psych

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reliability

reliability

refers to the extent to which a measure produces results that are consistent, dependable and stable.

validity

refers to the extent to which the procedures used for a research study measure what the research intended to measure.

internal validity

refers to the extent to which the results obtained from the study are due to the experimental manipulation of the independent variable.

external validity

refers to the extent to which the results of a study can be generalised to the population from which the sample was drawn.

extraneous variable

a variable other than the IV which may have the potential to have an effect on the participant performance on the DV.

confounding

a variable other than the IV which has an effect in the participant performance on the DV which therefore effects the results of the experiment in an unwanted way.

participant variables

this refers to the ways in which each participant varies from each other

experimenter effects

the unconsciously conveys to participants how they should behave

demand characterisitcs

clues in an experiment which conveys to the participant the purpose of the research

placebo effect

occurs when there is a change in the behavioural responses in participants due to their expectations/beliefs that they are receiving and experimental treatment

convienience sampling

taking a sample from a population of individuals who are most available

advantages of convienience sampling

time and cost effective as participants can be assessed relatively easily due to their availability

limitations of convienience sampling

sample may be biased

stratified

involves classifying the population into categories and then choosing a sample which consists of participants from each category

strengths of stratified sampling

sample is more representative of the population

limitations of stratified sampling

can be very time consuming

random sampling

taking a sample from a population where everyone has an equal chance of being chosen. this involves identifying everyone within the target population

strengths of random sampling

reduces the impact of sample bias/participant variables providing the sample is large enough. more representative of the sample

limitations of random sampling

can be very time consuming required an up

between groups

each participant is divided into one of two or more entirely separate groups

strengths of between groups

avoids order effectsless

limitations of between groups

may require more participants than within subjects designdifferences between participants can affect results

within groups

each participant is in both the experimental and control groups

strength of within groups

ensures that the results of the experiment are more likely due to the manipulation of the IV than any differences between participantsless people are neededgood for real world settings

limitation of within groups

can produce order effectsincreased participant dropout rate due to the length of the experiment

mixed design

combines elements of between groups and within groups designs

strengths of mixed design

allows experimenters to compare results both across experimental conditions and across individuals/participants/groups over timeallows multiple experimental conditions to be compared to a baseline control group

limitations of mixed design

can be more costlycan be time consuming

precision

how closely the results agree with each other (consistency of the results)

accuracy

measures how close a result is to the truth

true value

is the value or range of values, that would be found if the quantity could be measured perfectly.

uncertainty

refers to the lack of exact knowledge relating to something being measured due to potential sources of variation in knowledge.

random errors

errors in data that occur unsystematically and occur by chance

systematic

consistent errors within the experiment itself

personal errors

are a fault or mistake by the researcher

self

report methods include

confidentiality

refers to ensuring participants details remain private at all times.

vountary participation

refers to the willing participation of participants to participate in a study.

withdrawal rights

refers to the availability of the right to leave a study at any time, whilst also having the right to remove their results from the study if necessary.

informed consent

provided in the form of a written document outlining the nature and the purpose of the study to ensure they are aware of what the study involves whilst also proving a signature to show their participation.

use of deception

participants should be not be deceived. however, it is necessary in some studies and must be approved by an ethics committee, or followed up with debriefing.

debriefing

happens at the conclusions of the study. A way to explain the results of the study to participants and talk through conclusions.

benefience

refers to tge commitment to maximising benefits and minimising the risks and hamrs involved in taking posisiton or course of action.

integrity

the commitment to search for knowledge and understanding the honest reporting of all sources of info and resukts, whether favourable or not in ways that permit security and contribute to public knowledge and understanding.

justice

in research is the moral obligation to ensure that there is fair consideration of competing claims; that there is no unfair burden on a particular group from an action and fair distribution of benefits of an action.

non

maleficience

respect

the consideration of the extent to whcih living things have value and/or instrumental value in regards to welfare to liberty and autonomy, beliefs, perceptions, customs and cultural heritage of both the individual and the collective.

stress

a state of psychological and physiological arousal produced by internal and external stressors that are perceived by the individual as challenging or exceeding their ability to cope. → subjective

internal stressors

a cause of stress that originates within the individual

examples of internal stressors

psychological: mindset such as low self

external stressors

a cause of stress that originates from outside the individual

examples of external stressors

upcoming exam (may interact with internal stressors such as low self

psychobiological consists of

psychological (mental): stress is subjective experience and depends on our person interpretationbiological (physiological): body’s response to stress (increased heart rate, breathing, sweating, etc.

