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introduction to psychology textbook
Ch. 1,2,4,5
120
Psychology
Undergraduate 1
04/17/2013

Additional Psychology Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
Behaviorism
Definition
Behavior is learned from your environment
Term
Psychoanalytic
Definition
behavior comes from unconscious conflicts/ memories
Term
Congnitive Behaviorism
Definition
behavior comes from what you tell yourself about what happens to you
Term
Structuralism
Definition
when the structure of mental life is analyzed into elements or building blocks
Term
Functionalism
Definition
  • the idea that the mind functions to help us adapt to the environment 
  • in this belief conscious is regarded as an ever-changing stream of images and sensations
Term

Gestalt 

 

Definition
  • the whole is bigger than the sum of its parts 
  • it focuses on what the individual is feeling at the moment not on your thoughts but emotions
Term
Humanistic
Definition
believe people have a free will and make conscious choices
Term
Biopsychologists
Definition
focus on chemicals, hormones, the way your brain works
Term
psychologist
Definition
  • create and apply psychological knowledge
  • 4 years will get you a BA or BS in Psychology
  • 2 more years will get you an MA or MS in Psychology and you can work as a counselor 
Term
Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT)
Definition
  • after you get your MA you put in 3000 hrs(1.5- 2 yrs) of internship and you become eligible to receive your state licensing exam. Once you pass you can become a MFT and open you own private practice
  • or you can enter a Phd program  (3-6 yrs), then still do the 3000 hrs and take the licensing exam to have a private practice 
Term
Psychiatrists
Definition
they go to medical school and have an M.D., they are a medical doctor and their area of specialty is medication while psychologists focus on cognitive ways not medical
Term
psychoanalyst
Definition
refers to type of psychotherapy you use like freudian where you focus on unconscious feeling or hypnosis
Term
Rosenthal
Definition
  • did experiment with 5th grade class about whether your expectations affect your perceptions
Term
Rosenhan
Definition
also did experiment about whether your expectations affect your perceptions but he did it by checking himself and some colleagues into a mental institute
Term
Co
Definition
Term
Correlational Methods (study)
Definition
  • this study measures the relationship between two variables 
  • it is measured in terms of r and it can equal from 0-1. with the higher the number equaling the higher the relationship between the two variables.
  • it also tells you the strength ( higher #= higher correlation) and nature (positive and negative) of two variables
  • positive correlation means the higher you score on one variable the higher you will score on the other
  • negative correlations means the higher you score on one variable the lower you will score on the other 
  • when you have a correlation study you cannot draw conclusions 
Term
Experimental Studies
Definition
  • they allow you to draw conclusions about cause and effect 
  • they have an independent (variable that the experiment changes) and a dependent variable ( variable that is measured)
  • you have two groups of subjects; a experimental (group that gets the independent variable) and a control group ( not exposed to independent variable) 
  • you can also have an extreneous variable, or any outside variable ( like temp., time of day, etc.), but everyother variable has to be the same
  • when you have this study you must have random assignment, each group has to be randomly selected and this is necessary for both the control and experimental group 
  • the person running the experiment should not be observing results (observer biased)
  • can be significant at 0.1 or 0.5 level 
Term

blind/ double blind experiment

 

Definition
  • an experiment done in the blind is one where subjects are not aware of whats going on
  • a double blind is where both the subjects and the researchers are both unaware of the experiment and unaware of the hypothesis  
Term
placebo
Definition

"fake pill" that works with the power of suggestion

  • inactive placebo: doesnt cause same side effects as real pill
  • active placebo: causes same side effects as the real medication 
Term
self-fulfilling prophecy
Definition
have such a strong belief that you can influence the results
Term
Milgram
Definition
responsible for obedience experiment that tested obedience to authority. He used an electric shock test to see how much people obey authority
Term
significance of an experiment at 0.5 level( can also be 0.1 level)
Definition
  • this is part of experimental studies 
  • it means that we can say with 95% (99% for 0.1) certainty that the difference in scores between the experimental group and control group is due to the independent variable 
  • means 5 % (or 1 %) chance of mistake
Term
soma
Definition
part of the neuron than contains ions
Term

neurotransmitters

 

