Comprehensive Psychology Review: Systems, Research, Assessment, and Core Foundations

Comprehensive practice flashcards designed for students preparing for Masters in Psychology entrance exams (e.g., CUET PG, DUET), spanning history, research methodology, statistics, psychometrics, biological bases of behavior, cognitive processes, personality, and organizational behavior.

When and where was the first formal laboratory of experimental psychology established, and by whom?

It was established in $1879$ in Leipzig, Germany, by Wilhelm Wundt.

What are the primary goals of psychological enquiry outlined in the text?

The five primary goals are Description of behavior, Explanation of behavior, Prediction of behavior, Control of behavior, and Application of knowledge.

What are the three components of the human soul according to Plato's tripartite theory?

The three components are: 1. Rational (mind), which analyzes and seeks truth; 2. Emotional (spirited), which loves challenge and honor; and 3. Appetites (pleasures), which deals with bodily desires and comforts.

Which four laws did Aristotle use to describe associationism?

Aristotle described associationism through the Law of contiguity, Law of frequency, Law of similarity, and Law of contrast.

According to Hippocrates' Theory of Four Humors, which bodily fluids correspond to the four temperaments?

Blood corresponds to the Sanguine (cheerful, courageous) temperament, Phlegm to the Phlegmatic (apathetic, dull) temperament, Yellow bile to the Choleric (angry, irritable) temperament, and Black bile to the Melancholic (sad) temperament.

What anatomical structure did René Descartes hypothesize as the site of interaction between the mind and the physical body?

Descartes hypothesized that the pineal gland was the principal seat of the soul and the site where the mind and body interact.

What is the mathematical equation for the Weber-Fechner Law, and what do its variables represent?

The formula is $S = c \times \text{log}(R)$, where $S$ represents the subjective sensation, $R$ represents the stimulus strength, and $c$ is a constant.

Which three mental components did Edward Titchener identify as constituting conscious experience in Structuralism?

Titchener identified Sensations (components of discernments), Images (components of thoughts), and Affections (components of emotions).

Who established the first experimental psychology department and laboratory in India, and in what year?

Dr. N. N. Sen Gupta established the first psychology department and laboratory in India in $1916$ at Calcutta University.

How did Dr. Girindra Shekhar Bose's psychoanalytic concept of mental life differ from Sigmund Freud's core theory?

While Freud viewed guilt as the core of psychoanalysis, G. S. Bose formulated the 'theory of opposite wishes' with 'dharma-sankata' (self-doubt) at its core, replacing Freud's tripartite division of the mind with a 'theoretical ego.'

What four philosophical dimensions comprise a research paradigm (represented by the acronym POEM)?

A paradigm is composed of Ontology (nature of reality), Epistemology (nature of knowledge), Methodology (plan of action or research design), and Axiology (ethical and value considerations).

What four criteria did Lincoln and Guba ($1985$) propose to evaluate rigor in qualitative research?

They proposed Dependability (analogous to reliability), Credibility (analogous to internal validity), Confirmability (analogous to objectivity), and Transferability (analogous to external validity).

What is the key difference between active variables and attribute variables in research?

Active variables can be manipulated, changed, or controlled experimentally, whereas attribute variables cannot be manipulated by the experimenter and represent pre-existing characteristics of the study population (e.g., gender, age).

What is the difference between a Type I error and a Type II error in hypothesis testing?

A Type I error (probability $\alpha$) occurs when a true null hypothesis is incorrectly rejected (a false positive). A Type II error (probability $\beta$) occurs when a false null hypothesis fails to be rejected (a false negative).

What is the formula for the statistical power of a test?

The formula is $\text{Power} = 1 - \beta = 1 - P(\text{Type II error})$.

How do the denominators differ in the formulas for population standard deviation versus sample standard deviation?

Population standard deviation divides the sum of squared deviations by $N$ (the total population size), while sample standard deviation divides by $n - 1$ (one fewer than the sample size).

According to the empirical rule (the $68-95-99.7$ rule), what percentage of data falls within $1$, $2$, and $3$ standard deviations of the mean in a normal distribution?

Approximately $68\%$ falls within $\pm 1\,\text{SD}$, $95\%$ falls within $\pm 2\,\text{SD}$, and $99.7\%$ falls within $\pm 3\,\text{SD}$ of the mean.

What is excess kurtosis, and what value indicates a mesokurtic distribution?

Excess kurtosis is defined as $\text{Excess Kurtosis} = \text{Kurtosis} - 3$. When excess kurtosis is equal to $0$, the distribution is mesokurtic (identical in peak height to a normal distribution).

What is Pearson's formula for calculating skewness from central tendency measures and dispersion?

The formula is $\text{Skewness} = \frac{3(\text{Mean} - \text{Median})}{\text{Standard Deviation}}$.

