Psychology 2 Midterm 1 UCR

Psychology

Scientific study of behavior and mental process

Psychology Roots

Philosophy & Physical science

Wilhelm Wundt

-Father of Psychology

-Opened the first psych lab in Germany

-measured the time lag between hearing

Structuralism

-Promoted by Wundt & Titchener

-Based on introspection & that the mind is broken up into smaller mental experiences

-This was unreliable and inconsistent

Functionalism

-Promoted by William James & Darwin

-Based on how mental and behavior processes function to allow survival

-Asked why instead of what

-Saw behavior as adaptive

Mary Calkins

-Memory researcher

-Studied with James but was not given PhD b/c she was a female

-First female APA president

Margaret Washburn

-First women with a PhD

-Studied with Titchener but could not participate in experiments

Behaviorism

-Approach that studies and measures observable behaviors

-Believe that all behavior is a result of rewards & punishment in environments or through paired stimuli

EX. Bad Experience= Irrational Fear

Ivan Pavlov

-Behaviorist

-Focused on Classical Conditioning

EX. Pavlov's Dogs: Paired the ringing of a bell to the sight of food to receive a response.

Watson & Rayner

-Behaviorists

-Believed people are born with a blank slate

-Emphasized the role of experience in forming behaviors

EX. "Little Albert": Conditioned Albert to be afraid of a white rabbit by banging pipes whenever he would touch the rabbit...All white fluffy things=bad

BF Skinner

-Behaviorist

-Focused on operant conditioning=reward & punishment

-Studied how consequences shape behavior

EX. "Skinner Box": mouse would push lever for food

Edward Thorndike

-Proposed law of effect

EX. Satisfying State=Strong Response...Annoying State= Weak Reponse

Freudian Psychology

-Introduced Psychoanalytic theories to explain psychological disorders

-Focused on the role childhood experiences

Cognitive Psychology

-Explores the way we perceive and remember information

Cognitive Neuroscience

-Examines brain activity linked with cognition (learning)

Humanistic Psychology

-Emphasized the study of the whole person

-Saw people as inherently good and motivated to reach potential

-Examines needs

EX. Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs: Basic needs that must be meet to achieve higher ones

Nature-Nurture Issue

-It is a mix of both

-Nature: your biology

-We inherent certain inborn ideas

-Nurture: your experiences

-Mind is a blank slate (Locke)

Evolutionary Psychology

-Study of behavior and mind using principles of natural selection

Behavior Genetics

-Study of the relations and limits between genetics and environmental influences

Positive Psychology

-Study of human functioning and flourishing

Levels of Analysis

Micro Level

-Biological: Genes, neurotransmitters

Level 2

-Psychological: Self Esteem

Macro Level

-Socio-Cultural: Culture, environment

Industrial Psychology

-Psychology in the work place

Counseling Psychology

-Assist people with problems

Psychiatry

-Branch of medicine that can provide medical treatment

Community Psychology

-How people interact in their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups

Forensic Psychology

-Applying psychology in the legal setting

Social Psychology

-Examines the effect of social environments on individuals and groups

Developmental Psychology

-Examines physical, cognitive, and social change through lifespan

Personality Psychology

-Individual characteristic ways of thinking and behaving

Hindsight Bias

-Tendency to believe after the outcome that one would have foreseen it

EX. "I knew it all along"

Overconfidence

-We think we know more than we do

Order in random events

-Finding patterns in random, unrelated data

Scientific Attitude

-Objective rather than subjective

-Relies on repeatable evidence

3 Scientific Attitutes

1. Curiosity

2. Skeptical

3. Humble

Critical Thinking

-Thinking that doesn't blindly accept arguments or conclusions

Scientific Method

-Process of testing ideas by setting up situations that test our ideas.

Theory

-Explanation using principles that predicts behaviors or events

Hypothesis

-A prediction implied by theory

-Must be testable

Operational Definition

-A statement of exact procedures used in research study

Replication

-Repeating study with different participants to see if anything changes

Description

-An objective observation of people

-Goal is to provide a clear picture of people's behaviors

Case Study

-An in depth analysis of behavior in one person or a small # of people

-Examines rare phenomena

EX. Genie

Naturalistic Observation

-Records behaviors in natural environments

EX. Jane Goodall's study of Chimps

Survey

-Utilizes a random sampling of population

-Word effects=how questions shape the answers

Random Sample

-Is more accurate in a larger group

-Critical part of well-done research

Correlation

-An observation that two traits or attributes are related to each other

Correlation Coefficient

-Statistical index between two things

Positive Correlation

-A direct relationship where two things increase or decrease together

EX. Health & Excersise

Negative Correlation

-Inverse relationship

-One increases and the other decreases

EX. Eating Habits VS. Health

Correlation and Causation

-Correlation DOES NOT mean causation

-The correlation shows that the two things have a possibility, but does not prove it

Confounding Variable

-The third variable

-A variable responsible for the correlation between two things

Experiment

-Research method where you manipulate one or two factors

Control Group

-Experience all procedures except the independent variable

Experimental

-Group that is exposed to the independent variable

Independent Variable

-Variable manipulated by the experimenter

Dependent Variable

-Measure that shows the effects of the independent variable (the outcome)

Random Assignment

-Assigning participants to experimental and control groups by chance

Double Blind Assignment

-Procedure where the search participants and the staff don't know if they received a placebo or not.

Placebo Effect

-Experiment results due to expectations alone

Environment

-Every non-genetic influence

Chromosomes

-Structures made of DNA molecules that contain genes

DNA

-A complex molecule containing genetic information

Genes

-Unit of heredity that makes up the chromosomes

Genome

-Contains all the genetic material for chromosomes

Monozygotic Twins

-Developed from the same egg that split into two...Identical Twins

Dizygotic Twins

-Developed from a separate eggs but shared same prenatal environment...Fraternal Twins

Epigenetics

-Study of environmental influences on gene expression

Blooming

-Formation of many brain connections made in early life

Pruning

-Neural connections that are not used=severed and lost

Plasticity

-The ability for the brain to reestablish lost connections

Puberty

-Period of sexual maturation

Primary Sex Characteristics

-Directly related to reproduction

Secondary Sex Characteristics

-Non-Reproductive sexual traits

Spermarche

-First time a male ejaculates

Menarche

-First time a female gets her period

Gender Schema

-Schemas organized according to our experiences of male-female characteristics

3 Major Issues in Developmental Psych

-Nature/Nurture

-Stability/Change

-Continuity/Discontinuity

Zygote

-Fertilized egg

Embryo

-Developing human organism at 2 weeks

Fetus

-Developing human organisms from 9 weeks

Teratogen

-Agents such as viruses and drugs that can damage the fetus and embryo

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

-Physical and Cognitive abnormalities in children caused by pregnant women's heavy drinking, smoking, or substance abuse

What can Newborns do?

-Sleep 16-18 hours a day

-Are physically alert with environment

-Cry 2-3 hours a day

-Prefer social stimuli

-Have sensory capabilities

Maturation

-Growth process that changes in behavior

Motor Development

-Babies use their muscles to star crawling

Sensorimotor Stage

1. Birth-2 years old

-Infants know the world through impressions and motor activities

Object Permanence

2.The awareness that things continue to exist when not perceived

Preoperational Stage

3. 2-7 years old

-Child learns the use of language but does not comprehend

Conservation

-Principle that mass, weight, etc remain the same despite changes in forms of object

EX. Milk in a taller container

Egocentrism

- A child's difficulty taking in another point of view

Concrete Operational Stage

4. 7-11 years old

-Can think logically about events

-Understand basic math

Formal Operational Stage

5. 12-Adulthood

Autism Spectrum Disorder

-Disorder that makes deficiencies in communication and social interactions

Causes of ASD

-Biological factors like genetic, brain development, prenatal environment

Stranger Anxiety

-Babies cry when they don't recognize someone

Neurocognitive Disorder

-Disorder due to brain injury or substance abuse

Alzheimer's Disease

-Disorder that declines memory and cognitive abyility