psych flashcards

Psychology — The scientific study of behavior and mental processes; mental processes cannot be directly observed.

Scientific Method — Orderly procedures researchers follow to identify problems, design studies, collect/analyze data, draw conclusions, and communicate results.

Testable Hypothesis — A statement that can be tested and justified based on theory or observation.

Theory — A general set of principles explaining how separate facts are related.

Occam’s Razor — The simplest explanation with the fewest assumptions is preferred.

Replication — Repeating a study to verify results with different participants or methods.

Falsification — Looking for evidence that could disprove a hypothesis.

Logical Positivism — A theory is correct if evidence proves it, wrong if evidence disproves it.

Goal of Psychology: Description — Accurately and completely describing behavior and mental processes.

Goal of Psychology: Explanation — Understanding conditions that influence behavior by ruling in or out alternatives.

Goal of Psychology: Prediction — Identifying antecedent conditions to forecast behavior.

Goal of Psychology: Influence — Applying psychological knowledge to improve quality of life.

Basic Research — Research conducted to advance general scientific understanding.

Applied Research — Research aimed at solving practical problems and improving quality of life.

Aristotle (Empiricist) — Proposed four causes in nature: efficient, material, formal, and final.

Rene Descartes — Philosopher known for Cartesian Dualism; mind and body are separate.

Monism — Mind and body are the same.

Dualism — Mind and body are separate entities.

Phrenology — Pseudoscience claiming different brain areas control specific mental functions.

Structuralism — Study of basic elements of consciousness; introspection used to examine pure sensations.

Functionalism — Study of how mental processes help humans and animals adapt to their environment.

Behaviorism — Focus on observable and measurable behavior; rejects introspection.

Psychoanalysis — Freud’s theory emphasizing the unconscious mind and talk therapy.

Humanistic Psychology — Emphasizes human uniqueness, growth, choice, and psychological health.

Gestalt Psychology — The mind interprets experiences in predictable ways rather than reacting passively.

Cognitive Psychology — Studies mental processes like memory, problem solving, perception, and language.

Information Processing Theory — Compares mental operations to computer processes; brain interprets information.

Descriptive Research — Research methods that systematically observe and describe behavior.

Longitudinal Design — Studies the same variables in the same group over time.

Cross-sectional Design — Studies variables among different groups at a single point in time.

Naturalistic Observation — Systematic observation of behavior in its natural environment.

Case Study — Intensive, in-depth investigation of an individual or small group.

Survey — Structured questions to investigate opinions, behaviors, or characteristics of a group.

Sample — A selected segment of the population used to represent the larger group.

Representative Sample — A sample that closely mirrors the larger population on key characteristics.

Random Selection — Every member of the population has an equal chance of being chosen.

Correlational Study — Examines the relationship between two variables.

Correlation Coefficient — Numerical measure of the strength and direction of a relationship between variables, ranging from -1.00 to +1.00.

Confounding Variable — An outside influence that affects the relationship between variables.

Random Assignment — Assigning participants to groups so each has an equal chance.

Experimental Group — The group exposed to the independent variable.

Control Group — The group not exposed to the independent variable; used for comparison.

Double-Blind Technique — Neither participants nor researchers know who is in the experimental or control group.

Demand Characteristics — Subtle cues that influence participants’ behavior.

Placebo Effect — When participants experience changes due to expectations rather than treatment.

Comparative Psychology — Studies behavior of nonhuman animals.

Independent Thinking — Evaluating evidence rather than accepting information automatically.

Suspension of Judgment — Gathering information before forming a conclusion to avoid bias.

Critical Thinking — Objectively evaluating claims, propositions, and conclusions based on evidence.

Neurons — Nerve cells that transmit information in the nervous system.

Dendrites — Receiving parts of neurons; collect signals from other neurons.

Cell Body — Contains nucleus; produces proteins and maintains neuron functions.

Axon — Transmits signals from the neuron to other neurons or muscles.

Axon Terminal — End of the axon where neurotransmitters are released.

Synapse — Gap between neurons where neurotransmitters are transmitted.

Glial Cells — Support cells in the nervous system; form myelin and blood-brain barrier.

