Term
| Biopsychology (Behavioral Neuroscience) |
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Definition
| the field that examines the physical basis of psychological phenomena such as motivation, emotion, and stress |
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Definition
| the extent to which different parts of the brain control different aspects of functioning |
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| psychological anthropologists |
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Definition
| people who study psychological phenomena in other cultures by observing the way the natives behave in their daily lives |
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Definition
| the method used by Wilhelm Wundt and other structuralists in which trained subjects verbally reported everything that went through their minds with a stimulus or task; more generally refers to the process of looking inward at one's own mental contents or process |
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Definition
| an early school of thought in psychology developed by Edward Tichener, which attempted to use introspection as a method for uncovering the basic elements of consciousness and the way they combine with each other into ideas |
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Definition
| an early school of though in psychology influenced by Darwinian theory that looked at explanations of psychological processes in terms of their role, or function, in helping the individual adapt to the environment |
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Definition
| a view analogous to dynamics among physical forces in which psychological forces such as wishes, fears, and intentions have a direction and an intensity |
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| psychodynamic perspective |
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Definition
| the perspective initiated by Sigmund Freud that focuses on the dynamic interplay of mental forces |
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Definition
| the ability of theory to be proven wrong as a means of advancing science |
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Term
| behaviorist prospective (behaviorism) |
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Definition
| the prospective pioneered by John Watston and B. F. Skinner, which focus on the relationship between observable behaviors and environmental events or stimuli |
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| a psychological perspective that focuses on the way people perceive, process, and retrieve information |
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Definition
| the transformation, storage, and retrieval of environmental inputs through thought and memory |
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Definition
| philosophers who emphasize the role of reason in creating knowledge |
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Term
| nature-nurture controversy |
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Definition
| the question of the degree to which inborn biological process or environmental events determine human behavior |
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Definition
| the viewpoint built on Darwin's principle of natural selection which argues that human behavioral proclivities must be understood in the context of their evolutionary and adaptive significance |
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Definition
| a theory proposed by Darwin which states that natural forces select traits in organisms that help them adapt to their environment |
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Definition
| a term applied to traits that help organisms to their environment |
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Definition
| the field that studies animal behavior from a biological and evolutionary perspective |
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Definition
| a field that explores possible evolutionary and biological bases of human social behavior |
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Term
| evolutionary psychologists |
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Definition
| psychologists who apply evolutionary thinking to a wide range of psychological phenomena |
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Definition
| a field that examines the genetic and environmental bases of differences among individuals in psychological traits |
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Definition
| the capacity to survive and reproduce offspring |
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Definition
| the notion that natural selection favors organisms that survive, reproduce, and foster the survival and reproduction of their kin |
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Definition
| a school of psychology that holds that perception is an active experience of imposing order on an overwhelming panorama of details by seeing them as parts of larger wholes (or gestalts) |
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Definition
| the belief that the path to scientific knowledge is systematic observation, and ideally, experimental observation |
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Definition
| the studies about stress and emotional expression |
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Definition
| a systematic way of organizing and explaining observations |
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Definition
| a tentative belief or educated guess that purports to predict or explain the relationship between two or more variables |
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Definition
| a phenomenon that changes across circumstances or varies among individuals |
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Definition
| a variable that can be placed on a continuum from none or little to much |
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Definition
| a variable comprised of groupings, classification, or categories |
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Definition
| procedures applied uniformly to participants that minimize unintended variation |
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Definition
| a group of people or animals of interest to a researcher from which a sample is drawn |
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Definition
| a sample that reflects characteristics of the population as a whole |
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Definition
| a subgroup of a population likely to be representative of the population as a whole |
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Definition
| the individuals who participate in a study |
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Definition
| the applicability of a study's findings to the entire population of interest |
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Definition
| the extent to which a study is methodologically adequate |
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Definition
| the extent to which the findings of a study can be generalized to situations outside the lab |
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Definition
| the trade-off between internal and external validity |
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Definition
| a concrete way of assessing a variable |
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Definition
| a measure's ability to produce consistent results |
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Definition
| tendency of a test to yield relatively similar scores for the same individual over time |
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Term
| internal consistency (interitem reliability) |
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Definition
| a type of reliability that assesses whether the items in a test measure the same construct |
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Definition
| a measure of the similarity with which different raters apply a measure |
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Definition
| the extent to which a test measures the construct it attempts to assess, or a study adequately addresses the hypothesis it attempts to asses |
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Definition
| the degree to which a measure appears to measure what it purports to measure |
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Definition
| the degree to which a measure actually assesses what it claims to measure |
