Ap Psych Units 1-10

Behaviorism

the view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Most research psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2)

Wilhelm Wundt

father of psychology, made psychology a science through observations, experiments, math and science

Wilhelm Wundt's experiment

reaction times impaired because of the word choice "aware". Measured reaction time (cognitive & experimental psychology)

Edward Titchner

Student of Wilhelm Wundt, relied on "self report" data. Engaged people in INTROSPECTION --\> reporting on sensations and other elements of experience (use of 5 senses)

Structuralism

created by Edward Titchner, stressed the basic units of experience and the combinations in which they occur

William James

developed FUNCTIONALISM, based his school on Charles Darwin; wrote 1st psychology textbook: Principles of Psychology

Mary Calkins

mentored by William James, first female president of APA (denied of PhD)

Margaret Floy, Washburn

second female president of APA; wrote The Animal Mind (Darwinistic)

Psychology Definition Shift

1900's --\> Wilhelm Wundt & Titchener only cared about brain & science
1920's --\> behaviorism
1960's --\> cognitive psychologists, neuroscience & behavior
NOW --\> science of behavior and mental processes

Watson & Skinner

famous behaviorists

behaviorism

scientific study of outwardly observable behavior rather than subjective mental states

Sigmund Freud

founder of psychoanalysis; focused on unconscious drives and emphasized importance of childhood experiences

Maslow & Rogers

famous humanists; emphasized feelings, optimism

Humanism

emphasizes nonverbal experience and altered states of consciousness as a means of realizing one's full human potential, free will

Biopsychosocial levels of analysis

biology + psychology + environment

Types of research (psych. subfield)

psychologists in Universities and companies, write textbooks, research

Applied psychology (psych. subfield)

work with people and patients

functionalism

developed by William James, Studied the purpose of behavior, how ones behavior allows it to function in its environment.

Humanistic Psychology

historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people and the individual's potential for personal growth

Cognitive neuroscience

the interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory and language)

Psychology

the science of behavior and mental processes

Nature - Nurture issue

controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of traits and behaviors.

Natural selection

the principle that, among the range of inherited trait variations, those contributing to reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations.

Levels of analysis

the differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social - culture, for analyzing any given phenomenon.

Biopsychosocial approach

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

Neuroscience perspective

how the body and brain enable emotions, memories, and sensory experiences (biological, cognitive, clinical)

evolutionary perspective

how the natural selection of traits has promoted the survival of genes (biological, developmental, social) (Charles Darwin)

Behavior genetics perspective

HEREDITY, GENES:how our genes and our environment influence our individual differences ( personality, developmental)

Psychodynamic perspective

CHILDHOOD PERSPECTIVE:how behavior springs from unconscious drives and conflicts (clinical, counseling, personality)

behavioral perspective

REACTIONS:how we learn observable responses (clinical, counseling, industrial-organizational)

cognitive perspective

THINKING: how we encode, process, store, and retrieve information (cognitive, clinical, counseling, industrial-organizational)

Social-cultural perspective

COMPARING GROUPS OF PEOPLE: how behavior and thinking vary across situations and cultures (developmental, social, clinical, counseling)

basic research

pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base

applied research

scientific study that aims to solve practical problems

counseling psychology

a branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living and in achieving greater well-being

clinical psychology

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

psychiatry

a branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who sometimes provide medical treatment and psychological therapy.

positive psychology

the scientific study of human functioning, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive

community psychology

a branch of psychology that studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups

testing effect

enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply reading, information (retrieval practice effect or test-enhanced learning)

SQ3R

a study method incorporating 5 steps: survey, question, read, retrieve, review

hindsight bias

the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it ("I knew it all along phenomenon)

critical thinking

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

theory

an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviors or events; set of principles, built on observations; doesn't include evidence; broad statement (the big picture)

hypothesis

a testable prediction, often implied by a theory; prediction based on evidence

operational definition

a statement of the procedures (operations) used to define research variables. (e.x "ADHD symptoms" --\> measured through impulsivity, hyperactivity & inattention)

replication

repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether the basic finding extends to other participants and circumstances; makes conclusive results more powerful

case study

an observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles.
+ \= source of ideas about human nature, doesn't require a lot of tech.
- \= overgeneralize, assumptions can be made

naturalistic observation

observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation
+ \= no alterations to experiment
- \= only description

survey

a technique for ascertaining the self'reported attitudes or behaviors of a particular group, usually by questioning a representative, random sample of the group.
- \= wording effects, lying (self-report bias), randomly sampled may not be reliable

population

all the cases in a group being studied, from which samples may be drawn

random sample

a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion

correlation

a measure of the extent to which two factors vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other
* correlation DOES NOT EQUAL causation (just because one thing relates doesn't mean it causes it)

causation

result as to why something is happening, only proved in an experiment (NOT a case study)

