Unit 1

1.1 introducing psychology

• Wilhelm Wundt
  • known as the father of psychology
  • created first psychology lab
  • studied senses, reaction time, attention spans, and emotions
  • taught Edward Titchener, founder of structuralism
• William James
  • top first psychology class at Harvard
  • wrote first psychology textbook
  • created functionalism
• Stanley Hall
  • first to get a PhD in Psych
  • opened first psychology lab in America
  • first president of APA( American psychology Association)
• Mary Whiton Calkins
  • joined William James's seminar
  • made significant contributions in memory research
  • first female president of the APA
• Margaret Floy Washburn
  • made significant contributions to animal research
  • first woman to earn a psych degree
  • second female president of the APA
• Charles Darwin
  • proposed the idea of natural selection
  • argued that our behaviors and bodies were shape through natural selection
  • ideas reinforced and shaped evolutionary psychology
• Dorothea Dix
  • helped reshape medical field by highlighting unfair treatment of the mentally ill
  • help reform insane asylums
• Sigmund Freud
  • created the analytic approach which later became the psychodynamic approach
  • focused on the unconscious mind and that people's beliefs were shaped by unconscious motives
• Ivan Pavlov
  • Focused on reflex conditioning AKA classical conditioning
  • Known for his studies on the digestive systems of dogs
• Jean Piaget
  • First psychologist to conduct a systematic study of cognitive development
  • Created a theory of cognitive development focusing on children
• Call Rogers
  • A founder of humanistic psychology
  • Made significant contributions to the research and understanding of people's personality
• BF Skinner
  • Expanded on the theoretical approach of behavioralism
  • known for operant conditioning which focuses on behaviors and positive and negative consequences
• John B Watson
  • one of the founders of behaviorism
  • believe that psychology should be a scientific study
  • focused on observable things
• Structuralism
  • focuses on the different structures of Consciousness through individual parts
  • uses introspection( the process of looking inward to observe yourself think)
• Functionalism
  • looks to understand our mental and behavioral processes
  • functionalist view these not as individual structures but evolved functions
  • Functionalists seek to understand how the different structures work together and impact each other
• Gestalt psychology
  • looks at the whole Consciousness and includes the study of perception sensation learning and problem solving
  • people will perceive objects in their simplest form
  • focuses on the organizational process instead of just the content of behavior
• Psychoanalytic
  • looks at behaviors and mental processes and how they're influenced by the ego and conflict with the id and superego
  • focus is on processes that are from the unconscious
  • free association often will be used which is word or image triggers another idea word or picture inside a person's head
• Early behaviorism
  • behaviors are learned through experiences and are observable
  • broken down into reflexive conditioning (classical conditioning) and operant conditioning
• humanistic psychology
  • humans are naturally good And seek to reach the potential through free will
  • the goal of life is to reach self-actualization
• Socio-cultural
  • studies the impact of a person's cultural, nationality, religion, gender, social norms, and other cultural aspects on a person's behavior and mental processes
• Evolutionary approach
  • studies help behaviors and mental processes of today exist due to natural selection
• Biological
  • looks at how different structures of the brain and nervous system operate with the goal of understanding the link between our biological and psychological processes
• Cognitive approach
  • looks at attitudes memories perceptions and expectations–all influenced behaviors and mental processes for individuals
• Basic research domains
  • Biological, developmental, cognitive, educational, personality, social, positive, psychometric
• applied research domains
  • industrial-organizational, counseling, clinical

1.2 Research Methods in Psychology

• Operational definition
  • A description for the experiment in terms of procedure, actions, or processes by which it could be observed and measured which allows the experiment to be replicated by others
• Population
  • all of the individuals in a group that are being studied
• Sample
  • a selected group of people from the population that will represent the entire population in an experiment
• Random Sampling
  • when each individual has an equal chance of participating
• Stratified Sampling
  • when the population is divided into different subcategories and a random sample is taken from each one
• Sampling bias
  • The group in the sample does not represent the entire population, causes skews in the results
• Representative sample
  • when the sample group in a study represents all the different people in a population
• Experiments
  • observations which are conducted under controlled conditions to study a relationship between an independent variable and a dependent variable
  • can give the researcher insight into cause and effect
  • may have skewed results if there's a bias in experiment methodology or if there are variables that the researcher was not aware of
• Correlational studies
  • allow researchers to predict the relationship between two variables
  • good at showing the strength and direction of a relationship
  • do not show cause and effect
• Surveys
  • self-reported data from questions that often ask for individuals opinions that's our information on what they have done
  • often cheap and great at collecting large amounts of data
  • may have skewed data since participants may have their answer influenced by the wording effect Gourmet change the answers to look better on the survey
• Naturalistic observations
  • allow researchers to observe behaviors as they happen in a real world setting
  • no lab or staged area
  • great at getting authentic data
  • results may be skewed if subjects are aware of the study and change their behaviors
• Case studies
  • allow researchers to analyze different perspectives of a topic or subject
  • often provide information in chronological order
  • allow rare behaviors to be observed
  • data that is collected usually cannot be used to generalize a population
  • study may be impacted by the Hawthorne effect
• Longitudinal studies (longitudinal -> long -> long periods of time)
  • follow one particular group over a long period of time
  • good at showing changes over a long period of time
  • may have participants drop out of the study early due to the length
• cross-sectional studies
  • compare different groups at the same time
  • Inexpensive, can be completed in a short amount of time
  • only provide a snapshot of a group and do not show a complete picture