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Definition
| the degree to which a measure allows a researcher to distinguish among groups on the basis of certain behaviors and responses |
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Definition
| research methods that cannot unambiguously demonstrate cause and effect, including case studies, naturalistic observation, survey research, and correlational methods |
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Definition
| in-depth observation of one subject or a small group of subjects |
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Definition
| the in-depth observation of a phenomenon in its natural setting |
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Definition
| research asking a large sample of participants questions, often about attitudes or behaviors, using questionnaires or interviews |
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Definition
| a research tool in which the investigator asks participants questions |
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Definition
| a research tool in which the investigator asks participants to respond to a written list of questions or items |
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Definition
| a sample of participants selected from the population in a random manner |
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Definition
| a sample selected to represent subpopulations proportionately, randomizing only within groups |
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Definition
| the variables an experimenter manipulates, ow whose effects the experimenter assesses |
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Definition
| values or versions of the independent variable that vary across experimental groups |
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Definition
| turning an abstract concept or variable into a concrete form that can be defined by some set of operations or actions |
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Definition
| cues in the experimental situation that reveal the experimenter's purpose |
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Definition
| studies in which participants are kept unaware of important aspects of the research |
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Definition
| a phenomenon in which an experimental manipulation produces an effect because participants believe it will produce an effect |
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Definition
| a study in which participants are kept blind to crucial information, notably about the experimental condition in which they have been placed |
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Definition
| a study in which both participants and researchers are blind to the status of participants |
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Definition
| a variable that could produce effects that are confused or confounded with the effects of the independent variable |
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Definition
| numbers that describe the data from a study in a way that summarizes their essential features |
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Definition
| procedures for assessing whether the results obtained with a sample are likely to reflect characteristics of the population as a whole |
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Term
| quasi-experimental designs |
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Definition
| research designs that imply the logic of experimental methods but lack absolute control over variables |
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Definition
| the probability that obtained findings were accidental or just a matter of chance |
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Definition
| research that assesses the degree to which two variables are related, so that knowing the value of one can lead to prediction of the other |
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Definition
| in research, to assess the extent to which the measure of one variable predicts the measure of a second variable |
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Definition
| an index of the extent to which two variables are related |
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Definition
| a relation between two variables in which the higher the one is, the higher the other is |
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Definition
| a relation between two variables in which the higher one is, the lower tends to be |
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Definition
| a table presenting the correlations among several variables |
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Definition
| a participant's ability to agree to participate in a study in an informed manner |
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Definition
| the field that studies the way thought, feeling, and behavior develop through the life span |
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Term
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Definition
| biologically based development |
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Term
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Definition
| periods of special sensitivity to specific types of learning that shape the capacity for future development |
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Term
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Definition
| developmental periods during which environmental input is especially important, but not absolutely required, for future development in a domain |
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Term
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Definition
| relatively discrete steps through which everyone progresses in the same sequence |
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Definition
| enduring affectional ties that children form with their primary caregivers and that become the basis for later love relationships |
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Term
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Definition
| the tendency of young animals of certain species to follow an animal to which they were exposed during a sensitive period early in their lives |
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Definition
| distress at separation from attachment figures |
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Term
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Definition
| response to separation in which infants welcome the mother's return and seek closeness |
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Term
| avoidant attachment styles |
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Definition
| response to separation in which infants ignore the mother when she returns |
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Term
| ambivalent attachment styles |
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Definition
| response to separation in which infants who are angry and rejecting simultaneously indicate a clear desire to be close to the mother |
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Term
| disorganized attachment style |
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Definition
| response to separation in which infants behave in contradictory ways, indicating helpless efforts to elicit soothing responses from the attachment figure |
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Term
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Definition
| patterns of mental representation, emotion, and proximity-seeking in adults related to childhood attachment patterns |
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Term
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Definition
| in Erik Erikson's theory, the stages in the development of the person as a social being |
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Term
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Definition
| challenge that is normative for a particular period in life |
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Term
| basic trust versus mistrust |
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Definition
| Erikson: the stage in which infants come to trust others or to perceive the social world as unfriendly or unreliable |
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Term
| autonomy versus shame and doubt |
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Definition
