Chapter 1 Flashcards
Psychology
The scientific study of behavior and mental processes.
Behavior
Includes all of our outward or overt actions and reactions.
such as: talking, facial expressions, and movement.
Mental Processes
Refers to all the internal, covert (hidden) activity of our minds.
such as: thinking, feeling, and remembering.
What do psychologists use in order to avoid biases so they can be as precise as possible?
The scientific method.
What are the four goals of Psychology?
Description, Explanation, Prediction, and Control.
Description
Involves observing a behavior and noting everything about it.
WHAT IS HAPPENING? where it happens, whom it happens to, and under what circumstances it may seem to happen.
Explanation
WHY IS IT HAPPENING?
Very important step in the process of forming theories of behavior.
Theory
A general explanation of a set of observations or facts.
Prediction
Determining what will happen in the future.
WHEN WILL IT HAPPEN? Will it happen again?
Control
The modification of some behavior, is to change a behavior from an undesirable one to a desirable one.
HOW CAN IT BE CHANGED?
Wilhelm Wundt
Germany 1879. Believed that consciousness, the state of being aware of external events, could be broken down into thoughts, experiences, emotions, and other basic elements.
Objective Introspection
The process of objectively examining and measuring one’s own thoughts and mental activities.
Objectivity
Scientists need to remain unbiased. Observations need to be clear and precise, but unaffected by the individual observer’s beliefs and values.
Edward Titchener
Wundt’s student; brought structuralism to America.
Structuralism
An expansion on Wundt’s ideas;The study was the structure of the mind.
Every experience could be broken down into its individual emotions and sensations.
Died out in the early 1900’s.
Margaret Washburn
Titchener’s student; first woman to earn a PhD in psychology.
Published a book in 1908 on animal behavior that was considered an important work in the era of psychology, called The Animal Mind.
William James
Began by teaching anatomy and physiology at Harvard University.
Later had an interest in psychology and taught exclusively. His comprehensive textbook Principles of Psychology, is so brilliantly written that copies are still in print.
Believed that the scientific study of consciousness itself was not yet possible and was more interested in the importance of consciousness to everyday life rather than just its analysis.
Functionalism
How the mind allows people to adapt, live, work, and play.
Proposed by William James who was heavily influenced by Charles Darwin’s ideas about natural selection.
What modern fields were influenced by functionalism?
Educational Psychology, Evolutionary Psychology, and Industrial/organizational Psychology.
Educational Psychology
Studying the application of psychological concepts to education.
Industrial/Organizational Psychology
Studying the application of psychological concepts to businesses, organizations, and industry.
Max Wertheimer
Believed that psychological events such as perceiving and sensing could not be broken down into any smaller elements and still be properly understood.
Gestalt Psychology
“Good Figure”
Now part of the study of cognitive psychology.
“Gestalt”- german word meaning “an organized whole” or “configuration”
Cognitive Psychology
A field focusing not only on perception but also on learning, memory, thought processes, and problem solving.
Sigmund Freud
Was a neurologist, a medical doctor who specializes in disorders of the nervous system.
Proposed the idea of Psychoanalysis.
Stressed the importance of early childhood experiences.
Psychoanalysis
The theory and therapy bases on the work of Sigmund Freud.
Proposed that there is an unconscious (unaware) mind into which we push, or repress, all of our threatening urges and desires.
Believed that these repressed urges, in trying to surface, created nervous disorders.
Behaviorism
The science of behavior that focuses on observable behavior only. Must be directly seen and measured.
Proposed by John B Watson but based much from the work of Ivan Pavlov.
Phobia
Frued stated that an irrational fear, is really a symptom of an underlying, repressed conflict and cannot be “cured” with out years of psychoanalysis to uncover and understand the repressed material.
John B Watson believed that phobias are learned through a process of conditioning and set out to prove it.
“Little Albert”
Watson and Rosalie Rayner took a baby, known as “Little Albert,” and taught him to fear a white rat by making a loud, scary noise every time the infant saw the rat, until finally the rat caused the infant to cry and become fearful.
Little Albert was not afraid of the rat at the start, the experiment worked very well, because he later appeared to be afraid of other fuzzy things including a rabbit, a dog, and a sealskin coat.
Psychodynamic Perspective
Modern version of psychoanalysis.
The focus may still include the unconscious mind and its influence over conscious behavior and on childhood experiences, but with less of an emphasis on sex and sexual motivations and more emphasis on the development of a sense of self, social, and interpersonal relationships.
