psych cards for test 2

when did psychology become a scientific discipline

mid 1800s

Prior to this, the study of mind, brain and behavior occurred in……

fields like philosophy, bio, lit and language

What led to creation of scientific study of psych

Success of other sciences like chem and bio

Wilhelm Wundt

began the first experimental lab for psychology in 1879

His first experiment measured reaction times in humans

Influenced by the field of chemistry

Wanted to build a mental element of periodic table (failed)

William James

first american psychologist

• Functionalism: identify the purpose of mental activities/state/process

what is functionalism

• identify the purpose of mental activities/state/process

  • Why do evolve with emotion, love, stress (WHY DID THEY EVOLVE)

  • Emphasis on natural selection leading to psychological adaptations to the environment 

  • Influenced by Charles Darwin and the field of biology 

Psych unique:

• Other sciences study things that are directly observable or measurable in some way (think of bio, physics, etc.)

• Psychology does this to some extent as well…our behaviors and our brains can be directly observes

  • But psychology is unique because it also studies something subjective

Operationalization in psychology

finding ways to measure characteristics of mind, behavior, and brain

psych is indirectly measured

Scientific method

foundation for psychological searcher:

• Research the topic and identify a question

• Create a hypothesis (educated guess/statement)

• Design a study/experiment 

• Conduct research and collect data

• Analyze data 

• Determine if hypothesis is supported by data 

Measurement (collecting data) can take many forms:

• Systematic observation

  • Naturalistic observation

  • Structured observation

• Tasks

• Self-report:

• physiological measures

Systematic observation

collecting data while watching human or animal behavior in some setting

Naturalistic observation

real-life setting such as classroom, playground, organization, etc.

Ex: observing social interactions at recess

Structured observation:

artificial settings created by researchers

Ex: studying sleep patterns in a neuroscience lab

Flaws: could change behaviors bc they know someone is watching

Tasks

creating test or activities for people to complete, which are then scored and compared

Ex: stroop task measures attention, processing speed, executive control

Self-report

administering questionnaires or interviews that ask for responses about oneself

Ex: big 5 personality test: agreeableness, extraversion, openness to experiment, conscientiousness, neuroticism

Physiological measures

measuring brain or body activity

Ex: measuring brain activity of someone viewing scary images

Designs can take on many forms

correlational study

experiment

clinical/ case study

Correlational study

research determines if 2 variables are related (correlated) to each other: as one variable changes, another one does too

What is a positive correlation

• variables move in same direction; more social support-> more self esteem  

  • Having more social support is associated with  having a higher self esteem

  • Lower neuroticism is associated with having lower risk of physical illness

What is a negative correlation

• variables move in opposite directions;  

  • Having more social support is associated with having a lower risk of dementia

What is no correlation

no relationship between variables

Correlation is not ……

• causation: just bc there's a relationship between them it doesn’t mean on variable is causing the other 

  • When two variables are correlated, this does not mean one causes the other

  • Causation is possible but may not be occurring

ex: ice cream sales have a positive correlation to homicides

Experiments….

are the only design that allows us to establish cause and effect relationships

Carefully controlling non-relevant factors so that we can determine if one variable affects another

Independent variable

dependent variable

Independent variable (IV)

what the experimenter manipulates (the cause)

Dependent variable (DV)

what’s measured to determine if the IV has produced an effect

The most basic experimental design compares 2 groups

• Experimental group receives the experimental manipulation, but the control group does not 

• Ideally, the only difference between groups is that one receives the manipulation (the IV) while the other doesn’t 

Albert BAndura’s “Bobo doll” study on aggression

• IV: exposure to video containing aggression (one group sees aggressive behavior, one sees non-aggressive behavior)

• DV: amount of aggression behavior afterword (# of hits) 

• hypothesis : the group of children exposed to aggressive video will display more aggressive behaviors afterwards 

Clinical/case studies:

observational research focused on just one or few individuals

allows for detailed info

often difficult to apply findings to the wider population

Replication

researchers attempt to reproduce existing findings

successful: findings are likely to be true

failure: finding are questionable

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

approve study

Researchers must consider ethical questions, such as:

• Is there any risk to participants?

• Do participants understand what they’re getting into and consent to it?

