Chapter 1 & 2 Flashcards
What was the focus of early psychology?
What was the focus of contemporary psychology?
- Mental life, such as inner sensations, images and feelings (internal mental processes) *INTROSPECTION
- Observable behavior, such as natural selection of adaptive traits and responses to the environment. *NATURE VS. NURTURE
What does the neuroscience prospective emphasize?
How the body and brain enable emotions, memories, and sensory experiences
What is the distinct feature of psychodynamic perspective?
Relates to the conscious and unconscious mental processes which govern an individuals behavior
Define contemporary psychology as a science.
Psychology is the science of behavior and the mental processes
Identify clinical psychologists’ specialization.
To asses and treat mental, emotional, and behavior disorders
What does hindsight bias refer to?
Give an example.
AKA “I knew it all along phenomenon” Because something happened it seems inevitable and obvious that it would have happened before it happened.
What is hypothesis?
Give an example.
Hypothesis is a good theory that produces testable predictions.
ex. People with low-self esteem will score higher on the depression scale.
What does an operational definition do?
Give an example.
Checks the psychologist bias, insures the experiment can be replicated by other researchers.
ex. a definition of “love” so it can be compared to…
What is correlational research for?
Give an example.
Tests for statistical relationships between two variables
ex. correlation between smoking and being pregnant
Define correlation.
Give an example of two variables that correlate with each other.
The statistical measurement between two variables.
ex. as the height gets taller, the shoe size gets bigger.
Why use experiments?
To generate data, make observations, analyze data to solve problems, determine the unknown, and to find cause & effect relationship.
What is an experimental group?
How is it different from a control condition/group?
- It is exposed to the conditions of the experiment
- The control group is not exposed to the conditions of the experiment.
What is the function of dendrites?
Branchlike extensions at the beginning of the neuron, help increase surface area of the cell body for receiving signals from other neurons and transmits electrical stimulations to soma.
Describe the axon.
Elongated fiber that extends from neuron. Electrical pulses that transmit info and conducts other neurons, muscles, and glands.
What is a synapse?
The junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron.
