• Psychodynamic: Focuses on how unconscious thoughts and childhood experiences shape behavior.

  • Behavioral Perspective: Studies how we learn through interactions with our environment and the effects of rewards and punishments.

  • Cognitive Perspective: Examines how we think, remember, and solve problems.

  • Biological Perspective: Looks at how our biology (like genes and brain chemistry) affects our behavior.

  • Humanistic Perspective: Emphasizes personal growth and the idea that people are inherently good.

  • Evolutionary Perspective: Considers how behavior and mental processes have evolved to help us survive.

  • Sociocultural Perspective: Explores how society and culture influence our behavior and thoughts.

  • Hindsight Bias: The tendency to believe we knew something all along after learning the outcome.

  • Overconfidence: When we overestimate our knowledge or abilities.

  • Peer Reviewed: Research that has been evaluated by experts in the field before publication.

  • Theory: A well-tested explanation for a set of observations or facts.

  • Falsifiability: The ability to be proven wrong; a key part of scientific theories.

  • Scientific Method: A systematic way to study and understand phenomena through observation and experimentation.

  • Operational Definition: A clear description of how a variable will be measured in a study.

  • Replication: Repeating a study to see if the results are consistent.

  • Non-experimental Method: Research methods that do not involve manipulation of variables.

  • Case Study: An in-depth analysis of a single person or group.

  • Naturalistic Observation: Watching behavior in its natural environment without interference.

  • Survey: A method of gathering information by asking people questions.

  • Longitudinal Study: Research that follows the same group of people over a long period.

  • Cross-sectional Study: Research that compares different groups at one point in time.

  • Social Desirability Bias: When people answer questions in a way they think is more socially acceptable.

  • Self-report Bias: When people give inaccurate answers about themselves.

  • Sampling Bias: When the sample is not representative of the population.

  • Random Sample: A sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of being chosen.

  • Population: The entire group being studied.

  • Correlation: A measure of how two variables are related.

  • Correlation Coefficient: A number that shows the strength and direction of a relationship between two variables.

  • Variable: Any factor that can change in a study.

  • Scatterplot: A graph that shows the relationship between two variables.

  • Illusory Correlation: The perception of a relationship where none exists.

  • Regression Towards the Mean: The tendency for extreme scores to return to average over time.