psych unit 1 vocab

heredity

biological process of passing traits and genetics from parents to their offspring

genes

units of heredity that make up chromosomes

epigenetics

molecular mechanisms by which environments can trigger or block genetic expressions

environment

every non-genetic influence on your behavior, thoughts, and feelings

twin studies

research design used to compare identical and fraternal twins to estimate the relative influence of gene vs environment

nature vs nurture

are human behaviors shaped by genetics or environment

evolutionary psychology

the study of how human behavior and mental processes have been shaped by natural selection and adaptation to help our ancestors survive and reproduce

endocrine system

a network of glands that release hormones directly into the bloodstream to regulate bodily functions, behavior, and mental processes

central nervous system (CNS)

brain and spinal cord

peripheral nervous system

responsible for gathering information and transmitting CNS decisions to other body parts

sensory neurons

carry messages from body’s tissues and sensory receptors inward

motor neurons

carry instructions from CNS to body’s muscles and glands

interneurons

where information is processed

somatic nervous system

voluntary control of our skeletal muscles

automatic nervous system (ANS)

controls glands and internal organ muscles

• broken into sympathetic and parasympathetic systems

• homeostasis

sympathetic nervous system

fight or flight

parasympathetic nervous system

rest and digest

neuron

information carrier

• composed of cell body, dendrite, myelin sheath, glial cells, axon, axon terminal

resting potential

normal state of a neuron (positively charged outside, negatively charged nucleus)

action potential

brief electon charge between neurons

threshold

minimum stimulation needed to trigger neurons

refractory period

short recovery period before the neuron fires again

all or none principle

neuron either fires completely or does not fire at all

direction of impulse

fires from cell body to axon to synaptic terminal

EEG

amplified readout of waves of electrical activity areas across brain’s surface

acetylcholine (take a seat)

muscle movement

dopamine (dope)

brain’s reward system

serotonin (sad sera)

mood regulation, imbalances can cause depression/anxiety

norepinephrine (next level Nora)

preparing for fight or flight, adrenaline, speed up functions

glutamate (mate)

study buddy

GABA

calming effects on body

substance P

pain and inflamation

endorphins

released in response to pain and during physical activity

brainstem

responsible for automatic survival functions, cross-over between brain and opposite side of body

medulla

transmits signals between the spinal cord and higher parts of the brain, controls autonomic activities

pons

helps coordinate movement and control sleep

thalamus

brain’s sensory control center

reticular formation (RAS)

filters information and plays a role in controlling arousal

cerebellum

voluntary movement, balance, coordination

amygdala

emotion center; fear and aggression

hypothalamus

helps maintain stable internal conditions; brain’s reward system

hippocampus

helps process memories

occipital lobes

receives information from the visual fields

parietal lobes

sensory input for touch and body position

frontal lobes

linguistic processing, muscle movements, higher-order thinking, executive functioning

temporal lobes

auditory areas (receive information primarily from opposite ear), language processing

neuroplasticity

brain’s ability to change

hindbrain

contain brainstem structures that direct structures that direct survival (breathing, sleeping, arousal, coordinating, balance)

midbrain

connects the hindbrain with the forebrain, controls some movement and transmits information that enables our seeing and hearing

forebrain

manages complex cognitive activities, sensory and associative functions, voluntary motor activities

motor cortex

cerebral cortex at rear of frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements

somatosensory cortex

cerebral cortex area at front of parietal lobes that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations

assosciation areas

areas of the cerebral cortex that are not involved in primary motor or sensory functions; higher mental functions — learning, remembering, thinking, speaking

neurogenesis

the production of new neurons

corpus callosum

the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres

MEG

measures magnetic field from the brain’s natural electrical activity

CT

examining brain by taking x-ray photographs

PET

depicts brain activity by showing each brain’s consumption of its chemical fuel

MRI

brain scans; person’s head is put in a strong magnetic field, which aligns the spinning atoms in brain molecules

fMRI

can reveal brain functioning as well as structure

circadian rhythm

biological clock; regular bodily rhythms that occur on a 24hr cycle

REM

rapid eye movement sleep; a recurring sleep stage during which most vivid dreams commonly occur

consciousness

aware of yourself and your surroundings (thoughts, feelings, perceptions)

dual-processing

brain processes thoughts unconsciously and consciously

blindsight

the ability for someone who is blind in part of their visual field to respond to visual information without consciously seeing it

parallel processing

the brain’s ability to process multiple aspects of information simultaneously (color, shape, movement)

cognitive neuroscience

how brain activity is connected to mental processes (thinking, memory, perception)

circadian rhythm

the body’s natural 24hr clock that regulates sleep, wakefulness, body temperature

REM

rapid eye movement sleep, vivid dreams, and temporary muscle paralysis

suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN)

a cluster of cells in the hypothalamus that acts as the body’s main biological clock

• regulate circadian rhythm in response to light

nREM 1

light stage; transition from wakefulness to sleep

• drifting sensations and muscle twitches

nREM 2

light stage of sleep where heart rate and body temperature decrease

• sleep spindles and K-complexes

• memory and sleep processing

nREM 3

deepest stage; brain produces slow delta waves and body focuses on physical restoration

• night terrors and sleepwalking can occur

reasons we sleep

protects, restores, aids memory consolidations, feeds creative thinking, supports growth, conserves energy

effects of sleep loss

reduces energy, well-being, and alertness. can impair daily functioning and driving

insomnia

persistent difficulty falling/staying asleep

narcolepsy

a disorder involving a sudden overwhelming sleepiness or sleep attacks

sleep apnea

repeated interruptions in breathing during sleep

REM sleep behavior disorder

physically acting out dreams during REM

Freud’s wish-fullfilment theory

dreams express unconscious wishes and desires that may be unacceptable or difficult to acknowledge while awake

information-processing theory

dreams help the brain process daily experiences and consolidate memories

memory consolidation theory

process of stabilizing and storing newly acquired memories

physiological function theory

REM sleep provides brain stimulation that helps develop and preserve neural pathways (connections between neurons that allow info to travel through nervous system)

activation synthesis theory

dreams result when the brain organizes and interprets random neural activity during sleep

cognitive development theory

dream content reflects a person’s cognitive development, knowledge, and understanding of the world

manifest content

remembered storyline/events of a dream

latent content

hidden, symbolic meaning that Freud believed represented unconscious wishes/drives

sensation

the process by which sensory receptors detect information from the environment and the nervous system transmits it to the brain

perception

the process by which the brain organizes and interprets sensory information to give it meaning

top-down processing

using prior knowledge, expectations, and experiences to interpret sensory information

• ex: missing a typo because your brain expects to read the word how you intended to write it

bottom-up processing

building an understanding from the sensory information coming in

• ex: detecting lines, colors, angles that form an image

transduction

the conversion of external stimulus energy into neural signals the brain can process

signal detection theory

how we detect weak stimuli amid background noise, considering both stimulus strength and psychological factors

difference threshold (JND)

the smallest difference between two stimuli that a person can detect 50% of the time

Weber’s law

the principle that the difference needed to notice a change in a stimulus is a constant proportion of the original stimulus, rather than a fixed amount

sensory adaptation

a decrease in sensitivity to an unchanging stimulus after continuous exposure, as nerve cells fire less frequently

retina

the light-sensitive back inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing and visual information

pupil

adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters

iris

a ring of muscle tissue that forms the colored portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening

lens

the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina