Shared Flashcard Set

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Final Exam
PSYC 2000
69
Psychology
Undergraduate 1
05/09/2008

Additional Psychology Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
Psychology
Definition
The study of mental processes (mind) and behavior
Term
Empiricism
Definition
Knowledge comes from direct experience (science)
Term
Structuralism
Definition
how basic elements (sensations and feelings) are formed in mental structure
Term
Introspection
Definition
A procedure used to study the structure of the mind in which subjects are asked to describe in detail what they are experiencing when they are exposed to a stimulus
Term
Gestalt Psychology
Definition
– Emphasized the overall patterns (perceptual units) of thoughts or experience
Term
Functionalism
Definition

Emphasized  purposes of immediate experience

Term
Psychoanalysis
Definition

Freudian psychotherapy in which the goal is to release hidden unconscious thoughts and feelings in order to reduce their power in controlling behavior

Term
Behaviorism
Definition

How a specific stimulus evokes a specific response (Antecedent, Behavioral response, Consequence).

Term
Biological/Neuroscience Perspective
Definition
views behavior from the perspective of biological functioning
Term
Psychodynamic Perspective
Definition
Focuses on observable behavior
Term
Cognitive Perspective
Definition
Examines how people understand and think about the world
Term
Humanistic Perspective
Definition
Contends that people can control their behavior and that they naturally try to reach their full potential
Term
Eclective Approach
Definition
An approach to therapy that uses techniques taken from a variety of treatment methods rather than just one
Term
________is considered the father of modern day psychology.  The field began as a formal scientific area of study in__________.
Definition
Wilhem Wundt, 1979
Term
Hypothesis
Definition
A specific, testable proposition about a phenomenon
Term
Operational Definition
Definition

1.      A statement that defines the exact operations or methods to be used in research.

Term
Data
Definition
Numbers that represent research findings, and provide a basis for research conclusions
Term
Theory
Definition
Tentative set of propositions accounting for predicting and suggesting ways of controlling certain phenomena
Term
Scientific Goals of Psychology
Definition

a.      Observing and Describing

b.      Predicting

c.       Control

d.      Explain

Term
Naturalistic Observation
Definition

a.      Features:  Observations of human or animal behavior in the environment in which it typically occurs

b.      Strengths – Provides descriptive data about behavior presumably uncontaminated by outside influences

c.       Pitfalls – Observer bias and participant self-consciousness can distort results

Term
Case Studies
Definition

a.      Features – Intensive examination of the behavior and mental processes associated with a specific person or situation

b.      Strengths – Provide detailed descriptive analysis of new, complex, or rare phenomenon

c.       Pitfalls – May not provide a representative picture of phenomena

Term
Surveys
Definition

a.      Features – Standard set of questions asked of a large number of participants

b.      Strengths – Gather large amounts of descriptive data relatively quickly and inexpensively

c.       Pitfalls – Sampling errors, poorly phrased questions, and response biases can distort results

Term
Correlation Studies:
Definition

a.      Features – Examine the relationships between research variables

b.      Strengths – Can test predictions, evaluated theories, and suggest new hypothesis

c.       Pitfalls – Cannot infer causal relationships between variables

Term
Experiment
Definition
manipulation of one variable (IV) to observe its effect on another variable (DV) while holding all other variables constant
Term
Independent Variables (IV)
Definition
manipulated by researcher
Term
Dependent Variable (DV)
Definition
Factor measured by researcher
Term
Confounding/Extraneous Variable
Definition

1.      Any variable affecting the DV other than the IV

Term
Random Assignment
Definition
Used to eliminated Confounding variables related to individual differences
Term
Placebo Effect
Definition
Change in Behavior due to the belief that the treatment is effective
Term
Experimental Group
Definition
Any group participating in an experiment that receives a treatment
Term
Control Group
Definition

1.      A group participating in an experiment that receives no treatment

Term
Experimental Bias
Definition

1.      factors that distort how the independent variable affects the dependent variable in an experiment

Term
Double-Blind Design
Definition

1.      Keeping part the participant “blind” to the drugs/experiment to prevent experimenter bias

Term
Sample
Definition
a subset of the population
Term
Random Sampling
Definition

1.      Everyone in the population has an equal chance of being selected

Term
Descriptive Statistics
Definition
The branch of statistics that provides a means of summarizing data
Term
Inferential Statistics
Definition
The branch of statistics that uses data from samples to make predictions about the larger population from which the sample is drawn
Term
Positive Correlation
Definition
values of both variables move in the same direction
Term
Negative Correlation
Definition

1.      values of the two variables move in opposite directions

Term

1.      CORRELATION DOES NOT EQUAL CAUSATION!

Definition
Term
Statistically Significant
Definition

1.      An outcome in which the observed outcome would be expected to have occurred by chance with a probability of .05 or less.

Term

Nervous System:

Input

Definition

a.      The sound of the alarm clock is conversed to your brain by your ears

Term

Nervous System:

Processing 

Definition

a.      Your brain knows from past experience that it’s time to get up

Term

Nervous System:

Output

Definition
brain directs the muscles of your arm and hand to shut off the alarm clock
Term
Neurons
Definition
Nerve cells, the basic elements of the nervous system
Term
Glial Cells
Definition
Hold neurons in place; provide nourishment to neurons, insulate them, help repair damage, and generally support neural functioning
Term
Action Potential
Definition
An electric nerve impulse that travels through a neuron when it is set off by a “trigger,” changing the neuron’s charge from negative to positive.  All or none, when it happens it must be completed
Term
Myelin Sheath
Definition
insulates  neuron and speed and rate of action potentials (looks like a blanket)
Term

1.      Autonomic Nervous System:

Sympathetic System 

Definition
Prepares the body for action through the “Fight or Flight” Syndrome
Term
The major divisions of the nervous system are the
Definition

1.      :  Peripheral Nervous System (sensory and motor systems), and Central Nervous System (made up of the brain and spinal cord)

Term
Receptors
Definition
binding sites for neurotransmitters
Term
Neurotransmitter
Definition

1.      chemical messengers that carry the message across the synapse to the dendrite of a receiver neuron

Term
Synapse
Definition
gap between neurons that neurotransmitters cross
Term

Autonomic Nervous System:

Parasympathetic System 

Definition
regulates the body’s energy-conserving functions.  Brings heart rate and respiration back to normal after the emergency is over
Term
Forebrain
Definition
most advance; complex behavior and mental activities; need to plan things out
Term
Thalamus
Definition

a.      relay system; sensory perceptions are running through here to get to the Cerebral Cortex

Term
Hypothalamus
Definition

a.      regulates basic Drives:  Temperature, food, breathing

Term
Limbic System
Definition

a.      Amygdala and hippocampus (learning and memory); responsible for emotions

Term
Medulla
Definition
keeps you alive, most important part of brain; controls basic functions
Term
Reticular Formation
Definition
Responsible for attention, sleep, and mood changes
Term
Cerebellum
Definition
Responsible for balance and coordinated movements
Term
Left Hemisphere
Definition
responsible for languages and abilities
Term
Right Hemisphere
Definition
Spatial, artistic and musical abilities
Term
Corpus Callosum
Definition
Bundle of fibers that connects the hemispheres of the brain
Term
Lateralization
Definition
The dominance of one hemisphere of the brain in specific functions, such as language
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