AP Psych Units I-7

Empiricism

- The view that knowledge originates in experience and that science should, therefore, rely on observation and experimentation
- Locke
- Tabula Rasa "Blank slate"

Structuralism

- Early school of thought which used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind
- Wundt and Titchener

Functionalism

- Early school of thought which explored how mental and behavioral processes function
- How they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish
- James and Darwin

Experimental Psychology

- The study of behavior and thinking using the experimental method

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)
- Watson and Rayner

Humanistic Psychology

- A historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential for healthy people
- Freudian psychology
- Maslow, Skinner, and Freud

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

- The longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors
- Today's science sees traits and behaviors arising from the interaction of nature and nurture

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
- Charles Darwin

Levels of Analysis

- The differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social-cultural, for analyzing any given phenomenon

Biopsychosocial Approach

- An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis
- All lead to behavior or mental processes

Behavioral Psychology

- The scientific study of observable behavior, and its explanation by principles of learning
- Attempts to determine aggressive acts

Biological Psychology

- The scientific study of the links between biological and psychological processes
- Neuropsychologists or Behavior Geneticists

Cognitive Psychology

- The scientific study of all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
- How our interpretation of a situation affects our anger and how our anger affects our thinking

Evolutionary Psychology

- The study of evolution of behavior and mind, using principles of natural selection
- Analyze how anger facilitated the survival of our ancestors' genes

Psychodynamic Psychology

- A branch of psychology that studies how unconscious drives and conflicts influence behavior, and uses that information to treat people with psychological disorders
- Might vies an outburst as an outlet for unconscious hostility

Social-Cultural Psychology

- The study of how situations and cultures affect our behavior and thinking
- How expression of anger vary across cultural contexts

Psychometrics

- The scientific study of the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits

Basic Research

- Pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base

Developmental Psychology

- A branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span
- Womb to tomb

Educational Psychology

- The study of how psychological processes affect and can enhance teaching and learning

Personality Psychology

- The study of an individual's characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting
- Investigating our persistent traits

Social Psychology

- The scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another

Applied Research

- Scientific study that aims to solve practical problems

Industrial-Organizational (I/O) Psychology

- The application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplace
- Helps organizations and companies select and train employees

Human Factors Psychology

- An I/O psychology subfield that explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use

Counseling Psychology

- A branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living and in achieving greater well-being
- Often related to school, work, or marriage

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 treatments as well as 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
- "Meaningful life"

Community Psychology

- A branch of psychology that studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups
- For example, stopping bullying

Testing Effect

- Enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information
- Also sometimes referred to as a retrieval practice effort 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
- Also known as the I-knew-it-all-along phenomenon

Critical Thinking

- Thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions
- Rather, it examines assumptions,assesses the source, 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

Hypothesis

- A testable prediction often implied by a theory

Operational Definition

- A carefully worded statement of the exact procedures, operations, used in a research study
- For example, human intelligence may be operationally defined as what an intelligence test measures

Replication

- Repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether basic finding extends to other participants and circumstances

Case Study

- A descriptive technique in which one individual or group is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles

Naturalistic Observation

- Observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation

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

Sampling Bias

- A flawed sampling process that produces an unrepresentative sample

Population

- All those in a group being studied, from which samples may be drawn
- Except for national studies, this does not refer to a country's whole population

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 variables change together, and thus of how well either variable predicts the other

Correlation Coefficient

- A statistical index of the relationship between two variables
- From -1.0 to +1.0

Scatterplot

- A graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the the values of two variables
- The slope of the points suggests the direction of the relationship between the two variables
- The amount of scatter suggests the strength of the correlation

Illusory Correlation

- The perception of a relationship where none exists

Experiment

- A research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process
- By random assignment of participants, the experimenter aims to control other relevant variables

Experimental Group

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

Control Group

- In an experiment, the group not exposed to the treatment, contrasts with the experimental group and serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment

Random Assignment

- Assigning participants to experimental and control groups by chance, thus minimizing preexisting differences between the different groups

Double-Blind Procedure

- An experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo
- Commonly used in drug-evaluation studies

Placebo Effect

- Experimental results caused by expectations alone
- Any effect on behavior caused by the administration of an inert substance or condition, which the recipient assumes is an active agent

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 and effect in an experiment

Dependent Variable

- The outcome factor
- The variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable

Validity

- The extent to which a test or experiment measures or predicts what it is supposed to

Descriptive Statistics

- Numerical data used to measure and describe characteristics of groups
- Includes measures of central tendency and measure of variation

History

- A bar graph depicting a frequency distribution

Mode

- The most frequently occurring score(s) in a distribution

Mean

- The arithmetic average of a distribution, obtained by adding the scores and then dividing by the number of scores

Median

- The middle score in a distribution
- Half the score are above it and half are below it

Skewed Distribution

- A representation of scores that lack symmetry around their average value

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

- A symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many types of data
- Most scores fall near the mean and fewer and fewer near the extremes
- About 68 percent fall within one standard deviation of it

Inferential Statistics

- Numerical data that allow one to generalize- to infer from sample data the probability of something being true of a population

Culture

- The enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next

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 Psychology

- Links between biological and psychological processes
- Behavioral neuroscience
- Introduction to connection of nerve cells and behavior

Neuron

- Nerve cell which is the building block of the nervous system

Dendrites

- Branching extensions that receive messages
- They listen

Axon

- Passes messages through branches to other neurons
- They speak

Myelin Sheath

- Fatty tissue layer that encases the axons of some neurons

Action Potential

- Neural impulse which is a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon

Refractory Period

- A period of inactive neuron firing

Threshold

- A level of stimulation that triggers a neural impulse
- Excitatory: Neuron accelerating
- Inhibitory: Neuron braking/slowing down

All-or-None Response

- You either get the neuron to fire or not fire with specific actions/behaviors

Synapse

- The junction between the axon tip and cell body of the receiving neuron

Neurotransmitters

- Chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons to trigger certain actions/behaviors

Reuptake

- Neurotransmitters reabsorption by the sending neuron

Endorphins

- Natural opiate (pain-killers) to stimulate pleasure

Agonist

-Stimulates a response

Antagonist

- Blocks/inhibits a response

Nervous System

- Electrochemical communications network
- Controls your nerves and some certain behaviors

Central Nervous System (CNS)

- The brain and the spinal chord which sends back a reaction to a certain sensory nerve or behavior

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

- Sensory and motor neurons
- Responsible for gathering information and transmits central nervous system decisions to other body parts

Nerves

- Bundled axons that form neural "cables"
- Connects nervous system with muscles, glands, and sense organs

Sensory Association Area

Motor

Interneurons

- Neurons within the brain and spinal chord that communicate internally
- Responsible for reflexes
- Intervene with motor and sensory neurons

Somatic Nervous System

- Voluntary control of the skeletal muscles

Autonomic Nervous System (ANS)

- Glandular activity, heartbeat, and digestions
- Fight or flight

Sympathetic Nervous System

- Arouses the body/excites energy

Parasympathetic Nervous System

- Conserves energy/calms

Reflex

- Automatic response
- Knee-jerk
- Found in the brainstem