Definition
stored in the vesicles of axons and released
Term
re-uptake
Definition
when a chemical goees back into the vesicles from synapses
Term
synapse
Definition
gap between two nerve cells, where chemicals get "squirted" into
Term
multiple sclerosis
Definition
disease where the myelin sheath breaks down along the axon leaving it exposed. this causes any messages being sent from the axon to short- circuit. results in inability to walk and general muscle imparement
Term
serotonin
Definition
type of neurotransmitter responsible for making you happy. too little of it causes depression while things like exercise and prozac (anti-depressant) increase seratonin levels. Prozac blocks reuptake so more seratonin is floating around in the synapse and your levels increase
Term
norepinephrine
Definition
another neurotransmitter that is also related to depression. too little of it causes depression
Term
dopamine
Definition
neurotransmitter involved in schizophrenia. too much dopamine causes/ may cause schizophrenia, medication for it lowers dopamine levels
Term
acetylcholine
Definition
neurotransmitter that can cause memory loss. if brain doesnt produce enough of it, it causes memory loss. alzheimers may be cause of too little acetylcholine
Term
GABA
Definition
neurotransmitter that when released has a calming effect. medication such as valium, and xanex (anti-anxiety pills) release GABA but are very addictive
Term
Endorphines
Definition
brain chemicals that when released causes people to feel more relaxed. they reduce perception of pain ( they are a feel good chemical)
Term
Central Nervous System (CNS)
Definition
part of nervous system consists of brain and spinal cord
Term
Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)
Definition
  • part of nervous system, composed of nerves that carry information to and from the CNS 
  • composed of the somatic and autonomic sytems and the autonomic system is composed of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems
Term
somatic system
Definition
part of the PNS, it is under your control/ voluntary
Term
autonomic nervous system
Definition
part of the PNS, it is involuntary/ not under voluntary control
Term
sympathetic nervous system
Definition
part of the autonomic nervous system, responsible for fight or flight instinct and in times of crisis it kicks in ( adrenaline is released)
Term
parasympathetic nervous system
Definition
part of the autonomic system, it calms the body after crisis. gets rid of adrenaline
Term
CT Scan
Definition
special type fo x-ray. scans a lot of different angles of the brain and can reveal specific location of injury or stroke
Term
EEG
Definition
measures brain wave activity
Term
MRI
Definition
uses magnetic waves not x-rays to give 3-D view of the body or brain
Term
PET Scan
Definition
radioactive substance injecte dinto the blood stream, and once its metabolized in brain and shows you which areas on the brain use the most "energy"
Term
Limbic System
Definition
part of braun where emotional information is decoded
Term
Amygdala
Definition
  • part of the limbic system responsible for rage reaction that gets activated very quickly . damage to this part of the brain leaves person feeling tamed or unable to sense danger.
  • an overly sensitive amygdala results in paranoia and anxiousness. This is developed through early childhood trauma or constant trauma and a result of post-traumatic stress
Term
Cerebral Cortex
Definition
Term
Corpus Callosum
Definition
thick band of fibers that connects left side and right side of the brain. it allows things to be communicated and transfered from left to right side of brain. this part of the brain used to be cut out for seizure control
Term
left brain
Definition
responsible for language and speaking
Term
right brain
Definition
responsible for nonverbal, (understanding, reading maps )
Term
Lateralization
Definition
to be highly specialized. right handed people are more highly lateralized (split, rely one one side mostly for certain function)
Term
Occipital Lobe
Definition
affects eye vision
Term
Parietal Lobe
Definition
sense of touch (pressure, temperature)
Term
Temporal Lobe
Definition
hearing
Term
Frontal Lobes
Definition
responsible for voluntary movement and ability to plan an activity. damage to this area affects ability to think things through
Term
Aphasis
Definition
not being able to speak. some impairment using or understanding language
Term
Broca's area
Definition
located in the frontal lobe of the left brain. an injury to this are causes difficulty speaking
Term
Wernicke's Area
Definition
located in the temporal lobe of the left brain. an injury to this are causes difficulty understanding speech
Term
Agnosia (disorder)
Definition
inability to identify a familiar object. affects right brain
Term
facial agnosia
Definition
person has inability to identify a familiar person. affects temporal lobe of right brain
Term
medulla
Definition
part of brain responsible for heart rate, breathing, and swallowing. injury here is critical
Term
cerebellum
Definition
part of brain that influences balance
Term
reticular activating system
Definition
responsible for arousal, alertness
Term
Pons
Definition