1.3 Defining psychological science: the experimental method

• Hypothesis
  • a testable prediction that is made before any research has been completed
• Theory
  • a statement that is supported by data from research that has been completed and explains a question that or phenomena
• Independent variable
  • the cause
  • Manipulated during the study
  • usually represented as the x-axis
• dependent variable
  • the effect
  • usually represented as the y-axis
• Confounding variables
  • variables besides the independent variable that could impact the dependent variable
• Third variable problem
  • when there are other variables impacting an experiment or study which could potentially skew the results
• Random assignment
  • when each participant of a study has an equal chance of being put into the control group or experimental group
• Single blind study
  • when participants in an experiment are unaware of which group they're in
  • minimizes the placebo effect on participants
• double blind study
  • when the participant and the researcher conducting the experiment are unaware which group the participants are in
  • minimizes the placebo effect on both participants and the researchers
• placebo effect
  • one participants may act differently in a study or experiment because they expect a certain outcome from a study experiment or independent variable
• Placebo
  • a substance that is as close to the independent variable as possible but is missing a key component
• Control group
  • a group that does not receive the independent variable and serves as a standard in comparing the effects of the independent variable on the experimental group
• experimental group
  • the group who receives the independent variable
• Quasi-experiments
  • used in situations where controlled experiments would be impossible or unethical to do
  • do not include random assignment of participants

1.4 selecting a research method

• Reliability
  • the repeatability of a test or study
• Validity
  • how well the test measures what it wants to measure
• hindsight bias
  • the tendency to think that one could have anticipated the outcome of an event or experiment after it already occurred
  • can be prevented by using pre-assessments and the scientific method
• False Consensus Effect
  • when individuals overestimate how many others share their opinions or ideas
  • can be prevented by using the scientific method and by presenting participants with alternative viewpoints
• confirmation bias
  • when individuals focus on only specific information that aligns with their viewpoint and ignore conflicting information
  • And be prevented if researchers are aware of their own biases before the study and make sure their experiments can be replicated so others can test their findings
• Experimenter bias
  • when researchers unknowingly influence the outcome of the research
  • can be prevented by using a double blind study, and having clear operational definition set so the study can be replicated
• social desirability bias
  • when participants in a study skew their answers to create a more favorable impression of themselves
  • can be countered by keeping the identity of participants anonymous or researchers can use a placebo to hide the hypothesis from the participants
• Hawthorne effect
  • when a participant Alters their behavior because they know they're being observed
  • can be prevented by using random assignment, placebos, or by using a double blind or single blind study

1.5 statistical analysis in psychology

• Quantitative data
  • numbers or facts that are not up for interpretation
• qualitative data
  • often in word form and up for interpretation
• Descriptive statistics
  • used to organize and describe data that is collected
• inferential statistics
  • used to make predictions about data to better determine if the data from a sample can be applied to the population
• Probability value (p-value)
  • used to know how statistically significant the data is
  • If at or below 0.05
    • less than a 5% chance that the results were due to chance
    • The data is most likely statistically significant
  • P-value is the probability that the results were due to chance
    • if p-value is 0.80, there is an 80% chance that the results were due to chance (not statistically significant)
• Data set: 5, 5, 9, 12, 15, 22, 30
  • Measures of center
    • Mean
      • Average of the data set
      • Add all the values together and then divide by the number of values
      • 5+5+9+12+15+22+30= 98/7 =14
      • 14
    • Median
      • The value in the exact middle of the data set
      • Data must be in order
      • It two middle numbers, take their average
      • 12
    • Mode
      • Value that appears most often
      • 5
  • Measures of variability
    • Range
      • Highest value point- lowest value point
      • 30-5=25
    • Standard deviations
      • Allows researchers to indicate the average distance from the mean for a data set
      • Does not need to be calculated in AP psych
• Data distributions
  • Normal distribution- not common

