Psychology Midterm

working definition of psychology

The study of the behaviour and mental processes

What behaviours and mental processes do psychologists study

Memory

Perception

Sexual behaviours

Intelligence

Hearing & Vision

Holistic research method

researchers are attached to their surroundings and see themselves as collaborators with the people they gain their data from

Western research method

researchers see themselves as separate from participants and surroundings; researchers create the study, they are experts, and they decide how to analyze the data and how to conclude the study

benefits of studying behaviour and mental processes scientifically

Avoids confirmation bias, eliminates what we think we should know

Avoids claims that do not generalize to a broader set of conditions or group of people

kinds of variation psychologists study

Between different individual people

In a person in different situations

In a person over time

factors that create variation in behaviour and mental processes

Biological (genes, hormones)

Psychological (memory, creativity)

Social (age, gender)

How do we measure variation in behaviour and mental processes?

Examining variables
o Sexual history, sexual past, and memories
o Variables exist across all areas of study (agriculture, kinesiology)

What types of variables are studied in true experiments?

1st variable causes a change in 2nd variable: Independent Variable (IV) (Cause)

2nd variable demonstrates the effect of changes: Dependent Variable (DV) (Effect)

What does a true experiment allow us to do?

Allow us to make claims that changes in one variable are responsible for changes in a second variable (ex. Making the 2nd variable better, worse, higher, lower, etc.)

key features of true experiment

- Comparing 2(+) groups of participants
- The groups are randomly assigned
- Groups differ only with respect to the IV (extraneous variables are controlled)
- Measure the DV & compare average group scores on the DV?

What is the purpose of non-experimental methods?

Purpose is to examine relationships or associations between 2 (or more) variables
Cannot make cause/effect claims

Quasi-Experiment

Comparing an IV to DV (2 groups)
Not randomly assigned for practical or ethical reasons (ex. PTSD, occupation, etc.)
IV is a property of a person (ex. sex, gender, age, etc.)

Case studies

Purpose is to closely examine a small number of people to learn more about rare phenomena (ex. studying perfect memory)

Correlation Studies

Variables are measured as the occur naturally
Variables are NOT manipulated by researcher (Unlike true experiment)
No groups are being compared (Looking at correlation between factors (ex. cause & effect))
A perfect relationship between 2 factors is called perfect relationship and the coefficient is +/-1
No relationship would be 0
Correlation allows for prediction with behaviour

Sensation

The way people physically detect information (ex. vision, smell, hearing)

Perception

How sensory information is processed in the brain (ex. seeing and feeling occurs in the brain)

Transducers

Senses information & translates energy found in environment (ex. light energy) into energy the brain understands (ex. action potential)

Sensory challenges

Sensory organs can transduce available senses/information in the environment, but brain cannot process all of it

solution to sensation challenge

restrict the amount of information in environment through selective attention

what do we pay attention to

attention is paid to things that are visually appealing, has meaning/importance, allows for goals to be met, & physically salient

how is attention influenced by goals

things that can help to achieve goals are perceived and have attention paid to them causing other stimuli to go unnoticed occasionally

blindness's caused by attention

attention is focused on goal, unexpected activity (gradual changes go unnoticed, inattentional blindness to an entire element)

can 'expert searchers' experience inattentional blindness

yes, expert searchers can fall victim to inattentional blindness (ex. doctors missed a gorilla edited into brain scans)

multimodal integration

a process by which the brain interprets all info input at the same time by the senses to make an overall experience

similarities in perception across people

transducers work the same way for most people, and people who have similar experiences interpret stimuli similarly, both of which result in similar perceptions

differences in perception stem from

1. number/type of transducers
2. physical location
3. genetics (ex. born without olfactory genes)
4. age-related changes (ex. worsening vision caused by age)
5. exposure to environments/experiences (ex. abuse, surgery) causing damage to transducers
6. cultural differences and experiences

2 main processes that guide preception

bottom-up & top-down processes

bottom-up processes

no experiences with the thing being perceived

top-processes

experiences with what is being viewed, system 1 is more prevalent

what are the 4 characteristics of memory

1. time
2. automatic
3. episodic-ness
4. format

time

some memories are from a long time ago & therefore require searching, though more recent ones do not

automatic

some memories are automatically retrieved because of importance while some are not as important & require some problem solving

episodic-ness

some memories are linked to episodes/experiences & therefore are easier to remember but some are more abstract & harder to recall

format

some memories can be visual, verbal, or kinesthetic

2 elements of the modal model of memory

1. memory systems
2. memory processes

memory systems

types of memory; boxes (remembering an experience as a PRODUCT of remembering a person with you during the experience)

memory processes

information between memory systems; links between boxes (linking a person to an experience)

sensory memory:

has a large capacity, is brief, & not conscious

short term memory:

a mental work bench that can be used to manipulate information (not just a space but also a dynamic process where sensory memory & LTM are being used); it is a conscious act (only memory that is conscious) & cognitive learning is done here

long term memory:

it has a large capacity & duration but it is not conscious
1. implicit
2. explicit

implicit:

unconscious & difficult to verbalize or declare (ex. PROCEDURAL KNOLEDGE (like walking), LEARNED ASSOCIATIONS (like classical or operant conditioning), & PRIMING (activating specific info in memories increases the likelihood that related info will also be activated))

explicit:

easy to verbalize or declare, typically what people think of when they think of the term 'memory'
1. semantic
2. episodic

semantic:

memory of facts, not linked to a specific time or place

episodic:

memories linked to specific a time/place

how do attentional processes work to help memory?

selective attention is the memory process associated with moving info from SM to WM. selective attention can be guided by elephant or rider.

how do maintenance rehearsal processes work to help memory?

maintenance rehearsal is the memory process associated with keeping info in WORKING memory. maintenance rehearsal is an ineffective way to keep info in LTM by simply repeating info.

encoding (storage):

the memory process associated with moving info from WM to LTM. it is done by activating existing LTM memories related to new material & then forming links between the new & existing nodes.

emotions help encoding:

because the stronger emotional reaction a person has to a stimulus the more likely it is that it will be encoded, though these memories are likely to be inaccurate ("flashbulb memories")

deep processing:

can contribute to encoding
1. mental images
2. elaborative rehearsal

mental images:

concept maps, method of loci (memory palace)

elaborative rehearsal:

organizing info, focuses on meaning & connects new ideas to pre-existing ideas in memory network

retrieval processes:

associated with moving info from LTM to WM. stimuli (from any sense) help to remember LTM consciously or unconsciously. activation spreads through links between nodes causing 1 to recall a memory. (ex. cue: smell of love medicine; memory: grandma)

learning:

relatively permanent changes in behaviour (including skills) & knowledge. (permanence meaning it is stored in LTM)

2 types of associative learning

1. classical conditioning (pavlov's dog)
2. operant conditioning (skinner's rats)

classical conditioning:

an unconditioned stimulus (food) has an unconditioned naturally occurring response (salivation), and is paired with a neutral stimulus (bell) so that after many pairings the NS (bell), now the conditioned stimulus, causes the same response (salivation), now the conditioned response, as the US (food) did
- ex. an addict who shoots up in friend's living room will feel the CR of craving drugs when in friends living room after repeatedly using there

UR & CR differ...

in quantity & may look different from each other

operant conditioning:

relationship between behaviours & consequences, positive or negative
1. reinforcements
2. punishment

reinforcements:

increase the likelihood of behaviour happening
ex. +: cake for doing well on quiz
ex. -: fewer vegetables for helping

punishment:

will decrease the likelihood of something happening
ex. +: more chores for cheating on a test
ex. -: losing car privileges for being bad

difference between classical & operant conditioning

- classical conditioning involves associating an INVOLUNTARY, naturally occurring response (UR) to a NEW STIMULUS (NS -> CS)
- operant conditioning involves associating a VOLUNTARY response with a CONSEQUENCE

focus of early research on cognitive learning:

early research focused on schema development (related to people, behaviours, or concepts)

cognition:

how perceptions are interpreted in relation to what's in our memory

piaget's view of cognitive learning:

stage theory where focus was on concept & schema development (which develop by experiencing something new in 2 ways)
1. assimilation
2. accommodation

assimilation:

adapting existing concepts & schemas when confronted with new information

accommodation:

new concepts & schemas created to manage new information

what slows children's cognitive learning down?

