AAMC Psych Terms Flashcards
Spreading activation
activation over a set of chunks
Proactive interference
long term memories interfering with new information
Latent learning
learning that produces a change in behavior some time after learning
no immediate change in behavior
Mead’s theory of identity
“I” is the spontaneous and autonomous part of self
“me” is the self that is influenced by society and conforms to society’s norms
Where is merit derived from?
achieved status
Saccade
a quick jump of the eye from one position to another as it takes in visual stimuli
limen
a threshold below which a stimulus is not perceived or is not distinguished from another
Can classical conditioning affect voluntary behaviors?
no
Anterograde amnesia
inability to create new memories after an event
EOG
measures eye movement during sleep
Vicarious conditioning
another term for observational learning
Attrition bias
occurs when people drop out of a long term study
Classic sign of conformity
privately disagreeing with something but publicly agreeing with it
The Stroop effect
difficulty naming a physical color when it is used to the spell the name of a different color
Construct validity
how well did the study examine what it intended to
social clock
a culturally-specific timetable of when life events should occur
activity theory
elderly people wish to stay active just as much as younger people
Harlow’s monkey experiments
monkeys only went to wire mother for food and still went to cloth mother for comfort when she did have food
both monkeys ended up eating the same amount
What increases statistical power?
increasing the number of subjects
Reciprocal determinism
people’s behavior is both influenced by other people and the environment
people also influence others and the environment
What theory does reciprocal determinism apply to?
social cognitive theory
Shadowing
used in attention studies where a person repeats word for word while other stimuli are in the background
test selective attention
Path of verbal input through left ear
goes to auditory cortex in the right hemisphere and then is processed by language areas of the left hemisphere
What are IQ tests normalized to?
100 +/- 15
Bell curve percentages
2.1, 13.6, 68, 13.6, 2.1
What do stimulants function like?
stress responses
What type of reinforcement is used during the acquisition phase?
continuous reinforcement
What is the most effective type of reinforcement?
variable ratio
Semantic memory
long term memory about facts
Episodic memory
long term memory about the self
Explicit memory
includes semantic and episodic memory
Implicit memory
procedural long term memory
uses past experience to remember things without thinking about them
Where are neurotransmitters made?
neurons
How many items can the working memory store?
7 +/- 2
Neural plasticity
any change in the connectivity of the brain
Parietal lobe
associated with somatosensation
Which lobe is associated with attention?
frontal lobe
Temporal lobe
associated with memory and hearing
How can external validity be decreased?
1) limiting criteria to be selected for study
2) subjects’ awareness of being in a study
3) lab versus the real world
Parasomnias
abnormalities during sleep
Dysomnias
affect the total hours of sleep
Humanistic theory
intrinsic motivation
cognitive theory of motivation
motivation because you have successfully completed something in the past
zeitgebers
external factors that affect sleep
somatic symptom disorder
excessive preoccupation and anxiety regarding a real symptom
illness anxiety disorder
excessive worry about the possibility of having an illness
Weber’s ideal bureaucracy includes
hierarchy of authority, specialization, promotion based on effort, formal rules
otoliths
responsible for linear acceleration in ear
Semicircular canals
rotational acceleration
social interference
reduced performance due to the presence of others
Non-declarative memory
procedural, emotional and other unconscious memories
What test can measure attachment styles?
strange situations
Correspondence bias
another name for fundamental attribution error
Cross-sectional study
analyzes subsets of the population at a specific point in time
Behaviorist theory
focuses on the idea that all behaviors are learned from interaction with the environment
Spacing effect
long term memory is enhanced when learning events are spaced out
How to determine motivational state in operant conditioning?
deprive the subject
Partial report technique
method of testing memory in which only some of the total information presented is to be recalled.
Word association test
a test of personality and mental function in which the subject is required to respond to each of a series of words with the first word that comes to mind
Psychophysical discrimination testing
varying a physical stimulus slightly and observing the effect on a subject’s experience or behavior in order to better understand perceptual processing
Operational span testing
Test to see the general capacity of working memory tasks
Context effect
aspect of cognitive psychology that describes the influence of environmental factors on one’s perception of a stimulus
Feature detection
process by which the nervous system sorts or filters complex natural stimuli in order to extract behaviorally relevant cues that have a high probability of being important
Multistability
when an image can be perceived two or more ways and/or our perception of that image fluctuates
Where are the amygadalae located?
in the temporal lobe
one in each hemisphere
Incentive theory of motivation
calls attention to how factors outside of the individual, including community values and cultural aspects, can motivate behavior
Cultural capital
refers to knowledge, skills and education that are used to make social distinctions and are associated with differences in social status
Demographic transition theory
refers to changes in birth and death rates associated with economic development
begin with a drop in death rate and increase in birth rate
eventually both birth and death rates are low
Discriminatory stimuli
a type of stimulus commonly used in classical conditioning
use the stimulus to consistently gain a specific response
Positive punisher
a positive punisher decreases the likelihood of an event happening again
an aversive event happens that decreases the likelihood of another event from happening
Negative punisher
a negative punisher decreases the likelihood of an event happening again
a desired event is taken away
What type of cells are hair cells?
mechanoreceptors
How to study sympathetic nervous system arousal?
electrical conductivity of the skin
Behaviorist theory
can also focus on the role of reinforcement and punishment on behavior
Basic group dynamics of sociology
larger groups are considered more stable but less intimate than smaller groups
smaller groups are considered less stable but more initmate
fMRI
measures brain activity through detecting changes in blood flow
PET scan
radiolabel glucose to measure activity and structure
see where glucose metabolizes
EEG
measures a neuron’s electrical activity
CT
a less invasive technique than MRI for measuring structure
use X-rays to make cross sections to get image
When do sleep spindles and k-complexes appear?
in stage 2 of sleep
When do delta waves appear?
in stage 3 and 4 of sleep
Evolutionary perspective of human behavior
humans engage in behaviors to increase survival
When does stranger anxiety develop?
around 8 months
When do each of Piaget’s stages occur?
sensorimotor: 0-2
preoperational: 2-7
concrete operational: 7-12
formal operational: 13-adult
When does object permanence occur?
around 8 months
When does conservation develop?
concrete operational period
7-12 years
When is the child egocentric?
preoperational
When can you think abstractly?
formal operational
Interposition
a monocular depth cue that says that when one object is obscuring another, the one in front is said to be closer
Parallel processing
brain can process different forms of information at once
Accomodation
new information or experiences cause you to change your existing schemas
Place theory
places on the basilar membrane detect different sound frequencies
What is a characteristic of dissociative disorders?
selectively forgetting distracting elements of life
What do memory schemas do?
increase speed of recall/recognition
What is conflict theory commonly associated with?
resources, class stratification, and power
Analytical intelligence
the ability to analyze and evaluate ideas, solve problems and make decisionns
What does emotional intelligence allow people to do?
be self-aware and delay gratification/ not be overtaken by impulses
Escape learning versus avoidance learning
Escape learning: stimulus is already present and you stop it
Avoidance learning: avoid the stimulus even starting
How does CBT therapy work?
systematically modify a person’s behavior to address maladaptive behaviors
What does a functionalist look at?
utility/ function
manifest and latent functions
The Hawthorne effect
changes in research participant’s behavior as a result of their awareness that they are being observed
The Thomas theorem
if someone believes something to be real, then it is real in its consequences
What does counterbalancing control for?
controls for any effect that the order of presenting stimuli might have on the dependent variable
Priming and procedural memories are …
examples of implicit memories
Neuroleptics
the first antipsychotic drugs used to treat schizophrenia
What are the benefits and cons of neuroleptics?
Neuroleptics can treat the positive symptoms of schizophrenia
They can lead to cognitive dulling / more negative symptoms
General adaptation syndrome
alarm to resistance to exhaustion
the stress response is the same for different types of stressors
Dependent stressor
behavior causes negative life events
What type of information is the brain not able to parallel process?
novel information
Example of parallel processing
processing visual and spatial and temporal information
In which side of the brain is language processed?
the left side
Example of the foot in the door technique
signing a petition which then leads to supporting a cause in the future
Cognitive dissonance theory
when attitudes and behaviors do not align, you need to change either your attitude or behavior
more likely to change your attitude to match your behavior
Can you be in a group for it to be a reference group?
yes
Differences between operant and classical conditioning
operant conditioning involves a change in behavior
classical conditioning involves adding a reflex to a new stimuli
Does classical or operant conditioning increase the frequency of behavior?
operant
Script
organized actions appropriate to a familiar situation
Schema
cognitive framework that organizes ideas
What do you need to look at when determining how to rationalize a variable?
look at if the researchers want to determine cause or correlation
will tell you if you need to make an experiment or observational study
Retrograde memory
ability to remember information before a brain injury/point in time
Anterograde memory
ability to remember information after a brain injury
What does reticular activating system control?
awakeness
Exchange theory
addresses decision making cost-and-benefit analyses
individuals are motivated to engage in behaviors that produce rewards
What does the term “manifest” imply?
how does something actually happen / be seen in specific situations
Constructivism
the idea that people actively construct or make their own knowledge
reality is determined by experience
Do personality traits affect interpersonal attraction?
no
What three factors does SES include?
occupation, income and education
Dichotic listening task
presenting two different auditory messages one to each ear
PET scan
measures brain activity in specific regions by tracking glucose breakdown
Are peer groups a primary group?
yes
Social solidary
emphasizes interdependence between individuals in society
functionalists would look at this
NMDA
glutamate receptors
Self-verification
refers to seeking out info that is in line with one’s self concept
Discriminating stimuli
signal the availability of reinforcement or punishment
What does traditional behaviorist theory focus on?
actual outcomes that produced rewards or punishments
Incongruence
refers to the gap between someone’s actual and ideal self
Base rate fallacy
error people make when they ignore base rates / prior probabilities
Glass escalator
men who pursue occupations in female driven fields will be promoted quicker
Maladaptiveness criterion
takes into account whether an abnormal behavior interferes with life or is a threat to others
Schizophrenia and dopamine
people with schizophrenia have high dopamine levels
dopamine antagonists lower positive symptoms of schizophrenia
Bootstrapping
the initial stages of grammatical development
Overextension
term for applying a term of one class of objects to other objects that only bear a superficial resemblance
object of focus
used in retinal disparities
indicates a binocular depth cue
