Key Concepts in Psychology and Intelligence Testing

Achievement test

A test designed to measure knowledge or skills in a specific area.

Acquisition

The process of developing a new behavior or skill.

Antisocial behavior

Behavior that is harmful or hostile towards others.

Aptitude test

A test that measures a person's ability to learn or perform in a specific area.

Associative learning

Learning that occurs when an association is formed between two stimuli or a stimulus and a response.

Behaviorism

A theoretical perspective that focuses on observable behaviors and the ways they're learned.

Cattel-Horn-Carroll theory (CHC)

A comprehensive model of intelligence that integrates multiple theories and identifies different types of intelligence.

Classical conditioning

A learning process that occurs when two stimuli are repeatedly paired.

Cognitive learning

Learning that involves mental processes and may occur without direct experience.

Cognitive map

A mental representation of one's physical environment.

Cohort

A group of individuals who share a common characteristic, typically age.

Conditioned reinforcer

A stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its association with a primary reinforcer.

Conditioned response (CR)

A learned response to a previously neutral stimulus.

Conditioned stimulus (CS)

An originally neutral stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus, comes to trigger a conditioned response.

Construct validity

The extent to which a test measures the theoretical construct it is intended to measure.

Content validity

The extent to which a test samples the behavior that is of interest.

Continuous reinforcement schedule

A schedule of reinforcement in which every occurrence of the behavior is reinforced.

Cross-sectional study

A study that analyzes data from a population at a specific point in time.

Crystallized intelligence (Gc)

The ability to use learned knowledge and experience.

Discrimination

The ability to distinguish between different stimuli.

Discriminative stimulus

A stimulus that signals the availability of reinforcement.

Emotional intelligence

The ability to recognize, understand, and manage our own emotions and the emotions of others.

Extinction

The diminishing of a conditioned response when the reinforcement is no longer presented.

Factor analysis

A statistical method used to identify the underlying relationships between variables.

Fixed-interval schedule

A reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified time has elapsed.

Fixed mindset

The belief that abilities and intelligence are static and cannot be developed.

Fixed-ratio schedule

A reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses.

Fluid intelligence (Gf)

The ability to solve new problems, use logic in new situations, and identify patterns.

Flynn effect

The observed rise over time in standardized intelligence test scores.

General intelligence (g)

A construct that represents the overall cognitive ability of an individual.

Generalization

The tendency to respond in the same way to different but similar stimuli.

Grit

Perseverance and passion for long-term goals.

Growth mindset

The belief that abilities and intelligence can be developed through dedication and hard work.

Habituation

A decrease in response to a stimulus after repeated presentations.

Higher-order conditioning

A form of conditioning where a conditioned stimulus is paired with a new neutral stimulus.

Insight learning

A type of learning that occurs suddenly through understanding relationships.

Instinctive drift

The tendency for animals to revert to instinctive behaviors that interfere with learned behaviors.

Intelligence quotient (IQ)

A measure of a person's intellectual abilities in relation to others.

Intelligence test

A test designed to measure a person's intellectual capabilities.

Latent learning

Learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it.

Law of effect

The principle that behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely.

Learning

A relatively permanent change in behavior due to experience.

Longitudinal study

A study that follows the same subjects over a period of time.

Mental age

A measure of intelligence expressed as the age at which an average person reaches the same level of performance.

Mirror neurons

Neurons that fire both when an individual acts and when the individual observes the same action performed by another.

Modeling

Learning by observing others and imitating their behavior.

Negative reinforcement

The removal of an unpleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior.

Neutral stimulus

A stimulus that initially produces no specific response until it is paired with an unconditioned stimulus.

Normal curve

A symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many types of data.

Observational learning

Learning that occurs through observing the behavior of others.

Operant behavior

Behavior that is influenced by the consequences that follow it.

Operant chamber

A controlled environment used to study operant conditioning.

Operant conditioning

A learning process through which the strength of a behavior is modified by reinforcement or punishment.

Partial (intermittent) reinforcement schedule

A schedule of reinforcement in which a response is reinforced only part of the time.

Positive reinforcement

The addition of a pleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior.

Predictive validity

The extent to which a score on a scale or test predicts scores on some criterion measure.

Preparedness

The idea that organisms are predisposed to learn certain associations more easily than others.

Primary reinforcer

An innately reinforcing stimulus, such as one that satisfies a biological need.

Prosocial behavior

Voluntary behavior intended to benefit another.

Psychometrics

The field of study concerned with the theory and technique of psychological measurement.

Punishment

An aversive consequence that decreases the likelihood of a behavior.

Reinforcement

Any consequence that strengthens the behavior it follows.

Reinforcement schedule

A rule that describes how often and under what conditions a behavior is reinforced.

Reliability

The consistency of a research study or measuring test.

Respondent behavior

Behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus.

Savant syndrome

A condition in which a person with a developmental condition demonstrates profound and prodigious capacities or abilities.

Shaping

The process of reinforcing successive approximations to a desired behavior.

Spontaneous recovery

The reappearance of a conditioned response after a rest period.

Standardization

The process of making something conform to a standard.

Stanford-Binet

A standardized test that measures intelligence and cognitive abilities.

Stereotype threat

The risk of confirming negative stereotypes about an individual's racial, ethnic, gender, or cultural group.

Stimulus

Any event or object that elicits a response from an organism.

Unconditioned response (UCR)

An unlearned, naturally occurring response to an unconditioned stimulus.

Unconditioned stimulus (UCS)

A stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers a response.

Validity

The extent to which a test measures what it claims to measure.

Variable-interval schedule

A reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response at unpredictable time intervals.

Variable-ratio schedule

A reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response after an unpredictable number of responses.

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)

A test designed to measure intelligence in adults.