Which non-parametric test serves as the distribution-free equivalent to the one-way independent ANOVA?

The Kruskal-Wallis test serves as the non-parametric alternative to the one-way ANOVA.

Which non-parametric test is the equivalent of the independent two-sample t-test?

The Mann-Whitney U test (also known as the Wilcoxon rank-sum test) is the non-parametric equivalent of the independent two-sample t-test.

What benchmark values did Jacob Cohen propose for interpreting the effect size statistic Cohen's $d$?

Cohen suggested that $d = 0.2$ represents a small effect size, $d = 0.5$ represents a medium effect size, and $d = 0.8$ represents a large effect size.

What is the formula for calculating degrees of freedom in a two-variable Chi-square contingency table?

The formula is $df = (r - 1) \times (c - 1)$, where $r$ is the number of rows and $c$ is the number of columns.

Under what condition is a point-biserial correlation used instead of a biserial correlation?

A point-biserial correlation is used when one variable is continuous and the other is a true or natural dichotomy (e.g., male/female), whereas a biserial correlation is used when the dichotomous variable is artificial with an underlying continuous distribution (e.g., pass/fail based on an arbitrary cut-off).

According to the Kaiser criterion, when is a factor retained in factor analysis?

A factor is retained if its associated eigenvalue is greater than $1$.

What does communality ($h^2$) represent in factor analysis?

Communality represents the proportion of common variance shared among a set of items that is explained by the extracted factors, ranging from $0$ to $1$.

What is the Spearman-Brown Prophecy formula used to estimate whole-test reliability from split-half correlation?

The formula is $r = \frac{2r_h}{1 + r_h}$, where $r$ is the reliability of the entire test and $r_h$ is the correlation between the two half-tests.

What are the standard mean and standard deviation for T-scores and Stanines?

T-scores have a mean of $50$ and a standard deviation of $10$. Stanines have a mean of $5$ and a standard deviation of $2$ on a scale of $1$ to $9$.

What are the three core subtests of the Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI) on the WAIS-IV?

The three core subtests are Similarities, Vocabulary, and Information (with Comprehension serving as a supplementary subtest).

What five executive function scales are assessed by the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST)?

The WCST assesses: strategic planning, organized searching, using environmental feedback to shift cognitive sets, directing behavior toward achieving a goal, and modulating impulsive responding.

What are the six scales generated by the FIRO-B personality instrument?

The six scales are Expressed Inclusion, Expressed Control, Expressed Affection, Wanted Inclusion, Wanted Control, and Wanted Affection.

What are the ten clinical scales of the MMPI-2?

The ten clinical scales are: 1. Hypochondriasis, 2. Depression, 3. Conversion Hysteria, 4. Psychopathic Deviate, 5. Masculinity/Femininity, 6. Paranoia, 7. Psychasthenia, 8. Schizophrenia, 9. Hypomania, and 10. Social Introversion.

What ion exchange occurs during the operation of the neuronal sodium-potassium pump ($\text{Na}^+,\text{K}^+\text{-ATPase}$)?

The pump pushes three $\text{Na}^+$ (sodium) ions out of the cell for every two $\text{K}^+$ (potassium) ions it moves inside the cell, consuming one molecule of ATP.

What are the three meningeal layers covering the central nervous system, ordered from outermost to innermost?

From outermost to innermost, they are the Dura mater, the Arachnoid mater, and the Pia mater.

What is the structural difference between oligodendrocytes and Schwann cells regarding myelination?

Oligodendrocytes produce myelin sheaths for multiple axons in the Central Nervous System (CNS), whereas Schwann cells provide myelin for only a single axon in the Peripheral Nervous System (PNS).

What electrophysiological brain wave patterns characterize wakefulness, drowsy relaxation, and deep slow-wave sleep?

Wide-awake alertness is characterized by fast, low-amplitude beta waves; relaxed drowsiness produces alpha waves; and deep stage $3$ (N$3$) slow-wave sleep is dominated by large, slow delta waves.

What does the Volley Principle propose to resolve the limitations of the Frequency Theory of hearing for pitches above $500\,\text{Hz}$?

It proposes that groups of auditory neurons alternate their firing in coordinated volleys, allowing the auditory nerve to process sound frequencies up to $4000\,\text{Hz}$, exceeding the $500\,\text{Hz}$ firing limit of any single neuron.

According to the Gate-Control Theory of pain, which nerve fibers inhibit pain signals and which transmit them?

Large, myelinated Type A fibers transmit non-pain signals (touch, pressure) that activate inhibitory interneurons to close the gate, whereas small, unmyelinated Type C fibers carry pain signals that inhibit those interneurons, opening the gate for projection neurons.

