AP Psychology Unit 8 Vocab (copy)

AP Psychology

instinct

a complex behavior that is rigidly patterned throughout a species and is unlearned.

drive-reduction theory

the idea that a physiological need creates an aroused tension state (a drive) that motivates an organism to satisfy the need.

homeostasis

a tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state; the regulation of any aspect of body chemistry, such as blood glucose, around a particular level.

incentive

a positive or negative environmental stimulus that motivates behavior.

hierarchy of needs

Maslow's pyramid of human needs, beginning at the base with physiological needs that must first be satisfied before higher-level safety needs and then psychological needs become active.

drive

an aroused, motivated state

motivation

a need or desire that energizes and directs behavior

Masters and Johnson

studied physiological responses of sexual intercourse

Yerkes-Dodson law

the principle that performance increases with arousal only up to a point, beyond which performance decreases.

James-Lange theory

the theory that our experience of emotion is our awareness of our physiological responses to emotion-arousing stimuli.

Cannon-Bard theory

the theory that an emotion-arousing stimulus simultaneously triggers (1) physiological responses and (2) the subjective experience of emotion.

two-factor theory

the Schachter-Singer theory that to experience emotion one must (1) be physically aroused and (2) cognitively label the arousal.

health psychology

a subfield of psychology that provides psychology's contribution to behavioral medicine.

stress

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

general adaptation syndrome

Selye's concept of the body's adaptive response to stress in three phases—alarm, resistance, exhaustion.

psychophysiological illness

literally, "mind-body" illness; any stress-related physical illness, such as hypertension and some headaches.

psychoneuroimmunology

the study of how psychological, neural, and endocrine processes together affect the immune system and resulting health.

lymphocytes

The two types of white blood cells that are part of the body's immune system: B lymphocytes form in the bone marrow and release antibodies that fight bacterial infections; T lymphocytes form in the thymus and other lymphatic tissue and attack cancer cells, viruses, and foreign substances.

Type A personality

Friedman and Rosenman's term for competitive, hard-driving, impatient, verbally aggressive, and anger-prone people

Type B personality

Friedman and Rosenman's term for easygoing, relaxed people.

sexual response cycle

the four stages of sexual responding described by Masters and Johnson - excitement, plateau, orgasm, and resolution

sexual dysfunction

a problem that consistently impairs sexual arousal or functioning

Abraham Maslow

Humanistic psychologist known for his "Hierarchy of Needs" and the concept of "self-actualization"

William Masters and Virginia Johnson

used direct observation and experimentation to study sexual response cycle (4 stages)

Stanley Schachter

Developed "Two-Factor" theory of emotion; experiments on spillover effect

Hans Selye

Psychologist who researched a recurring response to stress that he called the general adaptation syndrome

set point

the point at which an individuals’ “weight thermostat” is supposedly set. When the body falls below the weight, an increase in hunger and a lowered metabolic rate may act to restore the lost weight

basal metabolic rate

the body’s resting rate of energy expenditure

refractory period

(1) a period of inactivity after a neuron has fired. (2) a resting period after orgasm, during which a man cannot achieve another

estrogen

sex hormones secreted in greater amounts by females than by the males and contributing to female sex characteristics. In nonhuman female mammals estrogen levels peak during ovulation, promoting sexual receptivity

testosterone

the most important of the male sex hormones. Both male and females have it, but the additional testosterone in males stimulates the growth of the male sex organs in the fetus and the development of the male sex characteristics during puberty

emotion

a response of the whole organism, involving (1) physiological arousal, (2) expressive behaviors, and (3) conscious experience

polygraph

A machine, commonly used in attempts to detect lies, that measures several of the physiological responses (such as perspiration and cardiovascular and breathing changes) accompanying emotion

facial feedback effect

the tendency of facial muscles states to trigger corresponding feelings such as fear, anger, or happiness

tend and befriend response

under stress, people (especially women) often provide support to others (tend) and bond with and seek support from others (befriend)

coronary heart disease

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