Myelin Sheath — Insulating layer around axons that speeds signal transmission.

Astrocytes — Glial cells that hold neurons in place and support growth.

Resting Potential — Electrical charge across a neuron when inactive (-70mV).

Graded Potential — Small changes in electrical charge in response to inputs; can be excitatory or inhibitory.

Action Potential — All-or-none electrical impulse that travels down the axon.

Glutamate — Excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in learning, thought, and emotion.

GABA — Inhibitory neurotransmitter; reduces neural activity.

Serotonin — Regulates mood, sleep, appetite, impulsivity, and aggression.

Endorphins — Pain relief and feelings of pleasure.

Acetylcholine — Involved in REM sleep, movement, learning, and memory.

Norepinephrine — Affects alertness, wakefulness, and eating behaviors.

Epinephrine — Regulates energy release and metabolism during stress or exercise.

Dopamine — Influences movement, attention, learning, and reward.

Sympathetic Division — Activates fight-or-flight responses; part of the autonomic nervous system.

Parasympathetic Division — Promotes rest and digestion; part of the autonomic nervous system.

Pituitary Gland — “Master gland” controlling other endocrine glands; regulated by hypothalamus.

Pineal Gland — Produces melatonin to regulate sleep-wake cycles.

Adrenal Glands — Release adrenaline and cortisol in response to stress.

Testes — Produce testosterone in males.

Ovaries — Produce estrogen in females; both sexes produce some hormones of the opposite sex.

Central Nervous System (CNS) — Brain and spinal cord; processes and sends information.

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS) — Connects CNS to the rest of the body; includes somatic and autonomic systems.

Frontal Lobe — Controls movement, executive functions, and decision-making; contains motor cortex and prefrontal cortex.

Broca’s Area — Speech production; damage causes difficulty producing language.

Parietal Lobe — Processes sensory information, spatial orientation, and numbers; contains somatosensory cortex.

Temporal Lobe — Processes hearing, language comprehension, and memory; contains auditory cortex and Wernicke’s area.

Occipital Lobe — Processes visual information; contains visual cortex.

Basal Ganglia — Controls voluntary movements and reward-related actions; damage linked to Parkinson’s disease.

Basal Forebrain — Activates cortex and supports attention; damage linked to Alzheimer’s disease.

Thalamus — Sensory gateway to the cerebral cortex; involved in consciousness.

Midbrain — Contains substantia nigra and colliculi; processes auditory and visual information.

Reticular Activating System (RAS) — Regulates cortical arousal.

Hindbrain — Includes cerebellum, pons, and medulla; controls basic life functions.

Limbic System — Emotional center of the brain; regulates emotion, memory, and autonomic functions.

Hypothalamus — Maintains internal states and regulates endocrine and autonomic systems.

Amygdala — Processes excitement, fear, arousal, and social signals related to emotion.

Cingulate Cortex — Involved in emotional expression and socially appropriate behavior; regulates autonomic nervous system.

Hippocampus — Forms new memories and spatial memory; damage impairs new memory formation.

• Prefrontal Cortex — Associated with decision-making, planning, and moderating social behavior; crucial for impulse control and emotional regulation.

Place Cells — Neurons that activate in a specific location, contributing to spatial navigation and memory.

Grid Cells — Neurons arranged in a grid pattern that activate in coordination with place cells, supporting spatial awareness and perception of time.

Mind-Brain Evidence (Monism) — 1. Brain activity changes with behavior and perception; 2. Brain damage causes deficits in behavior and perception; 3. Stimulation of the brain activates behaviors, perceptions, or emotions.

Brain Mapping Methods — Techniques to study brain structure and function.

EEG (Electroencephalography) — Records electrical activity of the brain through the skull; limited temporal and spatial resolution.

CT & MRI — Structural imaging using magnets to create detailed brain images.

PET & fMRI — Functional imaging that shows brain activity using colorful images.

TMS (Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation) — Temporarily stimulates or deactivates brain areas; excessive use can cause long-term slow activity.

MEG (Magnetoencephalography) — Measures magnetic fields to study brain activity, including sleep stages.

Localization of Function — Different brain areas contribute to specific functions, though most areas work together.

