Studied by 1 PersonTags & Description
psychology
the scientific study of behavior and mental processes
behavior
an observable action
monism
seeing mind and body as different aspects of the same thing
dualism
seeing mind and body as two different things that interact
eclectic
use of techniques and ideas from a variety of approaches
empiricism
the view that knowledge should be acquired through observation and often an experiment
science
way of getting knowledge about the world based on observation
theory
a collection of interrelated ideas and facts put forward to describe, explain, and predict behavior and mental processes
scientific method
in psychology, the techniques used to discover knowledge about human behavior and mental processes
hypothesis
a tentative statement or idea expressing a causal relationship between two events or variables that is to be evaluated in a research study
experiment
a procedure in which a researcher systematically manipulates and observes elements of a situation in order to test a hypothesis and make a cause-and-effect statement
independent variable
the variable in a controlled experiment that the experimenter directly and purposefully manipulates to see how the other variables under study will be affected
dependent variable
the variable in a controlled experiment that is expected to change due to the manipulation of the independent variable
experimental group
in an experiment, the group of participants to whom a treatment is given
control group
subjects and not exposed to a changing variable in an experiment
variable
a condition or characteristic of a situation or a person that is subject to change (it varies) within or across situations or individuals
sample
a group of participants who are assumed to be representative of the population about which an inference is being made
random sample
selection of a part of the population without reason; participation is by chance
operational definition
a definition of a variable in terms of the set of methods or procedures used to measure or study that variable
participant
an individual who takes part in an experiment and whose behavior is observed as part of the data collection process
double-blind procedure
technique in which neither the persons involved for those conducting the experiment know in what group to participate is involved
debriefing
a procedure to inform participants about the true nature of an experiment after its completion
ethics
rules of proper and acceptable conduct that investigators use to guide psychological research
ethnocentrism
tendency to believe that one's own group is the standard, the reference point by which other people and groups should be judged
case study
a highly detailed description of a single individual or a vent
ex post facto study
describes differences between groups of participants that differ naturally on a variable such as race or gender
naturalistic observation
observing and recording behavior naturally without trying to manipulate and control the situation
correlational research
establish the relationship between two variables
survey research
the measurement of public opinion through the use of sampling and questioning
experimenter bias
expectation of the person conducting an experiment which may be affect the outcome
observer bias
expectations of an observer which may distort an authentic observation
response bias
preconceived notions of a person answering [a survey] which may alter the experiments purpose
informed consent
the agreement of participants to take part in an experiment and their acknowledgement that they understand the nature of their participation in the research, and have been fully informed about the general nature of the research, its goals, and methods
normal distribution
approximate distribution of scores expected when a sample is taken from a large population, drawn as a frequency polygon that often takes the form of a bell-shaped curve, called the normal curve
placebo
typically a pill that is used as a control in the experiment; a sugar pill
pseudoscience
an unscientific system which pretends to discover psychological information that his means are unscientific or deliberately fraudulent
representative sample
selection of a part of the population which mirrors the current demographics
significant difference
in an experiment, a difference that is unlikely to have occurred because of chance alone and is inferred to be most likely due to the systematic manipulations of variables by the researcher
self-fulfilling prophecy
when a researcher's expectations unknowingly create a situation that affects the results
statistics
branch of mathematics that deals with collecting, classifying, and analyzing data
descriptive statistics
general set of procedures used to summarize, condense, and describe sets of data
frequency distribution
a chart or array of scores, usually arranged from highest to lowest, showing the number of instances for each score
frequency polygon
graph of a frequency distribution that shows the number of instances of obtained scores, usually with the data points connect by straight lines
measure of central tendency
a descriptive statistic that tells which result or score best represents an entire set of scores
mean
the arithmetic average of a set of scores
median
the measure of central tendency that is the data point with 50% of the scores above it and 50% below it
mode
the most frequently occurring score in a set of data
range
the spread between the highest and the lowest scores in a distribution
correlation coefficient
a number that expresses the degree and direction of the relationship between 2 variables, ranging from -1 to +1
inferential statistics
procedures used to draw conclusions about larger populations from small samples of data
normal distribution
approximate distribution of scores expected when a sample is taken from a large population, drawn as a frequency polygon that often takes the form of a bell-shaped curve, called the normal curve
standard deviation
a descriptive statistic that measures the variability of data from the mean of the sample
variability
the extent to which scores differ from one another
structuralism
school of psychological thought that considered the structure and elements of conscious experience to be the proper subject matter of psychology
introspection
a person's description and analysis of what he or she is thinking and feeling or what he or she has just thought about
functionalism
school of psychological thought that was concerned with how and why the conscious mind works
psychoanalytic
perspective developed by freud, which assumes that psychological problems are the result of anxiety resulting from unresolved conflicts and forces of which a person might be unaware
Gestalt psychology
school of psychological thought that argued that behavior cannot be studied in parts but must be viewed a s whole
behaviorism
perspective that defines psychology as the study of behavior that is directly observable or through assessment instruments
cognitive psychology
perspective that focuses on the mental processes involved in perception, learning, memory, and thinking
humanistic psychology
perspective that emphasizes the uniqueness of the individual and the idea that humans have free will
self-actualization
the human need to fulfill one's potential
sociocultural psychology
perspective concerned with how cultural differences affect behavior
evolutionary psychology
perspective that seeks to explain and predict behaviors by analyzing how the human brain developed over time, how it functions, and how input from the environment affects human behaviors
positive psychology
in emerging Theo psychology that focuses on positive experiences; includes subjective well-being, self-determination, the relationship between positive emotions and physical health, and the factors that allow individuals, communities, and societies to boorish
psychologist
professional who studies behavior and uses behavioral principles in scientific research or in applied settings
clinical psychologist
psychologist who treats people serious psychological problems or conducts research into the causes of behavior
counseling psychologist
psychologist who treats people with adjustment problems
psychiatrist
a medical doctor who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders
psychoanalyst
one who uses psychoanalysis to treat psychological problems
developmental psychologist
studies psychological development across the lifespan
educational psychologist
focuses on how effective teaching and learning take place
engineering psychologist
does research on how people function best with machines
forensic psychologist
applies psychological concepts to legal issues
health psychologist
focuses on psychological factors in illness
industrial/organizational psychologist
applies psychological principles to the workplace to improve productivity and the quality of work life
neuropsychologist
concerned with the relationship between brain/nervous system and behavior
psychometrician
focuses on methods of acquiring and analyzing data
school psychologist
assesses and counsels students, consults with educators and parents, and performs behavioral intervention when necessary
social psychologist
focuses on how the individual's behavior and mental processes are affected by interactions with other people
sports psychologist
helps athletes improve their focus, increase motivation, and deal with anxiety and fear of failure
confounding variable
anything that causes a difference between the IV and the DV other than the independent variable
demand characteristics
clues participants discover about the purpose of a study that suggest how they should respond
placebo effect
response to the belief that the IV will have an effect, rather than the IV's actual effect, which can be a confounding variable