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Details Title Psychology 10 Midterm 1 pt 2 Description UCLA - Holyoak Total Cards 103 Subject Psychology Created 10/12/2010

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Term Psychology	Definition The scientific study of behavior and mental processes.
Term Empiricism	Definition The view that a) knowledge comes from experience via the senses, and b) science flourishes through observation and experiment.
Term Structuralism	Definition An early school of psychology that used introspection to explore the elemental structure of the human mind.
Term Functionalism	Definition A school of psychology that focused on how mental and behavioral processes function - how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish.
Term Humanistic Psychology	Definition Historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people; used personalized methods to study personality in hopes of fostering personal growth.
Term Nature-Nurture Issue	Definition The longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors.
Term Natural Selection	Definition The principle that, amongst the range of inherited trait variations, those contributing to reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations.
Term Levels of Analysis	Definition The differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social-cultural, for analyzing any given phenomenon.
Term Biophyschosocial Approach	Definition An integrated perspective that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis.
Term Basic Research	Definition Pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base.
Term Applied Research	Definition Scientific study that aims to solve practical problems.
Term Counseling Psychology	Definition A branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often relating to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being.
Term Psychiatry	Definition A branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who sometimes provide medical (for example, drugs) treatments as well as psychological therapy.
Term False Consensus Effect	Definition The tendency to overestimate the extent to which others share our beliefs and behaviors.
Term Survey	Definition A technique for ascertaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of people, usually by questioning a representative, random sample of them.
Term Population	Definition All the cases in a group, from which samples may be drawn for a study.
Term Random Sample	Definition A sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion.
Term Naturalistic Observation	Definition Observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation.
Term Correlation	Definition A measure of the extent to which two factors vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other.
Term Scatterplot	Definition A graphed cluster of dots representing the values of two variables. The slope of the points suggests the direction of the relationship between the variables.
Term Illusionary Correlation	Definition The perception of a relationship where none exists.
Term Experiment	Definition A research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more independent variables to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process (the dependent variable).
Term Double-Blind Procedure	Definition An experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo.
Term Placebo Effect	Definition Experimental results caused by expectations alone; any effect on behavior caused by the administration of an inert substance or condition, which is assumed to be an active agent.
Term Experimental Condition	Definition The condition of an experiment that exposes participants to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independent variable.
Term Random Assignment	Definition Assigning participants to experimental and control conditions by chance, thus minimizing preexisting differences between those assigned to the different groups.
Term Independent Variable	Definition The experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied.
Term Dependent Variable	Definition The outcome factor; the variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable.
Term Mode	Definition The most frequently occurring score(s) in a distribution.
Term Mean	Definition The arithmetic average of a distribution.
Term Median	Definition The middle score in a distribution; half of the scores are above it and half are below it.
Term Range	Definition The difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution.
Term Standard Deviation	Definition A computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean score.
Term Statistical Significance	Definition A statistical statement of how likely it is that an obtained result occurred by chance.
Term Biological Psychology	Definition A branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology and behavior.
Term Neuron	Definition The nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system.
Term Dendrite	Definition The bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body.
Term Axon	Definition The extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands.
Term Myelin Sheath	Definition A layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed of neural impulses as the impulse hops from one node to the next.
Term Action Potential	Definition A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon. The action potential is generated by the movement of positively charged atoms in and out of channels in the axon's membrane.
Term Threshold	Definition The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.
Term Synapse	Definition The junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap at this junction is called the synaptic gap or cleft.
Term Neurotransmitters	Definition Chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gaps between neurons. When released by the sending neuron, neurotransmitters travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron.
Term Acetylcholine (Ach)	Definition A neurotransmitter that enables learning and memory and also triggers muscle contraction.
Term Endorphins	Definition "Morphine within" - natural, opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain control and pleasure.
Term Dopamine	Definition Influences movement, learning attention, and emotion.
Term Serotonin	Definition Affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal.
Term Norepinephrine	Definition Helps control alertness and arousal.
Term Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid (GABA)	Definition A major inhibitory neurotransmitter.
Term Glutamate	Definition A major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory.
Term Nervous System	Definition The body's speedy electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems.
Term Central Nervous System (CNS)	Definition The brain and spinal cord.
Term Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)	Definition The sensory and motor neurons that connect the CNS to the rest of the body.
Term Nerves	Definition Neural "cables" containing many axons. These bundled axons, which are part of the PNS, connect the CNS with muscles, glands, and sense organs.
Term Sensory Neurons	Definition Neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the central nervous system.
Term Motor Neurons	Definition Neurons that carry outgoing information from the central nervous system to the muscles and glands.
Term Interneurons	Definition CNS neurons that internally communicate and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs.
