Midterm Question & Answer Bank - Introduction to Psychology

A complete set of 688 practice flashcards based directly on the Introduction to Psychology CSV study bank transcript.

What is Psychology?

the scientific study of behavior and mental processes.

What is Neuroscience in psychology?

the study of how the brain and nervous system influence behavior, thoughts, and emotions.

What is Developmental psychology?

the study of psychological growth and change across the lifespan, including cognitive, emotional, and social development.

What is Cognitive psychology?

the study of mental processes such as perception, memory, problem-solving, and decision-making.

What is Social psychology?

the study of how people are affected by and interact with others, including social influence and group dynamics.

What is Clinical psychology?

the area concerned with diagnosing and treating mental health disorders.

What is Counseling psychology?

an area similar to clinical psychology that typically focuses on everyday life challenges and personal development.

What is Health psychology?

the study of how biological, psychological, and social factors affect health and illness.

What is Industrial-organizational psychology?

the application of psychological principles to workplace issues such as motivation, performance, selection, and organizational development.

What is Educational psychology?

the study of how people learn and of effective teaching methods.

What is Environmental psychology?

the study of interactions between people and their physical surroundings.

What is Forensic psychology?

the application of psychological principles to legal issues such as criminal behavior, competency evaluations, and witness testimony.

What is Community psychology?

the study of individuals within social contexts and communities, emphasizing social change, development, and well-being.

What is Sports psychology?

the study of psychological aspects of sports and exercise, including performance, motivation, and mental health.

What is Comparative psychology?

the study of behavior and mental processes in non-human animals to understand evolutionary and developmental aspects of behavior.

What is Cross-cultural psychology?

the study of how culture influences psychological processes and how psychological principles apply across cultures.

What is Introspection?

the examination of one's own mental experiences or inner processes.

What is Rationalism?

the view that reason and intellect are primary sources of knowledge rather than sensory experience.

What is Empiricism?

the view that knowledge comes primarily from sensory experience and observation.

What is Structuralism?

an approach associated with Wundt and Titchener that breaks mental processes into basic components using introspection.

What is Pragmatism?

a view emphasizing practical application, experience, and the usefulness of ideas in solving problems.

What is Functionalism?

a perspective emphasizing the functions and purposes of mental processes and behaviors rather than their structure.

What is Holistic approach?

the functionalist emphasis on how different mental processes work together to achieve practical goals.

What is Nature?

genetic and biological predispositions that influence behavior and mental processes.

What is Nurture?

environmental influences such as upbringing, culture, and life experiences that shape behavior.

What is Wilhelm Wundt?

a founder of experimental psychology who established the first psychology laboratory at Leipzig in 1879.

What is William James?

a psychologist associated with functionalism who focused on the purposes of mental processes and adaptation.

What is Edward Titchener?

Wundt's student who advanced structuralism and used introspection to study consciousness.

What is John B. Watson?

a major behaviorist who argued psychology should focus on observable behavior and conditioning.

What is B. F. Skinner?

a behaviorist who developed operant conditioning and showed how reinforcement and punishment shape behavior.

What is Jean Piaget?

a developmental psychologist known for stages of cognitive development in children.

What is Ulric Neisser?

a major figure in cognitive psychology whose 1967 book helped define and popularize the field.

What is Abraham Maslow?

a psychologist known for the hierarchy of needs and self-actualization.

What is Carl Rogers?

a psychologist who developed client-centered/person-centered therapy emphasizing the therapeutic relationship and growth.

What is Leon Festinger?

the psychologist who developed cognitive dissonance theory.

What is Lev Vygotsky?

a psychologist whose sociocultural theory emphasized social interaction and culture in cognitive development.

What is Gestalt psychology?

an approach emphasizing the holistic nature of perception and cognition.

What is Figure-ground organization?

the perceptual organization of a scene into a focal figure and its background.

What is Proximity?

the tendency to perceive nearby elements as grouped together.

What is Similarity?

the tendency to group elements that share characteristics such as shape, color, or size.

What is Closure?

the tendency to fill in missing parts of a figure so it is perceived as complete.

What is Gestalt principle?

the idea that the whole is different from the sum of its parts because relationships among parts matter.

What is Positive psychology?

the study of positive emotions, strengths, flourishing, and well-being.

What is Flow?

a state of deep engagement and enjoyment when challenge and skill are well matched.

What is Well-being?

the study of what contributes to a fulfilling and meaningful life, including happiness, resilience, and life satisfaction.

What is Psychoanalysis?

Freud's approach emphasizing the unconscious mind and its influence on behavior and personality.

What is Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)?

an approach combining cognitive and behavioral methods to change maladaptive thoughts and behaviors.