• • Positive Skew

• • Negative Skew

• • Bimodal Distribution

• Correlation Coefficient(r)
  • Between 0 and 1
    • Positive correlation
  • Between 0 and -1
    • Negative correlation
  • 0
    • No correlation
  • Between 0.7 to 1 or -0.7 to -1
    • Strong correlation
  • Between 0.5 to 0.7 or -0.5 to -0.7
    • Moderate correlation
  • Between 0.3 to -0.3
    • Low or no correlation

1.6 ethical guidelines

• ABA acts as the governing board in studying behavior
• Institutional review board
  • ensures that studies and experiments in colleges and universities are set up in a way to protect everyone involved in the study
• For study to be approved, it must not be unnecessarily risky, participants must have adequate protection, privacy, and confidentiality and participants must have given informed consent
• IACUC
  • Possible for overseeing the protection of animals during studies

Unit 2

2.1 interaction of heredity and environment

• Heredity
  • The passing on of different And mental traits from one generation to another
• Darwin's theory of evolution
  • Evolution happens by natural selection
  • individual traits that are beneficial to a species survival would be passed on while undesirable traits would die off
• Hereditability
  • a mathematical measure to estimate how much variation there is in a population related to genes
  • shows much of a trait is genetic and how much is from its environment
  • if the hereditability of a trait is 0.6 that means that 60% of the variations for that trait in the population is caused by genetics and 40% is caused by the environment
  • Can range from 0 to 1
• Nature
  • genetics, biology, and heredity that shape us
• Nurture
  • Environment, how we are raised, our friends, or our education that made us who we are

• Epigenetics
  • how the environment and a person's behavior affect a person's genes and how they work
  • how an individual's body reads a DNA sequence

2.2 The endocrine system

• Endocrine system
  • system made up of all the bodies different glands that produce different hormones
  • slower moving messages that target large areas of the body
  • helps regulate our different biological processes
  • works with the nervous system to help our body function and send information throughout the body
• nervous system
  • uses neurons to send and deliver messages to localized areas of the body
  • uses fast short-lived messages
• Homeostasis
  • the body's ability to maintain internal stability
  • the regulation of the body's internal environment
• Hypothalamus
  • part of the brain that controls the pituitary gland
  • directs different autonomic functions of the body
• pituitary gland(pit->center->center control/master control of the endocrine system)
  • regulates growth and controls other glands by the release of hormones
  • “ Master gland of the endocrine system”
• pineal gland
  • located above the brain stem in the middle of the brain
  • controls the production of melatonin
  • helps regulate sleep cycles
• thyroid and Parathyroid gland
  • located in the throat
  • helps regulate a person's metabolism, growth, and nervous system
  • regulates calcium levels in the blood
  • releases thyroid hormones, parathyroid hormones, and calcitonin
• adrenal glands
  • Pair of glands located above the kidneys
  • Regulates salt levels, blood pressure, and oxygen intake
  • produces norepinephrine, epinephrine, and aldosterone
• Pancreas(pancreas->pancakes, which have lots of sugar-> regulates sugar)
  • located near the stomach
  • produces insulin and glucagon
  • regulates sugar levels
• Gonads
  • Ovaries or testes
  • Produces testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone
  • allows reproduction

2.3 overview of the nervous system and the neuron

• Nervous system
  • made up of the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system
  • supported by glial cells
    • cells which provide neurons with nutrients
    • most abundant cell in the nervous system
    • do not process information( don't send any messages or signals for your body)
• central nervous system
  • made up of the brain and spinal cord
  • sends out orders to the body
  • sends messages through the peripheral nervous system to tell the body what to do
  • sensory division
    • AKA afferent division
    • focuses on conducting impulses from sensory stimuli to the central nervous system
  • motor division
    • AKA efferent division
    • has signals that come from the brain and spinal cord and go out to the muscles and glands of your body through the efferent neurons
    • Somatic nervous system
      • AKA skeletal nervous system
      • Includes the five senses and skeletal muscle movement
      • movements that have been consciously and voluntarily
    • autonomic nervous system
      • Controls involuntary activities
      • keeps heart beating, stomach digesting, and breathing
      • sympathetic division
        • mobilizes your body/ gets it ready for action
        • heart rate increases, eyes dilate, increases breathing
      • parasympathetic division
        • relaxes the body
        • reverses the effect of the sympathetic division
        • slows heart rate, increases digestion, hope you start to focus on storing energy
• peripheral nervous system
  • consist of different nerves that branch off the brain and spine
  • allows the nervous system to communicate with the rest of the body
• Afferent neuron send signals to the brain and spinal cord from the body, efferent neurons said messages from the brain in spinal cord to the body (afferent->A->approaches the brain(goes TO the brain) efferent->E->exits the brain)
• Neuron
  • basic functional unit of the nervous system
  • communicate with each other by using electrical and chemical signals to send messages throughout the entire nervous system
  • Need more information on the parts of a neuron

