EXAM 1, CH 1-4 [PSY-1010]

What is psychology?

Scientific study of the mind and behavior

What is Hindsight Bias?

Tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that we could have predicted it.

What is judgmental overconfidence?

People assuring they know more than they do.

What is critical thinking?

A more careful style of forming and evaluating knowledge.

What is theory? (S.M.)

Explanation using a set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviors or events.

• Also gives a general idea for an experiment.

What is a hypothesis? (S.M.)

A testable prediction that is often implied by a theory.

• Provides a potential outcome to base your experiment off of.

What is an operational definition? (S.M.)

A carefully worded statement of the exact procedures used in a research study.

• Helpful for scientists to try a study themselves.

What is replication? (S.M.)

Repeating the focus of a research study to see if it is true.

• Can be done with different participants/situations.

What is descriptive research?

Systematic, objective observation of people.

• Provides a clear, accurate image of people’s behaviors, thoughts, and attributes.

What are case studies?

• Examines one individual in-depth

• Provides fruitful ideas

• Cannot be used to generalize

What are naturalistic observations?

• Records behavior in the natural environment

• Describes but does not explain behavior

• Can be revealing

What are surveys?

• Examines many cases in less depth

• Wording effect + Random sampling

• Utilizes random sampling of the population for best results

What is correlation?

An observation that two traits/attributes are related to each other.

What is a positive correlation?

Indicates a direct relationship; two things increase together or decrease together.

• Has a range of 0 and +1.00

What is negative correlation?

Indicates an inverse relationship; one thing increases, the other decreases.

• Range of 0 and -1.00

What is the correlation coefficient?

A statistical measure of how close two things vary together and how well one predicts the other.

What are independent variables?

The factor being manipulated and studied in a study.

What are dependent variables?

The factor that is being measured in a study.

What are brain lesions?

Experiment that destroys brain tissue to study animal behaviors after destruction.

What are clinical observations?

Sheds light on brain disorders.

Who is Phineas Gage?

Had a metal rod pierce his head, revolutionary study with the hand and drawing

What are the parts of a neuron?

Dendrites, axons, and cell body or soma.

What is a neurotransmitter?

A chemical messenger that allows nerve cells to communicate with other cells in the body.

What does serotonin do?

• Affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal

• Undersupply linked to depression

What does dopamine do?

• Influences movement, learning, attention, and emotions

• Oversupply linked to schizophrenia

• Undersupply linked to tremors and decreased mobility to Parkinson’s Disease

What do endorphins do?

• Influences perception of pain and pleasure

• Oversupply of opioids can stun the perception

What is Broca’s Aphasias?

Non-fluent aphasia in which the output of spontaneous speech is markedly diminished and there is a loss of normal grammatical structure

What is Wernicke’s Aphasias?

Language disorder that affects your ability to make sense when speaking

What is plasticity?

The brain’s ability to modify itself after some types of injuries or illness.

What part of the body does the left brain control?

Right half.

What part of the body does the right brain control?

Left half.

What is consciousness?

Awareness of self and environment.

What is inattentional blindness?

Failure to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere.

What is blindsight awareness?

Condition in which a person can respond to a visual stimulus without consciously experiencing it.

What are the different states of consciousness?

• Spontaneously

• Physiologically induced

• Psychologically induced

What is dual processing?

Principle that info is often simultaneously processed on separate conscious and unconscious tracks.

What is selective attention?

Focusing conscious awareness on a particular stimulus.

What is sleep?

Periodic, natural loss of consciousness.

What is circadian rhythm?

Internal biological clock of the 24 hour cycle of day and night.

• Can change as we age.

What is REM sleep?

Sleep stage during which vivid dreams commonly occur.

Why do we dream?

It’s our brains way of processing memories.

What are the functions of sleep?

• Plays a protective role in human evolution

• Restores and repairs damaged neurons

• Promotes creative problem solving

• Secretes growth hormones for muscle development

What is sleep deprivation? (S. Disorder)

• Causes fatigue and irritability

• Impairs concentration, productivity, and memory consolidation

• Leads to depression, obesity, joint pain, suppressed immune system and slowed performance

What is insomnia? (S. Disorder)

• Recurring problems in falling/staying asleep

What is narcolepsy? (S. Disorder)

• Sudden uncontrollable sleep attacks, sometimes lapsing directly into REM sleep

What is sleep apnea? (S. Disorder)

• Stop breathing while asleep

• Associated with obesity, especially in men

What are night terrors? (S. Disorder)

• High arousal and appearance of being terrified

What is sleepwalking + sleeptalking? (S. Disorder)

• Physical activity in the body while in an unconscious state

What is tolerance?

With repeated use, the desired effect requires larger doses.

What is addiction?

Compulsive craving for drugs or certain behaviors despite known harmful consequences.

What is withdrawal?

Discomfort and distress that follow discontinuing an addictive drug or behavior.

What are the types of drugs?

• Depressants

• Hallucinogens

• Stimulants

What are depressants?

• Drugs that calm neural activity and slow body functions

• Can include alcohol, tranquilizers, and opiates

What are hallucinogens?

• Drugs that distorts perceptions and calls up sensory images without any input from the senses

• Can include weed, LSD, and Ecstasy

What are stimulants?

• Drugs that excite neural activity and speed up body functions

• Involves dilation of pupils, increase in heart rate, rise in blood sugar, increase in confidence, and drop in appetite

• Can include caffeine, nicotine, and crack

What is nature?

The genetic makeup that makes up a persons personality.

What is nurture?

The environment and experiences that makes up a persons personality.