.

All or none response

A neurons reaction of either firing or not firing.

Synapse

The junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron.

Neurotransmitters

Chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gap between neurons.

Endorphins

Natural opioid like neurotransmitters linked to pain control and pleasure.

Agonist

A molecule that increases a neurotransmitters action

Antagonist

a molecule that inhibits or blocks a neurotransmitters actions.

Endocrine System

The body's chemical communication system; a set of glands and fat tissue that secrete hormones into the bloodstreams.

Hormones

Chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine gland, travail through the bloodstream, and affect others.

Psychoactive Drug

A chemical substance that alters the brain, causing changes in perceptions and mood.

Substance use Disorder

A disorder characterized by continued substance use despite resulting life disruption.

Depressants

Drugs that reduce neural activity and show body functions.

Tolerance

The diminishing effect with regular use of the same dose of a drug requiring the user to take larger and larger doses before experiencing the drug effect.

Addiction

An everyday term for compulsive substance use.

Withdraw

The discomfort and distress that follows discontinuing an addictive drug or behavior.

Barbiturates

Drugs that depress central nervous system activity: reducing anxeity but impairing memory and judgment.

Opioids

Opium and its derivatives, they depress neural activity, temporarily lessening pain and anxiety.

Stimulant

Drugs that excited neural activity and speed up body functions.

Hallucinogens

Psychedelic drugs that distort perception and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input.

Near death experience

An altered state of consciousness reported after a close brush with death.

Biologoical psychology

The scientific study of the links between  biological and psychology process.

Biopsychosocial approach

An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological and social cultural levels of analysis.

Levels of analysis

The differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social culture for analyzing any given phenomenon.

Neuron plasticity

The brain ability to change especially during childhood by reorganizing after damage or building new pathways based on experience.

Hindbrain

Consist of the medulla pons and cerebellum.

Midbrain

Found atop the brain stem.

Forebrain

Consists of the cerebral cortex, thalamus, and hypothalamus; manages complex cognitive actives, sensory and associative functions and voluntary motor activities.

Brainstem

The central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; the brain stem is responsible for automatic survival function.

Medullla

The hind brain structure that is the brain stem base; controls heartbeat breathing.

Thalamus

The for brain sensory controls center located on top of the brain stem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla.

Reticular formation

A nerve network that travels through the brain stem into the thalamus.

Lesion

Tissue destruction.

EEG

An amplifies recording of the waves of electrical activity sweeping across the brains surface.

MEG

A brain imaging technique that measures magnetic fields from the brains natural electrical activity.

CT Scan

A series of x ray photographs taken from different angels and combined by computer into a composite representation of a slice of the brain structure.

PET

A technique for detecting brain activity that displays where a radioactive for of glucose goes while the brain performs a task.