PSYCH ALL TERMS

Mary Whiton Calkins

Mary Whiton Calkins

American psychologist who conducted research on memory, personality, and dreams; first woman president of the American Psychological Association

Charles Darwin

English natural scientist who formulated a theory of evolution by natural selection

Dorothea Dix

Activist who helped improve conditions of mental patients

Sigmun Freud

Create psychoanalytical subfield of psychology

G.Stanley Hall

American psychologist and educator. focused on childhood development and evolutionary theory.

William James

founder of functionalism; studied how humans use perception to function in our environment

Ivan Pavlov

Russian physiologist who observed conditioned salivary responses in dogs

Jean Piaget

Known for his theory of cognitive development in children

Carl Rogers

Humanisic; self-concept and unconditional positive regard drive personality

B.F. Skinner

Behaviorist that developed the theory of operant conditioning by training pigeons and rats

Margaret Floy Washburn

First female to be awarded a PhD in psychology

John B. Watson

famous for Little Albert study in which baby was taught to fear a white rat

Wilhelm Wundt

german physiologist who founded psychology as a formal science; opened first psychology research laboratory in 1879

Structuralism

an early school of psychology that used introspection to explore the elemental structure of the human mind

Functionalism

A school of psychology that focused on how our mental and behavioral processes function - how they enable us to adapt, survive, and flourish.

Gestalt Psychology

a psychological approach that emphasizes that we often perceive the whole rather than the sum of the parts

Psycholanalytic

Attempt to explain how behavior and personality are influenced by unconscious processes

Humanistic Approach

An approach to psychology emphasizing a person's positive qualities, the capacity for positive growth, and the freedom to choose any destiny.

Evolutionary Approach

An approach to psychology centered on evolutionary ideas such as adaptation, reproduction, and natural selection as the basis for explaining specific human behaviors.

Biological Approach

an approach to psychology focusing on the body, especially the brain and nervous system

Cognitive Approach

An approach to psychology emphasizing the mental processes involved in knowing: how we direct our attention, perceive, remember, think, and solve problems.

biopsychosocial approach

an integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis

Sociocultural Approach

An approach to psychology that examines the ways in which social and cultural environments influence behavior.

Biological Domain

Humans are collections of biological systems, and these systems provide building blocks for behavior, thought, and emotion

Clinical Domain

a branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders

Cognitive Domain

changes in thinking, memory, problem solving, and other intellectual skills

Counseling Domain

assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being

Developmental Domain

study of psychological growth across human lifespan

Educational Domain

studies how psychological processes affect and can enhance teaching and learning

Experimental Domain

Studies behavior and thinking using the experimental method

Industrial-Organizational Domain

the application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplaces

Personality Domain

those aspects of development that involve acquiring relatively stable and enduring traits, as well as a sense of self as an individual

Psychometric Domain

Studies measurements of human abilities, attitudes, and traits.

Social Domain

change in variables that are associated with the relationship of an individual to others

Positive Domain

focuses on positive aspects and strengths of human behavior

Ethical Guidelines APA

confidentiality, informed consent, debriefing, deception must be warranted

hindsight bias

the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it

critical thinking

the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgment.

theory

An explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviors or events.

hypothesis

testable prediction

operational definition

A statement of the procedures used to define research variables.

replication

Repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether the basic finding extends to other participants and circumstances.

Case study

An observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles.

Survey

A technique for ascertaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of a particular group, usually by questioning a representative, random sample of the group.

Population

all the cases in a group being studied, from which samples may be drawn

Random Sample

a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion

Naturalistic observation

observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation

Correlation

A measure of the extent to which two factors vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other.

Correlation coefficient

a statistical index of the relationship between two things (from -1 to +1)

scatterplot

A graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variables

illusory correlation

a variable (often denoted by x ) whose variation does not depend on that of another.

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

A neuron's bushy, branching extensions that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body.

axon

the extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands

myelin sheath

A layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed of neural impulses as the impulse hops from one node to the next.

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

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 gaps between neurons.

reuptake

a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the sending neuron

endorphins

"morphine within"--natural, opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure.

nervous system

the body's speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems

central nervous system

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 sense organs

somatic nervus system

voluntary control of skeletal muscle

autonomic nervous system

A subdivision of the peripheral nervous system. Controls involuntary activity of visceral muscles and internal organs and glands.

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, conserving its energy

reflex

a simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus

endocrine system

The body's "slow" chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream.

hormones

chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues

adrenal glands

glands that help the body recover from stress and respond to emergencies

pituitary glands

The endocrine system's most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, the pituitary regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands.

lesion

tissue destruction. A brain lesion is a naturally or experimentally caused destruction of brain tissue

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 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

PET scan

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

MRI

a technique that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer-generated imagess of soft tissue; allows us to see structures within the brain

fMRI

A technique for revealing blood flow and, therefore, brain activity by comparing successive MRI scans.

brainstem

the oldest part and central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; the brainstem is responsible for automatic survival functions

medulla

the base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing

reticular formation

a nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal

thalamus

the brain's sensory switchboard, located on top of the brainstem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla

cerebellum

the "little brain" at the rear of the brainstem; functions include processing sensory input and coordinating movement output and balance

limbic system

associated with emotion and drives

amygdala

two lima bean-sized neural clusters in the limbic system; linked to emotion.

hypothalamus

directs maintenance activties and is liked to emotion and reward

cerebral cortex

The intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells covering the cerebral hemispheres; the body's ultimate control and information-processing center.

glial cells

cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons

frontal lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex that has specialized areas for movement, abstract thinking, planning, memory, and judgement

parietal lobes

portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; receives sensory input for touch and body position

occipital lobes

portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; includes areas that receive information from the visual fields

temporal lobes

portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; includes the auditory areas, each receiving information primarily from the opposite ear

motor cortex

an area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements

sensory cortex

area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations

association areas

areas of the cerebral cortex that are not involved in primary motor or sensory functions; rather, they are involved in higher mental functions such as learning, remembering, thinking, and speaking

aphasia

impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca's area (impairing speaking) or to Wernicke's area (impairing understanding).