Studied by 5 people
associative learning
bond which develops either between two stimuli or between a stimulus and a response
classical conditioning
a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a stimulus that produces a natural, reflexive response
acquisition phase
when learning takes place
extinction phase
conditioned stimulus (CS) is present without the UCS
second order conditioning
CS can serve as a US for a pairing with a new CS
law of effect
a behavioral response that is followed by a consequence that “satisfies” the subject gains strength, while a response that is followed by a consequence that “annoys” the subject is reduced in strength
operant conditioning
an association is made between a particular behavioral response and a particular stimulus, as a result of the consequence of that response.
dependent measure: rate of responding
instrumental conditioning
the subject learns to perform a specific behavior in response to a stimulus
appetitive stimulus
the subject will approach (never avoid) and will perform work to obtain
aversive stimulus
the subject will avoid (never approach) and will not perform work to obtain
positive reinforcement
presentation of an appetitive stimulus after a target behavior is emitted
likelihood of the target behavior increases
negative reinforcement
removal of an aversive stimulus after a target behavior is emitted
likelihood of the target behavior increases
positive punishment
presentation of an aversive stimulus after an unwanted behavior is emitted
likelihood of the unwanted behavior decreases
negative punishment
removal of an appetitive stimulus after an unwanted behavior is emitted
likelihood of the unwanted behavior decreases
fixed ratio
behavior is reinforced every time after a specific number of responses
variable ratio
behavior is reinforced after an average but unpredictable, number of responses
fixed interval
behavior is reinforced for the first response after a specific amount of time
variable interval
behavior is reinforced for the first response after an average but unpredictable amount of time
primary reinforcer
biologically important (food, water, sleep)
secondary reinforcer
capable of serving as a reinforcer AFTER it has been associated with a primary reinforcer (money, praise, attention)
id
instinctual component of personality and is the source of bodily needs and wants
ego
seeks to please the id’s drive in realistic ways that bring long-term benefit rather than grief or stress
superego
reflects the internalization of cultural rules and is generally considered equivalent to one’s conscience
behaviorism
explains behavior in terms of conditioning and environmental influences without considering unobservable phenomena like thoughts or feelings
reinforcing
the consequence of a response strengthens the association (bond) between the stimulus (S) and that response (R)
probability of R occurring in the future is increased
punishing
the consequence of a response weakens the association between the S and R
probability of the R occurring in the future is decreased
flow rate
state of optimal experience arising from intense involvement in an enjoyable activity that fully utilizes one’s skills
the big five: OCEAN
Openness: creativity
Conscientiousness: loyalty
Extraversion: sociability, activity
Agreeableness: interest in others, helpfulness
Neuroticism: moodiness, anxiety
myers-briggs type indicator—> ONLY WILL APPEAR AS A DISTRACTOR
self-report personality questionnaire which purports to measure different psychological preferences in how people perceive the world and make decisions
cognitive psychology
explores the operations of mental processes related to perception, attention, memory, thinking, language, problem solving, decision making, and creativity. INTELLIGENCE
evolutionary psych
organic evolution by natural selection (and sometimes sexual selection) to explain behavior
biopsychosocial model
systematic integration of biological, psychological, and social approaches, particularly to the study of illness and mental health
cross-cultural psych
studies similarities and variances in human behavior across different cultures
developmental psych
ways people change, stay the same, and develop over the course of an entire lifetime from birth to death
social learning theory
general view that learning is largely due to modeling, imitation, and other interactions involving the influences of other people (praise, blame, reward)
convergent thinking
linear, logical steps to arrive at an answer which is best or most correct (school, exam)
divergent thinking
less analytical and more creative (story-writing, composing music)
inductive reasoning
drawing inferences and general principles (i ate 100 oranges and they were all sweet so all oranges are sweet)
deductive reasoning
drawing of logical conclusions from premises (if all oranges are sweet, and this is an orange, it must be sweet)
schema
any pattern of thought that serves as a guide to perception, interpretation, imagination, organizing knowledge, or problem-solving
broad, imprecise term that can refer to preconceived idea, cognitive framework, system of organizing new info
