Psychology 1 Midterm/Final

Psychology (definition)

Psychology (definition)

The scientific study of behavior and mental processes

Theory

A statement that attempts to explain why things are the way they are and why they happen the way they do

Principle

A basic truth or law

Morality

The concept of good/right conduct

Behavior

Any action that other people can observe and measure

Social Science

A science that deals with and tries to explain the social aspects of the world around us

Example: Psychology

Natural Science

A science that deals with and tries to explain the natural aspects of the world around us

Examples: Chemistry, Biology, etc.

Goals of Psychology

Seeks to observe, describe, predict, and modify behaviors and mental processes

Cognitive Activities

Mental processes (can't be observed/measured)

Examples: Dreaming, Thoughts, etc.

Emotions

Feelings that can affect how someone's behavior and mental processes

Psychological Constructs

What psychologists use to help them study what we can't see (mental processes)

Surveys

A type of research method where psychologists collect data through questions asked of a particular group

Experimentation

A type of research method where psychologists collect data through running physical tests on humans/animals

Cognitive

The study of mental processes and mental disorders

Clinical Psychologist

-Makes up the majority of psychologists-Concerned with child/adult mental health, learning disabilities, geriatrics, and general health

-Treat people with problems like anxiety, depression, and other more serious conditions

-Cannot prescribe medication to patients

Psychiatrist

A medical doctor who treats psychological conditions and can prescribe medication for those conditions

Counseling Psychologist

-Treats people with adjustment problems

-Employed in businesses or higher educational institutions

School Psychologist

-Identify and help students who have problems that interfere with learning

-Use interviews, tests, and observation to help students

Educational Psychologist

-Focus on course planning and instructional methods for an entire school system (not concerned with individual problems)

-Study how learning is affected by psychological, cultural, economic, and instructional methods

-Some aid in standardized testing and issue various tests to determine college success

Developmental Psychologist

-Study changes (physical, cognitive, social, etc.) that occur throughout an individual's lifespan

-Some are especially interested in the struggles that adolescents face

Personality Psychologist

-Identify and study human characteristics/traits

-Interested in the origins of psychological problems

-Concerned with issues like anxiety, aggression, and gender roles

Social Psychologist

-Concerned with people's social behavior

-Focus on external rather than internal influences

Experimental Psychologist

-Conduct research into basic processes such as the functions of the nervous system, sensation, perception, learning, memory, thinking, and motivation

-Study reasons for psychological and biological reasons for cognitive behavior

-Most likely to perform basic research

Biological Psychologist

-Study the relationship between biological changes and psychological events

Basic Research

Research that has no immediate application and that's done for its own sake

Specialized Fields

Fields of psychology that focus on one specific aspect of behavior/mental processes

Environmental Psychologist

-Studies how people are influenced and influenced by the environment

Comparative Psychologist

-Studies animal behavior across different species

Consumer Psychologist

-Studies people and their work

-Employed by corporations to improve working conditions and increase output

-Also trained in organizational psychology

Organizational Psychologist

-Studies how people behave in organizations

-Employed by corporations to improve working conditions and increase output

-Also trained in industrial psychology

Human Factors Psychologist

-Try to find the best ways to design products for people to use

-Consider how a product will be used, affect people, look, feel, and how the product will be engineered so it's safe, durable, and comfortable to use

Community Psychologist

-Study and help create social systems (hospitals, mental health centers, school programs) that promote and foster individual well-being

-Focus on promoting change in social environments, helping powerless people, preventing threats to mental health in social environments

Forensic Psychology

-Work in the criminal justice system

-Determine psychological competence of defendants

-Try to explain how psychological problems can lead to criminal behavior

-Work with police departments to help secret police officers, help officers cope with stress, train officers in handling dangerous situations (family violence, suicide, hostage crisis)

Health Psychologist

-Study of how behavior and mental processes relate to physical health

-Try to find correlations between stress/anxiety and health problems

-Also focus on disease prevention

Cross-Culture Psychologist

-Study behavior and mental processes under different cultural conditions

7 Psychological Approaches

1.) Evolutionary (epigenetic)

2.) Biological (homeostasis)

3.) Behavioral

4.) Cognitive

5.) Humanistic

6.) Psychodynamic (Freud)

7.) Sociocultural

Biological Approach

Focuses on the nervous system, brain, hormones, and genetics (epigenetics)

Epigenetics

The study of environmental influences on genes

Psychodynamic Approach

Emphasizes internal/unconscious conflicts and focuses on sexual and aggressive instincts that collide with what is socially acceptable

Behavioral Approach

Examines the learning process and influence of rewards and punishments on behavior

Evolutionary Approach

Investigates how primal survival instincts can influence behaviors

Cognitive Approach

Focuses on methods people receive, store, and process information (signals sent/received by the brain through senses and physical stimuli)

Humanistic Approach

Emphasizes an individual's potential for growth and the role of perception in guiding behavior and mental processes

Sociocultural Approach

Explores how behavior is shaped by society, culture, history, and etc.

