psych exam 2

amygdala

controls emotions, mainly aggression and fear

hypothalamus

regulates endocrine activity

hippocampus

enables the formation of new conscious memories

cerebral cortex

enables higher forms of thinking, has 2 hemispheres and 4 lobes on each sphere

front of the brain

where are the frontal lobes?

at the top of the brain

where are the parietal lobes?

in the back of the brain

where are the occipital lobes?

on the sides of the brain

where are the temporal lobes?

frontal lobes

control planning, creative thinking, and creativity

motor cortex

controls voluntary movement

homunculus

a map of how much of the motor cortex is used by parts of the body (looks human-like)

broca’s area

area of speech production

broca’s aphasia

damage to broca’s area (has trouble producing speech)

mirror neurons

neurons that fire when observing someone else do something

parietal lobes

contain the somatosensory cortex

somatosensory cortex

receives information about touch sensation

occipital lobes

contain the visual cortex

visual cortex

processes visual signals

temporal lobes

contain the auditory cortex and wernicke’s area

auditory cortex

processes sound

wernicke’s area

area that deals with language comprehension

wernicke’s aphasia

damage to wernicke’s area (has trouble understanding language and producing coherent speech)

plasticity

the flexibility of brain structures

neurogenesis

the growth of new neurons

selective attention

focusing on specific information with ignoring other stimuli

inattentional blindness

failing to detect visual stimuli due to selective attention

change blindness

failing to detect changes in stimuli due to selective attention

suprachiasmatic nucleus (scn)

controls pineal gland; sensitive to changes in light

it directs the pineal gland to stop secreting melatonin

how does light affect the scn?

pineal gland secretes melatonin, which makes us sleepy

how are the pineal gland and melatonin involved in the sleep cycle?

the scn will signal the pineal gland to stop secreting melatonin due to thinking it’s sunlight

how does artificial lighting affect melatonin production?

n-rem sleep

non-rapid eye movement sleep

n1 sleep

light sleep, easy to wake up from

hypnagogic jerk

you have a muscle spasm, and feel like you’re falling while asleep

hypnagogic hallucination

you can still see images when you’re asleep (besides rem)

n2 sleep

true sleep, can still wake someone up easily

n3 sleep

deep sleep, hard to wake someone up

pituitary gland releases growth hormone

what happens in n3 sleep?

rem sleep

rapid eye movement sleep stage

dreaming

what happens during rem sleep?

paradoxical sleep

there’s a paradox between the activity in the brain and the activity in the body

sleep paralysis

the pons shuts down the messages of movement, so the body cannot move during rem

evolutionary/adaptive sleep theory

humans won’t be out in the dark and therefore vulnerable to predators if we are motionless in a cave for the night

restorative sleep theory

sleep supports growth and healing

information processing sleep theory

sleep supports cognitive processes

freudian dreaming theory

dreams stem from our unconscious thoughts

manifest content

the actual images in a dream (freud)

latent content

the unconscious thoughts, feelings, and wishes behind the manifest content

activation synthesis dreaming theory

the brain’s randomly generated signals are synthesized into dreams

information processing dreaming theory

memories from events form our dreams

preserving neural pathways dreaming theory

the purpose of dreaming is to provide brain stimulation and maintain synapses

adoption studies

scientists compare adopted children to their adoptive and biological families

twin studies

scientists compare monozygotic twins to see what is shared and different (same genes, possible diff. environment) and compare dizygotic twins (diff. genes, likely same environment)

adopted twin studies

compare monozygotic twins separated at birth to monozygotic twins who are raised together

sucking, rooting, moro, grasping, babinski

what are the primitive reflexes?

piaget’s approach to cognitive development

children understand the world with schema (mental categories)

assimilation in schema

fitting new information into a present system of knowledge

accommodation in schema

as a result of new information, you change existing schema (or create new ones)

sensorimotor stage

a lot of using the senses to figure out the world around them; develop understanding of object permanence

object permanence

understanding that something continues to exist even when it can’t be seen

preoperational stage

kids are egocentric, use animistic thinking, and can’t grasp conservation

egocentrism

kids can only use their own frame of reference

animistic thinking

kids attribute life to objects, thinking they have thoughts and feelings

conservation

understanding that physical properties do not change when their appearance changes

concrete operational stage

kids understand conservation, that objects don’t have feelings, aren’t egocentric anymore, and can grasp reversibility and transitivity

reversibility

something that has been changed can be returned to its original state

transitivity

understanding how items in a series are related

formal operational

kids can start to understand more abstract things, use systematic reasoning, and think about future possibilities

vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development

cognitive development results from guidance

zone of proximal development

teachers should keep the children learning at a zone where the child can almost do it independently

scaffolding

the teacher adjusts the amount of support to the child’s level of development

theory of mind

the ability to understand that others’ thoughts may not be their own

band-aid box study

when children were surprised to see popsicle sticks in a band-aid box, only those with theory of mind developed understood that other children would also think there’s band-aids in there

erikson’s stage theory of social development

in each stage of life, we have a challenge we need to beat, either gaining a new skill we can use, or being hindered from then on

trust vs. mistrust

can we depend on people to take care of us?

autonomy vs. shame and doubt

can we do things on our own? or do we need help with everything?

initiative vs. guilt

am I good or bad? do I make good choices?

industry vs. inferiority

are we able to do things (are we competent)? or are we not good at anything?

babies need to be held and cuddled

results of Harlow’s studies on attachment

she had mothers and their child in a room with a stranger, and then the mother left the room, and then the mother came back into the room and the stranger left

how did Mary Ainsworth study attachment?

secure attachment

the child has a trusting relationship with their caregiver; were upset when mom left and happy when mom came back

secure base

the child’s caregiver is a secure base to explore from, so the child is willing to go out and explore, but will check in with the caregiver from time to time to feel safe

insecure-anxious/ambivalent attachment

showed ambivalence towards their caregiver; were upset when mom left and were both happy and resistant/unhappy to mom coming back

insecure-avoidant attachment

no attachment to their caregiver; didn’t cry when mom left, and didn’t care when mom came back

temperament, a stressful home life, and parenting

what contributes to attachment styles?

emotional, social, and cognitive competence

later correlations of attachment are:

langlois et. al.’s study

babies were rated for attractiveness by college students, and the mothers were observed interacting with infants and had their behavior rated; showed that baby attractiveness led to more affection and attention

warmth (responsiveness) and control (demandingness)

what are baumrind’s 2 dimensions of parenting?

authoritarian parenting

controlling, demanding, high emphasis on obedience

permissive parenting

very few rules or restrictions, indulgent, permissive of behaviors

uninvolved/neglectful parenting

emotionally distant or physically not there, not showing any love or setting any rules

authoritative parenting

not overly demanding or hostile, child-centered, lots of love, expectations for behavior, but willing to explain them

later outcomes of authoritarian parenting

lower grades, lower self-esteem, more dependent, less intrinsic motivation

later outcomes of permissive parenting

easily frustrated, low self-control, haven’t been taught a work ethic, can’t self-regulate

later outcomes of uninvolved/neglectful parenting

low self-esteem, emotionally detached, moody or aggressive, haven’t been taught self-control

later outcomes of authoritative parenting

higher grades, cooperative, taught self-control, hard work, and understanding

kohlberg’s theory of moral development

cognitive capabilities of a child’s age determine the development of moral reasoning

preconventional morality

external forces teach them what they should/shouldn’t do; avoid punishment or gain reward

conventional morality

behaving morally because there is a rule/law saying you have to behave this way; behaving morally so others think you’re a good person

postconventional morality

you have individual principles and conscience; capable of using your own moral compass to make judgements