part of brain involved with the control of sleep (waking up would be part of the reticular activating system). involved in insomnia
Term
Thalamus
Definition
part of forebrain. relay station, relays sensory information to the part of the brain that can decode it (cerebral cortex)
Term
Hypothalamus
Definition
part of forebrain that releases hormones (adrenaline, etc.). involved in a lot of things
Term
hypocampus
Definition
part of brain involved in memory
Term
pituitary gland
Definition
part of endocrine system. regulates growth
Term
thyroid gland
Definition
part of endocrine system, regulates rate of metabolism. an overactive thyroid results in thiness because it is overactive/excitable. and underactive thyroid makes people overweight because it is unexcitable
Term
pineal gland
Definition
part of endocrine system that produce melatonin, the hormone involved in sleep. the older you get the less melatonin produced so you sleep less, light interferes with the production of melatonin (more dark=more)
Term
perception of pain
Definition
  • the more distracted you are the less pain you feel
  • the less anxious you are the less pain you feel
  • the more control you have over the pain, the less pain you report 
  • how you interpret the pain will also affect how much pain you feel 
Term
gate control theory
Definition
says one typ of pain will block the experience of/close the gate of another type of pain
Term
Attention Defict Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD)
Definition
attention disorder. two types; innactive or hyperactive. treatment can be therapy or drugs/medication, most commonly used is riddlin and aderol which are a type of speed. they work withthe part of the brain that helps you keep your focus and release dopamine
Term
Innactive ADHD
Definition
difficulty focusing, concentrating and finishing tasks
Term
Hyperactive ADHD
Definition
person very impulsive, fidgety. typically a brain disfunction but can also be caused when your raised in an environment with no structure
Term
Figure Ground Perspective
Definition
your ability to see whats in the foreground and what's in the background. this ability to differentiate tends to be inborn (not learned)
Term
Visual Clift
Definition
an experiment that confirms that depth perception tends to be inborn. they would put a pice on glass on a table making it appear as if the table ended sooner than it really did. They would put a baby to crawl across and it would always stop before the glass, or before it could "fall", even when the mother was on the other side urging it to come
Term
Principle of Nearness
Definition
idea that stimuli (objects) that are close to each other are grouped together
Term
Principle of similarity
Definition
ideas that objects that are similar to each other tend to be grouped together
Term
principle of closure
Definition
idea that when we see something that is incomplete we tend to complete them/ create closure in our mind
Term
Perceptions
Definition
your perceptions/ what you see is based on your history, your biases, and your desires
Term
Frame of Reference
Definition
your comparison. example: a 70 year old might view middle aged as 50 but a 10 year old might view it as 35
Term
Moon Illusion
Definition
idea that you see the moon larger when it is on the horizon that when its above you even though its the same size. this is because when its by the horizon you can compare its size to other things such as trees or houses
Term
Orientation Response
Definition
when you first see an object you go through an orientation response (an immediate respose, without thinking) your pupils enlarge, your brain waves change, increased blood flow to brain occurs and your blood pressure also increases
Term
Habitation
Definition
when you grow accustomed to a stimuli
Term
Stimuli
Definition
  • objects
  • the more intense a stimuli, the more attention you pay to it
  • the  more a stimuli is repeated, the more likely you are to see it 
  • the more motivated you are to see a stimuli, the more likely you are to see it 
Term
Commercials/ Media
Definition
work to make their product more appealing
Term
Perceptual Expectancy
Definition
when you expect to see something a certain way you are more likely to see it that way. example: celebritties thought to be bigger than life and their height is also expected to be big but people are often surprised by their small stature
Term
Subliminal Messaging
Definition
idea that your unconscious mind can pick up on something and influence your conscious choices
Term
Eyewitness Testimony
Definition
tends to be inaccurate because when you ask people what they saw, what they say will be influenced by their biases. it is inaccurate even if person is confident
Term
melatonin
Definition
chemical produce by brain that helps you sleep. as you get older, your brain produces less
Term
EEG
Definition
measures brain waves
Term
EOG
Definition
measures eye movement
Term
EMG
Definition
measure muscle tension
Term
awake stage
Definition
when you are awake you tend to have beta brain waves, fats eye movement, and high muscle tension
Term
relaxed stage
Definition
you tend to have alpha brain waves, slower eye movement, and lower muscle tension
Term

