psychology quiz questions (ch 1 + 2)

structuralism

early school of thought in psychology, focused on breaking experience down into its smallest elements or structures

functionalism

early school of thought in psychology, focused on how the mind helps us adapt to our environment

psychoanalytic psychology

model based on premise that the unconscious mind is the most powerful influence on personality and psychological functioning

behaviorism

movement in psychology which began in the early 1900s, based on premise that only behaviors that are directly observable can be studied scientifically

humanism

movement in psychology which began in the 1920s, focused on the uniqueness of individuals and their innate potential for growth

Dr. Logan is interested in research on memory, problem solving and decision making.  Which movement in psychology matches Dr. Logan's research?

cognitive science

Which of the following central themes of psychology is to describe, explain, predict, and change behavior?

goals of psychology

During a therapy session, Dr. Joseph asks her patient to think about what might happen next week at work if they continue to behave the same way that they have been toward their boss. In doing this, Dr. Joseph is focusing on which of the following goals of psychology?

predict

Identify the items below as either P (Person) variables or E (Environmental) variables

having a friendly boss

e variable

Identify the items below as either P (Person) variables or E (Environmental) variables.

having only a small group of friends

e variable

Identify the items below as either P (Person) variables or E (Environmental) variables.

being a nervous person

p variable

Identify the items below as either P (Person) variables or E (Environmental) variables.

describing yourself as stubborn

p variable

Dr. Rodriguez studies development in young children.  She believes the best way to do this is to observe toddlers and young children in their natural environments like while they are at school, at home, or on the playground.  Which paradigm matches Dr. Rodriguez's approach?

constructivism

Dr. Grey sends out a questionnaire to a large sample of people.  The questionnaire contains multiple items related to the topics of sleep, activity level, and eating behaviors.  What research method is Dr. Grey using?

survey

Dr. Kim is interested in the topics of sleep, stress level, and eating behaviors.  He collects existing data from several doctors on their patients' reported hours of sleep, stress level, and number of calories consumed and then looks to see what relationships exist between the values reported.  What research method is Dr. Kim using?

correlational methods

descriptive methods

research methods that focus on making observations in order to answer the "what" question

correlational methods

research methods that allow researchers to investigate how two variables are related

experimental methods

research methods that attempt to isolate cause by manipulating a variable that is hypothesized to be the cause of another variable

Dr. Garcia finds that as time spent playing video games goes up so does level of fatigue.  Which of the following is the strongest correlation to represent this relationship?

+0.81

The more alcohol people consume, the less accurate they are when performing a motor task.  This represents a ______ correlation.

negative

If by knowing the value of one variable you cannot accurately predict the value of the other variable this is known as a ____ correlation.

zero

Dr. Unsworth is interested in what motivates children.  She has children participate in a series of challenging tasks and tells them that they will be rewarded when they complete a task with either candy, money, or nothing at all.  She measures how long it takes them to complete the tasks.  Identify the independent and dependent variables.

independent and dependent variable

Dr. Graham was interested in how emotions affect eating.  Participants were brought into the lab to watch a movie and were presented with a table of snacks including candy, chocolate, and popcorn.  Participants were randomly assigned to watch either a funny movie, a sad movie, or a scary movie.  At the end of the movie, Dr. Graham calculated how much of each type of snack was consumed by each participant.  Identify the independent and dependent variables.

independent and dependent variable

Dr. DeLoss is interested in whether training can improve vision in older adults.  He first measured visual acuity (clarity of vision) in a sample of 100 people.  He then had a group of 50 participants complete a 15 minute training task once a day for one month.  The other 50 people did nothing different in their routine.  At the end of the month he had both groups participate in another visual acuity test to measure any changes in vision.  Identify the control and experimental groups.

control and experimental group

Which of the following is the most sensitive measure of variability?

standard deviation

Which of the following is a measure of variability that provides the average distance of all scores from the mean?

standard deviation

Dr. Sliter wonders whether movement enhances performance in the office.  He has one group of participants complete a task as they normally would, while sitting in a chair. Another group completes the same task while walking on a treadmill.  He measures time it takes to complete the task. Which of the following should he calculate to determine how variable performance was within each group?

standard deviation

Dr. Wheeler tests the effectiveness of exposure therapy on phobias.  One group of participants is exposed to the object that causes them anxiety.  A second group does not receive the treatment.  Anxiety levels when in the presence of the feared object for both groups are measured after one month.  What is the dependent variable?

measured level of anxiety

Which of the following describes the control group in an experiment?

the group that participates in the “treatment absent” condition in an experiment