Term Somatic Nervous System	Definition The division of the PNS that controls the body's skeletal muscles.
Term Autonomic Nervous System	Definition The part of the peripheral nervous system that control the glands and the muscles of the internal organs. Divided into Sympathetic and Parasympathetic
Term Sympathetic Nervous System	Definition The division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations.
Term Parasympathetic Nervous System	Definition The division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy.
Term Reflex	Definition A simple, automatic, inborn response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response.
Term Neural Networks	Definition Interconnected neural cells. With experience, networks can learn, as feedback strengthens or inhibits connections that produce certain results.
Term Endocrine System	Definition The body's "slow" chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream.
Term Hormones	Definition Chemical messengers, mostly those manufactured by the endocrine glands, that are produced in one tissue and affect another.
Term Adrenal Glands	Definition A pair of endocrine glands just above the kidneys that secrete the hormones epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine, which help to arouse the body in times of stress.
Term Pituitary Gland	Definition The endocrine system's most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, the pituitary regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands.
Term Culture	Definition The enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next.
Term Norm	Definition An understood rule for accepted and expected behavior. Norms prescribe "proper" behavior.
Term Personal Space	Definition The buffer zone we like to maintain around our bodies.
Term Individualism	Definition Giving priority to one's own goals over group goals and defining one's identity in terms of personal attributes rather than group identifications.
Term Collectivism	Definition Giving priority to the goals of one's group (often one's extended family or work group) and defining one's identity accordingly.
Term Aggression	Definition Physical or verbal behavior intended to hurt someone.
Term X Xhromosome	Definition The sex chromosome found in both men and women. Females have two X chromosomes; males have one. An X from both parents produces a female child.
Term Y Chromosome	Definition The sex chromosome found only in males. When paired with an X chromosome from the mother, it produces a male child.
Term Testosterone	Definition The most important of the male sex hormones. Males and females have it, but the additional testosterone in male testes stimulates the growth of the male sex organs and development of male sex characteristics during puberty.
Term Role	Definition A set of expectations or norms about a social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave.
Term Gender Role	Definition A set of expected behaviors for males and for females.
Term Gender Identity	Definition One's sense of being male or female.
Term Gender-Typing	Definition The acquisition of a traditional masculine or feminine role.
Term Social Learning Theory	Definition The theory that we learn social behavior by observing and imitating and being rewarded or punished.
Term Gender Schema Theory	Definition The theory that children learn from their cultures a concept of what it means to be male and female and that they adjust their behavior accordingly.
Term Puberty	Definition The period of sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of reproducing.
Term Primary Sex Characteristics	Definition The body structures (ovaries, testes, and external genitalia) that make sexual reproduction possible.
Term Secondary Sex Characteristics	Definition Nonreproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breasts and hips, male voice quality, and body hair.
Term Menarche	Definition The first menstrual period.
Term Preconventional Morality	Definition Before age 9, most children have a preconventional morality of self interest: they obey either to avoid punishment or to gain concrete rewards
Term Conventional Morality	Definition By early adolescence, morality usually evolves to a more conventional level that cares for others and upholds laws and social rules simply because they are the laws and rules.
Term Postconventional Morality	Definition Some of those who develop the abstract reasoning of for operational thought may develop a morality that affirms people's agreed-upon rights or follows what one personally perceives as basic ethical principles.
Term Circadian Rhythm	Definition The biological clock; regular bodily rhythms (ex: temperature and wakefulness) that occur on a 24-hour cycle.
Term Learning	Definition A relatively permanent change in an organism's behavior due to experience.
Term Associative Learning	Definition Learning that certain events (two stimuli, in classical conditioning) occur together.
Term Classical Conditioning	Definition Type of learning in which an organism comes to associate stimuli. A NS that signals an US begins to produce a response that anticipates and prepares for the CS.
Term Behaviorism	Definition The view that psychology a) should be an objective science that b) studies behavior without reference to mental processes.
Term Unconditioned Response (UR)	Definition The unlearned, naturally occurring response to the unconditioned stimulus (US), such as salivation when food is in the mouth.
Term Unconditioned Stimulus (US)	Definition A stimulus that unconditionally - naturally and automatically - triggers a response.
Term Conditioned Response (CR)	Definition The learned response to a previously neutral but now conditioned stimulus (CS).
Term Conditioned Stimulus (CS)	Definition An originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus (US), comes to trigger a conditioned response.
Term Extinction	Definition The diminishing of a conditioned response; occurs in classical conditioning when a US does not follow a CS.
Term Spontaneous Recovery	Definition The reappearance, after a pause, of an extinguished condition response.
Term Generalization	Definition The tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to elicit similar responses.
Term Discrimination	Definition In classical conditioning, the learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and stimuli that do not signal an unconditioned stimulus.
Term	Definition

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