sleep stages (1,2,3,4)

Definition
  • during 1 and 2 you still have alpha brain waves, your eye movement continues to slow, and muscle tension continues to lower
  • during stage 3 everything slows like in the other stages but begin to have delta brain waves
  • during stage 4 its the same except 50% of your brain waves are now delta waves
Term

 

REM (rapid eye movement)

Definition
  • most dreaming occurs during this stage and typically your will have 5-6 dreams every night, lasting about 25 minutes in REM everytime. once the dream is over you go back to stage 1  of sleep 
  • during this stage you have beta brain waves, rapid eye movement, and no/very low muscle tension
Term
Paradoxical Sleep
Definition
another name for REM . paradoxical because when your dreaming your asleep but because of your brain waves and eye movement its as if your awake
Term
REM rebound effect
Definition
when you interrupt a persons dream 3 times in a row, on the 4th night if you dont do it, they will go into REM faster and will have more dreams
Term
Nightmares
Definition
bad dream, occurs in REM
Term
Night terrors
Definition
will usually occur in young children, will wake up in a panicked, anxious state
Term
Sleep Apnia
Definition
type of sleep disorder characterized by loud, heavy snoring. the air passages get blocked and you end up gasping for air and stop breathing at times
Term
Narcolepsy
Definition
type of sleep disorder where you get sudden uncontrollable sleep attacks that will interrupt your sleep cycle and last about 10-15 minutes
Term
Insomnia
Definition
most common sleep disorder characterized by difficulty falling asleep and staying alseep, and early morning awakement . a cause can be a drop in blood sugar level and treatments can be drinking milk or a light snack. alcohol and sleeping aids interfere with the deep stages of sleep
Term
sleep disorders
Definition
can be reduced with a reduce in alcohol and ciggarette usage, associating the bed with only sleep ,and more darkness
Term
Manifest Content
Definition
the actual/literal dream. for example you dreamed you were falling
Term
Latent Content
Definition
then underlying meaning of the dream
Term
Activation Synthesis
Definition
a theory of what dreams represent. it says that dreams are a random firing of neurons in the brain
Term
Physical Dependence (on a drug)
Definition
when you become physically dependent you go through withdrawl symptoms such as tremors, sweating
Term
Psychological Dependence
Definition
when no longer taking it you experience psychological withdrawl like anxiety or depression
Term
alcoholics
Definition

what to ask:

  • how often do you drink?
  • when?
  • what do you drink?
  • how much?
  • does it interfere with work or family life?

alcoholics have a high denial rate 

Term
blood-brain barries
Definition
barrier that keeps "poisons" from entering the brain. nicotine can bypass the barries
Term
developing a tolerance
Definition
need more to give the same effect
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