AP Psych Nutshell Review Part 2

nervous system

the parts of your body responsible for your behavior (physical and mental)

parts of the nervous system

central and peripheral

central nervous system

brain and spinal cord

brain

part of the CNS; comparable in size in adults and do not feel pain

spinal cord

part of the CNS; most information from the outer parts of the body transmitted to the brain from here; protected by the vertebrae; injury leads to paralysis

the brain is composed of two \___

hemispheres

corpus callosum

the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them

cross-dominant

in brains, the left hemisphere controls the right side of the body and vice versa; evidence in stroke victims

alexia

inability to read language, but can write

agraphia

inability to write

apraxia

inability to perform a learned motor skill (combing hair)

dyspraxia

lack of motor coordination

broca's aphasia

inability to form sentences, but can understand speech

wernicke's aphasia

inability to understand speech

global aphasia

combination of wernicke's and broca's

visual agnosia

inability to recognize objects

prosopagnosia

inability to recognize familiar faces

neuroplasticity

the ability within the brain to constantly change both the structure and function of many cells in response to experience or trauma

three units of the brain

hindbrain, midbrain, forebrain

hindbrain

cerebellum, medulla, sleep, autonomic functions

cerebellum

voluntary movements, balance

medulla

reflex regulation, muscle coordination, breathing

midbrain

RAS, center of dopamine production

RAS

sleep/wake, awareness of incoming signals

forebrain

sensory information received; control of hunger, thirst, sex; ability to think; formation of personality; development continues into early 20s

thalamus

in forebrain, regulates and integrates sensory information

hypothalamus

in forebrain, regulation of basic biological needs (hunger, thirst); links brain with endocrine system; helps control autonomic nervous system

limbic system

in forebrain, emotional and pleasure centers

cerebrum

in forebrain, most sophisticated area of brain; split into two hemispheres with four lobes each

occiptal

in cerebrum, primary visual cortex

parietal

in cerebrum, visual integration, dreams, somatosensory cortex (touch)

temporal

in cerebrum, primary auditory cortex

frontal

in cerebrum, primary motor cortex, mirror neurons

mirror neurons

frontal lobe neurons that some scientists believe fire when performing certain actions or when observing another doing so. The brain's mirroring of another's action may enable imitation and empathy

peripheral nervous system

neurons outside the brain and spinal cord; somatic and autonomic

somatic

PNS: controls voluntary muscles, connects to sensory receptors

autonomic

PNS: controls involuntary muscles, blood vessels, organs; parasympathetic and sympathetic

parasympathetic nervous system

conserves energy

sympathetic nervous system

releases energy, often in response to emergency situations

neurons

the method that information are carried to and from the brain

action potential

in each neuron, fires a message to the next neuron in the chain only if the neuron's threshold is reached

key to neuron function

fat, sodium, potassium

neurotransmitters

bridge the gap (synapse) between neurons

ACh

neurotransmitter directing muscle movement

dopamine

neurotransmitter directing voluntary movement, reward pathways

norepinephrine

neurotransmitter directing mood and emotion

serotonin

neurotransmitter directing aggression, sleep/wake cycles

GABA

neurotransmitter directing anxiety levels

)chemicals ingested can be \___ (\___) or \___ (\___) to neurotransmitters

agonists (mimics), antagonists (blockers

endocrine system

send hormones to the brain

glands

secrete hormones into the bloodstream

pituitary gland

master gland; located in the brain under hypothalamus, HGH, oxytocin

oxytocin

regulates reproductive behavior; may also assist in building social bonding/trust in others

adrenal glands

secretes adrenaline, fight or flight, release cortical steroids for extra energy needs

thyroid gland

control metabolism (body's energy level)

sex glands

males \= tests (testosterone), females \= ovaries (progesterone/estrogen)

pancreas

secretes insulin, which regulates glucose production

teratogens, maternal nutrition, toxin exposure, fetal origins of disease, congenital illnesses