effects of aging on cognition
recall, episodic memory, processing speed, and divided attention all decline with age
vocabulary, fund of info, and emotional reasoning increase with age
priming
exposure to one stimulus influences a response to subsequent stimuli without conscious guidance or intention
priming effects
usually positive
negative priming: preceding stimulus inhibits the response to a subsequent stimulus
availability heuristic
use of memorial information that happens to be retrieved first. we rely on whatever is most readily available from memory
representative heuristic
determining the probability of an event by its similarity to a prototype or stereotype that is brought to mind
mental set
reliance on solutions that have worked in the past but which may no longer work (rigidity)
functional fixedness
difficulty conceiving new uses for familiar objects
fixation
obsession or preoccupation with a single idea, refusing to consider alternatives
belief perserverance
tendency to maintain to a belief in spite of finding new information that clearly contradicts it
framing
process of defining the context or issues surrounding a question, problem, or event in a way that serves to influence how the context or issues are perceived and evaluated
cognitive bias
systematic pattern of deviation from rationality in judgement, decision making, or other kinds of thinking
hindsight bias, or know-it-all phenomenon
tendency for a person to perceive a past event as more predictable than it actually was. this occurs because people tend to selectively recall information which is consistent with what they know to be true.
response bias
tendency for a research participant to give a particular response, especially an incorrect or false one, disproportionately more often than the other available responses, regardless of the stimulus condition. this may occur because of the way a question is framed or phrased
salience bias
occurs when stimuli that are more prominent of emotionally striking receive a disproportionate amount of attention. can be perceived or recalled more easily. may be considered more likely to occur because of its salience.
confirmation bias
tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information in a way that confirms or supports one’s prior beliefs or values while ignoring contrary or contradictory information
belief perseverance
a person maintains a prior belief despite being aware of new information that clearly contradicts it. most undesirable outcome of a person’s persistent tendency toward a confirmation bias. it is NOT denial which is a defense mechanism, not a cognitive one
expectation bias
a person’s expectations about an outcome influences their perceptions
backfire effect
occurs when a person responds to evidence which contradicts their beliefs by believing even more strongly in their beliefs, rather than by being persuaded
egocentric bias
tendency to rely too heavily on one’s own point of view or to dismiss the perspective of other people
planning fallacy
tendency for a person to underestimate the time required to complete a task or project. this effect occurs because the details or carrying out the task or project are not obvious
overconfidence
tendency to overestimate the accuracy of one’s judgements. displayed by a poor caibration level
illusion of control
irrational belief that external events result from one’s own actions or choices. ex: fan wearing a lucky hat helps the sports team win
barnum effect
a person thinks that vague, general descriptions apply to them specifically. ex: if a person is hurt by someone they love, they think that this applies only to them, when it applies to everyone.
false consensus effect
a person assumes that their personal qualities, characteristics, beliefs, and actions are relatively widespread throughout the general population
projection bias
a cognitive bias in which a person overestimates how much their future self will share the same values, beliefs, and behaviors as their current self. ex: a young gymnast imagines that they will still be performing cartwheels at age 75, the gymnast has no idea what is it like to be 75 so they are assuming
halo effect
rating bias in which positive impressions of an attitude object positively influence a person’s attitude in another unrelated area
availability bias (aka availability heuristic)
tendency to believe that examples of things that readily come to mind, or which are most readily available from memory, are more common than is actually the case
misinformation effect
a person’s retrieval of episodic information becomes less accurate because of “post-event information”
base-rate fallacy
when a person ignores the base rates, or prior probabilities, in favor of information pertaining only to a specific case
just-world hypothesis
the assumption that the world is a fair and orderly place in which people get what they deserve. “he had it coming”
dunning-kruger effect
tendency for people with low ability or expertise to overestimate their ability or knowledge. effect has been reported in fields like business, politics, medicine, etc.
