Psychology Exam 1 - Fall 2026

over chapters 1,2,5, and 6

behavior -

action that can be observed externally and recorded

mind -

indirectly observed mental processes, manifesting as internal experience

basic research -

focused on acquiring knowledge even if no direct application to practice

applied research -

attempts to find solutions to specific problems

current perspective: physiology -

study of links between biology and mental processes

current perspective: cognitive -

study of mental processes

current perspective: sociocultural -

study how behavior and attitude is shaped by social and cultural influences

specialization: experimental psychologist -

apply research to observations of human behavior (ex. comparative psychologist)

specialization: clinical psychologist -

evaluate and treat people with psych disorders and administer psychological tests

specialization: counseling psychologist -

help clarify goals and life decisions focusing on problem resolutions

specialization: school psychologist -

assist and evaluate children with learning problems or special needs

specialization: developmental psychologist -

study physical, cognitive, and social development across lifespan

specialization: social psychologist -

study how group/social influences affect behavior and attitude

specialization: industrial-organizational (IO) psychologist -

study people at work

specialization: neuropsychologist -

study relationships between brain and behavior

Dorothea Dix was apart of…

mental health reform movement

Wilhelm Wundt, father of psychology, was apart of…

structuralism movement

Stanley Hall, mentored by Wundt, was apart of…

structuralism movement

William James was apart of…

functionalism movement

John Watson was apart of…

behaviorism movement (founder)

Sigmund Freud was apart of…

psychoanalysis movement

structuralism -

attempted to define mind by component/structure

functionalism -

focused on how mind and behavior help people adapt to environments and defined mind by functions and processes with a purpose

behaviorism -

studied overt behavior that is observable

psychoanalysis -

focused on how unconscious motives influenced mind and behavior

gestalt -

focused on how brain organizes perceptions to make meaning of the world

current movement: humanism -

emphasizes potential for good that is innate to all humans

'“cannot observe mental processes” -JW

behaviorist claim

should ignore mental processes bc they are abstract

behaviorist claim

contrary to those who focused on the mind, not bahavior

behaviorist claim

environment molds behavior

behaviorist claim

brain groups elements of experience to make meaningful patterns

gestalt claim

“the whole is greater than the sum” -Maxium

gestalt claim

unconscious mind contains inaccessible primitive and sexual desires that influence behavior

Freud claim

people don’t understand true motive behind their behavior

Freud claim

childhood experiences shape behavior

Freud claim

threatening material is kept in unconscious mind

Freud claim

scientific attitudes:

curious, skeptical, and humble

critical thinking step 1:

what is being asked to believe/accept

critical thinking step 2:

what evidence is available to support claim

critical thinking step 3:

what are alternative ways to interpret evidence

non-experimental method of research -

analyzes relationships between 2 variables with finding being expressed with correlation coefficient

experimental method of research -

manipulates independent variable to observe/measure effects on dependent variable

independent variable -

what changed in experiment

dependent variable -

effected by changing independent variable

theory -

well developed set of ideas proposing explanation for observed phenomena

hypothesis -

testable prediction about how the world will behave if idea (theory) is correct

operational definition -

definition of variable based on procedures/operations used to measure it

correlation coefficient -

between -1→1 indicating strength and direction of relationship between 2 variables

naturalistic observation -

performed in natural environment to make more realistic but limited due to lack of control

social desirability -

participants give answers that make them look better rather than answering with the truth

volunteer bias -

sampling error when people choose to participate and show systematic differences from those who are randomly picked

random assignment -

uses chance to select participants and divide them into groups

control group -

participants who don’t receive experimental treatment

neuron -

basic nerve cell that transmits neural signals throughout the body

cell body -

life support center

dendrites -

receives messages from other neurons

axon -

sends electrical signals

terminal buttons -

sends messages to other neurons

neural impulse -

firing/brief electrical charge that travels down axon to terminals

action potentials must…

reach absolute threshold for terminals to then emit neurotransmitters

neurotransmission -

series of action potentials that emit neurotransmitters into synaptic gap

neurotransmitters -

chemical messages released from buttons and absorbed by dendrites

synaptic gap -

tiny fluid gap that separates one neuron from another

type of transmitter that regulates mood is…

serotonin

type of transmitter that is linked to excitatory stimulation is…

dopamine

type of transmitter that enables muscle action, learning, and memory is…

acetycholine

type of transmitter that affects mood, alertness, and arousal is…

norepinephrine

central nervous system (CNS) consists of…

the brain and spinal cord

peripheral nervous system (PNS) consists of…

all other nerves

types of PNS neurons are…

sensory neurons and motor neurons

sensory neurons -

carry incoming info. to the CNS

motor neurons -

carry outgoing info. to muscles and glands

the autonomic nervous system is a…

PNS sub-system

sympathetic nervous system -

fight-or-flight

parasympathetic nervous system -

rest and digest

brain stem -

oldest and innermost region of the brain, beginning at end of spinal cord

medulla -

controls heartbeat and breathing

thalamus -

relays sensory info.

cerebellum -

“little brain” attached to rear of brainstem helping coordinate voluntary movements and balance

amygdala -

bean-sized structure linked to emotions

cortex -

wrinkled, outer gray matter covering inner brain structures

frontal lobe cortex -

controls voluntary movement and higher order mental functions

parietal lobe cortex -

processes sensory info.

occipital lobe cortex -

processes visual info.

temporal lobe cortex -

processes auditory info.

brain plasticity -

ability for brain to adapt due to experience, including brain trauma or altercations from surgery

neurogenesis -

process where neurons are formed and neural connections are made in response to learning

brain activity methods of study are…

EEG, PET Scan, or fMRI

brain structure methods of study are…

CT Scan, MRI, or fMRI

EEG (electroencephalography) -

amplified recording of electrical waved sweeping across brain surface

CT Scan (CAT Scan/computed tomography) -

computer use x-rays to produce images of brain structures, revealing abnormalities by injecting radioactive chemicals into the blood stream

PET Scan (positron emission tomography) -

identifies areas of damage/disorder, along with display of brain activity that detects radioactive form of glucose in brain tissue measuring neurochemical changes

MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) -

magnetic field used to generate image of brain without using radiation

fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) -

like MRI but can reveal brains functioning and structure

learning -

relatively permanent change in behavior due to experience done by associating one stimulus with another through repeated exposure to that stimulus

classical conditioning -

learned by associating 2 stimuli and producing learned respond

Pavlov’s experiment involved…

proving classical conditioning possible by training a dog to salivate by the sound of a bell

unconditioned stimulus (US) -

stimulus that causes unwanted response

conditioned stimulus (CS) -

previously natural stimulus that turns into a learned response after paired with unconditional stimulus repeatedly