Psych 100 Units 1.1-3.2

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1-24 Chapter 1 25-74 Chapter 2 75-169 Chapter 3 (pay less attention to these, not all will be on the test)

170 Terms

1
American Psychological Association (APA)

professional organization representing psychologists in the United States

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2
behaviorism

focus on observing and controlling behavior

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3
biopsychology

study of how biology influences behavior

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4
biopsychosocial model

perspective that asserts that biology, psychology, and social factors interact to determine an individual’s health

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5
clinical psychology

area of psychology that focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders and other problematic patterns of behavior

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6
cognitive psychology

study of cognitions, or thoughts, and their relationship to experiences and actions

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7
counseling psychology

area of psychology that focuses on improving emotional, social, vocational, and other aspects of the lives of psychologically healthy individuals

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8
developmental psychology

scientific study of development across a lifespan

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9
dissertation

long research paper about research that was conducted as a part of the candidate’s doctoral training

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10
empirical method

method for acquiring knowledge based on observation, including experimentation, rather than a method based only on forms of logical argument or previous authorities

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11
forensic psychology

area of psychology that applies the science and practice of psychology to issues within and related to the justice system

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12
functionalism

focused on how mental activities helped an organism adapt to its environment

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13
humanism

perspective within psychology that emphasizes the potential for good that is innate to all humans

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14
introspection

process by which someone examines their own conscious experience in an attempt to break it into its component parts

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15
ology

suffix that denotes “scientific study of”

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16
personality psychology

study of patterns of thoughts and behaviors that make each individual unique

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17
personality trait

consistent pattern of thought and behavior

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18
PhD

(doctor of philosophy) doctoral degree conferred in many disciplinary perspectives housed in a traditional college of liberal arts and sciences

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19
postdoctoral training program

allows young scientists to further develop their research programs and broaden their research skills under the supervision of other professionals in the field

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20
psychoanalytic theory

focus on the role of the unconscious in affecting conscious behavior

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21
psychology

scientific study of the mind and behavior

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22
PsyD

(doctor of psychology) doctoral degree that places less emphasis on research

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23
sport and exercise psychology

area of psychology that focuses on the interactions between mental and emotional factors and physical performance in sports, exercise, and other activities

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24
structuralism

understanding the conscious experience through introspection

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25
archival research

method of research using past records or data sets to answer various research questions, or to search for interesting patterns or relationships

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26
attrition

reduction in number of research participants as some drop out of the study over time

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27
cause-and-effect relationship

changes in one variable cause the changes in the other variable; can be determined only through an experimental research design

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28
clinical or case study

observational research study focusing on one or a few people

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29
confirmation bias

tendency to ignore evidence that disproves ideas or beliefs

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30
confounding variable

unanticipated outside factor that affects both variables of interest, often giving the false impression that changes in one variable causes changes in the other variable, when, in actuality, the outside factor causes changes in both variables

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31
control group

serves as a basis for comparison and controls for chance factors that might influence the results of the study—by holding such factors constant across groups so that the experimental manipulation is the only difference between groups

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32
correlation

relationship between two or more variables; when two variables are correlated, one variable changes as the other does

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33
correlation coefficient

number from -1 to +1, indicating the strength and direction of the relationship between variables, and usually represented by r

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34
cross-sectional research

compares multiple segments of a population at a single time

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35
debriefing

when an experiment involved deception, participants are told complete and truthful information about the experiment at its conclusion

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36
deception

purposely misleading experiment participants in order to maintain the integrity of the experiment

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37
deductive reasoning

results are predicted based on a general premise

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38
dependent variable

variable that the researcher measures to see how much effect the independent variable had

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39
double-blind study

experiment in which both the researchers and the participants are blind to group assignments

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40
empirical

grounded in objective, tangible evidence that can be observed time and time again, regardless of who is observing

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41
experimental group

group designed to answer the research question; experimental manipulation is the only difference between the experimental and control groups, so any differences between the two are due to experimental manipulation rather than chance

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42
experimenter bias

researcher expectations skew the results of the study

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43
fact

objective and verifiable observation, established using evidence collected through empirical research

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44
falsifiable

able to be disproven by experimental results

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45
generalize

inferring that the results for a sample apply to the larger population

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46
hypothesis

(plural: hypotheses) tentative and testable statement about the relationship between two or more variables

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47
illusory correlation

seeing relationships between two things when in reality no such relationship exists