| Erikson: the stage in which children begin to walk, talk, and get a sense of themselves as independent sources of will and power |
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Term
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Definition
| Erikson: the stage in which children develop a sense of planfulness and responsibility |
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Term
| industry versus inferiority |
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Definition
| the stage in which children develop a sense of competence as they begin to practice skills they will use in productive work |
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Term
| identity versus identity confusion |
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Definition
| the stage in which adolescents develop a stable sense of who they are and a stable set of values and ideals |
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Definition
| a condition in which the individual fails to develop a coherent and enduring sense of self, and has difficulty committing to roles, values, people, and occupation choices in his or her life |
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Term
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Definition
| ceremonies, such as the rites found in many cultures in adolescence, that initiate a person intwo a new social role, such as adulthood |
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Definition
| taking on a role that society defines as bad but that nevertheless provides one with a sense of being something |
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Term
| intimacy versus isolation |
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Definition
| the stage in which young adults establish enduring, committed friendships and romantic relationships |
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Term
| generativity versus stagnation |
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Definition
| the stage in which people in mid-adulthood experience concern for the next generation as well as interest in producing something of lasting value to society |
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Definition
| a concern for the next generation as well as interest in producing something of lasting value to society |
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Definition
| a feeling that the promise of youth has gone unfulfilled |
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Definition
| the stage in which older people look back on their own lives with a sense of satisfaction that they have lived it well or with despair, regret, and loss for loved ones who have died |
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Definition
| aspects of the situation that interact with aspects of the person to produce behavior |
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Definition
| personalities and attitudes |
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Definition
| strong, possibly innate, need to be involved in relationships with others |
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Definition
| the factors that lead people to choose to spend time with other people |
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Definition
| theories based on behaviorist principles which suggest that the foundation of relationships is reciprocal reward |
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Definition
| phenomenon whereby people tend to choose as partners people they themselves perceive to be equally attractive |
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Definition
| a highly emotional form of love marked by intense physiological arousal and absorption in another person |
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Definition
| love that involves deep affection, friendship, and emotional intimacy |
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Definition
| tactics used in selecting mates |
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Definition
| behaving in a way that helps another person which no apparent gain, or with potential cost, to oneself |
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Definition
| the school of philosophical thought which asserts that all behavior, no matter how apparently altruistic, is and should be designed to increase one's own pleasure or reduce one's own pain |
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Definition
| the theory that natural selection favors animals that behave altruistically if the likely benefit to each individual over time exceeds the likely cost to each individuals reproductive success |
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Definition
| a form of altruism involving a person in need |
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Term
| diffusion of responsibility |
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Definition
| the phenomenon in which the presence of other people leads to a diminished sense of personal responsibility to act |
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Definition
| aggression that is elicited by anger |
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Definition
| calm, pragmatic aggression that may or may not be accompanied by anger |
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Definition
| the ways in which the presence of other people influences a person's thought, feeling, or behavior |
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Term
| self-fulfilling prophecies |
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Definition
| impression of a situation that evoke behavior that in turn makes impressions become true |
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Definition
| overt compliance with authority |
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Definition
| the process of changing attitudes to accommodate the standards of a group |
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Definition
| a collection of people whose actions affect the other group member |
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Definition
| standards for the behavior of group members |
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Definition
| groups to which a person refers when taking a particular action |
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Definition
| a position within a group that defines appropriate behavior for the person occupying it |
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Definition
| groups members who take responsibility for seeing that the group completes its tasks |
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Definition
| roles that may emerge in a group in which members seek to maximize group cohesion and minimize hostility |
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Definition
| the phenomenon in which the presence of other people facilitates or hinders individual performance |
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Definition
| a reduction in individual effort when in a group |
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Definition
| people who exercise greater influence than the average member of a group |
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Term
| door-in-the-face technique |
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Definition
| everyday social influence tactic whereby people intentionally make a request that they know will be turned down but follow up on that request with a smaller request; based in the principle of reciprocity |
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Term
| foot-in-the-door technique |
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Definition
| persuasive technique often used by salespeople, which involves getting people to comply with a small request in order to induce their compliance with a larger request |
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Definition
| method of persuasion by which people get a commitment to a request and then change the conditions |
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Definition
| cell in the nervous system |
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Definition
| the interacting network of nerve cels that underlies all psychological activity |
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Definition
| chemicals that transmit information from one neuron to another |
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Term
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Definition
