Study Guide: Basic Psychological Processes (IDC Paper SH090204M)

Course Name: BASIC PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES
Course Code: SH090204M (MINOR 1)
Semester: SEMESTER II (IDC PAPER)
Credit Value: 6
Total Marks: 100
Administrative/Faculty Markers: Srivastava de D. Surabh (Note: Appearing as a watermark or signature on the source document).

Upon completion of this course, students are expected to be able to:

CO1: Define basic concepts such as behaviour, mental processes, and experiences.
CO2: Describe the fields, perspectives, and methods in psychology.
CO3: Describe basic theories of intelligence.
CO4: Explain the processes related to areas of perception, memory, and learning.
CO5: Demonstrate mnemonic strategies for memory enhancement.
CO6: Describe meaning and concepts of learning. Explain learning types and conditioning.

Introduction to Psychology: * Concept and Definition: Establishing the foundational understanding of the discipline. * Scope: Identifying the breadth and boundaries of psychological study.
Methods of Psychology: * Observation: The systematic recording of behavior. * Correlation: Determining the relationship between variables. * Experiment: Controlling variables to determine cause and effect.
Brief History: Reviewing the chronological development of psychology as a science.
Fields and Branches of Psychology: Identifying the various specialized areas of practice and research.

Sensation and Perception: * Concept and Definition: Distinguishing between the biological reception of stimuli and the psychological interpretation of that data. * Types of Sensation: Exploring the different sensory modalities.
Attention: The selective focus on specific stimuli.
Perception: * Meaning of Perception: Defining how we interpret sensory information. * Perceptual Organization: How individual elements are grouped into a meaningful whole. * Perceptual Constancies: The ability to perceive objects as unchanging despite sensory variations (e.g., in lighting or distance).
Illusions: Instances where perception deviates from physical reality.

Motivation: * Concept of Motivation: Understanding the internal and external forces that drive behavior. * Sources of Motivation- Instincts and Drives: Exploring innate biological impulses and the need to reduce physiological tension. * Types of Motivation: Differentiating between intrinsic and extrinsic motivators. * Motivational Conflicts: Analyzing scenarios where competing motives clash. * Theories of Motivation: Theoretical frameworks explaining why we act.
Emotion: * Nature and Concept: Defining the experiential and physiological components of feeling. * Theories of Emotion: Explaining the relationship between physiological arousal and psychological experience.

Intelligence: * Definition and Concept: Establishing what constitutes intellectual ability.
Theories of Intelligence: * Spearman's Two-Factor Theory: The concept of general intelligence ( $g$ factor) and specific abilities ( $s$ factor). * Gardner's Multiple Intelligence: The proposition of distinct modalities of intelligence (e.g., linguistic, logical-mathematical, etc.). * Sternberg's Triarchic Theory: The categorization of intelligence into analytical, creative, and practical dimensions.

Memory: * Definition: The process of encoding, storing, and retrieving information. * Types of Memory: * Episodic Memory: Personal experiences and events. * Semantic Memory: General knowledge and facts. * Procedural Memory: Skills and physical tasks.
Models of Memory: * Level of Processing: The theory that the depth of mental processing affects how well information is remembered.
Forgetting: * Interference: Competing information hindering recall. * Repression: The psychological defense mechanism of pushing traumatic memories into the unconscious.
Improving Memory Strategies: The application of mnemonic devices and techniques to enhance information retention.

Learning: * Concept and Types: Defining relatively permanent changes in behavior due to experience.
Conditioning Principles and Applications: * Classical Conditioning: Learning through association. * Operant Conditioning: Learning through reinforcement and punishment. * Observational Learning: Learning by watching and modeling the behavior of others.
Cognitive Influences on Learning: The role of mental processes, such as expectation and thought, in the learning process.

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