Untitled Flashcard Set

Aaron Beck

Sought to reverse patient's catastrophizing beliefs about themselves, their situations, and futures using cognitive therapy.

absolute threshold

The minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time.

accommodation

Adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information.

achievement tests

Tests designed to assess what a person has learned.

acoustic encoding

The encoding of sound, especially the sound of words.

acquisition

In classical conditioning, the initial stage when one links a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus so that the neutral stimulus begins triggering the conditioned response.

action potential

A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon.

active listening

Empathic listening in which the listener echoes, restates, and clarifies.

adaptation-level phenomenon

Our tendency to form judgments relative to a neutral level defined by our prior experience.

addiction

Compulsive drug craving and use, despite adverse consequences.

adolescence

The transition period from childhood to adulthood, extending from puberty to independence.

adrenal glands

A pair of endocrine glands that sit just above the kidneys and secrete hormones that help arouse the body in times of stress.

aggression

Any physical/verbal behavior intended to hurt or destroy.

algorithm

A methodical, logical rule or procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem.

Alpha waves

The relatively slow brain waves of a relaxed, awake state.

altruism

Unselfish regard for the welfare of others.

amnesia

The loss of memory.

amygdala

Two lima bean-sized neural clusters in the limbic system linked to emotion.

anorexia nervosa

An eating disorder in which a person diets and becomes significantly underweight, yet continues to starve.

antianxiety drugs

Drugs used to control anxiety and agitation.

antidepressant drugs

Drugs used to treat depression; also increasingly prescribed for anxiety.

antipsychotic drugs

Drugs used to treat schizophrenia and other forms of severe thought disorder.

Attribution theory

Theory that we explain someone's behavior by crediting either the situation or the person's disposition.

audition

The sense or act of hearing.

autism

A disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by deficient communication, social interaction, and understanding of others' states of mind.

automatic processing

Unconscious encoding of incidental information.

availability heuristic

Estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory.

axon

The extension of a neuron through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands.

babbling stage

The stage of speech development in which the infant spontaneously utters various sounds.

barbiturates

Drugs that depress the activity of the central nervous system.

basal metabolic rate

The body's resting rate of energy expenditure.

basic research

Pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base.

behavior genetics

The study of the relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior.

behavior therapy

Therapy that applies learning principles to the elimination of unwanted behaviors.

behaviorism

The view that psychology should be an objective science that studies behavior without reference to mental processes.

belief perseverance

Clinging to one's initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited.

binge-eating disorder

Significant binge-eating episodes followed by distress, disgust, or guilt.

binocular cues

Depth cues that depend on the use of two eyes.

biofeedback

A system for electronically recording, amplifying, and feeding back information regarding a subtle psychological state.

biological psychology

A branch of psychology that studies the links between biological and psychological processes.

biomedical therapy

Prescribed medications or medical procedures that act directly on the patient's nervous system.

biopsychological approach

An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis.

bipolar disorder

A mood disorder in which the person alternates between depression and mania.

blind spot

The point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a blind spot.

bottom-up processing

Analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain's integration of sensory information.

Broca's area

Controls language expression, directing the muscle movements involved in speech.

bulimia nervosa

An eating disorder characterized by episodes of overeating followed by purging.

bystander effect

The tendency for any given bystander to be less likely to help someone in distress.

Cannon-Bard theory

The theory that an emotion-arousing stimulus simultaneously triggers physiological responses and subjective experiences.

case study

An observation technique in which one person is studied in-depth to reveal universal principles.

central nervous system (CNS)

The brain and spinal cord.

cerebellum

The 'little brain' at the rear of the brainstem; functions include processing sensory input and coordinating movement.

cerebral cortex

The intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells covering the cerebral hemispheres; the body's ultimate control and information-processing center.

change blindness

The tendency to fail to detect changes in a scene when not focusing attention on the change.

chromosomes

Threadlike structures made of DNA that contain genes.

chunking

Organizing items into familiar, manageable units.

circadian rhythm

The biological clock that regulates bodily rhythms.

classical conditioning

A type of learning in which one learns to link stimuli and anticipate events.

client centered therapy

A humanistic therapy developed by Carl Rogers that facilitates client's growth.

clinical psychology

A branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders.

cognition

The mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating.

cognitive behavioral therapy

An integrative therapy that combines cognitive therapy with behavior therapy.

conditioned reinforcer

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

conditioned response

In classical conditioning, the learned response to a previously neutral stimulus.

conditioned stimulus

An originally irrelevant stimulus that comes to trigger a conditioned response.

conductive hearing loss

Hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound to the cochlea.

cones

Retinal receptor cells that detect fine detail and color in well-lit conditions.

confirmation bias

A tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions.

conflict

A perceived incompatibility of actions, goals, or ideas.

conformity

Adjusting one's behavior to coincide with a group standard.

control group

The group in an experiment not exposed to the treatment.

conversion disorder

A rare somatoform disorder where a person experiences genuine physical symptoms without a physiological basis.

correlation

A measure of the extent to which two factors vary together.

correlation coefficient

A statistical index of the relationship between two things.

counseling psychology

A branch of psychology that assists people with everyday problems.

counterconditioning

A behavior therapy procedure that uses classical conditioning to evoke responses to stimuli triggering unwanted behaviors.

creativity

The ability to produce novel and valuable ideas.

critical thinking

Thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions. It examines assumptions, discerns hidden values, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions.

cross-sectional study

A study comparing people of different ages.

crystallized intelligence

Accumulated knowledge and verbal skills that tend to increase with age.

culture

The enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, and traditions shared by a group.

debriefing

The post-experimental explanation for a study provided to participants.

defense mechanisms

Protective methods of reducing anxiety by distorting reality.

deindividuation

The loss of self-awareness occurring in group situations.

deja vu

The eerie sense of having experienced something before.

delta waves

Large, slow brain waves associated with deep sleep.

delusions

False beliefs often related to persecution or grandeur.

dendrite

Branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages.

denial

Defense mechanism involving refusal to accept painful realities.

dependent variable

The outcome factor that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable.

depressants

Drugs that reduce neural activity and slow body functions.

depth perception

The ability to see objects in three dimensions.

developmental psychology

The study of physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the lifespan.

difference threshold

The minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50 percent of the time.

discrimination

Unjustifiable negative behavior toward a group and its members.

displacement

Defense mechanism that shifts impulses toward a safer outlet.

dissociation

A split in consciousness enabling thoughts and behaviors to occur simultaneously.

dissociative identity disorder (DID)

A rare dissociative disorder where a person exhibits two or more distinct personalities.

DNA

The complex molecule containing genetic information.

double-blind procedure

An experiment where both participants and researchers are blind to treatment assignments.