Updated Myers' Psychology for the AP® Course, 3E - Module 73

psychopharmacology

the study of the effects of drugs on mind and behavior.

antipsychotic drugs

drugs used to treat schizophrenia and other forms of severe thought disorder.

antianxiety drugs

drugs used to control anxiety and agitation.

antidepressant drugs

drugs used to treat depression, anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder. (Several widely used antidepressant drugs are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors—SSRIs.)

electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

a biomedical therapy for severely depressed patients in which a brief electric current is sent through the brain of an anesthetized patient.

repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)

the application of repeated pulses of magnetic energy to the brain; used to stimulate or suppress brain activity.

psychosurgery

surgery that removes or destroys brain tissue in an effort to change behavior.

lobotomy

a psychosurgical procedure once used to calm uncontrollably emotional or violent patients. The procedure cut the nerves connecting the frontal lobes to the emotion-controlling centers of the inner brain.

resilience

the personal strength that helps most people cope with stress and recover from adversity and even trauma.

posttraumatic growth

positive psychological changes as a result of struggling with extremely challenging circumstances and life crises.