2.4 neural firing

• for a neuron to send a message, they must receive enough stimulation that causes an action potential
• resting potential
  • when a neuron is not sending a signal
  • when a neuron has more negative ions inside than outside
• action potential
  • when a neuron fires and sends an impulse down the Axon to other nuerons
  • triggered when a neuron depolarizes
    • When an outside stimulus is strong enough to meet the threshold that causes depolarization to occur
    • after firing, an axon goes through a process of repolarization and returns to resting potential
• refractory period
  • a short time when no other action potentials can occur until the axon is back in its resting state
• Permeability
  • the ability for certain ions to cross the cell membrane

1. An action potential sends a signal down the axon of a neuron to the presynaptic terminal
2. channels in the axon terminal are open and then your transmitters are released into the synaptic gap
3. then your transmitters diffuse through the synaptic gap and bind to receptor sites in the postsynaptic terminal
4. neurotransmitters unbind with the receptors some are destroyed and others go through the process of reuptake

• Chemical synapse
  • Junctions between two neurons that use neurotransmitters to send neural signals
• electrical synapse
  • used for messages that need to be sent quickly and immediately
• Reuptake
  • when the sending neuron reabsorbs the extra neurotransmitters
• excitatory neurotransmitters
  • increase the likelihood than a neuron will fire an action potential
  • done through the depolarization process in the postsynaptic neuron
• inhibitory neurotransmitters
  • decrease the likelihood that a neuron will fire an action potential
  • leads to hyperpolarization
    • inside of the neuron becomes more negative which moves it farther away from its threshold or intensity level needed for an action potential
• Acetylcholine
  • enables muscle action, learning, and helps with memory
• Dopamine
  • helps with movement, learning, attention, and emotions
• Serotonin
  • helps impact and individuals hunger, sleep, arousal, and mood
• Endorphins
  • help with pain control and impacts an individual's pain tolerance
• epinephrine
  • helps with the bodies response to high emotional situations and helps form memories
• norepinephrine
  • increases blood pressure, heart rate, and alertness
• Glutamate
  • involved with long-term memory and learning
• GABA
  • helps with sleep, movement, and slows down your nervous system

2.5 influence of drugs on neural firing

• Agonist
  • increase the effectiveness of a neurotransmitter by mimicking them and increasing the production of the neurotransmitter or blocking the reuptake that would you see absorb the extra neurotransmitters
  • binds to the receptors that are in the synapse
  • Xanax, opioids, Prozac
• Antagonist
  • decrease the effectiveness of a neurotransmitter
  • blocks the neurotransmitters from being released from the presynaptic axon terminal or connects to The postsynaptic receptors and block the intended neurotransmitters from binding
  • schizophrenia medication or alcohol

2.6 the brain

• Broca's area
  • located in the left frontal lobe
  • in charge of facial muscles that are used to help us speak
  • identified by Paul Broca
  • if damaged will result in broca's aphasia
    • the loss of ability to produce language
• Wernicke's area
  • discovered by Carl Wernicke
  • responsible for creating meaningful speech
  • if damaged will result in Wernicke's aphasia
    • loss of the ability to create meaningful speech
• medulla oblongata
  • AKA medulla
  • located above the spinal cord and below the pons
  • helps regulate a person's cardiovascular and respiratory system
  • takes care of autonomic functions
• Pons
  • the bridge between different areas of the nervous system
  • connects the medulla with the cerebellum
  • helps coordinate movement
  • helps with sleep and dreams
• Cerebellum
  • located at the base of the brain in the back
  • helps maintain balance and manages coordination
• brain stem
  • located at the base of your brain at the top of the spinal cord
  • includes the medulla, the pons, and the midbrain
  • if damaged will most likely result in death because it controls autonomic functions
• Midbrain
  • helps with sending visual and auditory information to the appropriate structures of the brain
  • can be thought of as a relay station
• reticular formation
  • a structure of the brain that tunnels down the brain stem
  • main function is arousal in the awake and sleep cycle
• reticular activating system
  • Encompasses the reticular formation
  • a network of nerves that run through the brain stem and out to the thalamus
  • help stimulate higher centers when something important happens
• Cerebrum
  • parts of the brain that are not the brain stem and cerebellum
  • where the brain processes things that are not just for survival
• cerebral cortex
  • a thin layer of billions of nerve cells that cover the whole brain
• corpus callosum
  • located inside the cerebral cortex
  • made up of nerve fibers that connect the two cerebral hemispheres
  • allows the hemispheres to communicate and work together
• frontal lobe
  • located behind your forehead
  • deals with higher level thinking
  • separated into two parts: the prefrontal cortex and the motor cortex
• prefrontal cortex
  • deals with foresight judgment speech and complex thought
  • located at the front of the frontal lobe
• motor cortex
  • deals with voluntary movement
  • located in the back of the frontal lobe
  • left motor cortex controls movement on the right side of your body and vice versa
• parietal lobe
  • on the top of your head right behind the frontal lobe
  • main function is to receive sensory information
  • let's you understand different senses such as touch pain temperature and spatial orientation
• somatosensory cortex
  • touches the motor cortex
  • allows you to register touch and movement sensations
  • the left sensory cortex allows you to feel the right side and vice versa
• occipital lobe
  • located on the back of your head
  • allows sight
• temporal lobe
  • located right above the ears
  • helps recognize faces, smells, hear noise, balance, and assists with memory
  • where Wernicke's area the angular gyrus is located
• angular gyrus
  • allows you to read and transfers what you read to an auditory form
• auditory cortex
  • located in the temporal lobe
  • processes different sounds
• Thalamus
  • takes all the sensory information that you take in and send it to the forebrain to be interpreted
• limbic system
  • a group of structures between the brainstem and the cerebral cortex
  • Controls emotions, learning, memory, and some basic drives
• Hippocampus( if you saw a hippo on your school campus, it would create a memory)
  • surrounds the thalamus and located inside the temporal lobes
  • allows you to create memories
  • where memories are created but not stored
• Amygdala
  • located at the end of each arm of the hippocampus
  • where you get your emotional reactions from
• Hypothalamus
  • keeps homeostasis
  • controls drives like thirst hunger and temperature
  • works with a pituitary gland to control hormones
• nucleus accumbens
  • located near the limbic system
  • associated with drug dependency
  • main function is with pleasure reward and motivation
• basal ganglia
  • links the thalamus with the motor cortex
  • involved in intentional body movements
  • if damaged may result in Parkinson's disease, cerebral palsy, or Huntington's disease
• Left hemisphere
  • recognizing words and letters
  • interpreting language
  • processing language
  • Logic
• right hemisphere
  • spatial Concepts
  • facial recognition
  • Discerning direction and distance

Unit 3

3.1 Principles of sensation

• Sensation
  • raw data
  • information that we received from our five senses
  • from our sensory receptors
• Perception
  • the process of interpreting the information we obtained through our five senses
• Gestalt principles
  • people will instinctively and naturally follow certain lines and curves
  • figure and ground
    • tendency of our visual system to place some objects into focus and others objects into the background
  • Continuation
    • tendency of our visual system to perceive objects in smooth patterns even if they are separate objects
  • Closure
    • tendency of our visual system to automatically fill in the gaps to complete the objects in our mind when we see objects that are not fully complete
  • Similarity
    • when objects we perceive have similar characteristics we will interpret them as a whole instead of individually
  • Proximity
    • when objects are close together we will perceive them as one whole object
  • Symmetry
    • when separate objects are organized around the center we will perceive them as a whole object
    • objects that are symmetrical to each other are perceived as one object
• Depth perception
  • the ability to perceive relative distance of an object in one's visual field
• binocular cues
  • information that is received from both eyes that help inform the brain about the distance of an object is from the person
• Monocular cues
  • information about the distance of an object that only requires one eye
  • relative size
    • objects that are closer to us will appear larger while objects that are further away will appear smaller
  • Interposition
    • when objects are blocked by another object they are most likely farther away while objects that are not obstructed are closer
  • relative height cue
    • objects that are higher up to be farther away compared to objects that are lower
  • shading and contour
    • parts of an image that are hazy and have less detail appear to be farther away while objects that are more clear and in focus are closer
  • texture and gradient
    • objects that are clear and focus and full of detail up your closer than objects that life detail and appear more blurry
  • linear perspective
    • when parallel lines appear to converge at a point in the distance, this helps us to understand our positioning and understand depth
  • motion parallax
    • objects that are closer to you will appear to be moving quickly, while things farther away will appear to be moving slowly
  • sensory transduction
    • the process by which an outside stem is activates a person's sensory receptors which are then change to an electrical signal and sent to the brain
  • absolute threshold
    • minimum amount of stimulation needed to experience a stimulus
• signal detection Theory
  • if you perceive a weak signal or a stimulus that is near the absolute threshold
• sensory adaptation
  • when a stimulus is prolonged our bodies are no longer as responsive to it
• Habituation
  • when a stimulus is repeated the effectiveness of that stimulus is increasingly reduced
• different threshold
  • minimum change needed between two stimuli to be perceived by an individual
• Weber-fenchner law
  • the mathematical formula of the that expresses the concept of different thresholds and that it depends on the proportion of the sensation and the intensity of the stimulus

3.2 principles of perception

• Perceptual constancy
  • when you perceive objects and stimuli with familiar standard shape, size, color, and lightness even when changes are occurring
  • size constancy
    • the tendency of the brain to perceive objects as the same size
  • color constancy
    • what are perception of the color of an object Remains the Same even if the lighting changes
  • shape constancy
    • the tendency of the brain to perceive an object to have the same shape even when it's moving
    • if you open or close the door the door turns the same shape in your mind
  • lightness constancy
    • the perception of blackness, whiteness, and grayness of an object
    • the shading of an object
• Schema
  • a collection of basic knowledge that guides the perception of a situation

3.3 visual anatomy

• Sclera
  • outside layer of the eye
  • white fibrous tissue
  • protects the eye
  • forms the substance of the eye
• Cornea
  • Transparent
  • protects the eye
  • allows light to bend
  • if irregularly shaped, could impact sight and focus
• aqueous humor
  • made up of water and salt
  • helps maintain pressure within the eye
  • provides nourishment to the cornea and the lens
• Iris
  • ring shaped membrane
  • located behind the cornea
  • determines a person's eye color
  • controls how much light enters the eye by Contracting and relaxing
• Pupil
  • dark part of the eye
  • located between the iris
  • where light passes through
• Lens
  • located behind Iris and pupil
  • allows the eye to change Focus
  • Biconvex- curved on both ends
• vitreous humor
  • clear gel like fluid
  • In the vitreous cavity located between the lens and the retina
  • gives the eyes support and shape
• Retina
  • located in the back of the eye
  • made up of layers of light sensitive cells AKA photoreceptors
    • convert the light into neural impulses that allow for the brain to process with the eye is seeing
• Choroid
  • supports the retinal cells and other cells in the eye by providing oxygen and nutrients
• optic nerve
  • located in the back of the eye
  • made up of the retinal ganglion
  • impulses travel through to go to the thalamus and then the primary visual cortex to be processed in the occipital lobe
• Rods
  • located on the outer edge of the retina
  • allow you to see in dim light
  • don't provide any color information
• Cones
  • located in small depressions known as the fovea centralis
  • allow you to see fine details and clear vision and color
• Astigmatism
  • occurs if the cornea is irregularly shaped and could impact a person's ability to focus
• Cataracts
  • occurs in the length of the eye becomes cloudy, causing vision to become blurry
• two stage Theory
  • tries to explain how we perceive color
  • trichromatic theory
    • states that individuals are able to see color because different wavelengths of light stimulate combinations of three color receptors
    • photoreceptors work in teams of three: red, Green, and blue
  • opponent processing Theory
    • states that information is received from the cones is sent to ganglion cells which causes some neurons to be excited and others inhibited
    • three color pairings: red- Green, blue- yellow, and white- black
• cooler colors have a shorter wavelength, warmer colors have a longer wavelength
• Achromatism
  • a type of color blindness where the person doesn't have any retinal cones
  • can only see black white and gray
• Dichromatism
  • a type of color blindness where the person is missing one of the typical three cone pigments
  • can only see two colors
• Trichromatism
  • normal color vision where all three photo pigments are present
• Synesthesia
  • a condition where stimulation of one cents also elicits another sense

3.4 visual perception

• Top-down processing
  • when you use prior knowledge and previous information to help interpret information you are perceiving
  • can lead to skewed perceptions
• bottom-up processing
  • when you interpret information as unfamiliar by examining the information as is

3.5 Auditory sensation and perception

• Pinna
  • made of cartilage
  • helps direct sound into the ear
• auditory canal
  • entrance to the ear
  • a two which funnel sound into the ear
• Eardrum
  • vibrates as sound goes through the auditory canal
  • transforms the sound vibrations into mechanical vibrations of the bones in the middle ear AKA oculus bones
    • malleus AKA The Hammer
    • incus AKAthe Anvil
    • stapies aka the stir up
• oval window
  • located in the opening of the wall of the cochlea
  • covered with a membrane that helps with the amplification of sounds
  • sends waves into the inner ear
• Cochlea
  • filled with a fluid
  • has three canals
• organ of Corti
  • contains sensory receptors that help with hearing
  • sits on the Basilar membrane
    • vibrates when vibrations come into the inner ear
    • with the movement of the stereocilia
      • starts the process of converting vibrations into electrical impulses
• semicircular canals
  • filled with fluid
  • Helps balance
• Stereocilia
  • little hair like structures that come out of the organ of Cordy and are the sensory receptors for hearing
• Higher frequency= higher pitch
• place theory
  • the theory that the placement of the stereocilia on different areas of the basilar membrane result in the brain interpreting different pictures of sound
• sensorineural hearing loss
  • hearing loss that results from the Cilia or the auditory nerve being damaged
• conductive hearing loss
  • hearing loss that results from something blocking sound from moving through the outer ear to the middle and inner ear

3.6 chemical senses

• when we breathe in odors enter the nasal cavity they go into the olfactory epithelium
• olfactory epithelium
  • members tissue that contains olfactory receptor cells
    • patch your skin that has receptor self
  • helps a sense of smell
• olfactory bulb
  • where transduction of smell occurs
  • electrical signals are then sent to the olfactory nerve where they are sent to the amygdala
• Gestation
  • sensation of tasting
• Papillae
  • small structures located on the tongue
  • taste buds
  • four types that allow you to taste sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and savory
• when you eat something molecules enter your taste buds and stimulate the cells

3.7 body senses

• Skin
  • one of the largest organs of the body
• Epidermis
  • outside layer of the skin
  • creates a barrier to a protect a person from foreign pathogens and gives a person their skin color
• Dermis
  • layer of skin beneath the epidermis
  • serve endings blood vessels and hair follicles
• nociceptors
  • Pain receptors in the skin
• Hypodermis
  • layer of fat under the skin
• Kinesthesis
  • sensory information that allows us to control our movements through our sensory receptors in the muscles and joints of the body
• Proprioceptors
  • Center receptors in the muscles tendons and joints in the body that are sensitive to your body movements and positions
• vestibular sense
  • sense of balance that is enabled by the vestibular canals of the ear
• sensory interaction
  • our senses work together to help us perceive the world around us and perform tasks

Unit 4

4.1 introduction to learning

• Learning through Association
  • when an individual connects objects or experiences together based on the order in which they were experienced
• observational learning
  • when an individual learns by observing other individuals
• latent learning
  • what an individual is exposed to information but it's not show their learning until later when they have a need to show it
• social learning
  • learning through social interaction
• insight learning
  • when there's a problem that needs to be solved in individual mentally work through the details to arrive at a solution
• trial and error learning
  • when an individual tries different solutions at random until one is successful
• accidental reinforcement
  • when an individual link something with a positive effect even when they're not related
  • can lead to superstitions
• John Garcia
  • did research with Association
  • believe that some associations are more readily available compared to others
  • most known for his research into taste aversion
    • when an individual has a negative association with food that they ate because it resulted in sickness in the past
• Albert bandura
  • Observational learning
  • conducted the bobo Doll Experiment
    • had children be exposed to a video of an adult playing with a toy, when if you don't have adults playing not aggressively with toys and the other should adults playing aggressively with a toy
    • children who were shown the video with aggression ended up being more aggressive towards the bubble doll
• Edward Tolman
  • latent learning
  • had rats compete in Macy's and discovered that rats who had previously been exposed to certain mazes did better than other rats
• Edward Thorndike
  • proposed trial and error learning
  • looked into different instances where individuals would try various Solutions at random until almost successful
• Robert ruskorla
  • focused on cognition and learning
  • animals can be taught to learn the outcome of an event
• John B Watson
  • how learning influences behaviors
  • one of the first to state that behaviors are the result of learning

4.2 classical conditioning

• Ivan Pavlov
  • father of classical conditioning
  • known for his work with dogs and saliva
• Ivan Pavlov noticed that when you put food in front of a dog they would start to salivate, even before the dog started eating, he wanted to see if the food could be associated with other stimuli
  • he will put the food down and ring a bell, eventually Pavlov would take the food away and just have the dog hear the Bell-> the dog would begin to salivate when he heard the Bell
• unconditioned stimulus
  • a stimulus that naturally triggers a response without learning or teaching
  • food
• unconditional response
  • a response that does not need to be learned and occurs naturally
  • Salivating
• neutral stimuli
  • a stimuli that lists no response from a subject
  • Bell
• Acquisition
  • the process of associating a neutral stimuli with an unconditioned stimulus
• conditioned stimulus
  • paired with an unconditioned stimulus to trigger conditioned response
  • bell
• conditioned response
  • when a previously unconditioned response is occurring due to a conditioned stimulus
  • Dog salivating to the sound of the bell
• Extinction
  • occurs when the unconditioned stimulus is no longer paired with the conditioned stimuli
  • what happened if Pavlov kept ringing the bell and didn't give the food
• Pavlov discovered that sometimes the subject would associate similar stimuli to the condition stimuli and other times the subject could be conditioned to ignore certain stimuli AKA stimulus generation and discrimination
• stimulus generalization
  • when a subject has been conditioned and response to another stimuli that are similar to the original condition stimulus
• stimulus discrimination
  • when a subject has been conditioned and is able to recognize when other stimuli a different from the condition simius and not react
• higher order conditioning AKA second order conditioning
  • when a neutral stimulus becomes the new condition stimulus without the unconditioned stimulus even being present
  • Pavlov could turn a light on before winning the Bell and the dog would associate the light being turned on with the Bell and the food and would salivate

4.3 operant conditioning

• BF Skinner
  • one of the first people to describe operant conditioning
  • believe that behavior becomes more likely to occur when reinforced unless likely to occur when punished
  • Behaviorist
  • based ideas off Edward Thorndike
    • conducting an experiment with cats trying to get out of a box
• law of effect
  • the idea that when behaviors are followed by favorable consequences they become more likely to occur and when behaviors are followed by unfavorable consequences they are less likely to occur
  • Consequence
    • result or an effect of an action
• operant conditioning is different from classical conditioning because it involves making an active decision while classical conditioning involves response to stimulus
• Shaping
  • helps reinforce desired behaviors
• positive reinforcement
  • desired stimulus is added
  • has has the result of promoting or increasing a Behavior
  • example is getting an A in your class and your parents giving you $50
• negative reinforcement
  • undesirable stimulus is removed
  • has the result of promoting or increasing a behavior
  • when you get in a you don't have to do chores
• positive punishment
  • unpleasant stimulus is added
  • decrease in undesirable Behavior
  • if you get a bad grade you have to do more chores
• negative punishment
  • positive stimulus is removed
  • decrease in undesirable Behavior
  • if you get a bad grade so you don't get your allowance

• Fixed ratio
  • when a reinforcement is given after a set amount of responses
  • good at getting a high amount of responses in a short amount of time
  • example is where they give you a free dessert after you come five times
• fixed interval schedule
  • when I reinforcement is given after a set amount of time
  • more responses will occur right before the payout occurs
  • example is if a company has an employee of the month program, employers will work harder the week before the word is given out
• variable ratio schedule
  • reinforcement is given during what appears to be random amount of responses
  • high amount of responses from an individual because the individual has no idea when the reward could come
  • an example of this is slot machines at a casino, the person continues playing because they don't know when they get the reward and they think it might be the next time they do it
• variable interval schedule
  • reinforcements out after a random amount of time
  • consistent responses
• Over justification effect
  • when extrinsic rewards replace intrinsic motivation
  • can cause the enjoyment of an activity to go down
• extrinsic motivation
  • when an individual is motivated to perform a behavior because of external reward or to avoid an external punishment
• intrinsic motivation
  • when an individual is motivated to perform a behavior because of their own sake there's no external punishment or reward

4.4 Social and Cognitive Factors in learning

• Preparedness
  • a biological predisposition to make certain associations between items that will help with survival
• instinctive drift
  • when an animal who has been conditioned slightly changes their conditioning to a more natural behavior for that species
• cognitive map
  • mental layout of an environment
• social learning
  • when individuals learn from watching others, interacting with other people, or mimicking other people
• observational learning
  • when a person learns information or skills from watching others receive different reinforcements or punishments
• locus of control
  • external locus of control
    • different outside factors that impact a person and could determine their fate or outcome
  • internal locus of control
    • how a person impacts their own fate
• Problem focused coping
  • when an individual tries to eliminate or reduce stress by directly changing the stressor or doing how they interact with this stresser
• emotion focused coping
  • when an individual tries to eliminate or reduce stress By ignoring or avoiding the stressor and focuses on their own emotional needs that connect to the stressor and how it makes them feel or react