PSY 1101 Midterm 1 Flashcards

Volunteer Bias

The Bias where only a motivated fraction of the population responds or participates in the survey

What does SQ3R stand for? What do we use this for?

S – Survey → Skim headings, subheadings, and summaries to get the big picture. 

Q – Question → Turn headings into questions (e.g., “What is classical conditioning?”).

 R – Read → Read the section carefully to find answers to your questions. 

R – Recite → Pause and recall key points in your own words (without looking at the text). 

R – Review → Go back over the material, notes, and questions to reinforce memory. 

What We Use It For 

• To improve comprehension of psychology (and any) textbooks.

•  To retain information longer by actively engaging with the material. 

• To prepare more effectively for exams and assignments. 

Nativism

• Hypothesizes that some forms of knowledge are innate

  • Ex: Priori knowledge, posteriori knowledge.

• Extremely known as biological determinism

Behaviourism

• John B. Watson proposed that psychology should focus solely on study of observable behaviour

• Behaviour develops thru consequences

  • +ive consequences: behaviour increases

  • -ive consequences: behaviour decreases

  • Absolutely NO focus on emotional/mental processes even though it influences our behaviour

Rationalism

• Belief or theory that reason is the key source of knowledge

• Requires reason or knowledge but not experience

• Used by Aristotle to reason human thoughts, perception, and emotions as products of the heart rather than the brain

Flaw: What we think about behaviour is often different from how we actually behave

Ex: it makes sense logically

Response Rate

Instead of having a type of group to respond, most people don’t

Which designs are high constraint? Low constraint? Which allows for causal conclusions?

High Constraints

• Correlational research(relationship)

• Experimental research(casual explanation)

Low constraints

• Case study(description)

• Observation(description)

• surveys( description)

Tenacity

Accepting info as true due to habit, tradition, or stubborn refusal to change one’s belief even when faced with contrary evidence

• Ex: racism; it has always been that way

What makes psychology a science

It uses the scientific method to reach its conclusions and is rooted in empiricism

What are the three measures of central tendency?

• Mean

• Median

• Mode

Systematic Introspection

• A result of structuralism

• Attempts to standardize the way conscious experiences were reported so 1 person's experience can be effectively compared to another

Reflex

• A result of Dualism concept

• It means the body acts without conscious action and is handled by spinal cord

Active Studying

Actively engage with learning material thru methods like discussion, analysis, problem-solving, practice, and retrieval practice

Ex: Using flashcards

What is Random Assignment

• Random assignment means that once participants are chosen for a study, they are placed into groups (e.g., experimental group vs. control group) by chance.

• This reduces the chances that personal factors (like age, intelligence, or personality) will unevenly influence one group more than the other.

• Example: Flipping a coin to decide whether each participant goes into the experimental or control group.

Control Group

The group of participants that is the same as the experimental group in every way except that they don’t receive the treatment component of the manipulated variable.

Case studies

An in-depth analysis of a unique circumstance or individual

Empiricism

• The view that knowledge arises directly from what we observe and experience, making psychology inherently observable in nature

• Developed by John Locke

Identify and order the 6 steps of the scientific method

1. Identify the problem

2. Gather info

3. Generate a hypothesis ( a specific prediction about how/why the variables in question are associated with each other)

4. Design and conduct experiments

5. Analyze data and formulate conclusions

6. Restart the process with a new hypothesis

Cognitive Revolution

A major shift from strict behaviourism due to advances in methodology and measurement

• Psychologists used behaviour as means to make inferences about the processes happening in the mind

What are the 2 main branches of Psychology

Clinical and Experimental 

Clinical

: Helps assess, diagnose, and treat mental and behavioural problems

Experimental

: Researches behaviour and the nervous system

Independent Variable

is something a researcher manipulates

How does Random Assignment and matching ensure groups are similar

• Both random assignment and matching reduce confounding variables (outside factors that could mess up the results).

• They make it more likely that differences between groups at the end of the study are due to the independent variable (what the researcher manipulates) rather than pre-existing differences between participants.

What are three measures of dispersion?

Standard Deviation

Variance

Range

Why is it important that Random Assignment and matching groups are similar

• If groups start out unequal, we can’t be confident that the experimental treatment caused the outcome.

• Random assignment and matching increase the internal validity of a study, meaning the results are more trustworthy and scientific.

Functionalism

• Developed by William

• He argued that structuralism because he believed studying pieces without understanding their FUNCTION would provide no actual insight into workings of the mind

• Believed that psychologists must 1st understand the function of a behaviour or mental processes to understand how its parts work together

Pros/Cons of Surveys

Pros:

• Surveys offer a quick way of collecting lots of information about the current state of people’s opinions, perspectives, and experiences and can be administered in a variety of ways

Cons:

• Response Bias

• Socially Desirable Bias

• Volunteer Bias

• Response Rate

Experimental Groups

The group of participants that receive the treatment component of the manipulated variable( can be more than 1 group treatment)

Authority

Accepting info as true bc it comes from a respected expert, institution, or cultural tradition

EX: The boss says its true

5 methods of Knowledge acquisition

1. Rationalism

2. Empiricism

3. Tenacity

4. Intuition

5. Authority

Socially Desirable Bias

The bias is not indiscriminate, but participants respond in specific ways that they believe would be seen as acceptable by others.