1. lot's of trial & error
2. children's thinking is hampered by limitations & misconceptions

object permanence:

understanding that objects continue to exist even when they are not in sights

conservation:

failure to understand that properties of matter (e.g. mass, volume, number) stay the same even when shape or appearance changes

egocentrism:

inability to see the world from another's POV
1. physical egocentrism
2. cognition egocentrism

physical egocentrism:

cannot consider what the physical world looks like to others

cognition egocentrism:

fail to recognize other people have thoughts & feelings different from our own (theroy of mind/ToM)

why does memory matter for cognitive learning?

we store 'prior knowledge' in LTM; it facilitates new cognitive learning by approving the ability to:
1. understand new info
2. remember new info
* both aid how things are interpreted*

expertise in relation to cognitive learning

prior knowledge is extensive in experts & optimizes cognitive learning & other aspects of cognition (e.g. making decision-making & problem-solving faster, more efficient, and typically more accurate); in experts, schemas that are well-learned & well-practiced become automatic (both skills & knowledge) & system 2/rider is less involved allowing for more attention & cognitive resources

chunking:

in experts, well-learned material is group together as larger elements in LTM (schemas); when drawn back to WM, it provides useful information to make sense of new material, but it takes up very little space

how do we assess ourselves?

decisions often depend on beliefs about our own knowledge, skills, personality & values

metacognition:

ability to evaluate your thought processes, understanding, skill level & performance; usually show optimistic far more favourably than others evaluate us)

factors contributing to optimistic bias

1. difficulties defining competence
2. poor/incomplete feedback from others
3. information

dunning-kruger effect:

people who are incompetent don't recognize they're incompetent & are likely to feel confident that they are competent

'double cure' or DK effect:

- skills necessary to recognize competence are very similar (or identical) to those needed to be competent
- deficits that cause us to make errors also prevents us from recognizing & learning from our errors

nervous system:

a network of neurons that communicate with electrical & chemical signals

neurons:

cells in the nervous system that are specialized to process & transmit info with electrical & chemical signals; there are billions in the nervous system & each connects to 1000 others

parts of a nucleus:

1. stoma
2. dendrites
3. axon
4. axon terminals

stoma:

the cell body, contains the nucleus, 'life support center' (provides energy), 2 extensions called the dendrites & axons allow the cell to communicate with other neurons

dendrites:

receive messages from neurons or other cells & transfers it to the cell body

axon:

conveys info away from the cell body to other neurons, muscles, or glands
1. nerves
2. myelin sheath

nerves:

group of neurons bundled together

myelin sheath:

a material (that insulates & surrounds axons) which allows neurons to communicate info more quickly/effectively

axon terminals:

axons branch into junctions called synapse with other cells, including dendrites of other neurons, or muscles & gland

3 types of neurons:

1. sensory neurons
2. motor neurons
3. interneurons

sensory neurons:

carry info (ex. sight, sound, touch) to brain & spinal cord for procce

motor neurons:

carry info from the brain & spinal cord to the muscles & glands

interneurons:

they are connector neurons, that receive info from sensory & motor neurons or other interneurons & they play an important information processing role

central nervous system (CNS):

includes brain & spinal cord; receives sensory info; processes & integrates this info to make decisions; sends commands to muscles & organs

spinal cord:

carries messages from sensory neurons in the peripheral nervous system to the brain; conveys commands from the brain to stimulate voluntary muscle movement through motor neurons

spinal reflexes:

fast, automatic muscles contractions controlled by the spinal cod using interneurons

pain withdrawal reflex arc:

reflex arcs are simple neuropathways that control reflexes
1. neurons detect pain from stepping on nail
2. signal is conveyed to spinal cord by sensory neuron
3. information is processed by an intern neuron sitting between sensory & motor neurons
4. interneuron then sends a signal through a motor neuron to contract muscles in thigh, resulting in foot pulling away from nail

peripheral nervous system (PNS):

involves everything in the nervus system other than the brain & spinal cord; transmits decisions of CNS other body parts including organs & muscles

stomatic nervous system:

conveys voluntary information through motor neurons to CNS: conveys messages from CNS through sensory neurons to control motor neurons

automatic nervous system:

direct involuntary bodily functions, such as heart rate, breathing & digestion by controlling organs & glands; done automatically, outside of conscious control
1. sympathetic
2. parasympathetic