•  How can we keep info/data confidential?

practice: Kim wants to test whether drinking caffeinated soda can improve memory. She has one
group drink Coke and another drink Caffeine-Free Coke. She gives them memory tasks on a
computer before and after they drink their beverages

1.) kim and caffeine: IV:type of coke DV:memory Experimental grp: people with caffeine coke control grp:people with non-caffeinated coke

practice: A team of researchers wants to know if meditation leads to changes in the temporal lobe. The researchers ask one group of participants to undergo a 12-week meditation program in which they meditate for 1 hour each day. They ask another group to read about meditation
for 1 hour per day but otherwise continue their normal daily life. The researchers measure
temporal lobe activity via an EEG machine.

2.) Mediation team: IV: type of meditation DV:changes in the temporal lobe Experimental grp: 12 week meditation program control grp: reading about mediation

practice: Ronaldo sets up an experiment to test out the effectiveness of a new drug. He wants to know whether the drug will reduce anxiety levels. He splits his participants into two groups – one receives the drug, and the other receives a placebo (sugar pill). He measures anxiety levels
by monitoring blood pressure and heart rate.

3.) Ronaldo and effectiveness of drug: IV:took drug or placebo DV: anxiety levels Experimental grp:actual drug control grp: placebo

Consciousness

awareness of internal or external stimuli

Being aware of something inside or outside the body/mind

Internal ex: pain, hunger, emotions, fear, thoughts, memory

External ex: seeing an object, texture/temp(way something feels), hearing, 5 senses

altered states of consciousness

- temporary changes in awareness triggered by an event

ex:meditation, hypnosis, drugs, hallucination

Biological rhythms

are patterns/cycles of biological activity

ex: menstrual cycle, hibernation

Circadian rhythms

occur over a cycle of about 24 hours

Circadian: about (circa) a day (dia)

Ex:body temp, blood pressure, sleep-wake cycle

Sleep-wake cycle:

brain/body goes between states of sleep and wakefulness based on internals and external stimuli

Suprachiasmatic Nucleus (SCN) is

an area within the hypothalamus that is sensitive to light/dark to regulate circadian rhythms

Internal clock that syncs brain with outside world

Controls pineal gland to release melatonian

stages of sleep separated based on a few factors

• REM vs non-REM sleep

• Type of brain waves 

• Type of bodily activity

Major division of stage: REM sleep vs non-REM sleep

stage 1-3 are non REM

stage 4 REM

REM stands

rapid eye movement

What is nonREM and REM

1-3 non

4 REM

Brain waves are measured in….

Hertz (Hz)

Hertz are……….

cycles per second (how many times the wave repeats in one second)

Stage 1:

transition between wakefulness and sleep (5 mins)

Alpha waves (8-13 hz)

Slight decrease in heart rate and breathing rate

Becoming relaxed/drowsy and “falling asleep”

Stage 2:

light sleep (10-60 min)

Theta waves (4-7 Hz)

Beginning of sleep

Further slowing of the heart rate and breathing, muscles relax, temp drops

Stage 3:

deep sleep (20-40 mins)

Delta waves (4 Hz and below)
Deepest relaxation, bodily functions and brain at lowest levels of activity

Allows the body and brain to repair/restore themselves

Stage 4:

REM sleep (10-60 mins )

Beta waves (13-32 Hz)- like were awake

Rapid eye movement, increases brain activity

Dreams

Muscles paralysis (which is not present in non-REM stages)

Muscles paralysis in REM: why would this have evolved and what is the purpose

Why would this have evolved?: cause body to be active and act these out

Purpose: can take info in helps laying down memories, understand what has been processed, allows more time to learn 

How many times does it repeat per night

4-6

every 90 mins

Dreams can help:

process events, info and emotion

Lucid dream

aware you’re dreaming

Sleep debt

arises from not getting enough sleep

issues in physical and mental functioning

Physical ex: sickness, stress, tired/low energy, hallucinations, longevity:heart issues, cancer

Mental ex: irritability, worse reaction time, attention deficit, memory suffers, risk of psych disorders raised

Sleep disorders are…..

disturbances in sleep that persist over time and affect health, mental health and daily life activities

Insomnia:

struggle to fall asleep or stay asleep or persistent pattern of having difficulty falling/staying asleep

2 weeks to be diagnosed

treatment: exercise, less screentime, supplements

Parasomnias:

sleep disorders that involve disruptive experiences during sleep

sleepwalking

sleep paralysis

REM sleep behavior disorder

Sleepwalking:

walking during stages 2-3

More likely if sleep deprived and/or using drugs

Sleep paralysis:

inability to move when falling asleep or waking up; happens out of REM sleep

REM Sleep Behavior Disorder (RSBD):

lack of muscles paralysis during REM sleep

Psychoactive drugs affect……

nervous system to alter consciousness, perceptions, thinking and/or mood

Depressants, stimulants, hallucinogens, etc.