Differentiate between the different types of research design

Descriptive methods: Any means to capture, report, record, or describe a group. usually interested in the ‘what is’ without understanding ‘why it is’

Correlation: A measure(denoted as r) that captures the direction and strength of a relationship between variable

Experimental Methods: Random assignment to groups and control of other variables allow for inference of causality

How do we measure the strength of a correlation?

Based on the correlation coefficient( r) the closer it is to 1 or -1 the stronger the relationship

Ecological Validity

• A result of naturalistic obs.

• When you see the true behaviour of the organism. Observations are either captured qualitatively or quantitatively

• Allows use to better understand behaviour EXACTLY as it happens in the real world

Dualism

• The relationship between behaviour and mind. It is the philosophical position that the mind and body are separate entities

• Descartes, French philosopher, argued that mind is immaterial and could NOT be explained in terms of physical body

What is an example of active listening?

A communication technique that requires fully concentrating on what was being said rather than passively hearing words

EX: A person actively listens to a friend by leaning forward, making eye contact, and occasionally nods to show engagement

Operant Conditioning

• Study of how behaviour can be modified using a system of rewards and punishments

Flaws of Dualism

By placing the mind as an immaterial/ unknowable agent that just forces its will on the body, it removes it from the realm of scientific inquiry, making psychology useless

Phrenology

• Belief that shape of the skull was the result of the size of the brain structures beneath it. The shape of the skull/measurement of bums on head shows a person’s mental capacities

• Developed by Dr. Franz Josef Gall

Flaws of Correlation

• People assume there is a cause and effect relationship between variable

• Correlations are not causation

• Correlations is merely a relationship between 2 variables

• Confounding Variable: Another variable that may influence 1 or both variables that we are measuring, thereby influencing correlation coefficient

• Limited control over variables

• NO manipulation

Pros/Cons of Case Studies

Pros:

• Extreme cases that would be unethical to create

• Good for giving ideas for future research

Cons:

• Because a case study is focused on only one person, group, or event, we can never be sure the conclusions drawn from this particular case can be broadly generalized to other cases.

• Usually descriptive nor explanatory

Naturalistic Observation

Observation of behaviour as it happens in a natural environment, without an attempt to manipulate or control the conditions of the observation.

• Can be observation from afar or can involve participation of observer

• See ‘true’ behaviour

• Can verify lab results

Humanistic psychology

• Critics of psychoanalysis like Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow developed this

• It means patients have free will and capacity to realize their own potential

• Focused on positive aspects of human condition like creativity, choice, and potential for growth

• Goal was to give control back to clients

Describe the 11 early ideas/theories that led to psychology

• Dualism

• Empiricism

• Biological Determinism

• Evolutionary psychology

• Phrenology

• Structuralism

• Functionalism

• Behaviourism

• Cognitive Revolution

• Psychoanalysis

• Humanistic Psychology

Response Bias

The tendency for people to answer the question the way they feel they are expected to answer or in systematic ways that are

Evolutionary Psychology

• Darwin’s insight was that over generations, traits tend to be advantageous for survival and reproduction compared to non-advantageous ones

• Traits were adaptive traits and spread thru natural selection due to benefits provided

Structuralism

• Developed by Wilhelm Wundt and student, Edward Titchener

• Believed that psychology should focus on breaking down immediate conscious experiences into basic elements and understand HOW those elements combine to create experience

Intuition

Something thru immediate, unconscious understanding without conscious reasoning

Ex: a gut feeling, it feels true

Flaws of Naturalistic Obs.

• Researchers lack control over the environment and the many different factors that can affect behavior.

  • lack of control over the environment may weaken the conclusions we can draw.

  • It may also make it difficult for another researcher to replicate the experiment.

Dependent Variable

is the outcome that is measured in an experiment as a response ot the independent variable

Biological Determinism

• Shows that people learn and change due to their experiences

• This is why it is hard for ppl to change their perception due to their additional experience

Matching

• Matching is when researchers deliberately pair or group participants who are similar on certain characteristics (e.g., IQ, gender, age) and then assign one from each pair into different groups. This ensures the groups are as balanced as possible on those key traits.

• Example: If you have two participants with very similar math ability, one goes into the experimental group and the other into the control group.

Flaws of introspection

• Not quantifiable

• people are not aware of their own thinking so we ask ppl with adequate language to tell us their experiences

Structuralism vs functionalism

Example: While a structuralist might understand the length of each individual hair and the average spacing from one follicle to the next, a functionalist would argue that those details are meaningless without knowing that the purpose of fur is to keep the body warm.

Functionalists simply extended the argument from physical traits to include psychological processes as well.

Psychoanalysis

• The process of analyzing the contents of the unconscious mind and treating illnesses from it

• Developed by Sigmund Freud

• It was based on evolutionary theory

Surveys

An efficient way to quickly collect information and gather an understanding of the current state of people’s opinions or attitudes.

Neuron 

A nervous system cell (nerve cell) that sends and receives  electrochemical signals

Glial Cell 

A nervous system cell that supports, nourishes and insulates neurons.

Dendrites

Fibers that receive signals from the other neurons

Soma / cell body

Receives incoming signals from dendrites and passes signals on

Axon

A fiber that extends from the soma and carries signals away from the soma

Myelin Sheath

Covers the axon and increases the speed of the signals

Terminal Buttons

Form junctions with other neurons and release chemical signals 

Action Potential

The electrical signal that moves from the cell body down the axon to the terminal buttons

Neurotransmitters

the chemical signal that crosses the synapse

■Excitatory = Causes Action Potential

■Inhibitory = Does NOT cause Action Potential

■Receiving neuron fires if excitatory > inhibitory

GABA

an inhibitory neurotransmitter binds with its receptor to open a chloride channel

Acetylcholine

normally excitatory neurotransmitter. deterioration in this chemical causes alzheimer's

dopamine

helps with movement, learning, attention…

too much: schizophrenia and anxiety

too little: parkinson’s

Serotonin

mood, hunder, sleep arousal

causes depression and anxiety

Agonists 

chemicals that mimic or enhance the action of neurotransmitter 

antagonist

chemical that comes from outside the body to shut off a receptor 

The Autonomic Nervous System

Responsible for involuntary tasks (e.g., heart rate, digestion and breathing). two sub parts 

sympathetic and parasympathetic

The Somatic Nervous System

Carries nerve impulses back and forth between the CNS and the

skeletal muscles, skin and sensory organs

○Responsible for voluntary muscle movements and

receiving and processing sensory information

Sympathetic

responsible for things we do that require excitement( fight or flight response)

parasympathetic

responsible for resting digestion and repairing the body 

Lesion technique

chemical, cold, electrical

may inhibit basic behaviour

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

A device used to monitor the gross electrical activity of the brain.

• can identify specific pattern of responses to given stimulus (ERP)

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Scan

A method measuring how radioactive substances are absorbed in the brain; it can be used to detect specific effects tasks activate different areas of the living brain.

fMRI

Function and structure

• Watch activity over time, associated with

behaviour

• An fMRI scan identified two brain areas that became especially active when a participant lied about holding a five of clubs.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

A device that used magnetic fields and radio-wave pulses to construct detailed, three-dimensional images of the brain; "functional" MRIs can be used to map changes in blood oxygen use as a function of task activity.

Tans brain 

tan was a person who lost the ability to speak due to a lesion on his left frontal lobe- broncas area. this led to his loss of ability to speak leading to scientists to make assumptions of which area of the brain is responsible for what 

Medulla

control center for heartbeat, breathing, blood pressure, swallowing, and coughing

Pons

Plays role in relaying motor messages between cerebellum and

motor cortex; exerts influence on sleep and dreaming

Reticular formation 

Arousal system; activates cerebral cortex

Cerebellum 

Coordinates skilled movement; regulates muscle tone  and posture; plays a role in motor learning and probably cognition.

Thalamus 

Relay between cerebral cortex and lower brain centers

Limbic System 

Group of structures involved in emotional expression,memory and motivation

What are the two hemispheres of the brain connected by 

corpus callosum

Bronca’s area

Located in the lower left frontal lobe

■Speech information

■Damage causes difficulty producing language, not

understanding it (Broca’s aphasia)

Motor Cortex

Thin band of cortex located near the back of

frontal lobe

■Initiates all voluntary movement

■Motor cortex in each hemisphere controls

movements on the opposite side of the body

Parietal Lobes

Interpret bodily sensations

■Pressure, pain, touch, temperature, location of

body parts

■Space, time and numbers

Somatosensory Cortex

Thin band of cortex on front of parietal lobe

■Receives information about touch and other skin

and visceral (internal organs) senses

Occipital Lobes

Responsible primarily for vision and visual perception

○Damage can produce blindness

■Eyes and neural connection to brain be perfectly functional

primary visual cortex 

Temporal Lobes

Responsible for hearing and language comprehension

Primary Auditory Cortex

Processes sound

■Processes incoming sensory information and

sends it to the parietal and frontal lobes

Wernicke’s area

Located on the left

■Language comprehension and producing

coherent language

Temporal association areas

■Memories of various sounds

hippocampus

acts as a gateway for forming new memories

Phineas gage case

Phineas gage was a person who during an accident was impaled with a meal rod diagonally through the front of his skull. He was completely find, but after a while he started to have a change in personality( become irritated easily)

• this gives insight that the prefrontal cortex is involved in decision making and parts of our personality