AP Psych Vocabulary

Serotonin

Neurotransmitter that affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal.

Acetylcholine

Neurotransmitter that enables muscle action, learning, and memory.

Dopamine

Neurotransmitter that influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion, also involved in pleasure and reward

Substanance P

Neurotransmitter involved in pain perception and immune response.  Oversupply can lead to chronic pain

Norepinephrine

Neurotransmitter that helps control alertness and arousal.

GABA

A major inhibitory neurotransmitter.

Endorphins

Opiate-like neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure.

Glutamate

A major excitatory neurotransmitter .

Central Nervous System (CNS)

Made up of the brain and spinal cord; sensory impulses are transmitted and motor impulses pass out.

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

Sensory and motor neurons that connect the CNS to the rest of the body; responsible for gathering information and transmitting CNS decisions.

Somatic Nervous System

Division of the PNS that controls the body's skeletal muscles and enables voluntary control.

Autonomic Nervous System

Division of the PNS that controls glands and muscles of internal organs. (Involuntary)

Sympathetic Nervous System

Division of the ANS that arouses body and expands energy in stressful situations.

Parasympathetic Nervous System

Division of the ANS that calms the body and conserves its energy.

Lesioning

The destruction of brain tissue that is naturally or experimentally caused by scientists in order to study the brain.

EEG (electroencephalogram)

Amplified recording of waves of electrical activity sweeping across the brain's surface.

PET (positron emission tomography)

Visual display of brain activity that detects where a radioactive form of glucose goes while the brain performs a given task.

CT (computed tomography)

A series of X-ray photos taken from different angles by a computer into a composite representation of a piece of the brain's structure.

MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)

Uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer-generated images of soft tissue that show brain anatomy.

fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging)

Technique used to reveal blood flow and brain activity by comparing successive brain MRI scans that shows brain function and structure.