Sigmund Freud.
ex. major depression
Behavioral Perspective
Influence of learning;based on learning principles to understand behavior/mental process.
Behaviorism is a major perspective.
B.F Skinner (new leader) and John B Watson (primary supporter)
ex. a child who cries and is rewarded by getting his mother’s attention will cry again in the future.
Humanistic Perspective
Often called the “third force” in psychology, humanists held the view that people have free will, the freedom to choose their own destiny, and strive for self-actualization, the achievement of one’s full potential (the best person he or she could be).
Psychological growth and human potential.
Based on philosophy.
Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers.
Cognitive Perspective
Focuses on memory, intelligence, perception, problem solving, language and learning.
Includes a relatively new field called cognitive neuroscience.
ex. blowing a piece of life out of proportion
Sociocultural Perspective
Focuses on the relationship between social behavior and culture.
Reminds people that the way they and others behave (or even think) is influenced not only by whether they are alone, with friends, or with a crowd but also by social norms,class differences, and ethnic identities.
ex. culture doesn’t allow you to grow
Biopsychological Perspective
Human and animal behavior (biological events) is seen as a direct result of events in the body (behavior/mental processes).
Hormones, heredity, brain chemicals, tumors, and diseases are some of the biological causes of behavior and mental events.
ex. chemical imbalance- seratonin
Evolutionary Perspective
Focuses on the biological bases of universal and mental characteristics that all humans share.
Seeks to explain general mental strategies ( the way the mind works and why it works as it does) and traits, such as why we lie, how attractiveness influences mate selection, and why we fear certain things.
Behavior/mental processes seen as having an adaptive or survival value.
Cognitive Neuroscience
Includes the study of the physical workings of the brain and nervous system when engaged in memory, thinking, and other cognitive processes.
Use tools for imaging the structure and activity of the living brain.
Psychiatrist
A medical doctor (M.D, D.O)who is specialized in the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders.
Can write prescriptions.
Psychoanalyst
A psychiatrist or a psychologist who has a social training in theories of Sigmund Freud and his method of psychoanalysis.
Psychiatric Social Worker
A social worker (MSW, LCSW) with training in therapy methods who focuses on the environmental conditions that can have an impact on mental disorders, such as poverty, overcrowding, stress, and drug abuse.
Psychologist
A professional with no medical training but has a doctorate degree (Ph.D, PsyD, M.A) who can do counseling, teaching, and research and may specialize in any one of a large number of areas within psychology.
Areas of specialization in psychology include clinical, counseling, developmental, social, and personality, among others.
Until the ______’s, psychology was principally a profession made up of ______ ______.
1960’s, white males
Today, women earn _____ of bachelor’s degrees in psychology, and 66% of new ________.
73%, doctorates
The Scientific Method
System of gathering data so that bias and error in measurement are reduced.
Steps in the Scientific Method
- Perceive the questions.
- Form a hypothesis- tentative explanation of a phenomenon based on observations.
- Test the hypothesis.
- Draw conclusions.
- Report your results so that others can try to replicate*.
* repeat the study of experiment to see if the same results will be obtained in an effort to demonstrate reliability of results.
Naturalistic Observation
Watching animals or humans behave in their normal environment.
Advantage: Realistic picture of behavior.
Disadvantages:
- Observer effect
- Participant observation
- Observer bias
- Blind observers
- Each naturalistic setting is unique and observations may not hold.
Laboratory Observation
Watching animals or humans behave in a laboratory setting;
Advantages: Control over environment and allows use of specialized equipment.
Disadvantages: Artificial situation that may result in artificial behavior.
Case Study
Study of one individual in great detail
Advantage: tremendous amount of detail.
Disadvantage: cannot apply to others.
Famous case study: Phineas Gage.
Observer Effect
Tendency of people or animals to behave differently from normal when they know they are being observed.
Participant Observation
A naturalistic observation in which the observer becomes a participant in the group being observed (to reduce observer effect).
Observer Bias
Tendency of observers to see what they expect to see.
Blind Observers
people who do not know what the research question is (to reduce observer bias).
Surveys
Researchers will ask a series of questions about the topic under study.
Given to a representative sample - randomly selected sample of subjects from a larger population of subjects.
Advantages:
- Data from large numbers of people.
- Study covert behaviors.
