AP Psych 1.1-1.4 Study Guide

Terms, Definitons, and Application/Examples

nature

genes, traits you inherit or are born with

ex. you inherit your eye color or have a genetic tendency towards anxiety

nurture

traits you learned through experience and environment

ex. learning certain manners from parents

envioroment

everything around you that influences development

ex. friends, school, family, and culture influence your behaviro

heredity

passing genetic traits from parents to children

ex. child inherits genetic tendency toward curly hair

evolutionary psychology/perspective

explains behavior by looking at how evolution may have shaped it

studies how evolution may explain why humans behave the way they do

ex. fear of snakes —> ancestors who avoided dangerous animals were more likely to survive

natural selection

organisms with traits that help them survive and reproduce are more likely to pass those traits on to their offspring

ex. giraffes with longer necks can reach more food and pass their traits to offspring

eugenics

discredited movement that tried to control human reproduction to influence inherited traits

ex. historical policies prevented certain groups from having children based on false ideas about genetic superiority

nervous system

body’s communication network made of the brain, spinal cord, and nerves

ex. you feel a hot surface and quickly react

central nervous system (CNS)

brain and spinal cord

ex. your brain processes info when you solve a math problem

peripheral nervous system (PNS)

all the nerves outside the brian and spinal cord

ex. nerves carry info from your fingers to your spinal cord

somatic nervous system

controls voluntary skeletal muscle movements and carries sensory info

ex. you kick a soccer ball

autonomic nervous system

controls automatic functions

ex. heart beat, digestion

sympathetic nervous system

activates body’s fight or flight response

ex. your heart beats faster before a big test

parasympathetic nervous system

helps body rest, recover, and digest food

ex. heart rate slows down after you calm down

reflex arc

pathway that produces a fast, automatic response to stimulus

ex. you pull your hand away from something hot before thinking about it

neurons

specialized cells that receive and transmit info

ex. neurons carry messages that help you move

glial cells

support cells that protect, nourish, and help neurons function

ex. glial cells help maintain and insulate neurons

sensory nuerons

carry info from sensory receptors toward CNS

ex. send info about heat from your skin

motor nuerons

carry commands from the CNS to muscles or glands

ex. tell your arm muscles to move

internuerons

connect and process info between neurons, mainly in the CNS

ex. help process info during reflex

dendrites

branch like structures that receive signals from other cells

ex. receive a message from another nuerons

axons

long neuron extensions that carry electrical impulses away from the cell body

ex. carry signal toward muscle

terminal buttons

endings of axons that release neurotransmitters

ex. release chemicals to send a message to another cell

synaptic vesicles

tiny sacs that store neurotransmitters in the axon terminal

ex. release stored dopamine into a synapse

myelin sheath

fatty insulating covering around many axons that speeds up neural signals

ex. helps messages travel quickly between brain and body

resting potential

the neurons negative electrical charge when it’s not firing

ex. neuron is waiting to send a signal

threshold

minimum stimulation needed to trigger an action potential

ex. neuron receives enough input to fire

depolarization

inside of neuron becomes less negative

ex. a neuron fires when its threshold is reached

action potential

electrical impulse that travels down the axon

ex. a neuron fires when its threshold is reached

repolarization

process of restoring the neurons negative internal charge after action potential

ex. neuron resets after firing

all-or-nothing principle

a neuron either fires a full action potential or does not fire one at all

ex. stronger stimulation does not create a bigger action potential, but it can increase firing frequency

refractory period

short period after firing when a neurons cannot fire again or needs stronger stimulation to fire

ex. a neuron briefly resets before firing another impulse

reuptake

the sending neuron takes neurotransmitters back in after their release

ex. serotonin is taken back into the sending neuron

excitatory neurotransmitters

chemicals that increase the likelihood that the receiving neuron will fire

ex. glutamate often makes a neuron more likely to fire

inhibitory neurotransmitters

chemicals that decrease the likelihood that the receiving neuron will fire

ex. GABA often reduces neural activity

multiple sclerosis

damages myelin in the CNS

ex. damaged myelin can cause weakness, vision problems, or difficulty coordination movements

myasthenia gravis

interferes with communication between nerves and muscles

ex. muscle weakness with repeated activity

synapse

junction where neuron communicates with another cell

ex. neurotransmitters cross tiny gay between neurons

how nueron sends message

acetylcholine (ACh)

involved in muscle movement, learning, and memory

ex. helps muscles contract when you move

dopamine

reward, motivation, movement, and learning

ex. helps reinforce behaviors that feel rewarding

serotonin

regulates mood, sleep, and appetite

ex. role in mood regulation

norepinephrine

alertness, attention, and arousal

ex. helps you become alert when something surprising happens

GABA

main inhibitory neurotransmitter in brain

ex. helps reduce excessive neural activity

glutamate

main excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain

ex. supports learning and memory

endorphins

natural chemicals that help reduce pain and can produce pleasure

ex. you feel better after exercise because your body is producing more endorphins

substance P

transmits pain signals

ex. communicates pain info from body

hormones

chemical messengers released by endocrine glands into bloodstream

ex. hormones help regulate growth, stress, and metabolism

adrenaline (epinephrine)