Lateralization — Many cognitive functions rely more on one hemisphere than the other, especially language.

Left Hemisphere Functions — Fine-tuned language skills (speech comprehension, production, phonology, syntax, reading, writing), motion detection, facial expressions.

Right Hemisphere Functions — Course language skills, tone of voice, visuospatial skills, perceptual grouping, face perception.

Neurogenesis — Growth of new neurons, primarily in the hippocampus and olfactory bulbs; impairment linked to depression.

Neuroplasticity — Brain’s ability to rewire itself due to experience; includes functional plasticity (shift of function) and structural plasticity (changes from learning).

Sensation — Detection of stimulus energy by sensory organs.

Perception — Interpretation of sensory information by the brain.

Naive Realism — The assumption that the world is exactly as we perceive it.

Perceptual Hypotheses — Brain guesses about what is present in the environment.

Perceptual Set — Perception influenced by context, expectations, or prior experience.

Perceptual Constancy — Recognition that objects maintain size, shape, and color across conditions.

Transduction — Conversion of external stimuli into neural signals.

Sensory Receptors — Specialized nerve endings that transduce specific stimuli.

Sensory Adaptation — Decreased sensitivity to prolonged stimulation.

Absolute Threshold — Minimum stimulus energy required for detection.

Just Noticeable Difference (JND) — Smallest detectable change in stimulus intensity; based on Weber’s Law (proportional change, not fixed).

Signal Detection Theory (SDT) — Method to distinguish signals from noise while accounting for bias, expectations, and motivation.

Selective Attention — Focusing on certain sensory inputs while ignoring others.

Filter Theory — Brain can filter sensory input to focus on one channel (e.g., cocktail party effect).

Binding Problem — How the brain integrates different sensory qualities (e.g., vision, touch, taste) into a unified perception.

Visual System — Processes light via retina, fovea, rods (low light), cones (color and high acuity), and ganglion cells (optic nerve).

Color Perception — Trichromatic Theory: three primary cones (red, green, blue);

Opponent-Process Theory: complementary color pairs (red/green, blue/yellow).

Motion Perception — Brain compares visual frames to detect movement; includes Phi Phenomenon (apparent motion) and Autokinetic Illusion (eye movement perception).

Face Recognition — Cells in lower temporal lobe detect key facial features; fills in missing information from context and memory.

Feature Detection — Simple and complex cortical cells respond to lines, edges, shapes, and moving objects (Hubel & Wiesel).

Visual Acuity — Clarity of vision.

Auditory System — Sound waves collected by outer ear, amplified in middle ear, transduced in inner ear (cochlea, basilar membrane, hair cells).

Sound Properties — Loudness/amplitude (decibels), frequency (Hz), pitch, timbre.

Pitch Perception — Frequency Theory: basilar membrane vibrates at same frequency as sound (low frequencies);

Place Theory: different membrane locations respond to different frequencies (high frequencies).

Chemical and Body Senses — Olfaction (smell), gustation (taste), touch, temperature, pain, kinesthetic (body position), vestibular (balance).

Olfaction — Olfactory nerves → olfactory bulbs → olfactory tract → temporal lobe (conscious recognition) & limbic system (emotional response).

Pheromones — Chemicals influencing behavior and emotional states, e.g., stress, anxiety, fear.

Gustation — Taste buds contain receptors for sweet, sour, salty, bitter, umami.

Skin & Touch — Sensory receptors distributed unevenly; Pacinian corpuscles respond to pressure; sensory adaptation occurs with constant stimulation.

Pain — Nociceptors detect tissue damage; fast pain (A-delta fibers), slow pain (C fibers & substance P); Gate Control Theory: pain modulated by brain signals.

Sensitivity Distribution — Most sensitive: back of knee, neck, bend of elbow; least sensitive: tip of nose, sole of foot, ball of thumb.

