AP PSYCHOLOGY MID TERM Flashcards
PET Scan
tracers are injected into the blood
CAT Scan
creates a computerized image of x-rays passed through various angles of the brain
MRI
sends pulses of radio waves through brain tisue, allowing computer to construct images
f-MRI
detects an increase in oxygen that occurs in an area of heightened neural activity
EEG
provides info about brains electrical activity (brain waves)
Afferent Neurons
carry impulses toward the CNS
Efferent Neurons
carry impulses away from the CNS
Dendrites
receive messages from other cells
axon
the extension of a neuron
terminal branches
messages pass to other neurons
myelin sheath
covers axon, speed neural impulses
action potential
the signal that travels down the neuron
resting potential
neuron that is not firing (at rest)
sodium potassium pump
what activates different impulses
all or none law
neurons either fire or they dont
refractory period
period of time after a nerve impulse where it cant refire
peripheral nervous system
links the CNS with the body’s sense receptors, muscles, and glands
central nervous system
brain and spinal cord
autonomic nervous system
PNS controls glands and muscles of the internal organs
somatic nervous system
the division of Peripheral nervous system that controls body’s skeletal muscles
sympathetic nervous system
division of autonomic nervous system that arouses the body
parasympathetic nervous system
the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body
amygdala
emotion
hypothalamus
maintenance functions and reward
thalamus
relays messages between lower brain centers and cerebral cortex
Broca’s area
speech
wernicke’s area
speech comprehension
hippocampus
memory
aphasia
impairment of language
plasticity
brain’s ability to adapt or something isn’t working
thyroid gland
in charge of growth and metabolism
gonads
reproductive organs that secrete hormones
Situational attributions vs. dispositional attributions
how someone acts in a certain situation vs their personality related to temperament
fundamental attribution error
witness someone act a certain way and thinking thats actually how they are
group polarization
the enhancement of a group’s prevailing attitudes through discussion within group
group think
the mode of thinking that occurs when the desire for harmony in a decision making group overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives
social facilitation
the mere presence of others can improve performance on well practiced tasks
deindividuation
impact of others on restraints to behavior, loss of individuality
social loafing
on group tasks, people exert less effort
bystander effect
the more people there are, the less likely that a bystander will intervene
cognitive dissonance
adjusts beliefs to match actions
just world phenomenon
good people get rewarded, bad people get punished
Social exchange theory
trying to help yourself, maximize benefits, minimize costs
sensation
to represent the world in head, we must detect physical energy from environment and encode it
perception
select, organize, and interpret sensations
absolute threshold
minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time
difference threshold
the minimum difference between 2 stimulus required for detection 50% of the time
Weber’s Law
to perceive a difference there must be a certain amount in proportion
signal detection theory
changes threshold depends on physical state and expectations
sensory adaptations
diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation
subliminal stimiulation
below our threshold of awareness
young-helmholz trichromatic color theory
everything is three colors
opponent process theory
we see opposite colors
gate control theory
letting in pain or not
opioid peptides
relaxants made by the body
kinesthetic system
communicates info about movement and location of body parts
vestibular system
balance and knowledge of body position
figure ground
we organize our visual field into objects that stand apart from surroundings
gestalt organization
organize a cluster of sensations to determine form as a whole
closure
fill in missing info
visual cliff
lab device used to perceive depth
selective attention
attention is only focused on one thing
parallel processing
brain can do several things simultaneously
bottom up processing
analysis that begins with the sense receptors and works up to brains integration of sensory info
top-down processing
information processing guided by higher-level mental processes
perceptual set
mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another
telepathy
mind-to-mind communication
clairvoyance
can perceive remote events
precognition
can perceive future events
rooting reflex
touch babies cheek and baby searches for nipple, shows instinct
teratogens
substances that cause birth defects
What are PIAGET’S stages?
sensory-motor
pre-operational
concrete-operation
formal-operations
assimilation
incorporating new experiences
accomodation
adjusting old framework to incorporate new experiences
object permanence
things continue to exist when they arent there
egocentrism
only can see things from their point of view
conservation
something remains same even when it looks different
authoritarian
parent is boss, impose rules, expect obedience
permissive
children have final say, make few demands, give into child
authoritative
demanding and responsive
What are Erikson’s stages?
trust vs. misturst autonomy vs. shame/doubt initiative vs. guilt industry vs. inferiority identity vs. role-confusion intimacy vs. isolation generativity vs. stagnation ego integrity vs. despair
What are Kohlberg’s Stages?
Preconventional: disobedience-punishment.
avoid puishment
further own interests
Conventional: approval seeking- rules are a duty
expectations of others
doing ones duty
Postconventional: laws are relative, laws can be changed, universal principles
universal and ethical principles
generalization
occurs when a Conditioned Response occurs to stimuli that are similar to Conditioned Stimulus
discrimination
occurs when stimuli similar to the Conditioned Stimulus does not produce a Conditioned Response
latent learning
learning that takes place before reinforcement is given
intrinsic motivation
desire to perform behavior for its own sake
extrinsic motivation
desire to perform a behavior of promised rewards or punishment
Pavlov
classical conditioning
Watson
behaviorism
psychology should be objective that studies behavior without reference to mental processes
Skinner
operant conditioning
Bandura
observational learning
