Studied by 23 people
Social Psychology
the study of how the presence of other people influences the ways we think, feel, and behave
Self-identity
the way we understand ourselves in relation to others
Attribution
quick cognitive processes that happen outside of our conscious awareness to give a reason that people do things
Internal Attribution
inference that it’s internal issues
External Attribution
inference that it’s external issues
Central Route Persuasion
influence of pros, cons, logical reasons on feelings
Peripheral Route Persuasion
influence of emotions on feelings
Cognitive Dissonance
the state of having inconsistent thoughts, beliefs, or attitudes, especially as relating to behavioral decisions and attitude change
Design
how the research was structured
Execution
how the research was conducted
Evaluation
how are the results interpreted
Hypothesis
Restatement of a question in a way that can be tested, must be falsifiable. Relational Hypothesis- predicts that two variables are related. Causal Hypothesis- predicts that one variable causes another
Independent Variable
the variable that the researcher manipulates
Dependent Variable
the “effect” or the result of the experimental treatment
Confounding Variable
anything that influenced the dependent variable besides the independent variable
Single Blind
where the subjects don’t know the details of the experiment
Double Blind
neither subjects nor experimenters know the details of the experiment
Placebo Effect
when a person's physical or mental health appears to improve after taking a placebo or 'dummy' treatment
Mean
arithmetic average
Median
the measurement of the exact middle of an ordered range
Mode
the value that occurs most often
Range
difference between the lowest and highest values
Cognitive Psychology
approach emphasizes the mental processes involved in perception, decision-making, problem solving, and the ways we construct meaning; suggests that distorted patterns of understanding and interpreting experiences and relationships are responsible for abnormal thoughts and behaviors
Biological Psychology
approach emphasizes biological structures and electro-chemical processes; explains motivation in terms of instincts, drives, and needs; explains mental illnesses as diseases of the mind that, like ordinary physical diseases have discrete physical causes
Behavioral Psychology
approach emphasizes the relationship between environmental influences and behavior, along with what has been reinforced; explains motivation in terms of external forces, rewards, and consequences; suggests that abnormal thoughts and behaviors are learned by association, punishment, and reinforcement
Humanistic Psychology
approach emphasizes thoughts, feelings, and innate human goodness and potential; explains motivation in terms of an intrinsic human need to grow and achieve; explains mental illnesses in terms of circumstances blocking one's progress toward self-actualization
Psychoanalytic Psychology
emphasizes unconscious processes; explains mental illnesses in terms of unconscious psychic conflicts
Rationalism
Rene Descartes, first branch of philosophy's approach to thought, deductive reasoning- beginning from a premise of truth that is certain and deducing one conclusion from another
Empiricism
Francis Bacon, inductive reasoning- arriving at conclusions that started with observations
Phrenology
Dr. Franz Gall, "science" that suggested that the shape of the skull was an indicator of a person's character and personality
Structuralism
early approach to psychology focused on describing mental experiences in terms of complex structures made from increasingly simpler component structures
Functionalism
focused on discovering survival and reproductive advantages that behaviors and mental functions provided
Wilhelm Wundt
credited as the founder of scientific psychology, established a psychology laboratory at the University of Leipzig in 1879
Williams James
father of American psychology, theorized that consciousness and emotions evolved as a complex mix of physical processes that equipped our ancestors for the challenges of survival
Reductive
mental structures and behaviors consist of even simpler component structures and behaviors
Moral Relativism
worldview in which standards of behavior are based on an individual's temporal framework of values and beliefs and not on any absolutes
The Study of the Brain and Nervous System
neuro-psychology, neuro-anatomy, neuro-biology
Dendrites and Axons
specialized extensions that neurons use to communicate with each other
Motor Neurons
carry signals from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands
Sensory Neurons
carry signals from the sense receptors in the body to the brain
Interneurons
exist exclusively in the brain and spinal cord and make up about 90% of all human neurons
Excitatory Neurotransmitters
the chemical signal increases the likelihood that neighboring neurons will fire
Inhibitory Neurotransmitters
the signal lowers the likelihood that other neurons will fire
Peripheral Nervous System
consists of all the neurons running throughout the body outside of the brain and spinal cord; divided into somatic and autonomic
Autonomic Nervous System
controls involuntary body functions like circulation, respiration, perspiration, and digestion; divided into the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems
Phineas Gage
metal rod driven through his head, accident demonstrated that there is a connection between the brain and personality
Glial Cells
support neural functioning by digesting dead neurons, producing myelin sheathing, and providing nutrition to neurons
Psychotropic Medications
affect the supply of neurotransmitters or the way in which they are absorbed