eustress

positive psychological response to a stressor.

examples of eustress

performinggoing on a dategoing on a rollercoaster

distress

negative psychological response to a stressor

examples of distress

financial issuesrelationship issuesemployment issues

acute stress

intense psychological and physiological symptoms for a brief duration.

acute stress response

The hypothalamus in the brain perceives the stressWhich activates the sympathetic N.S.This causes the body to secrete adrenaline & noradrenalineWhich causes physiological changes related to fight

acute stress is the

inital reaction to thratening events → fight, flight, freeze response

fight

flight

physiological reactions of fight/flight

increased heart rate and blood pressureredistribution of blood supply from skin and intestines to the musclesincreased breathing to increase oxygen supplydilation of pupils so eyes can take in as much light as possibleincreased glucose(sugar) secretion by the liver for energy

physiological reactions of freeze

racing heart slowsblood pressure drops very quicklytense muscles collapse and become still

chronic stress

a form of stress that endures for a prolonged period of time

The HPA Axis puts into motion a slower but longer

lasting chain of reactions…

Hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis

The hypothalamus stimulates the nearby pituitary gland.The pituitary gland secretes adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) into the bloodstream which carries it to the adrenal cortex.ACTH stimulates the adrenal cortex to secrete additional stress hormones (adrenaline, noradrenaline, cortisol).Cortisol is the most abundant of these hormones.The level of cortisol circulating in the bloodstream is commonly used as a measure of stress by researchers

cortisol

refers to a hormone released in times of stress to aid the body in initiating and maintaining heightening arousal.

after FFF cortisol is released to…

help sustain high levels of energy → more prominent in chronic stress

role of cortisol

decreased inflammation by reducing white blood cell productionthis process also conserves energy needed for fight/flight/freeze reactionsbut this can also slow down tissue repair and make you more vulnerable to illness (immunosuppression)floods muscles with glucose for immediate burst of energy, but overtime this could lead to the development of diabetesif the feedback loop that reduces cortisol concentrations in the blood is damaged this can lead to excessive amounts of cortisol in the blood which leads to impaired cognitive functioning (learning problems and memory impairment

impacts of cortisol

makes the brain shrink and lose synaptic connectionsincreased synaptic connection within the amygdalaless cortisol receptors

enteric nervous system

a network of neurons embedded into the walls of the gastrointestinal system. the gut, or gastrointestinal tract, is involved in processing, absorbing nutrients and excreting wastefoods such as yoghurt, kimchi are high probiotic foods that maintain gut health and functioning

roles of the enteric nervous system

peristalses = moving food through digestive systemregulate gastric acidssecret gut hormoneschange blood flow along GI tract

gut

brain axis

vagus nerve

the longest cranial nerve that connects the gut and the brain enabling them to communicate. (the most important nerve in our parasympathetic nervous systems, playing a role in our mood, immune response, digestion, and heart rates)

gastrointestinal (GI) tract

long flexible tube from mouth to anus responsible for digestion roles include: processing foodabsorbing nutrientsexcreting waste

microbiome

collective term for all the microbiota (its environment)

a healthy microbiome

rich microbiota diversity (number of different species)diversity of microbiota diminishes with agestable/resilient/resistant to change (resist disturbances like medication or diet)

gut microbiota

all organisms in the GI tract (bacteria, fungi, viruses) roles include: digests components of our food to provide their own nutrition while also simultaneously providing us with energy and nutrientsproduction, storage and release of some neurotransmitters and neuromodulators

number of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ bacteria is dependent on

dietstress levelsagegeneticsphysical activity levelsmedication

emerging research

the gut is the only organ to function independent of the brain9 out of 10 people with autism have gut imbalancespotential link between the experience of mental illnesses, such as anxiety, and gut

germ free animal studies

involve animals with microorganisms artificially removed from their gut microbiota are compared to regular animals

mice with microorganisms artificially removed from the gut experienced…

significant changes in anxiety

implanting microbiota from patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) into germ

free mice resulted in…

limitations of germ free mice research

does not necessarily suggest that germ