mere exposure effect
the finding that people show an increased preference for a stimulus merely as a consequence of repeated exposure to that stimulus. ex: a person only likes someone because they’ve met a couple times
anchoring bias
occurs when an individual’s decisions are irrationally influenced by a particular reference point. ex: 7 × 6 × 5 is more than 5 × 6 × 7
reactance
refers to an unpleasant motivational reaction to offers or rules which are perceived to threaten specific behavioral freedom. ex: members who were told that they have to do it were more angry than members who were told to consider it.
defense mechanism
an unconscious psychological strategy that is used to protect a person’s ego from the anxiety which arises from unacceptable, or threatening, thoughts or feelings
projection
attributing a person’s unacceptable thoughts or impulses onto another person
ex: a person who feels like fighting someone accuses that person of wanting to fight them
denial
the refusal to accept reality by simply denying it
ex: a person with a terminal disease convinces themselves that they will be cured
repression
banishment to the unconscious of threatening, negative thoughts, painful memories, etc
ex: a person who commits an act of aggression represses the memory and is unable to recall being so aggressive
regression
reverting to an earlier stage of development
ex: a fearful child goes back to thumb sucking
rationalization
explaining an immoral or undesirable actions using a made up explanation or excuse that allows the person to feel comfortable, even if they know on an unconscious level that it is wrong
ex: a person claims they crashed their car not because of carelessness, but because they were swerving out of the way of a pedestrian
displacement
substituting feelings that are connected with one person onto another easier, safer, or more permissible person
ex: a person who is angry at their boss comes home and displaces their anger by yelling at their spouse
reaction formation
the denial and replacement of unacceptable or threatening impulses with their opposite
ex: a person who is uncomfortable with racist thoughts speaks out publicly against racism
sublimation
the channeling of negative and unacceptable behaviors into behaviors that are positive and socially acceptable
ex: a person who feels anxiety channels it into taking piano lessons and playing the piano
introjection
unconsciously adopting the thoughts, attitudes, values, or personality traits of others
ex: while mourning the death of a compassionate family member, a person temporarily becomes more compassionate
5 factors to consider when determining if a person has a mental disorder
a behavioral or psychological syndrome or pattern that occurs in an individual
reflects an underlying psychobiological dysfunction
the consequences of which are clinically significant distress or disability
must not be merely an expected response to common stressors and losses or a culturally sanctioned response to a particular event
primarily a rest of social deviance or conflicts with society
4 D’s
deviance
distress
dysfunction
danger
3 approaches to treating mental illness
psychological approach: psychotherapy through interactions between a therapist and individual
biomedical: use of drugs an brain intervention techniques like ECT, TMS, and psychosurgery
behavioral therapy
form of psychotherapy that applies the principles of learning, operant conditioning, and classical conditioning to eliminate symptoms and modify ineffective or maladaptive patterns of behaviors. useful for treating phobias and breaking habits
exposure therapy
a client is gradually exposed to a source of anxiety or a phobia in an effort to pair a neutral affective state with exposure to the stimulus
aversive therapy
form of behavior therapy in which the client is conditioned to change or eliminate undesirable behavior or symptoms by associating them with unpleasant stimuli
systematic desentization
a specific behavioral therapeutic technique in which, after a patient is trained in deep-muscle relaxation, the client considers a list of phobias in order from weakest to strongest. then the client is encouraged to imagine each phobia while in a state of relaxation. goal is to associate phobia with a state of relaxation
humanistic psychotherapy
predicted on the belief that human nature is fundamentally good and that people are motivated to reach their full potential through self-actualization
client-centered therapy
the therapist strives for genuineness in facilitating a client’s self-actualizing potential. answers to problems are within the client, not the therapist.
wants to eliminate incongruence: lack of alignment between the real self and the ideal self
community approach
involved interventions that are distributed and administered at the community level. workers work in schools, hospitals, police stations, drug treatment clinics, and residential homes. emphasizes preventive services
separation anxiety disorders
fear of separation from home or attachment figure
selective mutism
failure to speak in certain situations
specific phobia
extreme fear of something that poses little or no actual danger
social anxiety
fear in social situations, preventing participation in social activities
panic disorder
frequent panic attacks
agoraphobia
fear of places felt to be unsafe with no easy way to escape. typically fear wide open spaces and leaving the home
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Flashcard (51)