Psychology Exam 1: Key Concepts and Methods

What is psychology?

The scientific study of behavior and mental processes.

What is introspection?

The examination of one's own conscious thoughts and feelings.

What are the four goals of psychology?

To describe, explain, predict, and control behavior.

What are psychology's two major roots?

Philosophy and physiology.

Who was the first psychologist?

Wilhelm Wundt, who established the first psychology laboratory.

What are the six modern perspectives of psychology?

Biological, behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, psychodynamic, and sociocultural.

Why is it important to integrate multiple perspectives of psychology to understand human behavior?

It provides a more comprehensive understanding by considering various factors influencing behavior.

Who can call themselves a 'Psychologist'?

Individuals who have earned a doctoral degree in psychology and are licensed to practice.

What are the primary job settings in which psychologists work?

Clinical settings, schools, research institutions, and corporate environments.

What does it mean for psychology to be considered a 'hub science'?

It serves as a central discipline that connects and informs various other fields of study.

What is science?

A systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe.

What does the 'scientific mindset' rely on?

Empirical evidence, skepticism, and critical thinking.

What is critical thinking?

The objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgment.

What is a theory?

A well-substantiated explanation of an aspect of the natural world that can incorporate laws, hypotheses, and facts.

What is a hypothesis?

A testable prediction about the relationship between two or more variables.

What are the three characteristics that define a 'good' theory?

It is falsifiable, parsimonious, and supported by evidence.

Are theories ever able to 'prove' a phenomenon?

No, theories can only provide support for a phenomenon but cannot prove it definitively.

What are the three different types of descriptive research that a psychologist might conduct?

Case studies, surveys, and naturalistic observations.

What is a correlation?

A statistical measure that indicates the extent to which two variables fluctuate together.

What are the ranges for a correlation coefficient (r)?

The range is from -1 to +1, where -1 indicates a perfect negative correlation, +1 indicates a perfect positive correlation, and 0 indicates no correlation.

How do you interpret a correlation?

A positive value indicates that as one variable increases, the other also increases; a negative value indicates that as one variable increases, the other decreases.

Do correlations explain causal connections?

No, correlations do not imply causation; they only indicate a relationship between variables.

What is an experiment?

A research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more variables to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process.

What are inferential statistics?

Statistical methods that allow researchers to make conclusions about a population based on a sample.

What does it mean for a population to be W.E.I.R.D.?

It refers to populations that are Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic, which may not represent global diversity.

What is the Institutional Review Board (IRB)?

A committee that reviews research proposals to ensure ethical standards are met, particularly regarding human subjects.

What is informed consent?

The process of obtaining voluntary agreement from participants to participate in research after being fully informed of the risks and benefits.

What is privacy and confidentiality?

The ethical principle that ensures participants' personal information is protected and not disclosed without their consent.

What is a gene?

A segment of DNA that contains the instructions for building proteins, which influence traits and behaviors.

How many chromosome pairs do humans have?

Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes, totaling 46.

What does it mean to be born intersex?

It refers to a person being born with reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn't fit typical definitions of male or female.

What is the field of behavioral genetics?

A field that studies the interaction between genetics and behavior, exploring how genes influence psychological traits.

What is heritability?

A measure of how much of the variation in a trait can be attributed to genetic factors within a population.

What is a concordance rate?

The probability that both twins will have a particular trait, given that one twin has it.

What is evolution?

The process through which species change over time through genetic variation and natural selection.

What is natural selection?

The process by which organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring.

What are the three mechanisms of evolution?

Mutation, gene flow, and genetic drift.

What is biological psychology?

The branch of psychology that studies the relationship between biological processes and psychological phenomena.

What is phrenology?

An outdated theory that claimed personality traits could be determined by the shape of the skull.

Which two components comprise the central nervous system (CNS)?

The brain and the spinal cord.

What is the peripheral nervous system (PNS)?

The part of the nervous system outside the brain and spinal cord that connects the CNS to the rest of the body.

What is the spinal cord?

A long bundle of nerves that runs down the back, responsible for transmitting signals between the brain and the body.

What are the four lobes of the cerebral cortex?

Frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes.

What are the two divisions of the PNS?

The somatic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system.

Human's 'fight or flight' mechanisms are housed in which nervous system?

The autonomic nervous system, specifically the sympathetic division.

What is a neurotransmitter?

Chemical messengers that transmit signals across a synapse from one neuron to another.

What are the four primary neurotransmitters that interest psychologists?

Dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine, and acetylcholine.