Sensitization: Pain pathways become more responsive.
Pain Gates: Factors that intensify or reduce pain perception.
Kinesthetic Sense: Awareness of body part positions relative to each other.
Proprioceptors: Receptors in muscles/joints that detect body position and movement.
Vestibular Sense: Sense of balance; responds to gravity, motion, body position.
Perception: Process of organizing and interpreting sensory information.
Perceptual Illusions: Misperception of true characteristics (e.g., Muller-Lyer, Moon illusion).
Perceptual Set: Tendency to perceive stimuli based on prior experiences.
Consciousness: Awareness of thoughts, feelings, sensations, and environment.
Altered State of Consciousness: Changes in awareness (sleep, meditation, hypnosis, drugs).
Circadian Rhythms: 24-hour cycles in bodily functions (BP, HR, appetite, hormones).
Suprachiasmatic Nucleus (SCN): Brain structure controlling circadian timing.
Pineal Gland: Secretes melatonin to regulate sleep-wake cycle.
REM Sleep: Active sleep; brain activity, memory consolidation, vivid dreams.
NREM Sleep: Stages 1–4; light to deep sleep; restorative function.
Sleep Cycle: ~90 minutes alternating REM and NREM.
REM Rebound: Increased REM after deprivation.
Parasomnia: Abnormal behaviors during sleep (sleepwalking, sleep terrors, nightmares).
Narcolepsy: Excessive daytime sleepiness; uncontrollable REM attacks.
Sleep Apnea: Breathing stops during sleep; brief awakenings.
Insomnia: Difficulty falling/staying asleep; poor sleep quality.
Memory Systems: Sensory, short-term, long-term.
Short-Term Memory (STM): Limited capacity (~7±2 items), short duration (<20 sec).
Working Memory: Actively processing information in STM.
Chunking: Organizing info into meaningful groups to extend STM span.
Maintenance Rehearsal: Repeating info in original form.
Elaborative Rehearsal: Linking new info to existing knowledge.
Explicit Memory: Conscious memory (semantic = facts, episodic = events).
Implicit Memory: Unconscious memory (procedural = skills, priming, conditioning).
Long-Term Potentiation (LTP): Strengthened neuron connections through repeated stimulation.
Retrograde Amnesia: Loss of past memories before onset.
Anterograde Amnesia: Inability to form new memories after onset.
Psychoactive Drugs: Substances that alter mood, perception, thought, consciousness.
Opiates/Opioids: Mimic endorphins; relieve pain; produce well-being.
Depressants: Slow CNS activity (alcohol, barbiturates, benzodiazepines).
Stimulants: Increase CNS activity (caffeine, nicotine, amphetamines, cocaine).
Hallucinogens: Alter perception, mood, reality (LSD, marijuana).
Designer Drugs: MDMA (“ecstasy”), stimulant + hallucinogenic effects.
Drug Tolerance: Reduced effect of a drug over time.
Withdrawal Symptoms: Physical/psychological symptoms after stopping a drug.
Thinking: Mental processing of information (learning, remembering, reasoning).
Heuristics: Mental shortcuts for efficient thinking; can cause bias.
Problem-Solving Barriers: Salience of surface similarities, mental sets, functional fixedness.
Production Vocabulary: Words a child can speak.
Bilingualism: Improved attention, perspective-taking, cognitive flexibility.
IQ (Intelligence Quotient): MA/CA × 100.
G Factor: General intelligence underlying all cognitive abilities.
Multiple Intelligences: Gardner’s independent intelligences (linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, naturalist, existential).
Triarchic Theory: Sternberg’s analytic, creative, and practical intelligence.
Intellectual Disability: IQ ≤70; difficulties in conceptual, social, practical skills.
Intellectual Giftedness: IQ ≥130; high functioning in multiple areas.

iris: opening that modifies the amount of light permitted through the pupil (colored area that surrounds (The pupil)

Cornea: refracts light to focus it on back of the eye (ciliary muscles: things and makes the lens (more round or round, our view)

- lens: changes curvature (accomodation) to refract light onto back of the eye

Retina: membrane at back of the eye

- Fovea: center of retina, responsible for acuity

Receptor cells: contains photopigments that change on exposure to the light:

- Rodes: low levels of light

- Cones: high acuity, color vision

Ganglion cells: their axons leave the retina (at the blind spot), forming the optic nerve which travels to the rest of the brain.

bipolar cells: specialized neurons in the retina that act as the crucial link between photoreceptors (rods and cones) and ganglion cells,