Introduction to Psychology – Key Vocabulary

These flashcards summarize key vocabulary, historical figures, major perspectives, and subfields presented in Chapter 1: Introduction to Psychology.

Psychology

The scientific study of mind and behavior.

Structuralism

Early school of psychology that sought to understand the conscious experience through introspection.

Introspection

Self-examination of one’s own conscious experience to break it into component parts.

Functionalism

Perspective that emphasized how mental activities help an organism adapt to its environment.

Psychoanalytic Theory

Approach focusing on the role of the unconscious and early childhood experiences in shaping behavior.

Gestalt Psychology

View that perception is best understood as an organized whole rather than the sum of its parts.

Behaviorism

School of psychology that studies observable behavior and how it is controlled by the environment.

Humanism

Perspective emphasizing the innate goodness and potential for growth in all people.

Cognitive Revolution

Mid-20th-century movement that returned focus to mental processes such as thinking, memory, and language.

Classical Conditioning

Learning process in which a reflexive response becomes associated with a new stimulus.

Operant Conditioning

Learning in which behavior is shaped and maintained by its consequences, such as reinforcement or punishment.

Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow’s model proposing that basic physiological needs must be met before higher psychological needs motivate behavior.

Client-Centered Therapy

Rogers’s therapeutic approach where the client leads the session to foster personal growth.

Unconditional Positive Regard

Therapist’s non-judgmental acceptance of the client, viewed as essential for effective therapy.

Biopsychology

Branch studying how the nervous system’s structure and function influence behavior.

Sensation

Raw sensory information received from the environment (e.g., sights, sounds).

Perception

The brain’s interpretation of sensory information, influenced by attention, experience, and culture.

Developmental Psychology

Study of physical, cognitive, and social changes across the lifespan.

Moral Reasoning

Ability to distinguish right from wrong that develops with age.

Cognitive Skills

Mental abilities such as thinking, problem-solving, and memory that evolve during development.

Social Skills

Capabilities allowing effective interaction and communication with others.

Personality Psychology

Field examining enduring behavior patterns and thought processes unique to individuals.

Five Factor Model

Widely accepted trait theory describing personality using openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism.

Social Psychology

Study of how individuals think about, influence, and relate to one another.

Health Psychology

Area exploring how biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors affect health and illness.

Biopsychosocial Model

Health framework asserting that illness results from interplay of biological, psychological, and social factors.

Clinical Psychology

Branch focused on assessing and treating psychological disorders and maladaptive behavior.

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Therapeutic approach integrating cognitive processes and behavior modification techniques.

Industrial-Organizational Psychology

Application of psychological principles to workplace issues like personnel management and productivity.

Sports and Exercise Psychology

Study of psychological factors related to athletic performance and physical activity.

Forensic Psychology

Application of psychology to the legal system, including competency evaluations and testimony analysis.

Wilhelm Wundt

Founder of the first psychology lab and advocate of structuralism.

William James

First American psychologist; championed functionalism.

Sigmund Freud

Originator of psychoanalytic theory and techniques such as dream analysis.

Max Wertheimer

Co-founder of Gestalt psychology emphasizing holistic perception.

Kurt Koffka

Gestalt psychologist who helped introduce the movement to the United States.

Wolfgang Köhler

Gestalt psychologist known for work on insight learning in animals.

Ivan Pavlov

Physiologist who discovered classical conditioning through research on dogs.

John B. Watson

Psychologist who established behaviorism and emphasized observable behavior.

B. F. Skinner

Behaviorist who studied operant conditioning and the effects of reinforcement and punishment.

Abraham Maslow

Humanistic psychologist who proposed the hierarchy of needs.

Carl Rogers

Humanistic psychologist who developed client-centered therapy.

Noam Chomsky

Linguist whose critiques helped launch the cognitive revolution in psychology.

Margaret Floy Washburn

First woman to earn a PhD in psychology; researched animal behavior.

PhD in Psychology

Doctoral degree qualifying individuals for advanced research, teaching, and clinical practice roles.