prenatal development concerns

teratogens

substances taken by the mother that can have a detrimental effect on the child during development in the uterus (thalidomide, FAS)

reflex behavior

at birth, normal infants display certain automatic behaviors. some remain througout life and others disappear

grasp, root, moro

infant reflex behaviors that disappear

root

infant touched on the cheek will turn to the side of the touch and start sucking behavior

moro

infant will flail legs/arms out if child feels like he/she is falling

anxiety

infants with inhibition have this kind of disorder later

infant temperament stays \___ through early childhood

stable

jean piaget

considered the pioneer in discovering how children's learning abilities change over time

schemas

piaget: ways we mentally understand the world

assimilation and accomodation

piaget: how we adapt to new info in our pre-existing schemas

assimilation

piaget: fitting new info into the schema

accommodation

piaget: change the schema to fit the info

steps of piaget's theory of cognitive development

sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operations, formal operations

sensorimotor

PIAGET

\-birth - 18 months

\-motor responses to info

\-senses primary way of exploring world

\-does not understand concept of object permanence

preoperational

PIAGET

\-18months - 7yrs

\-lacks ability of reversibility

\-egocentric in thought

\-simple symbolic thought arises

concrete operations

PIAGET

\-7-11yrs

\-understands idea of conservation (ability to question perception)

\-can classify objects

\-difficult to think abstractly

\-what about santa?

formal operations

PIAGET

\-≥11yrs

\-understanding the abstract and hypothetical

\-can think logically

object permanence, multiple, uniform, environment

piaget criticisms

\-underestimated the ability of children to master concepts, especially ___ ___

\-rather than having distinct stages of development, children display behaviors that go across ___ stages

\-children are not ___ in how long they take in the stages

\-underestimation of the role of ___

sociocultural theory

lev vygotsky; children learn primarily from other people; culture plays a key role in development, so development isn't universal; acquisition of language is key

private speech

speech by children that is spoken and directed to themselves

more knowledgeable other

vygotsky; the person/entity who possess more ability/skill than the learner; the teacher can be a thing

zone of proximal development

vygotsky: the difference in time between a task can be completed by a learner with an MKOs help, compared to the time taken if the learner does the task independently

imprinting

certain responses are inherited

critical period

crucial time where certain skills/abilities are most easily learned

konrad lorenz

researcher who focused on critical attachment periods in baby birds, a concept he called imprinting (also critical period)

harry harlow

experiments with monkeys showed that monkeys sought and needed contact LITERALLY THE WORST

Mary Ainsworth's strange situation

an experimental method designed to measure the nature of attachment between mothers and babies

secure attachment

ainsworth: children use mother as a base to explore their surroundings; children upset when she leaves, but comforted when she returns

anxious-ambivalent attachment

ainsworth: children anxious when mother is present, very upset when she leaves, not comforted by return

avoidant attachment

ainsworth: children don't seek mother when she's there and aren't upset by her absence

disorganized-disoriented attachment

ainsowrth: children appeared confused over to approach or avoid the mother; typically insecure children

eric erikson psychosocial development

individuals seek to acquire social goals throughout their life (independence vs dependence, identity vs role confusion, intimacy vs isolation, ego integrity vs despair)

lawrence kohlberg moral development

developing an individual sense of right and wrong; people evolve from behaving according to obedience to authority to behaving based on what is best for overall society

preconventional, conventional, postconventional

Kohlberg's stages of moral development

preconventional

kohlberg: morality based on direct personal consequences

conventional

kohlberg: morality based on societal expectations/conformity

postconventional

kohlberg: morality based on individual centered principles

adolescence

the transition state between childhood and adulthood; no strict age limits (12-19); a social construct and NOT the same as puberty

puberty

the biological process of reaching sexual maturity (males \= testosterone, females \= estrogen)

growth spurt

the start of puberty

primary sexual characteristics

the maturation of reproductive organs

secondary sexual characteristics

physical changes caused by increased hormone production, but not directly related to sexual reproduction (voice change, axillary hair)