Which schedule of partial reinforcement produces the highest rate of responding and is most resistant to extinction?

The Variable Ratio (VR) schedule produces the highest response rate and is the most resistant to extinction.

What is the difference between proactive interference and retroactive interference in memory retrieval?

Proactive interference occurs when previously learned material interferes with the recall of newly learned information, whereas retroactive interference occurs when newly acquired material impairs the recall of previously learned information.

What are the four components of Alan Baddeley's Working Memory Model?

The four components are the Phonological Loop, the Visuospatial Sketchpad, the Episodic Buffer, and the Central Executive.

What are the three dimensions and categories of Guilford's Structure of Intellect (SI) model?

The three dimensions are Operations (Cognition, Memory recording, Memory retention, Divergent production, Convergent production, Evaluation), Contents (Visual, Auditory, Symbolic, Semantic, Behavioral), and Products (Units, Classes, Relations, Systems, Transformations, Implications).

What are the four cognitive processing units comprising the PASS theory of intelligence developed by Das and Naglieri?

The four units are Planning, Attention-arousal, Simultaneous processing, and Successive processing.

What are the four stages of creativity formulated by Graham Wallas ($1926$)?

The four stages are Preparation, Incubation, Illumination ('Aha!' moment), and Verification.

How did Gordon Allport classify personal dispositions or traits in his hierarchy?

Allport classified them into Cardinal dispositions (rare, all-pervasive traits dominating a person's life), Central dispositions ($5$ to $10$ prominent traits forming the building blocks of personality), and Secondary dispositions (situational traits and personal preferences).

What are the three data types Raymond Cattell used to measure personality objectively?

Cattell used L-data (life records and naturalistic observation), Q-data (self-report questionnaires), and T-data (objective personality tests where the subject does not know what is being evaluated).

What three personality traits comprise the 'Dark Triad' identified by Paulhus and Williams ($2002$)?

The Dark Triad comprises Machiavellianism, Narcissism, and Psychopathy.

What are the eight psychosocial stages of development and their corresponding virtues according to Erik Erikson?

1. Trust vs. Mistrust (Hope), 2. Autonomy vs. Shame/Doubt (Will), 3. Initiative vs. Guilt (Purpose), 4. Industry vs. Inferiority (Competence), 5. Identity vs. Role Confusion (Fidelity), 6. Intimacy vs. Isolation (Love), 7. Generativity vs. Stagnation (Care), and 8. Integrity vs. Despair (Wisdom).

What are the four successive stages in Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development?

1. Sensorimotor stage (birth to $2$ years), 2. Preoperational stage ($2$ to $7$ years), 3. Concrete operational stage ($7$ to $11$ years), and 4. Formal operational stage ($12$ years and older).

What three levels of moral reasoning did Lawrence Kohlberg identify, and how many stages do they encompass?

Kohlberg identified three levels containing two stages each (six total): Pre-Conventional Level (Stages 1 and 2), Conventional Level (Stages 3 and 4), and Post-Conventional Level (Stages 5 and 6).

How does the Cannon-Bard theory of emotion differ from the James-Lange theory?

The James-Lange theory asserts that physiological arousal occurs first and causes the conscious emotion, whereas the Cannon-Bard theory posits that physiological arousal and emotional experience occur simultaneously and independently via subcortical structures like the thalamus.

What are the three stages of Hans Selye's General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)?

The three stages are: 1. Alarm stage, 2. Resistance stage, and 3. Exhaustion stage.

According to Harold Kelley's Covariation Model, which pattern of information yields an internal (dispositional) attribution?

An internal attribution is made when there is High Consistency, Low Consensus, and Low Distinctiveness.

What are the three clusters of personality disorders identified in the DSM-5?

Cluster A (Odd/Eccentric: Paranoid, Schizoid, Schizotypal), Cluster B (Dramatic/Erratic/Emotional: Antisocial, Borderline, Histrionic, Narcissistic), and Cluster C (Anxious/Fearful: Avoidant, Dependent, Obsessive-Compulsive).

What do the letters in Albert Ellis' ABCDE model of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) represent?

A = Activating Event / Adversity, B = Irrational Belief, C = Emotional and Behavioral Consequences, D = Disputes or Arguments against the irrational belief, and E = New Effect (rational philosophy and positive emotional outcome).

What are the three situational favorableness dimensions assessed in Fred Fiedler's Contingency Theory?

The three dimensions are Leader-Member Relations, Task Structure, and Leader Position Power.

What are the four leadership styles formulated in the Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership model?

The four styles are Telling (high directive, low supportive), Selling (high directive, high supportive), Participating (low directive, high supportive), and Delegating (low directive, low supportive).

What are the five sequential stages of group development formulated by Bruce Tuckman?

The sequential stages are Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning.