Shared Flashcard Set

Details

Chapter 2 Vocabulary: 2
N/A
29
Psychology
10th Grade
09/17/2012

Additional Psychology Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
Endorphins
Definition

The entire family of internally produced chemicals that resemble opiates in structure and effects.

Term
Evolutionary psychology
Definition

Theoretical perspective that examines behavioral processes in terms of their adaptive value for a species over the course of many generations.

Term
Excitatory PSP
Definition

An electric potential that increases the likelihood that a postsynaptic neuron will fire
action potentials.

Term
Extraverts
Definition

People who tend to be interested in the external world of people and things.

Term
Family studies
Definition

Scientific studies in which researchers assess hereditary influence by examining blood relatives to see how much they resemble each other on a specific trait.

Term
Fight-or-flight response
Definition

A physiological reaction to threat in which the autonomic nervous system mobilizes the organism for attacking (fight) or fleeing (flight) an enemy.

Term
Fitness
Definition

The reproductive success (number of descendants) of an individual organism relative to the average reproductive success of the population.

Term
Forebrain
Definition

The largest and most complicated region of the brain, encompassing a variety of structures, including the thalamus, hypothalamus, limbic system, and cerebrum.

Term
Fraternal twins
Definition

Twins that result when two eggs are fertilized simultaneously by different sperm cells, forming two separate zygotes. Also called Dizygotic twins.

Term
Genes
Definition

DNA segments that serve as the key functional units in hereditary transmission.

Term
Genetic mapping
Definition

The process of determining the location and chemical sequence of specific genes on specific chromosomes.

Term
Genotype
Definition

A person's genetic makeup.

Term
Heterozygous condition
Definition

The situation that occurs when two genes in a specific pair are different.

Term
Hindbrain
Definition

The part of the brain that includes the cerebellum and two structures found in the lower part of the brainstem: the medulla and the pons.

Term
Homozygous condition
Definition

The situation that occurs when two genes in a specific pair are the same.

Term
Hormones
Definition

The chemical substances released by the endocrine glands.

Term
Hypothalamus
Definition

A structure found near the base of the forebrain that is involved in the regulation of basic biological needs.

Term
Identical twins
Definition

Twins that emerge from one zygote that splits for unknown reasons. Also called Monozygotic twins.

Term
Inclusive fitness
Definition

The sum of an individual's own reproductive success plus the effects the organism has on the reproductive success of related others.

Term
Inhibitory PSP
Definition

An electric potential that decreases the likelihood that a postsynaptic neuron will fire action potentials.

Term
Learning
Definition

A relatively durable change in behavior or knowledge that is due to experience.

Term
Lesioning
Definition

Destroying a piece of the brain.

Term
Limbic system
Definition

A densely connected network of structures roughly located along the border between the cerebral cortex and deeper subcortical areas.

Term
Midbrain
Definition

The segment of the brain stem that lies between the hindbrain and the forebrain.

Term
Monogamy
Definition

A mating system in which one male and one female mate exclusively, or almost exclusively, with each other.

Term
Mutation
Definition
A spontaneous, heritable change in a piece of DNA that occurs in the individual organism.
Term
Myelin sheath
Definition
Insulating material, derived from glial cells, that encases some axons of neurons.
Term
Natural selection
Definition
Principle stating that heritable characteristics that provide a survival reproductive advantage are more likely than alternative characteristics to be passed on to subsequent generations and thus come to be “selected“ over time.
Term
Nerves
Definition
Bundles of neuron fibers (axons) that are routed together in the peripheral nervous system.
Supporting users have an ad free experience!