Psych Exam

Which of the following is the best definition of the science of psychology?

Scientific study of behavior and mental processes.

What are the main goals of psychology?

To observe, describe, explain, predict, and control behavior.

Which of the following research methods are widely used by psychologists?

Surveys and experiments

In what way is the practice of psychology closely related to the practice of the natural sciences?

All of the above

Which of the following is considered behavior?

All of the above

In what field do most psychologists practice?

Clinical psychology

What is the primary concern of developmental psychologists?

Changes that occur throughout the lifespan

How do social psychologists differ from personality psychologists?

Social psychologists focus on external rather than internal influences.

What do counseling psychologists encourage their clients to do?

All of the above

Which of the following usually handle course planning and instructional methods for school districts?

Educational psychologists

What do scientists need in order to support a theory?

Evidence

What is the first step in a research study?

Research question

Why might scientists repeat a study under slightly different circumstances than the original?

To confirm the hypothesis

What is a method researchers use to gather information from many people about a particular subject?

Survey

Which is one way that researchers ensure that a sample represents a target population?

Selecting people at random from the target population

What is the term for a predisposition to a certain point of view, despite what the facts may suggest?

Bias

The testing method of observation investigates human behavior through which of the following?

All of the above

Which of the following best describes a case study?

In-depth investigation

Why are scientists cautious about making generalizations from case studies?

Case studies cannot always be replicated

The longitudinal method is concerned with observing how participants

Change over time

What are the basic elements of the nervous system?

Neurons

Messages in a neuron travel from which component to which?

Dendrites to cell body

Synapses are located between what structures?

Axon of one neuron and dendrites of another

What is the main function of the peripheral nervous system?

Sending messages between the central nervous system and all parts of the body

What are the two main parts of the central nervous system?

Somatic and autonomic nervous systems

Which of the following is a neurotransmitter?

Dopamine

Researchers have linked a decrease in acetylcholine to which disease?

Alzheimer’s

Which system regulates involuntary muscles and internal organs?

Autonomic system

Why is a person who lives in the city able to sleep through the sounds of traffic but awaken to the soft sound of a bird singing?

Ordinary noises can be screened out by the reticular activating system.

Which portion of the brain controls many vital, involuntary functions such as heart rate?

Hindbrain

What is the psychological process by which we interpret sensory stimulation?

Perception

What does signal-detection theory take into account?

How psychological factors affect perception

What does the process of sensory adaptation teach us?

To block out sounds we hear frequently

How does the lens of the eye adjust to distances of objects?

Changing its thickness

What is the term for sharpness of vision?

Visual acuity

Why do many older people become farsighted?

Lenses in their eyes become more brittle

What causes sounds?

Vibrations that cause changes in air pressure

What is the gateway from the outer ear to the middle ear?

Eardrum

Conductive deafness occurs because of damage to what part of the body?

Middle ear

What types of senses are smell and taste?

Chemical senses

Which of the following produces an altered state of consciousness?

Meditation

In order to learn from a teacher lecturing in a large lecture hall, students must use

Selective attention

According to the graph above, how many times per night does a person typically enter the deepest stage of sleep?

4

According to the graph above, people are most likely to experience the longest period of vivid dreaming?

After about six hours of sleep

How do scientists distinguish between different stages of sleep?

Using measurements of brain-wave patterns

When a person enters the deepest stage of sleep, the brain emits which of the following types of brain waves?

Delta

The brain waves in REM sleep are similar to those of what stage?

Stage 1

According to the chart above, approximately how much sleep do high school students need?

9-10 hours

Which of the following is more common among children than among adults?

Night terrors

Which of the following can lead to serious health problems?

Sleep apnea

A person suffering from narcolepsy would likely be advised to do which of the following?

Adjust their circadian rhythms

Which of the following about sleepwalkers is true?

They may be prone to accidents

During NREM sleep, dreaming

is usually vague and fleeting

How do psychologists suggest people should combat insomnia?

Using relaxation techniques

Ivan Pavlov’s experiments with dogs yielded information about which of the following?

Classical conditioning

In what way does classical conditioning help animals and people?

It helps them adapt to their environment.

Which of the following describes the process by which a conditioned response is extinguished?

A conditioned stimulus is no longer followed by an unconditioned stimulus.

Under what conditions can spontaneous recovery occur?

When the conditioned stimulus starts again

Which of the following refers to a classical conditioning method that exposes an individual to a harmless stimulus until fear responses to that stimulus are extinguished?

Counterconditioning

Through operant conditioning, people learn to control which of the following?

Voluntary responses

What is the process by which a stimulus increases the chances of a preceding behavior occurring again?

Reinforcement

Primary and secondary reinforcers are important in which of the following?

Operant conditioning

Under what circumstances can punishment be effective?

When it is strong and consistent

On what kind of reinforcement schedule does a slot machine work?

Variable-ratio schedule

What process is used in learning to ride a bicycle?

Shaping and chaining

In the panel at the upper right-hand corner, which of the following best describes the food?

Unconditioned stimulus

Glancing at the section heading of a chapter is an example of which step in the PQ4R?

Preview

Which of the following is an example of episodic memory?

Pain of a broken leg

What best describes the use of visual codes to memorize information?

Creating a clear mental picture

A memory of kindergarten that returns when you are back in your kindergarten classroom is an example of what type of memory?

Context-dependent

Your brain’s organizational systems are part of the memory’s

storage process

Which of the following best describes chunking?

Organizing items into familiar or manageable units

How long is information retained in the short-term memory?

Ten to twelve seconds

How many pieces of information can the average person hold in short-term memory?

Seven

What must happen in order to remember information for more than a short while?

Information must be transferred from working to long-term memory.

What best describes long-term memory?

Final stage of information storage

According to the graph, where does the greatest drop in retention occur?

The first 20 minutes

According to this graph, when does memory retention level off?

6 days

Which memory loss involves forgetting the period leading up to a traumatic event?

Retrograde amnesia

The beginning of true language in babies occurs when they start

learning words

What can functional fixedness become?

An obstacle to solving a problem

What is the psychology of language called?

Psycholinguistics

Young children who have just learned grammar rules often

Incorrectly use words they had used correctly before

What is the most reliable approach to solving a problem?

Algorithm

What do studies about bilingualism?

It increases children’s expertise in their native language

What mental activity is involved in communicating information?

Thinking

Which of the following terms describes the way in which words are arranged to make phrases or sentences?

Syntax

How can a balance sheet help solve a problem?

By helping a person visualize the best course of action

In general, a second language is most easily learned

during early childhood

What is a concept?

Group of objects, events, or ideas with similar characteristics

How do people organize concepts?

Into hierarchies

At what age do most children develop three or more words?

Near 18 months

Sensitivity to other people’s feeling and a keen understanding of the laws of nature are components of

The nine intelligences described by Howard Gardner

Why did Alfred Binet design his aptitude tests for children for different age levels?

Binet wanted to show that intelligence increased with age

Which of the following is one of the main purposes of intelligence testing?

To identify people with very low and very high IQs

Which of the following are included in Robert Sternberg’s model of intelligence?

Analytical, creative, and practical abilities

Which of the following is among the capabilities of mildly retarded adults?

All of the above

What does the distribution of IQ scores on a graph look like?

A bell curve

Most adoptee studies show that the IQs of adopted children are more like those of their

biological parents

What is this shape called?

bell curve