Central Nervous System
consists of the brain and spinal cord
Neuron
most basic building block of the nervous system
Somatic Nervous System
controls voluntary muscle movement and makes connections between the motor cortex of the brain and the muscles used in movement
Electroencephalograph (EEG)
records electrical voltage produced when neurons fire, shows brain activity
Computer Axial Tomography (CT scan)
involves rotating an x-ray machine around the brain to produce a series of images, shows brain structure
Positron Emission Tomography (PET scan)
produces real-time three-dimensional images of the brain at work, shows both brain structure and activity
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
uses magnetic fields and radio waves to create detailed images of the brain, shows both brain structure and activity
Sympathetic System
creates an excited state and mobilizes the body for action by accelerating some functions and decelerating others
Parasympathetic System
restores the body to a state of rest and relaxation
Forebrain
largest part of the brain making up about two-thirds of the brain's size; includes the cerebral cortex, thalamus, hypothalamus, amygdala, and hippocampus
Corpus Callosum
nerve fibers connecting the left and right hemispheres
Amygdala
almond shaped structure located deep in the temporal lobe and plays a role in fear and other emotions, learning, memory, attention, and perception
Cerebellum
second largest structure in the brain and is associated with movement, coordination, balance, and motor-related memory
Psyche
means mind/soul
ABC's of Psychology
affect (emotions), behavior, cognition
Nervous System
most complex system in the known universe; made up of the Central and Peripheral
Naturalism
worldview that believes all mental activity must ultimately be nothing more than biochemical processes and can be applied to all psychological approaches
Lobotomy
developed by Egas Moniz, psycho-surgery involving removal or alteration of part of the brain
Neuro-transmission
process of converting physical stimuli into neural energy
Absolute Threshold
refers to the minimum intensity of a stimulus that will stimulate an organ to operate. The lowest intensity of something we can sense
Rods
most sensitive to low levels of light and give us night vision
Cones
photoreceptor cells that operate best at high levels of light and are responsible for color vision and vision acuity, activated by electromagnetic energy
Chemoreceptors
respond to chemical substances
Mechanoreceptors
respond to mechanical energy
Just Noticeable Difference
refers to a receptor cell's ability to detect subtle changes in stimulus strength
Nociceptors
extend from the spinal cord to the body and are involved in the experience of pain
Kinesthetic System
the sensory system which tells you what is being done to your body and what your body is doing
Vestibular System
provides the sense of balance and the information about body position that allows rapid compensatory movements in response to both self-induced and externally generated forces.
Motivation
inner state and process that arouses, directs, maintains, and terminates behavior; intrinsic- coming from within; extrinsic- coming from an outside force
Reflexes
automatic, involuntary, and unlearned patterns of behavior that are triggered by particular stimuli
Drive Reduction Theory
biological needs (drives) are the primary motivator of human behavior
Drives
unpleasant internal states of tension which arouse us to take action to meet the need, restore homeostasis, and reduce internal tension
Abraham Maslow
father or humanistic psychology; believed people are born with a motivation to grow toward self-actualization; made the hierarchy of needs
Arousal Theory
we are motivated to achieve our individually optimal state of arousal
Stress
generalized response to a perceived threat; general adaptation syndrome describes the 3 human reactions to prolonged stress
Iris
colored part of the eye and contains the muscles that open and close the pupil
Retina
rounded screen at the back of the eye and contains photoreceptors called rods and cones
Figure-Ground Perception
what a person sees depends on what features they pay more attention to
Paranormal Psychology
refers to any phenomena that is not replicable, "physically" impossible, not explainable by natural processes, or beyond the range of normal experience
6 Basic Human Emotions by Paul Ekman
happiness, sadness, anger, fear, surprise, disgust
Extinction
when a conditioned response ends after the conditioned stimulus is no longer repeatedly paired with the unconditioned stimulus
Classical Conditioning
describes a learning process that occurs when two stimuli are repeatedly paired
Unconditioned Response
an organism's reflexive unlearned response to a stimulus
Neutral Stimulus
does not elicit a reflexive response
Shaping
describes reinforcing when a subject gets close to the desired behavior
Fixed Ratio Reinforcement
the behavior is reinforced after a fixed number of responses
Reinforcement
a consequence of behavior that increases the likelihood that a response will occur
Punishment
a consequence of behavior that decreases the likelihood that a response will occur
Continuous Reinforcement Schedules
reinforce a behavior every time it occurs
Sensory Memory
like a temporary buffer of memory where information is held very briefly and evaluated for further processing
Latent Learning
a form of learning that is not immediately demonstrated or needed and occurs without direct reinforcement
Social Learning
theory proposes that we learn from one another through observation, imitation, and modeling
Note 
Flashcard (46)