Psychology Exam 2 flashcards

NIU Psych 102 Ch. 3, 7, 11, & 14

stress

the process by which we perceive and respond to certain events, called stressors, that we appraise as threatening or challenging

a stressor is called as the ______________

primary appraisal

our ability to respond to a stressor is called as the ______________

secondary appraisal

resilience

personal strength to cope and recover

catastrophe

large-scale disasters

example of catastrophes

earthquakes, hurricanes, wildfires, wars

examples of significant life changes

leaving home, having a loved one die, debt, losing a job, getting divorced

examples of daily hassles

aggravating housemates, overflowing to-do lists, social media interruptions

“burnout”

feeling ineffective, emotionally depleted, and disconnected

approach and avoidance motives

the drive to move toward or away from a stimulus

approach-approach

least stressful; two attractive but incompatible goals

avoidance-avoidance

two undesirable alternatives

approach-avoidance

simultaneously attracted and repelled

general adaption syndrome (GAS)

Selye’s concept of the body’s adaptive response to stress in three phases - alarm, resistance, exhaustion

Phase 1 of GAS

alarm reaction

Phase 2 of GAS

resistance

Phase 3 of GAS

exhaustion

tend-and-befriend response

under stress, people often provide support to others and bond with an seek support from others

health psychology

a subfield of psychology that provided psychology’s contribution to behavioral medicine

psychoneuroimmunology

the study of how psychology, neural, and endocrine processes together affect our immune system and resulting health

coronary heart disease

the clogging of the vessels that nourish the heart muscle; a leading cause of death in many developed countries

stress can play a big role in ____________

heart disease

catharsis

the idea that “releasing” aggressive energy (through action or fantasy) relieves aggressive urges

cope

alleviating stress using emotional, cognitive or behavioral methods

problem-focused coping

attempting to alleviate stress directly by changing the stressor or the way we interact with that stressor

emotion-focused coping

attempting to alleviate stress by avoiding or ignoring a stressor and attending to emotional needs related to our stress reaction

personal control

our sense of controlling our environment rather than feeling helpless

learned helplessness

hopelessness and passive resignation humans and other animals learn when unbale to avoid repeated aversive events

external locus of control

the perception that outside forces beyond our personal control determine our fate

internal locus of control

the perception that we control our own fate

self-control

the ability to control impulses and delay short-term gratification for greater long-term rewards

aerobic exercise

sustained exercise that increases heart and lung fitness; also helps alleviate depression and anxiety

biofeedback

system of recording, amplifying, and feeding back information about subtle physiological responses in an effort to help people control them

mindfulness meditation

a reflective practice in which people attend to current experiences in a non judgmental and accepting manner

feel-good-do-good phenomenon

people’s tendency to be helpful when in a good mood

positive psychology

the scientific study of human flourishing, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive

subjective well-being

self-perceived happiness or satisfaction with life; used along with measures of objective well-being to evaluate people’s quality of life

adaption-level phenomenon

our tendency to form judgements relative to a neutral level defines by to prior experience

relative deprivation

the perception that we are worse off relative to those whom we compare ourselves

behaviorism

to turn to direct observations of behavior

cognition

mental processes

consciousness

our subjective awareness of ourselves and our environment

cogitative neuroscience

the interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (thinking, knowing remembering and communicating)

selective attention

focusing conscious awareness on a particular stimulus

cocktail party effect

your ability to attend to only one voice within a sea of many as you chat with a party guest

inattentional blindness

failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere

change blindness

failing to notice changes in the environment; a form of inattention blindness

dual processing

principle that information is often simultaneously processed on separate conscious and unconscious tracks

blindsight

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

parallel processing

processing multiple aspects of a stimulus or problem simultaneously

sequential processing

processing one aspect of a stimulus or problem at a time; generally used to process new information or to solve difficult problems

sleep

a periodic, natural loss of consciousness-as distinct from unconsciousness resulting from a coma, general anesthesia, or hibernation

true or false: when people dream of performing some activity, their limbs often move in concert with the dream

false

true or false: older adults sleep more than young adults

false

true or false: sleep walkers are acting our their dreams

false

true or false: sleep experts recommend treating insomnia with an occasional sleeping pill

false

true or false: some people dream every night; others seldom dream

false

circadian rhythm

our biological clock; regular bodily rhythms that occur on a 24-hour cycle

REM sleep

rapid eye movement sleep; a recurring sleep stage during which vivid dreams commonly occur; also called paradoxical sleep because the muscles are relaxed but other body systems are active

alpha waves

the relatively slow brain waves of a relaxes, awake state

hallucinations

false sensory experiences, like seeing something in the absence of an external visual stimulus

delta waves

large, slow brain waves associated with deep sleep

Sleep stage N1

fleeting images

sleep stage N3

minimal awareness

REM

story-like dream

superchiasmatic nucleus

pair of cell clusters in the hypothalamus that controls the circadian rhythm

true or false: pineal gland produces melatonin

true

5 proposed reasons for why we need sleep

survival, immune system, consolidate memories, creativity, growth

insomnia

recurring problems in falling or staying alseep

narcolepsy

sleep disorder characterized by uncontrollable sleep attacks

sleep apnea

sleep disorder characterized by temporary cessations of breathing during sleep repeated momentary awakenings

night terrors

sleep disorder characterized by high arousal and an appearance of being terrified; occur during N3 sleep; mroe common in children

a well-rested person would be more likely to have ____________

quick reaction times

a sleep deprived person would be more likely to _________________

gain weight

dreams

sequence of images, emotions, and thoughts passing through a sleeping person’s mind

manifest content

according to Freud, the symbolic, remembered story line of a dream

latent content

according to Freud, the underlying meaning of a dream

REM rebound

tendency for REM sleep in increase following REM sleep deprivation

psychoactive drugs

a chemical substance that alters the brain, causing changes in perception and moods

substance use disorder

disorder characterized by continues substance use despite significant life disruption

depressants

drugs (alcohol, barbiturates, and opioids) that reduce neural activity and slow body functions

alcohol use disorder

called alcoholism; symptoms include tolerance, withdrawal, and drive to continue problematic use

barbiturate

drugs that depress central nervous system activity, reducing anxiety but impairing memory and judgement

opioids

morphine and heroin; depress neural activity, temporarily lessening pain and anxiety

stimulant

drugs that excite neural activity and speed up body functions

amphetamines

drugs that stimulate neural activity, causing accelerated body functions and associated energy and mood changes

nicotine

a stimulating and highly addictive psychoactive drug in tobacco products

cocaine

a powerful and addictive stimulant derived from the coca plant; produces temporarily increased alertness and euphoria

methamphetamine

a powerfully addictive drug that stimulates the central nervous system with accelerated body functions and associated energy and mood changes

ecstasy

a synthetic stimulant and mild hallucinogen; produces euphoria and social intimacy but with short-term health risks and longer-term harm to serotonin-producing neurons and to mood and cognition

Ecstasy is the street name for

MDMA

hallucinogens

psychedelic drugs, like LSD, that distort perceptions and evoke sensory images int he absence of sensory input

near-death experience

altered state of consciousness reported after a close brush with death; similar to drug-induced hallucinations

LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide)

powerful hallucinogenic drug; also called acid

THC

major mind-altering ingredient in marjuana

learning

process of acquiring through experience new and relatively enduring information or behavior

associated learning

learning that certain events occur together; may be two stimuli (classical conditioning) or a response to its consequence (operant conditioning)

stimulus

any event or situation that evokes a response

respondent behavior

behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus

operant behaviors

behavior that operates on the environment producing a consequence