hormone that prepares body for fast action during stress

ex. your heart races before preforming on stage

ghrelin

hormone that signals hunger and helps regulate appetite

ex. you feel hungry around lunch time

leptin

hormone that signals body is full and regulates long term appetite

ex. helps brain monitor stored energy

melatonin

hormone that helps regulate sleep-wake cycle

ex. melatonin levels rise at night

oxytocin

hormone involved in childbirth, milk release, and aspects of social bonding

ex. helps with milk release during breastfeeding

psychoactive drugs

substances that affect brain activity, perception, mood, or behavior

ex. caffeine can make you feel more alert

agonist

substance that activates a receptor or increases neurotransmitters effects

ex. a drug mimics the action of a natural neurotransmitter

antagonist

substance that blocks receptor or prevents neurotransmitter from activating it

ex. a drug blocks a receptor so a chemical cannot activate it

reuptake inhibitor

substance that slows reabsorption of neurotransmitters into the sending neuron

ex. antidepressants increase serotonin availability by blocking its reuptake

stimulants

drugs that increase activity in the CNS

ex. can increase alertness and energy, caffeine, cocaine

caffeine

stimulant that mainly blocks adenosine receptors, reducing feelings of sleepiness

blocks=antagonist

ex. coffee helps you feel more awake

cocaine

stimulant that increases certain neurotransmitters effects, including dopamine

increases=agonist

blocks reuptake of of neurotransmitters, especially dopamine, so dopamine builds up in the space between neurons

ex. causes increased alertness and heart rate but with serious health risks

depressants

drugs that slow activity in the CNS

ex. some can cause drowsiness and slower reactions, alcohol

alcohol

psychoactive depressant that affects judgement, coordination, and reaction time

ex. someone who drinks may have trouble walking in straight line

opioids

drugs that act as opioid receptors to relieve pain and can cause euphoria and slowed breathing

ex. opioid medications can be prescribed for severe pain but carry risks of dependence and overdose, heroin

heroin

opioid that can cause intense effects and high risk of overdose and addiction

ex. acts on opioid receptors and can dangerously slow breathing

hallucinogens

alter perception, thoughts, and sensory experiences

ex. person may experience distorted sights or sounds

marijuana

psychoactive drug that can affect memory, attention, coordination, and perception

ex. someone may have difficulty remembering instructions after using

addiction

condition involving compulsive substance use or behavior despite harmful consequences

ex. a person continues using a substance even when it disrupts daily life

tolerance

when repeated exposure means more of a substance may be needed to produce same effect

ex. the same amount has less effect than it used to

withdrawal

physical or psychological symptoms that can occur when a dependent persons substance use is reduced or stopped

ex. a person may experience irritability or other symptoms after stopping regular use

brain plasticity

brains ability to change and recognize connections through learning, experience, and recovery

ex. practicing piano strengthens neural connections involved in skill

electroencephalogram (EEG)

records electrical activity of the brain using electrodes on the scalp

ex. researchers study brain-wave patterns during sleep

MRI

estimates brain activity by measuring changes in blood oxygenation and flow

ex. researchers observe which brain areas are active during a memory task

lesions

areas of damaged brain tissue, researchers may study naturally occurring lesions to understand brain function

ex. damage to a brain area may affect speech or movement

brain stem (central core)

lower brain structures connecting brain to spinal cord, helps control basic life functions

ex. breathing, heart rate, alertness

medulla oblongata

brainstem structure involved in vital automatic functions like breathing and heart rate

ex. breathing while your asleep

reticular activating system

network involved in arousal, alertness, and sleep-wake cycle

ex. helps you wake up and pay attention

cerebellum

helps coordinate movement, balance, posture, and motor learning

ex. helps you balance while riding bike

limbic system

group of interconnected structures involved in emotion, motivation, learning, and memory

ex. helps process emotionally important experiences

thalamus

relays most sensory info to the cerebral cortex, excluding the main olfactory pathway

ex. helps route visual and auditory info to the appropriate brain areas

hypothalamus

helps maintain homeostasis and regulates hunger, thirst, temp, and hormonal activity

ex. makes you feel thirsty when you need water

pituitary gland

endocrine gland regulated mostly by hypothalamus that releases hormones affecting growth and other body functions

ex. releases growth hormone

hippocampus

important for forming new explicit memories and spatial memory

ex. helps you remember info for test

amygdala

processing emotional significance, especially fear and threat, and emotional learning

ex. helps you recognize a potentially threatening situation

cerebral cortex

brains outer layer, thinking, perception, language, memory, and voluntary movement

ex. helps you solve problems and understand question

corpus callosum

large bundle of nerve fibers connecting brains left and right hemispheres

ex. allows 2 hemispheres to exchange information

cortex specialization

different areas of the cortex are specialized for different functions

ex. occipital lobe processes visual info

contralateral hemispheric organization

each cerebral hemisphere primarily control movement and receives sensory info from opposite side of body

ex. the left motor cortex primarily controls the right hand

aphasia

language impairment caused by brain damage, affects speaking, understanding, reading, or writing

ex. someone has trouble finding words after a stroke

broca’s area

brain region in the left frontal lobe important for producing speech

ex. damage can make speech slow and hard to produce

wenicke’s aera

language region in brain thats important for understanding language

ex. damage can lead to fluent speaking, but difficult to understand what your saying

frontal lobe

planning, decision making, impulse control, speech production, and voluntary movement

ex. you plan how to study for an exam

prefrontal cortex

part of the frontal lobe, important for planning, judgement, memory, and self-control

ex. you resist checking your phone while studying

motor cortex

area of frontal lobe that helps control voluntary movements

ex. you move fingers to type

parietal lobe

processes bodily sensations and helps with spatial awareness

ex. you know where your hand is without looking at it

somatosensory cortex

area of parietal lobe that processes touch, pressure pain, temp, and body position info

ex. you feel a tap on your shoulder

temporal lobe

hearing, language comp, memory, and recognizing people or objects

ex. you recognize a friends voice

occipital lobe

main brain region for processing visual info

ex. you identify the color and shape of stop sign

the 4 lobes

frontal: planning and movement

parietal: touch and space

temporal: hearing and memory

occipital: vision