correlation coefficient

a statistical index of the relationship between two things (-1 to +1)
- positive correlation --\> as one variable increases the other increases
- negative correlation --\> as one variable increases the other decreases
example \= -0.7 stronger correlation than +0.3 because it is closer to -1/1 (absolute value)

scatterplot

a graphed cluster of dots which represent the values of two variable. The amount of scatter suggests the strength of the correlation (little scatter indicates high correlation)

experiment

a research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors (independent variables) to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process (the dependent variable)

random assignment

assigning participants to experimental and control groups by chance, thus minimizing preexisting differences between those assigned to different groups (experiment)

experimental group

in an experiment, the group that is exposed to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independent variable

control group

in an experiment, the group that is NOT exposed to the treatment; contrasts with the experimental group and serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment

double-blind procedure

an experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant (blind) about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo.

placebo effect

any effect on behavior caused by the administration of an inert substance or condition

independent variable

the experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied.

confounding variable

a factor other than the independent variable that might produce an effect in an experiment (3rd variable)

dependent variable

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

descriptive research method

purpose: to observe and record behavior
conducted through: case studies, naturalistic observations & surveys
weaknesses: no control of variables (misleading)

correlational research method

purpose: to detect naturally occurring relationships, to assess how well one variable predicts another
conducted through: collect data on two or more variables
weaknesses: does not specify cause and effect

experimental

purpose: to explore cause & effect
conducted through: manipulate one or more factors (random assignment)
what's manipulated: independent variable
weaknesses: not feasible, results may not generalize to other contexts, not ethical to manipulate certain variables

mode

the most frequently occurring scores in a distribution

mean

the arithmetic average of a distribution (adding the scores and then dividing by the number of scores)

median

the middle score in a distribution, half the scores are above and below

range

the difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution

standard deviation

a computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean score

normal curve (normal distribution)

a symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many types of data (most scores are in the middle, and fewer near the extremes)

scientific method

process of testing our ideas about the world by setting up situations that test our ideas, making observations, and analyzing whether the data fits our ideas

statistical significance

a statistical statement of how likely it is that an obtained result occurred by chance

Scientific method tools & goals

Basics: theory, hypothesis, operational definitions, replication
Research goals/types: description, correlation, prediction, causation, experiments

descriptive research

- Case study --\> observing & gathering info.
- Naturalistic observation --\> watching but not intervening
- Surveys & Interviews --\> having people report on their own behavior

culture

the enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people

informed consent

an ethical principle that research participants be told enough to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate

debriefing

the postexperimental explanation of a study, including its purpose and any deceptions, to its participants

Biological perspective

concerned with the links between biology and behavior. Includes psychologists working in neuroscience, behavior genetics, and evolutionary psychology. The researchers may call themselves behavioral neuropsychologists, behavior genetics, physiological psychologists, or bio psychologists

phrenology

developed by Franz Gall; study of bumps on skull and their relationship to mental abilities; not much science behind their studies except for that different parts of the brain do different things

neuron

a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system

dendrites

a neuron's bushy, branching extensions that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body.

axon

the neuron extension that passes messages through its branches to other neurons or to muscles or glands

myelin sheath

a fatty tissue layer segmentally encasing the axons of some neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed as neural impulses hop from one node to the next

neural impulse/action potential

electrical signals traveling down the axon (potassium and sodium ions)

terminal branches

forms junctions with other cells

threshold

the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse; "all or none response"; number of excitory (party animals, gas pedal) \> inhibitory (party poopers, brakes)

action potential

"neuron at work", depolarization produces another action potential farther along the axon, while gates open and positive sodium ions come in and negative potassium ions leave through a selectively permeable membrane. (left - right)

resting potential

"neuron at rest", refractory period, positive sodium ions and negative potassium ions are on either side of the axon (not moving)

synapse

the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron; synaptic gap or synaptic cleft

neurotransmitters

chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons. When released by the sending neuron, neurotransmitters travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse.

reuptake

a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the sending neuron; recycling neurotransmitters

serotonin *

- type of neurotransmitter
- function: affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal
- problems caused by imbalances: under supply linked to depression; some antidepressant drugs raise serotonin levels

dopamine *

- type of neurotransmitter
- function: influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion
- problems caused by imbalances: oversupply linked to schizophrenia; under supply linked to tremors and decreased mobility in Parkinson's disease & ADHD

Acetylcholine (ACh) *

- type of neurotransmitter
- function: enables muscle action, learning, and memory
- problems caused by imbalances: ACh - producing neurons deteriorate as Alzheimer's disease progresses

Norepinephrine

- type of neurotransmitter
- function: helps control alertness and arousal
- problems caused by imbalances: undersupply can depress mood and cause ADHD

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)

- type of neurotransmitter
- function: a major inhibitory neurotransmitter
- problems caused by imbalances: undersupply linked to seizures, tremors, and insomnia