psyc 111 unit 2

informed consent

tells potential participants about the study and allows them to agree to participating

(let them know potential risks, it’s ok to stop participating, how to contact researcher)

minimal risk

risk normally associated with everyday activities

cost-benefit analysis

decision-making used to weigh the short-term and long-term advantages and disadvantages of a specific thought or behavior

Institutional Review Board

reviews proposals for research conducted with human participants

Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee

reviews proposals for research to be conducted with non-human animals

stress

process by which an individual perceives and responds to stressors (events that are seen as overwhelming or threatening)

stressors

events that are seen as overwhelming or threatening

types of stressors

acute (short), chronic, physiological, psychological

general adaptation syndrome

3 stages your body goes through when facing stress

1. alarm: fight or flight response

2. resistance: adapt to the stressor or find how to cope with it

3. exhaustion: resistance breaks down, energy is depleted, could have physical problems

primary appraisal

evaluate whether this event is harmful

secondary appraisal

evaluate how well can you cope

social support

soothing impact of friends, family, and acquaintances

research by Berkman and Syme- social support

longitudinal research, showed that strong social support significantly lowers rates of physical illness and early death

problem-focused coping

trying to manage or alter the stressor

emotion-focused coping

change or reduce the negative emotions associated with the stressor

informational control

acquire information about the stressor

optimism

focusing on the positive side

associated with productivity and health outcomes

hardiness

a personality style that helps people turn stressful events into growth opportunities instead of burnout

3 components: control, commitment, courage and motivation

associated with health

eustress

stress associated with positive feelings and optimal performance

distress

stress associated with negative feelings

arousal reappraisal

a psychological technique where you reframe physical stress symptoms (like a racing heart and sweaty palms) as signs of excitement and energy instead of fear or anxiety.

post hoc fallacy

just because an earlier thing happened doesn’t mean that the earlier thing caused the later thing

bidirectional influences

two factors influence each other, rather than one way influence

cross-sectional design

collect data of a group of people at a SINGLE point in time

cohort effects

when a group of people who share common experiences think differently than other age groups because of WHEN they grew up

longitudinal research design

study a group of people OVER TIME

attrition

participants dropping out overtime during the study

cognitive development

study of how children acquire the ability to learn, think, reason, communicate, and remember

nature vs nurture

your biological and genetic makeup vs your environment

assimilation (Piaget’s theory)

taking what we see in the world and fitting it into our understanding

accommodation (Piaget’s theory)

altering a belief to make it more compatible with our experience

equilibration (Piaget’s theory)

balance between assimilation and accommodation that drives cognitive growth (balance between our experience of the world and understanding of it)

characteristics of Piaget’s theory

• development is STAGE-LIKE

• stages are DOMAIN-GENERAL

• nature AND nurture- children are motivated to learn

domain-general

The idea that your brain uses one all-purpose set of skills (like general memory, logic, and attention) for everything you do

domain-specific

The idea that your brain is built with separate, specialized modules designed to handle only specific tasks (like a dedicated circuit just for recognizing faces or learning language).

Piaget’s 4 stages- 1st stage

sensorimotor stage (birth-2yrs)

They develop object permanence (realizing that hidden objects still exist). They lack this skill through 8 months

Piaget’s 4 stages- 2nd stage

Pre-operational period (2-7 y/o)

• understand symbolic representation (one thing can stand for another thing)

• lack of conservation (understanding that quantity stays the same even if shape changes)

Piaget’s 4 stages- 3rd stage

concrete operations stage (7-11 y/o)

• more logical, flexible

• master conservation

Piaget’s 4 stages- 4th stage

formal operations stage (11+ y/o)

• abstract and scientific reasoning