William James

-Founder of functionalism

-Early psychologist (~1842-1910)

-Influenced by Charles Darwin's theory of evolution

-Considered the founder of American Psychology

Natural Selection

Process where individuals that are best adapted to their environment will survive longer and have a higher chance to pass on their genes to offspring

Howard Gardner

-Believed/created the theory of multiple intelligences

-Functionalist

Theory of Multiple Intelligences

The theory created by Gardner that believes that some people are more naturally gifted in certain areas than others

Rehabilitation Psychology

A branch of psychology that works with patients who are challenged with disabilities

Ancient Egypt

Where documented accounts of people's actions, motives, etc. date back to

Introspection

-Created by Socrates

-Encourages people to carefully examine their own thoughts/feelings

Socrates

The Ancient Greek philosopher that developed introspection

Aristotle

The Ancient Greek philosopher that created associationism based on Socrates' teachings/introspection

Associationism

-Created by Aristotle

-The theory that association with past experiences is a basic principle and affects our current behaviors

Possession

What people from the Middle Ages believed was the source behind psychological problems/issues

Water-Float Test

What people from the Middle Ages would use to test if one was possessed or not (sank and drowned = pure, floated and lived = impure/possessed)

1879

The year considered the beginning of psychology as a modern laboratory science

Wilhelm Wundt

-Founded structuralism

-Considered the founder of modern psychology

-Established the first psychology lab in Leipzig (1879)

Structuralism

A field of psychology that focuses on the basic elements of consciousness

Sigmund Freud

-Most famous of early psychologists

-Developed psychoanalysis/psychodynamic ways of thinking

-Founded the school of psychoanalysis

-Id, Ego, Superego

Psychodynamic

Assumes that most of someone's mind is unconscious

Psychoanalysis

Emphasizes unconscious motives and internal conflicts in behavior

Id

-Like a devil

-Operates on immediate gratification and selfish desires

Ego

-Like a referee or mediator

-Executive part of our personality that we have control over (conscious)

Superego

-Like an angel

-Represents internalized ideals and provides standards for what's socially acceptable

John B. Watson

-Founder of behaviorism

-Believes that people can be totally conditioned by external events and that personal choice doesn't exist

-Did an experiment on his own son to prove his theory

B.F. Skinner

-Founded reinforcement

-Believed people learn the same way animals do

-Experimented with Skinner's Box

Gestalt Psychology

-Developed by Max Wertheimer, Kurt Koffka, and Wolfgang Kohler

-An alternative to behaviorism and structuralism that's based on the idea that your brain always wants to fill in the gap (examples on pg. 17)

Biopsychosocial

Emphasizes the affects of biological, mental, and social factors on behavior

Contemporary

The scientific study of behavior and mental processes, which was influenced by early pioneers of psychology

Gate Theory

How much information the brain can handle at once

Social Learning Theory

Suggests people can change their environments or create new ones

Learning Perspective

-Emphasizes the effects of experience on behavior

-Believes that behavior is learned either from direct experience or by observing other people

Kenneth Bancroft

A famous psychologist that studied the effects of segregation on people's behaviors

Scientific Research Procedure (5 steps)

1.) Forming a Research Question

2.) Forming a Hypothesis

3.) Testing the Hypothesis

4.) Analyzing Results

5.) Drawing Conclusions

Construct

Something that can be assumed to be present but cannot be seen/measured directly

Ex: Aggressiveness & Anxiety

Hypothesis

An educated guess that attempts to answer a research question

Replicate

-To repeat and produce the same result

-In research, this must be performed so theories and studies can be proven as fact

Survey

A technique for gathering data where people are asked to respond to a series of questions about a particular subject

Target Population

The whole group an individual wants to study or describe

Random Sample

A sample that is selected by chance from the target population

Stratified Sample

A sample where subgroups in the population are represented proportionally in the sample

Bias

A predisposition to a certain point of view

Volunteer Bias

The concept that people who volunteer for research studies have a different outlook from people who don't volunteer for research studies

Methods of Observation (6)

1.) Case Study

2.) Longitudinal

3.) Cross-Sectional

4.) Naturalistic

5.) Laboratory-Observation

6.) Testing

Case Study

An in-depth investigation of an individual or a small group

Longitudinal Method

The method where researchers select a group of participants and then observe those participants over a period of time (usually years/decades)

Cross-Sectional Method

The method where researchers select a sample that includes people of different ages

Naturalistic-Observation Method

Also known as a field study, it's where researchers observe other people or animals in their natural habitats/settings

Laboratory-Observation Method

A research method where researchers observe behavior in a laboratory rather than something's natural habitat

Testing Method

Where psychologists give people psychological tests to measure someone's behavior, personality, aptitudes, etc.

Positive Correlation

A relationship between data whereas one part rises so does the other

Negative Correlation

A relationship between data where one part falls and so does the other

Experiment

A method used to answer questions about cause and effect, where participants receive a treatment (a change) and their reactions are observed

Variables

Factors that can vary or change

Independent Variable

The factor that researchers manipulate so that they can determine its effect

Dependent Variable

The factor that depends on something and changes as the independent variable is changed

Experimental Group

A group in an experiment that receives the treatment

Control Group

A group in an experiment that doesn't receive the treatment

Controlled Experiment

An experiment that uses both a control group and experimental group