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48
independent variable

variable that is influenced or controlled by the experimenter; in a sound experimental study, the independent variable is the only important difference between the experimental and control group

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49
inductive reasoning

conclusions are drawn from observations

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50
informed consent

process of informing a research participant about what to expect during an experiment, any risks involved, and the implications of the research, and then obtaining the person’s consent to participate

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51
Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC)

committee of administrators, scientists, veterinarians, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving non-human animals

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52
Institutional Review Board (IRB)

committee of administrators, scientists, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving human participants

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53
inter-rater reliability

measure of agreement among observers on how they record and classify a particular event

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54
longitudinal research

studies in which the same group of individuals is surveyed or measured repeatedly over an extended period of time

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55
naturalistic observation

observation of behavior in its natural setting

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56
negative correlation

two variables change in different directions, with one becoming larger as the other becomes smaller; a negative correlation is not the same thing as no correlation

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57
observer bias

when observations may be skewed to align with observer expectations

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58
operational definition

description of what actions and operations will be used to measure the dependent variables and manipulate the independent variables

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59
opinion

personal judgments, conclusions, or attitudes that may or may not be accurate

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60
participants

subjects of psychological research

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61
peer-reviewed journal article

article read by several other scientists (usually anonymously) with expertise in the subject matter, who provide feedback regarding the quality of the manuscript before it is accepted for publication

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62
placebo effect

people's expectations or beliefs influencing or determining their experience in a given situation

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63
population

overall group of individuals that the researchers are interested in

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64
positive correlation

two variables change in the same direction, both becoming either larger or smaller

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65
random assignment

method of experimental group assignment in which all participants have an equal chance of being assigned to either group

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66
random sample

subset of a larger population in which every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected

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67
reliability

consistency and reproducibility of a given result

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68
replicate

repeating an experiment using different samples to determine the research’s reliability

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69
sample

subset of individuals selected from the larger population

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70
single-blind study

experiment in which the researcher knows which participants are in the experimental group and which are in the control group

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71
statistical analysis

determines how likely any difference between experimental groups is due to chance

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72
survey

list of questions to be answered by research participants—given as paper-and-pencil questionnaires, administered electronically, or conducted verbally—allowing researchers to collect data from a large number of people

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73
theory

well-developed set of ideas that propose an explanation for observed phenomena

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74
validity

accuracy of a given result in measuring what it is designed to measure

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75
action potential

electrical signal that moves down the neuron’s axon

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76
adrenal gland

sits atop our kidneys and secretes hormones involved in the stress response

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77
agonist

drug that mimics or strengthens the effects of a neurotransmitter

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78
all-or-none

phenomenon that incoming signal from another neuron is either sufficient or insufficient to reach the threshold of excitation

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79
allele

specific version of a gene

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80
amygdala

structure in the limbic system involved in our experience of emotion and tying emotional meaning to our memories

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81
antagonist

drug that blocks or impedes the normal activity of a given neurotransmitter

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82
auditory cortex

strip of cortex in the temporal lobe that is responsible for processing auditory information

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83
autonomic nervous system

controls our internal organs and glands

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84
axon

major extension of the soma

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85
biological perspective

view that psychological disorders like depression and schizophrenia are associated with imbalances in one or more neurotransmitter systems

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86
Broca’s area

region in the left hemisphere that is essential for language production

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87
central nervous system (CNS)

brain and spinal cord

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88
cerebellum

hindbrain structure that controls our balance, coordination, movement, and motor skills, and it is thought to be important in processing some types of memory

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89
cerebral cortex

surface of the brain that is associated with our highest mental capabilities

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90
chromosome

long strand of genetic information

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91
computerized tomography (CT) scan

imaging technique in which a computer coordinates and integrates multiple x-rays of a given area

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92
corpus callosum

thick band of neural fibers connecting the brain’s two hemispheres

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93
dendrite

branch-like extension of the soma that receives incoming signals from other neurons

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94
deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)

helix-shaped molecule made of nucleotide base pairs

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95
diabetes

disease related to insufficient insulin production

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96
dominant allele

allele whose phenotype will be expressed in an individual that possesses that allele

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97
electroencephalography (EEG)

recording the electrical activity of the brain via electrodes on the scalp

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98
endocrine system

series of glands that produce chemical substances known as hormones

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99
epigenetics

study of gene-environment interactions, such as how the same genotype leads to different phenotypes

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100
fight or flight response

activation of the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system, allowing access to energy reserves and heightened sensory capacity so that we might fight off a given threat or run away to safety

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