Disadvantages:
- Have to ensure representative sample (or results not meaningful).
- People are not always accurate (courtesy bias).
Population
The entire group of people or animals in which the researcher is interested.
Correlation
A measure of the relationship between two variables.
Variable
Anything that can change or vary.
Measures of two variables go into a mathematical formula and produce a correlation coefficient, which represents two things: direction of the relationship. and strength of the relationship.
Knowing the value of one variable allows researchers to predict the value of the other variable.
Correlation Coefficient
Ranges from -1.00 to +1.00
Closer to the variables +1.00 or -1.00, the stronger the relationship between the variables
- No correlation = 0.0.
- Perfect correlation = -1.00 OR +1.00
- Positive correlation – variables are related in the same direction (As one increases, the other increases; as one decreases, the other decreases.)
- Negative correlation – variables are related in opposite direction. (As one increases, the other decreases.)
CORRELATION DOES NOT PROVE
CAUSATION!
Experiment
A deliberate manipulation of a variable to see if corresponding changes in behavior result, allowing the determination of cause-and-effect relationships.
Operational Definition
Definition of a variable of interest that allows it to be directly measured.
Specifically names the operations (steps or procedures) that the experimenter must use to control or measure the variables in the experiment.
Independent Variable
(IV) - variable in an experiment that is manipulated by the experimenter.
Dependent Variable
(DV) - variable in an experiment that represents the measurable response or behavior of the subjects in the experiment.
Experimental Group
Subjects in an experiment who are subjected to the independent variable.
Control Group
Subjects in an experiment who are not subjected to the independent variable and who may receive a placebo treatment (controls for
confounding variables).
Random Assignment
Process of assigning subjects to the experimental or control groups randomly, so that each subject has an equal chance of being in either group.
Controls for confounding (extraneous, interfering) variables.
Placebo Effect
The phenomenon in which the expectations of the participants in a study can influence their behavior.
Single-Blind Study
Subjects do not know if they are in the experimental or the control group (reduces placebo effect).
Experimenter Effect
Tendency of the experimenter’s expectations for a study to unintentionally influence
the results of the study.
Double-Blind Study
Neither the experimenter nor the subjects knows if the subjects are in the experimental or control group (reduces
placebo effect and experimenter effect).
Quasiexperimental Designs
Not considered true experiments because of the inability to randomly assign participants to the experimental and control groups (for example, if age
is the variable of interest).
Ethics Committees
Groups of psychologists or other professionals who look over each proposed research study and judge it according to its safety and consideration for the participants in the study.
Common Ethical Guidelines
- Rights and well-being of participants must be weighed against the
study’s value to science. - Participants must be allowed to make an informed decision about participation.
- Deception must be justified.
- Participants may withdraw from the study at any time.
- Participants must be protected from risks or told explicitly of risks.
- Investigator must debrief participants, telling the true nature of the study and expectations of results.
7. Data must remain confidential.
Ethics in Psychological Research
-Animal research – answers questions we could never do with human research.
-Focus is on avoiding exposing them to unnecessary pain or suffering.
-Animals are used in approximately 7% of psychological studies.
Critical Thinking
Making reasoned judgements about claims.
Four Basic Criteria of Critical Thinking
- There are very few ―truths‖ that do not need to be
subjected to testing. - All evidence is not equal in quality.
- Just because someone is considered to be an authority or to have a lot of expertise does not make everything that person claims automatically true.
4. Critical thinking requires an open mind.
Pseudopsychologies
Systems of explaining human behavior that are not based on or consistent with scientific evidence.
Phrenology
Reading bumps on the skull.
Palmistry
Reading bumps on the skull.
Graphology
Analysis of personality through hand-writing.
Humanistic psychologists believe that:
Select one:
a. people are basically good and will generally strive to achieve positive social goals.
b. psychologists should study only objective events such as stimuli and behaviors.
c. humans are basically destructive and must constantly fight negative impulses.
d. none of the above
A
A researcher wished to study the relationship between high school grades and college grades. Of the following research methods, which would be the most appropriate?
