Psych Final assets (70 flashcards)

70 vocabulary-style flashcards covering key psychology concepts from the lecture notes.

Intelligence

The capacity to acquire and apply knowledge and skills, including reasoning, problem-solving, and adapting to new situations.

g factor

A general intelligence factor proposed by Charles Spearman that underlies performance across diverse cognitive tasks.

Fluid intelligence

The ability to solve novel problems, reason abstractly, and adapt to new cognitive tasks without relying on prior knowledge.

Crystallized intelligence

Knowledge and skills accumulated through experience and education, such as vocabulary and factual information.

Theory of multiple intelligences

Howard Gardner’s theory proposing that intelligence is not a single ability but consists of multiple distinct modalities (e.g., linguistic, musical, spatial, interpersonal).

Practical intelligence

The ability to solve everyday problems by using experience-based knowledge, sometimes called street smarts.

Emotional intelligence

The capacity to recognize, understand, manage, and influence emotions in oneself and others.

Intelligence tests

Standardized assessments used to measure a person’s cognitive abilities in relation to others.

Mental age

A measure of intellectual performance expressed in terms of the age at which an average individual reaches the same level of ability.

Intelligence quotient (IQ)

A score derived from standardized tests designed to measure intelligence; traditionally calculated as (mental age/chronological age) × 100.

Instincts

Innate biological tendencies that help organisms survive, such as a baby’s rooting reflex.

Instinct approaches to motivation

Theories suggesting behavior is driven by instinctual drives that are biologically programmed.

Drive-reduction approaches to motivation

Theories that propose motivation arises from the desire to reduce internal tension caused by unmet biological needs.

Drive

An internal state of tension that motivates an organism to engage in activities to reduce this tension.

Homeostasis

The body’s tendency to maintain a stable internal environment through regulatory mechanisms.

Arousal approaches to motivation

Theories suggesting that people are motivated to maintain an optimal level of arousal (not too high or too low).

Incentive approaches to motivation

Theories that emphasize the role of external stimuli and rewards in motivating behavior.

Cognitive approaches to motivation

Theories that emphasize thought processes, such as expectations and goal setting, as drivers of motivation.

Self-actualization

The realization of one’s fullest potential; the highest level in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

Gender Schema

A cognitive framework that organizes information about gender roles and guides behavior and interpretation.

Erogenous zone

Areas of the body that are particularly sensitive to sexual stimulation.

Excitement phase

The initial stage of the sexual response cycle, characterized by physiological arousal.

Plateau phase

The phase in the sexual response cycle in which sexual tension builds and arousal intensifies.

Orgasm

The climax of the sexual response cycle, involving rhythmic muscular contractions and intense pleasure.

Resolution stage

The final phase of the sexual response cycle, where the body gradually returns to its normal state.

Refractory period

A recovery phase after orgasm during which a person (typically male) cannot achieve another orgasm.

Erectile disorder

A condition in which a man has difficulty achieving or maintaining an erection sufficient for sexual activity.

Female orgasmic disorder

A condition involving difficulty in reaching orgasm despite adequate stimulation and arousal.

Traits

Enduring personality characteristics that influence behavior across various situations.

Traits theory

An approach to personality that focuses on identifying, describing, and measuring individual differences in behavioral tendencies.

Social cognitive approach to personality

A theory emphasizing the influence of observational learning, self-efficacy, and reciprocal determinism in shaping personality.

Self-efficacy

One’s belief in their ability to succeed in specific situations or accomplish a task.

Self-esteem

The overall value one places on oneself as a person.

Biological and evolutionary approaches to personality

Theories emphasizing genetic and evolutionary influences on personality traits and behaviors.

Temperament

Biologically based tendencies to feel or act in certain ways, often evident early in life.

Humanistic approach to psychology

A perspective that emphasizes individual growth, free will, and the inherent goodness of people.

Unconditional positive regard

Accepting and valuing a person without conditions or judgment, as emphasized by Carl Rogers.

Abnormal behavior

Behavior that is deviant, distressing, dysfunctional, or dangerous, often used to define psychological disorders.

Medical perspective in psychology

A view that mental disorders are caused by biological factors and can be treated medically.

Psychoanalytic perspective of abnormal behavior

A Freudian view attributing abnormal behavior to unconscious conflicts and early childhood experiences.

Behavioral perspective of abnormal behavior

A theory that abnormal behavior is learned through interactions with the environment.

Cognitive perspective of abnormal behavior

A view that maladaptive thinking patterns contribute to psychological disorders.

Humanistic perspective of abnormal behavior

A perspective that sees abnormal behavior as the result of blocked personal growth or unmet needs.

Sociocultural perspective of abnormal behavior

A view that considers societal, cultural, and environmental influences on abnormal behavior.

DSM-5

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition; the standard classification system used to diagnose psychological disorders.

Anxiety disorder

A group of mental disorders characterized by significant feelings of anxiety and fear.

Panic disorder

An anxiety disorder marked by recurrent, unexpected panic attacks and fear of future episodes.

Social psychology

The scientific study of how people think about, influence, and relate to one another.

Schemas

Cognitive structures that help organize and interpret information based on past experiences.

Central route processing

A type of persuasion that involves careful and thoughtful consideration of the arguments presented.

Peripheral route processing

Persuasion that occurs through superficial cues (e.g., attractiveness of the speaker) rather than the message content.

Cognitive dissonance

The psychological discomfort experienced when holding conflicting thoughts or beliefs.

Attribution causes

Explanations people create for the causes of behaviors and events.

Assumed similarity bias

The tendency to believe others are more similar to us than they actually are.

Self-serving bias

The tendency to attribute successes to internal factors and failures to external ones.

Halo effect

The tendency to let an overall impression of a person influence judgments of their specific traits.

Fundamental attribution error

The tendency to overemphasize personality factors and underestimate situational influences when explaining others' behavior.

Means-ends analysis

A problem-solving strategy that involves breaking down a problem into smaller steps to reduce the difference between the current situation and the goal.

Insight

A sudden realization of a solution to a problem without a clear step-by-step process.

Functional fixedness

A cognitive bias that limits a person to using an object only in the way it is traditionally used.

Confirmation bias

The tendency to seek out or interpret information that confirms one’s preconceptions while ignoring contradictory evidence.

Creativity

The ability to generate novel and valuable ideas.

Divergent thinking

The process of generating many different ideas or solutions from a single starting point.

Convergent thinking

The process of narrowing down multiple ideas into a single, correct solution.

Language

A system of symbols and rules used for communication through speech, writing, or gestures.

Grammar

The set of rules that govern the structure and use of a language.

Phonology

The study of the sound system of a language, including the rules for combining and using phonemes.

Logotherapy

An existential form of psychotherapy developed by Viktor Frankl that emphasizes the human search for meaning as the central motivational force in life.

Wilhelm Wundt

The “father of modern psychology” who founded the first experimental psychology laboratory in Leipzig, Germany in 1879 and applied the scientific method to the study of consciousness and behavior.

Leipzig laboratory

First experimental psychology laboratory established in Leipzig, Germany by Wilhelm Wundt in 1879.