AP Psych Terms

Fronta Lobe

Decision making, planning, personality, impulse control, voluntary movement located in the forebrain

Prefrontal cortex

judgement and reasoning and metacognition in forebrain

Parietal Lobe

Processes touch, pain, temperature, body position located in forebrain

Temporal Lobe

Hearing, language, and memory located in the forebrain.

Occipital Lobe

Vision and interprets what you see located in the back of the head

Amygdala

Fear, aggression, emotional reactions within the limbic system

Hippocampus

Forms new memories within limbic system

Hypothalamus

Maintains homeostasis (hunger, thirst, body temp) + controls hormones within limbic system

Medulla

heart rate, breathing, automatic survival within brainstem

Pons

sleep, dreaming and coordination located within the brainstem

Reticular Formation

arousal and alertness (wakefulness) located in brainstem

Cerebellum

Balance, coordination, motor learning bottom part of the brain

Thalamus

Sensory relay station (routes info to correct area) within limbic system

Corpus callosum

connects left and right hemispheres

Acetylcholine

Neurotransmitter for muscle movement, learning and memory. Low = Alzheimer’s

Dopamine

Neurotransmitter, reward, motivation, movement, High = schizophrenia, Low = Parkinson’s

Serototonin

Neurotransmitter, mood, sleep and appetite, low = depression

Norepinephrine

Neurotransmitter, alertness, arousal, Low = depressed mood

GABA

Neurotransmitter, main inhibitory calms brain, Low = anxiety and seizures

Glutamate

Neurotransmitter, main excitatory with brain activity, too much = migraines and seizures

Endorphins

Neurotransmitter, pain relief, pleasure, “natural opioids”

Depressants

Alcohol, benzodiazepines, slows nervous system, reduce anxiety, impair memory, mainly agonists

Stimulants

caffeine, cocaine, amphetamines, increases alertness, heart rate and energy, mainly agonists

Opiods

heroin, morphine, pain relief + euphoria, highly addictive, full agonists

Hallucinogens

LSD, psilocybin, distort perception and hallucinations, mainly agonists

Cannabis

THC, relaxation, altered perception, memory impairment, mainly agonists

Somatic Nervous System

Controls voluntary movement (skeletal muscles) nervous system part

Autonomic Nervous System

controls involuntary functions and has two main parts to its nervous system

Sympathetic NS

fight or flight, increases heart rate and dilates pupils part of autonomic ns

Parasympathetic NS

Rest and digest, slows heart rate and conserves energy, part of Autonomic NS

Broca’s area

speech production with forming words, brain part, damage = can understand but cannot speak well slow broken speech

Wernicke’s Area

Brain part, language comprehension, damage = can speak but it makes no sense

Basal Ganglia

Controls movement, coorindation, habits, damage = movement disorders like parkinsons, brain part

Epinephrine (adrenaline)

aerousal fight or flight, increases heart rate blood pressure energy released during stress, neurotransmitter

Pituitary Gland

Master gland, controls other glands, releases growth hormone (limbic system)

Hypothalamus

Links brain and endocrine system, controls pituitary limbic system

Adrenaline

Fight or Flight fast response, hormone

Cortisol

Stress hormone, longer lasting stress

Melatonin

sleep-wake cycle, hormone

Estrogen

Female hormone

Testosterone

Male hormone

Cornea

Clearer outer layer of the eye, bends refracts light to help focus it

Pupil

Opening in the center of the eye, controls how much light enters

Iris

Colored part of the eye, adjusts pupil size, like a camera aperture

Lens

Flexible structure behind pupil, focuses light onto retina changes shape = accommodation

Retina

Light-sensitive inner layer, converts light into neural signals

Rods

Photoreceptors for dim light, black and white vision, motion detection

Cones

Photoreceptors for color, color vision and detail works best in bright light

Fovea

center of retina, sharpest vision packed with cones

Optic Nerve

Bundle of neurons, sends visual info to the brain

Blind spot

where optic nerve exits, no vision, no receptors there

Pinna (auricle)

Outer ear, visible outer ear, collects sound waves

Auditory Canal

Tube leading inward, funnels sound to eardrum in outer ear

Eardrum

Thin membrane, vibrates when sound hits it, middle ear

Ossicles (Hammer, Anvil, Stirrup)

3 tiny bones, amplify vibrations and pass them to inner ear, middle ear

Cochlea

Fluid-filled, snail-shaped structure, converts vibrations -→ neural signals, inner ear

Basilar Membrane

Inside cochlea, moves in response to sound frequencies

Hair cells

Inside cochlea, moves in response to sound frequencies, inner ear

Auditory Nerve

Nerve pathway, sends sound info to brain, inner ear

Semicircular Canals

Fluid-filled loops, sense head movement + balance, ear part

Experiment

Research method that tests cause and effect, manipulates an independent variable to measure change in dependent variable

Independent variable

factor you change, causes the effect

Dependent Variable

Measured outcome, shows the effect

Control group

Doesn’t receive treatment, baseline for comparison

Random assignment

Participants randomly placed in groups, reduces bias, increases validity

Correlational study

Examines relationship between variables, shows associaton, NOT causation

Correlation Coefficient

Strength/ direction (-1 to +1), measures relationship strength

Survey

Collects large amounts of data quickly, problem = wording bias, social desirability

Naturalistic Observation

Observing behavior in real setting, realistic behavior no control

Case Study

in depth study of one person/ group, detailed info but not generalizable

Operational Definition

Exact way a variable is measured, make study replicable

Placebo Effect

expectation influences results, can fake results

Double blind procedure

neither participant nor researcher knows, eliminates bias

Confounding variable

outside factor affecting results, messes up conclusions

Biological Perspective

Perspective, brain genes, neurotransmitters, explains behavior physically

Behavioral Perspective

Perspective, observable behavior, learning, focuses on conditioning (rewards/ punishments)

Psychodynamic Perspective

Unconscious drives, childhood, explains hidden motives, perspective

Humanistic Perspective

Free will, personal growth, focuses on reaching potential, perspective

Evolutionary Perspective

Survival, natural selection, explains traits that help survival, perspective

Sociocultural Perspective

Social + cultural influences, behavior shaped by environment, perspective

MRI

Brain scan, detailed brain structure, shows anatomy, (no activity)

fMRI

brain scan, brain activity AND structure, tracks blood flow (active areas)

CT Scan

Brain scan, X-Ray brain image, detects damage (tumors and bleeding)

PET Scan

Brain Scan, shows brain function using glucose, highlights active areas

EEG

Brain study, records electrical activity, measures brain waves (sleep and seizures)

Leisoning

Destroying brain tissue, studies function by observing loss, brain study method

Split-Brain research

type of brain research, studying separated hemisphere, shows left vs right brain specialization

Validity

Accuracy of results, measures what its supposed to, Internal - study shows true cause/ effect, external - results apply to real world

Reliability

Consistency of results, same results if repeated

standard deviation

descriptive statistics, spread of data, higher = more variability

Experimental Group

Group that receives the treatment, shows effect of the IV

Random Sampling

selecting participants randomly from population, imrpoves generalizability (external validity

Normal curve

symmetrical bell-shaped distribution mean=median=mode

Sampling Bias

sample not representative, skews results

Experimenter Bias

Researcher influences results, unintended effects

Hawthorne Effect

People change behavior when watched

Social Desirability Bias

People give “good” answers

Longitudinal Study

Same people over time, tracks development

Cross-sectional study

Different groups at one time, compares age/groups

Cross-cultural study

Different cultures, test universality