Select one:
a. correlation
b. case study
c. survey
d. experiment
A
Steve, a college sophomore, is seeing a psychologist because of his intense fear of people. His counselor feels that Steve’s fear is a product of unresolved conflicts about his parents, and his childhood experiences with them. Steve’s therapist is most characteristic of which school of psychology?
a. Gestalt
b. behaviorism
c. psychoanalytic
d. humanistic
C
Mr. Marshall hired June to collect data from a group of subjects. Neither June nor the subjects were aware of the independent variable that Mr. Marshall had manipulated. This is an example of ________.
a. a placebo
b. double-blind control
c. randomization
d. experimenter bias
B
A researcher, based on her review of relevant scientific studies, believes that there is a relationship between the frequency of a baby’s crying and whether it was nursed at set intervals or on a demand schedule. If this belief were tested by experimentally manipulating feeding schedules, the feeding schedule would be called the:
a. dependent variable.
b. independent variable.
c. control factors.
d. extraneous variable.
B
A large group of people whom you want to know about is called a ________.
a. control group
b. treatment group
c. sample
d. population
D
Psychology:
a. has goals of describing, predicting, and explaining events.
b. is a science of behavior.
c. has an applied side.
d. all of the above
D
Experimenter bias can best be controlled using ________.
a. double-blind control
b. subjects who do not know the purpose of the study
c. a placebo
d. randomization
A
In an experiment, a researcher manipulates one variable to see how it affects a second variable. The manipulated variable is called the:
a. experimental variable.
b. placebo.
c. dependent variable.
d. independent variable.
D
An experiment was run in which group A was given 3 minutes to study a word list, while group B was given 10 minutes to study the same list. Later, both groups were asked to recall words from the list. In this study, the number of words recalled is the ________.
a. control group
b. placebo
c. dependent variable
d. independent variable
C
As a science, psychology is approximately how old?
a. 125 years
b. 175 years
c. 2500 years since the field dates back to the ancient Greeks
d. 50 years
A
Collecting objective data without interference in the subject’s normal environment is associated with ________.
a. laboratory research
b. naturalistic observation
c. applied research
d. survey research
B
In an experiment, a researcher manipulates one variable to see how it affects a second variable. The manipulated variable is called the ________.
a. independent variable
b. hypothetical variable
c. dependent variable
d. control variable
A
Watson is to behaviorism as ________ is to psychoanalysis.
a. James
b. Wundt
c. Freud
d. Skinner
C
Which of the following is NOT a strength of the experiment as a research method?
a. Experimental conditions usually seem realistic to subjects.
b. Cause-and-effect relationships can be established.
c. Variables can be analyzed carefully because of the degree of control over them.
d. Experiments can usually be replicated if the findings are valid.
A
In an experiment, a researcher manipulates one variable to see how it affects a second variable. The second variable, which is observed for any possible effects, is called the ________.
a. control variable
b. dependent variable
c. hypothetical variable
d. independent variable
B
Cognitive psychology is contributing to the development of ________, which attempts to make computers learn and solve problems the way people do.
a. forensic psychology
b. artificial intelligence
c. virtual reality
d. educational technology
B
Which of the following is a strength of experiments?
a. They allow us to draw definitive conclusions about behavior in the natural environment based on subjects’ behavior in the laboratory.
b. They allow for the establishment of cause-effect relationships.
c. They are not subject to demand characteristics since the subjects do not know they are being observed.
d. They cannot be repeated by anyone other than the experimenter.
B
Wertheimer was associated with ________ psychology.
a. functionalist
b. psychoanalytic
c. existential
d. Gestalt
D
A “fake treatment” is one way to define a ________.
a. control group
b. demand characteristic
c. decoy
d. placebo
D
One of the main reasons for using a laboratory for psychological research is to:
a. do large-scale studies.
b. allow the researchers to control certain factors.
c. prevent subjects from escaping.
d. study behavior in a natural setting.
B
Titchener was a member of the ________ school of thought.
a. structuralists
b. behaviorist
c. reductionist
d. functionalist
A
Which of the following is NOT associated with Gestalt psychology?
a. James
b. Koffka
c. Kohler
d. Wertheimer
A
Structuralism emphasizes ________.
a. the influence of subconscious urges on conscious behavior
b. the basic units of experience and their combinations
c. individual differences
d. the application of biological principles to the mind
B
A correlation tells us:
a. if people are responding to demand characteristics.
b. whether two variables are related
c. whether a cause-effect relationship exists.
d. whether or not a test is efficient.
B
The first psychology laboratory was opened by ________.
a. Wundt
b. Titchener
c. Watson
d. James
A
Almost all research done in psychology is analyzed ________.
a. at the .1 level
b. visually
c. statistically
d. using correlational techniques
C
