EBQ Safety Terms by Perspective

Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic Perspective

Emphasizes the role of unconscious psychological processes, particularly early childhood experiences, in shaping personality and behavior.

Id

The unconscious part of personality that seeks immediate gratification of basic drives.

Ego

The rational part of personality that mediates between the id and the superego.

Superego

The part of personality that represents internalized ideals and provides standards for judgment.

Defense mechanisms

Unconscious strategies used by the ego to manage anxiety from unacceptable thoughts.

Unconscious

The part of the mind that contains thoughts, memories, and desires not in current awareness.

Psychodynamic therapies

Therapeutic approaches that focus on unconscious processes and past experiences.

Behavioral Perspective

Emphasizes observable behaviors and how they are learned through interactions with the environment, primarily via conditioning.

Classical conditioning

Learning through association of two stimuli to produce a new response.

Operant conditioning

Learning through consequences, where behavior is strengthened by reinforcement or weakened by punishment.

Shaping

Reinforcing successive approximations toward a desired behavior.

Incentive theory of motivation

Motivation driven by external rewards and goals.

Behavioral therapies

Treatments based on the principles of learning to change maladaptive behaviors.

Humanistic Perspective

Emphasizes the inherent goodness of people and their capacity for growth.

Self-actualization

The process of fulfilling one's potential and becoming the best version of oneself.

Unconditional positive regard

Acceptance and love from others regardless of behavior or mistakes.

Positive psychology

The scientific study of human strengths and well-being.

Self-determination theory of motivation

The theory that people are motivated by needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness.

Client-centered therapies

Therapy emphasizing a supportive environment and unconditional positive regard.

Cognitive Perspective

Emphasizes internal mental processes like thinking, memory, and perception and how these influence behavior.

Encoding

the process of putting information into memory

Storage

the retention of encoded information over time

Retrieval

the process of getting information out of memory

Chunking

organizing information into manageable and familiar units

Schema

a mental framework used to organize and interpret information

Top-down processing

perception driven by cognition and prior knowledge

Bottom-up processing

perception based on sensory input

Heuristics

simple thinking strategies or rules of thumb used to solve problems efficiently

Confirmation bias

the tendency to search for information that supports one's beliefs

Hindsight bias

the tendency to believe, after an event has occurred, that it was predictable

Perceptual set

a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

Framing

the way information is presented, which can affect decision-making

Stages of cognitive development

Piaget's theory describing how children's thinking evolves in stages

Cognitive appraisal

the interpretation of a situation that triggers stress or emotion

Stress

a negative emotional and physiological response to perceived threats

Distress

harmful or damaging stress

Eustress

positive, beneficial stress that can motivate and improve performance

Cognitive therapies

therapy that focuses on changing maladaptive thought patterns

Social-Cognitive Perspective

emphasizes that learning and behavior are shaped by a dynamic interplay between cognition, behavior, and the environment.

Social learning theory

learning through observing and imitating others

Observational learning

learning by watching others and modeling their behavior

Reciprocal determinism

the idea that behavior, environment, and cognition all influence each other

Locus of control

the degree to which people believe they control their own outcomes

Intrinsic motivation

motivation driven by internal rewards or personal satisfaction

Extrinsic motivation

motivation driven by external rewards or pressures

Normative social influence

conforming to be liked or accepted by a group

Informational social influence

conforming because one believes others have accurate information

Obedience

compliance with commands or instructions from an authority figure

Arousal theory of motivation

the idea that people are motivated to maintain an optimal level of arousal

Sensation-seeking

the tendency to pursue novel and intense experiences

Yerkes-Dodson law

of arousal performance is best at moderate levels of arousal

Self-efficacy

belief in one's ability to succeed in specific situations

Self-esteem

one's overall sense of self-worth or personal value

Deindividuation

loss of self-awareness in group situations that may lead to atypical behavior

Groupthink

faulty decision-making that occurs when group harmony overrides realistic appraisal

Group polarization

strengthening of a group's preexisting attitudes through discussion

Social loafing

the tendency for individuals to exert less effort in a group

Social facilitation

improved performance on simple tasks in the presence of others

Situational attribution

explaining behavior by situational factors

Dispositional attribution

explaining behavior by personality or traits

Resilience

the ability to recover from stress or adversity

Relative deprivation

feeling worse off by comparing oneself to others

Adaptation-level phenomenon

tendency to form judgments relative to a neutral level based on past experience

Cognitive-behavioral therapy

therapy combining cognitive restructuring with behavior modification

Biological Perspective

emphasizes the impact of the brain, genes, and other biological systems on behavior and mental processes.

Cerebellum

part of the brain that coordinates voluntary movement and balance

Long-term potentiation

a long-lasting increase in synaptic strength, believed to be the basis of learning and memory

Limbic system

brain structures involved in emotion, motivation, and memory

Amygdala

part of the limbic system involved in emotion, especially fear and aggression

Hippocampus

part of the limbic system involved in memory formation

Hypothalamus

brain region that controls basic drives and regulates the endocrine system

Frontal lobes

brain region involved in decision-making, planning, and personality

Parietal lobes

brain region involved in processing sensory information

Occipital lobes

brain region involved in visual processing

Temporal lobes

brain region involved in auditory processing and language

Somatosensory cortex

brain area that processes touch and body sensations

Motor cortex

brain area that controls voluntary movements

Neurotransmitters

chemical messengers that transmit signals across synapses

Hormones

chemical messengers released by glands that affect body processes

Central nervous system

the brain and spinal cord

Peripheral nervous system

nerves outside the brain and spinal cord

Plasticity

the brain's ability to adapt or change due to experience

Sleep

a natural state of rest involving altered consciousness and decreased activity

Circadian rhythm

the body's internal clock regulating sleep-wake cycles

Transduction

the conversion of sensory stimuli into neural impulses

Retina

the light-sensitive layer of the eye where visual processing begins

Cochlea

the fluid-filled structure in the inner ear that converts sound waves into neural signals

Brain scans

imaging techniques used to observe brain structure and function

Twin studies

research examining genetic versus environmental influences

Kinesthesis

the sense of body movement and position

Vestibular sense

the sense of balance and spatial orientation

Drive-reduction theory of motivation

theory that behavior is motivated by the desire to reduce internal tension

Fight-flight-freeze

automatic response to perceived threat

General adaptation syndrome

the body's three-stage response to stress: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion

Sensory adaptation

decreased sensitivity to constant or unchanging stimuli

Evolutionary Perspective

emphasizes how human behavior and mental processes have evolved to enhance survival and reproduction.

Nature vs. nurture

debate over the relative influence of genetics and environment on behavior

Adaptation

a trait that increases an organism's chances of survival and reproduction

Natural selection

process by which traits that enhance survival become more common

Attachment

a strong emotional bond between individuals, often seen in infants and caregivers