| protein molecules in the postsynaptic membrane that pick up neurotransmitters |
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Term
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Definition
| a neurotransmitter with wide-ranging effects in the nervous system, involved in thought, feeling, motivation, and behavior |
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Definition
| a neurotransmitter involved in the regulation of mood, sleep, eating, arousal, and pain |
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Term
| SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) |
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Definition
| a class of antidepressant medications, including Prozac, that blocks the presynaptic membrane from taking back serotonin, and hence leaves it longer in the synapse |
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Term
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Definition
| a neurotransmitter involved in muscle contractions, learning, and memory |
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Definition
| chemicals in the brain similar to morphine that elevate mood and reduce pain |
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Definition
| the collection of ductless glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream and control various bodily and psychological functions |
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Definition
| chemicals secreted directly into the bloodstream by the endocrine glands |
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Definition
| a hormone that triggers physiological arousal, particularly in potentially dangerous situations |
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Term
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Definition
| a hormone that triggers physiological arousal, particularly in dangerous situations |
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Term
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Definition
| often referred to as the master gland of the endocrine system because many of the hormones it releases stimulate and thus regulate the hormonal action of other endocrine glands |
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Definition
| endocrine structure located next to the trachea and larynx in the neck, which releases hormones that control growth and metabolism |
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Definition
| endocrine glands located above the kidneys that secrete adrenaline and other hormones during emergency situations |
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Definition
| endocrine glands that influence much of sexual development and behavior |
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Definition
| the hormone produced by the male gonads |
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Definition
| hormone produced by the female gonads, which control sex drive as well as the development of secondary sex characteristics |
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Definition
| the division of the peripheral nervous system that consists of sensory and motor neurons that transmit sensory actions and control intentional actions |
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Definition
| the part of the peripheral nervous system that serves visceral or internal bodily structures connected with basic life processes, such as the beating of the heart and breathing |
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Term
| sympathetic nervous system |
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Definition
| a branch of the autonomic nervous system, typically activated in response to threats to the organism, which readies the body for fight-or-flight reactions |
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Term
| parasympatheic nervous system |
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Definition
| the part of the autonomic nervous system involved in conserving and maintaining the body's energy resources |
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Definition
| the brain structure, situated directly below the thalamus, involved in the regulation of eating, sleeping, sexual activity, movement, and emotion |
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Definition
| subcortical structures responsible for emotional reactions, many motivational processes, learning and aspects of memory |
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Definition
| a brain structure associated with the expression of rage, fear, and calculation of the emotional significance of a stimulus |
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Definition
| a structure in the limbic system involved in the acquisition and consolidation of new information in memory |
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Definition
| the condition that results when the corpus callosum has been surgically cut, blocking communication between the two cerebral hemispheres |
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Definition
| twins identical in their genetic makeup having developed from the union of the same sperm and egg |
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Definition
| fraternal twins who, like other siblings, share only about half of their genes, having developed from the union of two sperm with two separate eggs |
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Definition
| the statistic that quantifies to a degree to which a trait is heritable |
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Definition
| the tendency of sensory systems to respond less to stimuli that continue without change |
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Definition
| neurons that fire only when stimulation in the receptive field matches a particular pattern or orientation |
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Definition
| the pathway running from the striate cortex in the occipital lobes through the lower part of the temporal lobes, involved in determining what an object iss |
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Definition
| the pathway running from the striate cortex through the middle and upper regions of the temporal lobes and up into the parietal lobes, involved in locating an object in space, following its movement and guiding movement toward it |
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Definition
| a theory of color vision that proposes the existence of three antagonistic color systems |
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Definition
| misleading sensations from missing limbs |
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Definition
| rule of perception described by Gestalt psychology which states that people inherently differentiate between figure (the object they are viewing sound to which they are listening) and ground (background) |
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Definition
| a Gestalt rule of perception which states that the brain tends to group similar elements within a perceptual field |
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Term
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Definition
| a Gestalt rule of perception which states that the brain tends to group similar elements within a perceptual field |
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Term
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Definition
| a gestalt rule of perception which states that, other things being equal, the brain groups objects together that are close to each other |
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Definition
| a gestalt rule of perception which states that, if possible, the brain organizes stimuli into continuous lines or patterns rather than discontinuous elements |
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Definition
| a gestalt rule of perception which states that people tend to perceive the simplest pattern possible |
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Definition
| a gestalt rule of perception, which states that people tend to perceive incomplete figures as complete |
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Definition
| a theory which states that sensory information intrinsically carries meaning |
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Definition
| perceptual processing that starts with raw sensory data that feed "up" to the brain |
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Definition
| perceptual processing that starts with the observers expectations and knowledge |
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