What is Aaron Beck?

the developer of cognitive therapy, emphasizing cognitive distortions in depression and other problems.

What is Albert Ellis?

the developer of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), focused on changing irrational beliefs.

What is Biological perspective?

a perspective focusing on physiological and genetic bases of behavior, including brain structures, neurotransmitters, hormones, and genes.

What is Cognitive perspective?

a perspective focusing on internal mental processes such as perception, memory, and problem-solving.

What is Psychodynamic perspective?

a perspective emphasizing unconscious processes, childhood experiences, internal conflicts, and early relationships.

What is Subjectivist perspective?

a perspective emphasizing subjective experience, personal meanings, and perceived rather than purely objective reality.

What is Phenomenology?

the emphasis on a person's subjective experience and interpretation.

What is Self-actualization?

realization of one's potential, emphasized in the humanistic tradition.

What is Hypothesis?

a specific, testable prediction about the relationship between variables.

What is Falsifiable?

capable of being tested in a way that could show the prediction to be wrong.

What is Independent variable?

the variable manipulated by the researcher.

What is Dependent variable?

the variable measured and affected by the independent variable.

What is Laboratory experiment?

an experiment conducted in a controlled environment where variables can be precisely managed.

What is Field experiment?

an experiment conducted in a natural setting to enhance ecological validity.

What is Natural experiment?

a study using naturally occurring variation in an independent variable when manipulation is impractical or unethical.

What is Correlational research?

research examining associations between variables without manipulating them.

What is Correlation coefficient?

a statistic, r, indicating the strength and direction of a relationship and ranging from -1 to +1.

What is Positive correlation?

a relationship in which increases in one variable are associated with increases in another.

What is Negative correlation?

a relationship in which increases in one variable are associated with decreases in another.

What is Zero correlation?

a relationship with no discernible association between the variables.

What is Correlation does not imply causation?

an association alone cannot establish that one variable causes another.

What is Observational research?

systematic watching, recording, and analyzing of behavior without manipulating variables.

What is Naturalistic observation?

observing subjects in their natural environment without interference.

What is Participant observation?

observation in which the researcher becomes part of the group being studied.

What is Structured observation?

observation in which the researcher sets up specific conditions or situations to observe behavior.

What is Ecological validity?

the extent to which findings reflect behavior in real-world settings.

What is Observer bias?

the influence of a researcher's expectations or preferences on observations.

What is Literature review?

a comprehensive summary and synthesis of existing research on a topic.

What is Systematic review?

a rigorous review using explicit criteria to select studies and evaluate evidence.

What is Meta-analysis?

a statistical technique combining results from multiple studies.

What is Narrative review?

a more general and less structured overview of research literature.

What is Informed consent?

participants are informed about the research and risks and voluntarily agree to participate.

What is Confidentiality?

protecting participants' privacy by keeping their data secure and confidential.

What is Debriefing?

providing participants with information about the study's purpose and procedures after participation.

What is Beneficence?

the duty to maximize benefits and minimize harm to participants.

What is Integrity?

conducting research honestly and transparently and avoiding fabrication, falsification, and plagiarism.

What is Respect for persons?

recognizing and honoring participants' autonomy and dignity, including vulnerable people.

What is Institutional Review Board (IRB)?

a body that reviews research proposals to ensure ethical standards are met before research begins.

What is Deception in research?

withholding or misleading information that must be justified by study value and must not cause harm.

What is Vulnerable populations?

groups such as children, prisoners, or people with cognitive impairments requiring special ethical consideration.

What is Dual roles?

situations where a researcher's other role, such as therapist, conflicts with the research role.

What is Medulla?

regulates vital functions such as heart rate and blood pressure through autonomic nervous system control.

What is Cerebellum?

coordinates fine motor movements.

What is Pons?

contains pathways transmitting signals between the cerebrum and cerebellum.

What is Hippocampus?

a brain region crucial for memory formation and strengthening of memory-related connections.

What is Midbrain?

contributes to sensory processing, motor control, arousal regulation, and pain modulation.

What is Cerebrum?

supports a wide range of cognitive, sensory, and motor functions.

What is Corpus callosum?

integrates and coordinates information between the two cerebral hemispheres.

What is Thalamus?

relays and processes sensory and motor information and helps regulate consciousness.

What is Hypothalamus?

helps maintain homeostasis by regulating temperature, hunger, fluid balance, and hormonal control.

What is Pituitary gland?

regulates growth, metabolism, reproductive functions, and fluid balance through hormone release.

What is Amygdala?

processes and regulates emotions and helps respond to stress.

What is Central nervous system (CNS)?

the brain and spinal cord, which integrate and coordinate activities throughout the body.