Stimulants:

increase nervous system activity by affecting neurotransmitters

Ex:cocaine, amphetamines, caffeine, nicotine

Increased dopamine= more activity and pleasure= high risk of addiction

adderall: treats ADHD

Meditation:

Involves focusing attention on something to increase awareness and acceptance of the present moment

Clearing the mind of everything expect the target we focus our attention on

Creates a peaceful state of relaxed awareness/focus

Benefits: help physical health, immunity, improve long term out comes with health, sharpens mental abilities, focus better, memory improves

Parasympathetic: brings us down when stressed

Sensation:

receiving sensory energy into the body from a stimulus

A physical process- sense organs (eyes and ear, etc.) receiving energy from a stimulus

Transduction:

stimulus energy is converted into action potential and sent to the brain

Cells in the body that are specialized to receive a specific type of sensory energy called: sensory receptors

Each sense has their own

Sensation is physical- it occurs in the body

Perception:

is how sensory info is interpreted and organized into a conscious experiment

Perception is psychological- it occurs in the brain and mind

Raw sensory input is received and transduced (———— then it's sent to the brain and quickly processed into specific memories (————-)

1. sensation

2. perception

ex: round purple flowers

Sensation: receptors in retina are stimulated by light bouncing off

Perception: recognizing the object as a flower and seeing its purple and round

Smelling cooking baking

Sensation: receptors in the nose are stimulated by molecules from the cookies

Perception: noting the smell and recognizing it as cookie

Gestalt psych:

our perception, especially vision, follows specific patterns/ relationships to interpret stimuli

Processing happens automatically- the brain forms perceptual hypotheses

We see the whole objects/ scenes: the whole is greater than the sum of its parts

Proximity:

grouping things together that are close to each other in space/time

Figure-grounding relationship:

seeing depth- the background v the foregroup

Sensory adaptation:

becoming less sensitive to stimuli that we’re repeatedly exposed to over time

Ex: hearing a clock ticking in a room, but over time you perceive it less or not at all

Attention:

focusing awareness on specific stimuli in the environment or our own mind/body

Inattentional blindness:

• failing to perceive a stimulus because our attention is focused on something else

  • Attention plays a key role in what we perceive 

Cocktail party effect:

ability to hear “unattended” info like your name

Amplitude:

height of a wave (peak to trough)

Frequency:

# of times a wave repeats during one second (number of Hertz)

Lower frequency-

lower wavelength

Higher frequency-

shorter wavelength

Vision involves:

turning light waves into meaningful images

Electromagnetic (EM) spectrum is …

the full range of electromagnetic radiation

Different wavelengths=

different colors

Different amplitude of waves=

different brightness

Retina:

light-sensitive lining in back of the eye that contains photoreceptor cells 

Info sent to visual cortex in the occipital lobes

Cones:

• photoreceptors for bright, colored light

  • Less sensitive, but allows for detailed vision

Rods:

photoreceptors for low levels of light

More sensitive, but less detail and light to no color

Fovea:

small indentation in retina that allows for our most detailed vision; has a large amount of cones

Optic nerve is a

bundle of axons that leaves the retain to carry info to the brain

Exists through the back of the eye to the retina

Blind spot: part of visual field that cannot be processed bc

part of visual field that cannot be processed

Hearing is

turning sound waves (disturbances in air molecules) into meaningful sounds

In sound waves, frequency/wavelength corresponds to

perception of pitch

As frequency increases

shorter wavelengths) pitch volume/loudness

Humans can detect frequencies between 20-20,000 Hz

Higher amplitude=

higher sound

Hair cells:

sensory receptors in inner ear that receives sound waves

Sends signals to auditory cortex in temporal lobe

Chemical senses:

sensory receptors respond to molecular structure for senses of taste and smell
Each is its own sense, but they interact and are processed in adjacent areas in the brain (lower frontal/ temporal areas)

Gustation:

taste

Molecules in food stimulate taste buds in mouth, throat and tongue

Taste buds replaced every 2 weeks

Olfaction:

smell

Molecules in air stimulate odor receptors in nasal cavity

There are many specialized tactile (touch) sensory receptors:

Free nerve endings effect temp and pain